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Gaiwan
A (; ) or () is a Chinese lidded bowl without a handle, used for the infusion of tea leaves and the consumption of tea. It was invented during the Ming dynasty. It consists of a bowl, a lid, and a saucer. History Prior to the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), tea was normally consumed from the vessel in which it was prepared. As described by the tea master Lu Yu, this special bowl had to be large enough to accommodate the implements and actions of tea brewing, though compact enough to be held comfortably in the hands for consumption. The term for this versatile piece of equipment was (; lit. 'tea bowl'). It was during the Ming dynasty that the innovations in both tea ritual and tea preparation gave rise to the gaiwan. Design Gaiwans are made up of three parts: a saucer, a bowl, and a lid. They can be made from a variety of materials, including porcelain and glass. Gaiwans made from Yixing clay or jade are particularly prized by collectors of tea paraphernalia. They are ty ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chawan
A ''chawan'' (; literally "tea bowl") is a bowl used for preparing and drinking tea. Many types of ''chawan'' are used in East Asian tea ceremonies. The choice of their use depends upon many considerations. History The ''chawan'' originated in China. The earliest ''chawan'' in Japan were imported from China between the 13th and the 16th centuries. The ''Jian chawan'', a Chinese tea bowl known as '' Tenmoku chawan'' in Japan, was the preferred tea bowl for the Japanese tea ceremony until the 16th century. In Japan, tea was also mainly drunk from this Chinese variety of tea bowls until about the 15th century. The Japanese term ''tenmoku'' is derived from the name of the Tianmu Mountain, where Japanese priests acquired these tea bowls from Chinese temples to bring back to Japan, according to tradition. An 11th-century resident of Fujian wrote about the Jian tea wares: : By the end of the Kamakura period (1185–1333), as the custom of tea drinking spread throughout Japan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steeping
Steeping is the soaking of an organic solid, such as leaves, in a liquid (usually water) to extract flavours or to soften it. The specific process of teas being prepared for drinking by leaving the leaves in heated water to release the flavour and nutrients is known as steeping. Herbal teas may be prepared by decoction, infusion, or maceration. Some solids are soaked to remove an ingredient, such as salt, where the solute is not the desired product. Corn One example is the steeping of corn (or maize), part of the milling process. As described by the US Corn Refiners Association, harvested kernels of corn are cleaned and then steeped in water at a temperature of for 30 to 40 hours. In the process their moisture content rises from 15% to 45% and their volume more than doubles. The gluten bonds in the corn are weakened and starch is released. The corn is then ground to break free the germ and other components, and the water used (steepwater), which has absorbed various nutrien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Craig Clunas
Alistair Craig Clunas (born 1 December 1954 in Aberdeen, Scotland) is Professor Emeritus of History of Art at the University of Oxford. As a historian of the art and history of China, Clunas has focused particularly on the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644). Life Clunas attended Aberdeen Grammar School from 1959 to 1972, which was followed by a Diploma with Distinction in spoken and written modern Chinese from the Peking Languages Institute in Beijing. He next majored in Chinese Studies at the University of Cambridge as an undergraduate, graduating with a BA (First Class Honours) in 1977 and afterwards went to the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at the University of London where he wrote his PhD dissertation on ''Injanasi's "Nigen Dabqur Asar": a Sino-Mongolian novel of the 19th century'' (completed 1983) under the supervision of Charles Bawden. Clunas began his scholarly career at the Victoria and Albert Museum, where for 15 years he was on the curatorial staff and was r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Porcelain
Chinese ceramics show a continuous development since Chinese Neolithic, pre-dynastic times and are one of the most significant forms of Chinese art and ceramics globally. The first pottery was made during the List of Palaeolithic sites in China, Palaeolithic era. Chinese ceramics range from construction materials such as bricks and tiles, to hand-built pottery vessels fired in bonfires or kilns, to the sophisticated Chinese porcelain wares made for the imperial court and for export. Porcelain was a Chinese invention and is so identified with China that it is still called "china" in everyday English usage. Most later Chinese ceramics, even of the finest quality, were made on an industrial scale, thus few names of individual potters were recorded. Many of the most important kiln workshops were owned by or reserved for the emperor, and large quantities of Chinese export porcelain were exported as diplomatic gifts or for trade from an early date, initially to East Asia and the Islam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teaware
Teaware is a broad international spectrum of equipment used in the brewing and consumption of tea. Many components make up that spectrum, and vary greatly based upon the type of tea being prepared, and the cultural setting in which it is being prepared. This is often referred to as the ''tea ceremony,'' and holds much significance in many cultures, particularly in northwestern Europe and in eastern Asia. A complete, cohesive collection of tea ware makes up a tea set. Components Alternatives / Others * Mug, instead of tea cup *Coffee cup, instead of tea cup * Chawan, tea bowl from East Asia *Chaki, the caddy for matcha * Japanese tea utensils, used in their tea ceremonies *Tea draining tray, for the Gongfu tea ceremony Construction Tea equipment may be constructed of many materials, from iron in Japan to porcelain and clay in China, and also bamboo and other woods. Of particular repute are the Yixing clay teapots produced in eastern China, a type of Yixing ware. The B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Tea
