by Savitri Horrigan
& Dad (Mr. Horrigan)
About Chinese Tea
•There are 600 types of tea plants and 3,000
varieties of tea.
•The tea plant is native to Southeast Asia
(Indonesia, Malaysia.)
Tea in China
•The Chinese monks brought tea to Japan
and the rest of the world.
•Tea is known to calm people when stressed.
Tea in China
•Tea comes in many flavors such as green,
yellow, red, mint and flower blossom.
•Tea is prepared by pouring hot water over dry
tea leaves.
Tea in China
• Tea has been drunk in
China since 3,000 BC.
•That’s nearly 5,000
years ago!
•The Chinese used to
make tea into small
bricks so that they could
use tea instead of
money for trading.
Tea in China
•Tea is extremely important to the Chinese culture.
•The tea is often offered to guests.
•Tea is served at almost every meal.
•In China, the tea is drunk with out milk or sugar.
You can buy loose tea in a tea store. These
stores are found all over China.
Tea in China
• Many people in China
are fond of Jasmine tea.
• This is how you write tea
in Chinese.
Tea ceremony
The tea ceremony is led by a
woman.
•She tells the guests
about the types of tea.
•She explains how to
drink the tea.
Tea ceremony
She uses special
tools to clean the tea
pot.
A tea set includes a special tray to collect spilled tea
and water.
Tea ceremony
The hostess warms the pots
and cups by filling them with
hot water.
Tea ceremony
•The tea is poured into a tall, slim cup.
• The guests pour the tea into a small round cup.
Tea ceremony
•After you pour the tea
into the small cup, you
can smell the flavor of
the tea in the tall cup.
•The tea is drunk out
of the small cup.
Tea ceremony
After the ceremony, the guests will sit for many hours and
drink tea and talk.
Teahouses
You can listen to music in a teahouse.
Teahouses
•Some tea houses are outside in gardens
•They are only open in the warm weather.
Teahouses
You can buy one cup of tea and drink it all day by adding
hot water to the leaves.
People like to eat sunflower seeds while they drink tea.
Sources:
1. “Tea”, Microsoft Encarta online
http://encarta.msn.com/find/Concise.asp?z=1&pg=2&ti=
761563182
2. “The world of tea”, http://www.stashtea.com/
3. Interview with John Horrigan (dad)
http://cms.westport.k12.ct.us/cmslmc/China/intro.htm