thanks for your post
I want to share some more:
The proportion of tea leaves to water also depends on the kind of tea leaves used. The teapot may be filled from one-quarter to three-quarters full with tea leaves, depending mainly on how tightly curled the tea leaves are as a result of the rolling and roasting processes. The teapot is then filled with water. Steeping time starts at one minute, but varies from tea to tea. The time required for subsequent brews from the same leaves must be proportionally lengthened. The best kind of teapot to use for most fermented teas is a purple clay ceramic pot. The size of the pot should be in correct proportion to the size of the cups. Ideally, the cups should have white interiors, to facilitate accurate assessment of the color of the tea.
People enamored of tea drinking also usually enjoy the beauty and feel of teapots. Small teapots are used to steep tea (in the "kung fu" steeping method) in most homes in the Taiwan today. This particular method has been passed down to the present day from the days of Ming Dynasty Emperor Shen Tsung in 16th century China, so it boasts a 400-year history. The full aroma and sweetness of the tea can be brought out when using a small teapot to steep tea. During the Ming (1368-1644) and Ch'ing (1644-1911) dynasties, the purple clay ceramic teapots of Yihsing, Kiangsu were the most famous. Any pieces made by a master potter are sought after everywhere, and are worth their weight in gold. While master potters in the Taiwan continue to produce traditional purple clay ceramic teapots, they have also developed a number of creative new teapot designs which have received enthusiastic public response. Collecting teapots has become a fashionable pastime.
Tea is China's national drink. Tea contains vitamins, tea derivatives, essential oils, and fluoride. It is a diuretic, attributed with the properties of improving the eyesight and increasing alertness, so Chinese believe that frequent tea drinkers enjoy an increased life span. Its medical properties and benefits to the human body have in fact been scientifically proven, and tea has come to be generally recognized as a natural health food.
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Laos« Last edit by
fan123 on Wed Sep 29, 2010 8:50 am. »