Tea is a beverage made from the leaves of tea plants (''Camellia sinensis'') and boiled water. Tea leaves are processed using traditional Chinese methods. Chinese tea is consumed throughout the day, including during meals, as a substitute for plain water, well-being or for simple pleasure. If medicine and tea are combined, people can also drink tea to cure diseases. History The practice of drinking tea has a long history in China, having originated there. Although tea originated in China, during the Tang Dynasty, Chinese tea generally represents tea leaves which have been processed using methods inherited from ancient China. According to legend, tea was discovered by Chinese Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 BC when a leaf from a nearby shrub fell into water the emperor was boiling. Tea is deeply woven into the history and culture of China. The beverage is considered one of the seven necessities of Chinese life, along with firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce and vinegar. Chi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oolong
Oolong (, ; (''wūlóngchá'', "dark dragon" tea)) is a traditional semi-oxidized Chinese tea ('' Camellia sinensis)'' produced through a process including withering the plant under strong sun and oxidation before curling and twisting.Zhongguo Chajing pp. 222–234, 271–282, 419–412, chief editor: Chen Zhongmao, publisher: Shanghai Wenhua Chubanshe (Shanghai Cultural Publishers) 1991. Most oolong teas, especially those of fine quality, involve unique tea plant cultivars that are exclusively used for particular varieties. The degree of oxidation, which varies according to the chosen duration of time before firing, can range from 8 to 85%, depending on the variety and production style. Oolong is especially popular in south China and among ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia as is the Fujian preparation process known as the Gongfu tea ceremony. Different styles of oolong tea can vary widely in flavor. They can be sweet and fruity with honey aromas, or woody and thick with roast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Tea
White tea may refer to one of several styles of tea which generally feature young or minimally processed leaves of the '' Camellia sinensis'' plant. Currently there is no generally accepted definition of white tea and very little international agreement; some sources use the term to refer to tea that is merely dried with no additional processing, some to tea made from the buds and immature tea leaves picked shortly before the buds have fully opened and allowed to wither and dry in natural sun, while others include tea buds and very young leaves which have been steamed or fired before drying. Most definitions agree, however, that white tea is not rolled or oxidized, resulting in a flavor characterized as "lighter" than most green or traditional black teas. In spite of its name, sweet, brewed white tea is pale yellow. Its name derives from the fine silvery-white hairs on the unopened buds of the tea plant, which give the plant a whitish appearance. The unopened buds are used ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Green Tea
Green tea is a type of tea that is made from '' Camellia sinensis'' leaves and buds that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process which is used to make oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China, and since then its production and manufacture has spread to other countries in East Asia. Several varieties of green tea exist, which differ substantially based on the variety of ''C. sinensis'' used, growing conditions, horticultural methods, production processing, and time of harvest. The two main components unique to green tea are " catechins" and " theanine," and the health effects of these components are attracting a great deal of attention in Japan and abroad. History Tea consumption has its legendary origins in China during the reign of mythological Emperor Shennong. A book written by Lu Yu in 618–907 AD (Tang dynasty), '' The Classic of Tea'' (), is considered important in green tea history. The ''Kissa Yōjōki'' (喫茶養生記 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jingdezhen Porcelain
Jingdezhen porcelain () is Chinese porcelain produced in or near Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province in southern China. Jingdezhen may have produced pottery as early as the sixth century CE, though it is named after the reign name of Emperor Zhenzong, in whose reign it became a major kiln site, around 1004. By the 14th century it had become the largest centre of production of Chinese porcelain, which it has remained, increasing its dominance in subsequent centuries. From the Ming period onwards, official kilns in Jingdezhen were controlled by the emperor, making imperial porcelain in large quantity for the court and the emperor to give as gifts. Although apparently an unpromising location for potteries, being a remote town in a hilly region, Jingdezhen is close to the best quality deposits of petuntse, or porcelain stone, in China, as well as being surrounded by forests, mostly of pine, providing wood for the kilns. It also has a river leading to river systems flowing north and sout ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infusion
Infusion is the process of extracting chemical compounds or flavors from plant material in a solvent such as water, oil or alcohol, by allowing the material to remain suspended in the solvent over time (a process often called steeping). An infusion is also the name for the resultant liquid. The process of infusion is distinct from both decoction—a method of extraction involving boiling the plant material—and percolation, in which water is passed through the material (as in a coffeemaker). History The first recorded use of essential oils was in the 10th or 11th century by the Persian polymath Avicenna, possibly in ''The Canon of Medicine''. Tea is far older than this, dating back to the 10th century BC as the earliest recorded reference. Preparation techniques Infusion is a chemical process that uses botanicals (typically dried herbs, flowers or berries) that are volatile and release their active ingredients readily in water, oil, or alcohol. In this process, a liqu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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