Tradition By The Teacup
Around the world, tea is a significant part of many cultures, second only to water in its popularity as a beverage. Its importance extends far beyond quenching thirst; tea also supplies opportunities for reflection, hospitality and the expression of gratitude, to name just a few of its roles.
Most tea is produced in China, India, Sri Lanka and Kenya, and it all originates from the Camellia sinensis plant. The level of oxidation is one key factor that decides the type of tea. For example, green tea is not oxidized; oolong tea is partially oxidized; and black tea, such as English breakfast tea, is oxidized for up to four hours. So the more the oxidation, the stronger the flavor.
Sip a cup of your favorite tea as we explore tea traditions from six countries, encompassing different varietals, as well as etiquette, philosophy and, occasionally, snacks.
CHINESE WEDDING CEREMONIES
China was the original producer of tea, and its history and culture go back thousands of years. Tea “carried 5,000 years of civilization,” says Chinese tea maker Lin Zhou Chong. No pressure, then, to describe it here in a couple of paragraphs!
Tea culture spread across China starting in the Tang Dynasty (618– 906) and flourished during the Song Dynasty (960–1279). As Bret Hinch notes in his book The Rise of Tea Culture in China: The Invention of the Individual, the Song Dynasty equivalent of a Renaissance man was one who has mastered the game Go (weiqi), the zither, calligraphy, painting, shi and qu poetry, and tea. By the Ming Dynasty (1368– 1644), tea preparation resembled the same methods we use today.
One still-common example of a Chinese tea ceremony takes place during a traditional Chinese marriage ceremony. Its roots may go as far back as the Tang Dynasty, when an early record of tea ceremonies records Tang Princess Wencheng’s marriage to Tibetan Emperor Songtsen Gampo.
On their wedding day, the bride and groom serve tea to both their families, including parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. It is an opportunity for an intimate, reflective moment before the larger ceremony, and allows the people getting married to express their gratitude and respect to their families. It also symbolizes the union of the two families.
JAPANESE TEA RITUAL
Chado, the way of tea, is a formalized ritual for drinking tea in Japan steeped in Zen Buddhism. Central to the ceremony is the 37-step preparation and serving of tea, as well as the environment, including gardens outside the tearoom—the intimate, tatami-mat-lined room where the tea is served amid such decorations as calligraphy and flower arrangements.
Guests kneel on the tatami mats while the host, who has likely trained for many years, conducts the ceremony, which lasts anywhere from 45 minutes to several hours. While some ceremonies may include a meal, at a minimum wagashi (a traditional Japanese sweet that often has an intricate design) and matcha (powdered green tea) are served. True to its Buddhist roots, the goal is to be present in all aspects of the experience.
Three Buddhist monks had an outsized influence on chado. Murata Shukō (1423–1502) advocated for the simple, spare aesthetic that still characterizes the ceremony. Takeno Jōō (1502–1555) brought wabi, the concept of “pure and rustic beauty” to tea drinking. His disciple, Sen no Rikyū (1522–1591) codified still-used guidelines for the ceremony, as well as for architecture and landscaping. Notably, he lowered the entrance to the tea hut so that all who entered had to bow, symbolizing equality among participants regardless of social class.
However, it would take until the late 19th century before women were included in the ceremony. Today women are central to preserving chado, making up the majority of tea ceremony teachers and students.
RUSSIAN TEA SAMOVARS
The literature of the Russian greats is littered with references to samovars, decorative metal urns used to boil water for tea. The samovar was invented in the Siberian town of Tula during the mid-1700s and is the center of the tea culture that took hold in Russia in the late 19th century as tea drinking spread across all classes.
Taking tea is an informal, leisurely affair known as chainichat (passing time over tea), often taking place in private homes with friends and family. In Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace, samovars supply refreshments at a society ball, merriment to soldiers during an otherwise miserably inclement night during the War of 1812 and anguish for a family that must leave their heirloom samovar behind during the evacuation of Moscow.
Tea, zavarka, is poured from a pot into glasses with decorative metal holders, and guests may dilute it to their tastes with water from the samovar. A jam of syrup and whole berries is used to sweeten the tea, either by adding it directly to the cup or taking sips of tea and syrup in succession.
Alternatively, it is entirely polite for guests to hold a cube of sugar between their teeth and sip their tea, an approach that sounds fun to execute even if the mechanics seemingly present a high risk of faux pas.
ENGLISH AFTERNOON TEA
English afternoon tea of the American imagination—think tiered trays of dainty crustless sandwiches, scones, cakes, tea and maybe even a glass of champagne—dates back to the early 19th century. The Duchess of Bedford, Anna Maria Russell—friend to Queen Victoria—decided she needed something to tide her over between lunch (generally served at noon) and dinner, served no earlier than 7:30pm. The habit stuck, and the Duchess soon began inviting friends to join her.
Afternoon tea is served around 3pm or 4pm and is an elegant affair. There is usually an elaborate menu of teas to choose from, akin to a wine list, followed by a succession of savory and sweet treats. Traditional fillings for those crustless sandwiches include egg and cress, smoked salmon, and cucumber, though more contemporary afternoon teas may include plant-based options.
You’ll be hard-pressed to find afternoon tea happening outside of the fancy hotels and restaurants of England, but the daily ritual of “elevens” is alive and well in workplaces and homes around Britain and in parts of Latin America. It is, as the name implies, a break at 11am for a cup of tea and a snack.
MOROCCAN MINT TEA
In Morocco, mint tea, known as touareg, is part of daily hospitality as well as celebrations of births, weddings, deaths and religious holidays. The ceremony is deeply ingrained in Moroccan culture and refusing an invitation to tea is a cause for great offense.
While the origin of tea in Morocco is uncertain, the use of spearmint is sometimes attributed to the indigenous Berber people. Other key ingredients in touareg are strong green tea (known as gunpowder) and sugar.
The ritual includes three rounds of tea served from an ornate teapot known as a berrad. The tea is poured theatrically from a height of at least a foot into glass cups, a method that expresses respect to guests and aerates the tea. In return, guests slurp rather than sip as an expression of appreciation.
AMERICAN ICED TEA
Tea in colonial America got off to a shaky start—think Boston Tea Party. Still, drinking hot tea was popular, and that only began to change with the commercial availability of ice in the 19th century.
Early incarnations of iced tea were often boozy punches diluted with tea. The first nonalcoholic iced tea recipes were published in the late 1800s, and the drink really took off after it was served at the sweltering 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis.
Prohibition, from 1920–1933, and the rising popularity of refrigerators and freezers in the home around the same time sealed iced tea’s place in America’s beverage canon. (This wasn’t the first time temperance influenced the popularity of drinking tea: Buddhist monks in China promoted tea for the same reasons.)
Today, according to the Tea Association of the U.S.A., approximately 75–80% of tea drunk in America is iced, which differentiates American tea consumption from other countries around the world. While most of this is black tea, that wasn’t always the case. Until World War II, Americans drank both green and black tea.
Green tea was primarily supplied from China and Japan, and trade with those countries stopped during the war. Americans switched to drinking black teas from India supplied by Britain, and the habit stuck.
Despite its popularity, America doesn’t have tea ceremonies akin to those described in the above countries. However, an invitation for a glass of sweet tea on a front porch is arguably a time-honored tradition of Southern hospitality.
