English afternoon tea originated in17th century, which was the salon culture of ladies at first, and then gradually extended to the common people. I have tried this kind of afternoon tea several times, and the accent is there. But in detail, I lack a little charm, and the choice of tea is relatively monotonous, basically black tea or fruit tea. In fact, as the birthplace of tea, China people's tea culture originated earlier and was much more particular.
It is called tea because the earliest tea was really used for eating. Before the Tang Dynasty, sesame, salt, melon seeds, peach kernels and other condiments were generally added to tea. Only from Lu Yu, in order to taste the real fragrance of tea, was it proposed to cook tea without seasoning. From then on, tea and food were separated, so there was a special tea food. Tea and food culture has a long history, which was first seen in Shi Shuo Xin Yu and Xiao Di Pian: "When Taifu Jin and Chu Chu crossed the river, although they were famous for their heavy names, they didn't know each other at first. Don't worry about more tea juice and less jiaozi. " There are various forms of tea banquet, such as replacing wine with tea and drinking between flowers; There is also a celebration of the first harvest of new tea and a good taste; There are also lectures in Zen forest or tea banquets with tribute tea at court. With the fragrance of tea, tea food is usually light pasta and fruit, but there are also many kinds. The Japanese "Song of Zen Forest" records the tea food in the Tang Dynasty: "Crystal steamed stuffed bun (made in Ge Fen), donkey sausage soup (resembling donkey sausage), red soup refined with water, turtle soup, fresh soup, inch gold soup, fish soup ...". Qian Qi, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, wrote in "Tea Banquet with Zhao Ju": "If you forget to say purple tea under the bamboo, all the guests will be drunk. The dust is hard to wash, and the shadows of the trees are oblique. " , it truly records the pleasure and elegance of the tea banquet in the Tang Dynasty. After the development of Song, Ming and Qing dynasties, tea has become a unique food culture, with thousands of varieties, and has developed into local customs and delicacies in different regions, among which Yunnan tea, Yibin and Guangdong morning tea are the most famous.
Today, tea is still one of the seven necessities for China people to open the door, but our attention to tea is not like that of the ancients. On the one hand, everyone is too busy to make those tea fruits. Secondly, after years of cultural catastrophe and state management, tea culture has been revived in recent years, and tea food is the icing on the cake, and it is gradually valued as the composition of tea seats. Some tea banquets combined with traditional culture are refreshing. I have seen a tea banquet with the theme of 24 solar terms. Match different teas according to the 24 solar terms, and each tea needs to match different teas. What impressed me the most were jasmine tea spring cakes in early spring, Longjing summer eggs in long summer, Dahongpao beef lotus root soup in early autumn and Pu 'er tea dumplings in early winter. All the collocation, besides considering the taste and color, also according to the seasonal changes, taking into account the deficiency of yin and yang of the human body, grow naturally in time. This kind of tea banquet means tasting tea, enjoying tea sets and pondering China's philosophy.
Taoism, which learns from nature, pays attention to nourishing qi when drinking tea, and is very particular about choosing tea. I have a Taoist friend who has developed the Six-Pulse Tea. It is said that choosing different tea leaves according to the law of qi pulse operation in different periods of the human body can help the qi pulse balance to be smooth and achieve the effect of keeping healthy and practicing qi. For example, drink green tea in the morning, get through the bladder meridian and get through the sun pulse; Drinking black tea at the end of the day is helpful for stomach operation and dredging shaoyang pulse. Similarly, the matched teas should have the same or complementary functions. When drinking green tea, it can be paired with lotus seeds, coix seed cakes, osmanthus and peach kernels. It has the effect of eliminating dampness and diuresis; Drinking black tea with nuts such as melon seeds and walnuts is a good choice; You can drink yellow tea for lunch and black tea with sweet and sour preserves in the afternoon. But in general, Taoist tea drinking does not recommend more tea, which will confuse tea.
Indeed, there are many kinds of tea, such as red, green, blue, white, black and yellow. Tea food can also be divided into fresh fruit, nuts, noodles, flowers, meat and so on. It looks very complicated. How do we ordinary people drink tea with tea? There is a simple folk formula: "Sweet with green, sour with red, melon seeds with oolong". The so-called sweet with green: that is, sweet with green tea, such as using various cookies, pineapple cake and other green tea; Sour with red: sour food with black tea, such as fruit, lemon slices and candied fruit with black tea; Melon seed oolong: salty food with oolong tea, such as melon seeds, peanuts and olives with oolong tea. Of course, it is more convenient to remember some taboos. For example, jasmine tea should not be mixed with other tea foods that are too fragrant, such as nuts, fruits and flowers. To avoid affecting their own fragrance; Don't eat too spicy or irritating food when drinking tea, and try not to choose too greasy snacks. These words are taboo, but they are common sense and easy to remember and operate.
After all, tea is about freedom, leisure and elegance. Besides the formal teahouse, what's wrong with drinking alone or with friends? As long as you like it and look beautiful, eating together is good for both body and mind. It is said that Lu You's favorite tea is duck feet, so it should have a special taste, right?