All things Chinese tea, food and culture.
An authentic magazine about all things tea, food and Chinese culture.
As the weather gets colder during the Winter season, your clay teapot faces the risks of cracking. This may even happen to people who’re very careful with their precious teapots. If this happens to you, your first thought would be that something was wrong with […]
Tie Guan Yin (铁观音, literally translated as “Iron Goddess”) is an excellent variety of oolong tea. With a fermentation degree between 50-70%, it combines the fresh scent of green tea and the mellowness of black tea. Tie Guan Yin can be divided into Spring, Summer, […]
On the 18th of September, Guangzhou’s Fangcun tea market, was completely ruined by typhoon Mangkhut. This is really big deal for tea shop owners who’ve a huge part of their wealth in pu erh tea.
On September 16th, between 19:00 and 20:00, the water level in the Guangyuan Tea Distribution Center and the Guqiao Tea Street continued to rise, with the highest water level between 0.8 and 1 meter.
This event follows the pu erh tea crash from just over a decade ago.
Watch the video below:
A reporter of Mei Jing Wang news site reports:
“If you close your eyes, you will be able to smell the rich tea in the Fangcun tea market in Guangzhou; if you open your eyes, you will see many tea house owners dumping the tea soaked in water.”
The areas that suffered the most where the ‘ancient bridge tea street’ and the ‘guangwu tea distribution centre’. According to mr. Dong from Guangzhou Guqiao Maoyuan Property Management Co., Ltd. such an event is a once in a hundred year disaster.
A reporter from Jiang Wen Hua (from Jin Yang Wang Xun) states:
“The front door is full of water-immersed tea and cartons, about half a person high. The stagnant water is browned by the tea leaves, and the air smells of tea and carton.”
See below a collection of pictures from different Chinese social media.
Two days after the typhoon, there were still many tea shops dumping the flooded tea leaves.
“We lost more than 1 million yuan.” In an alley in the Fangcun tea market, a tea house owner said that the tea can only be thrown away after being soaked in water. Many tea shop owners told reporters that the economic losses will be several million yuan.
There’s currently no official estimate of the total damage, but Dong Xinwei, manager of Guangzhou Guqiao Maoyuan Property Management Co., Ltd., said the economic losses suffered by the tea market are at least 150 million USD, but far less than the billions mentioned in other sources online.
The reason for such a large figure is because this tea market is one of China’s oldest. Many sellers hold teas from even the 60s and 70s which are worth several thousand dollars per cake.
Unlike in the West, Chinese store owners generally do not buy insurance against such risk.
We wish all the tea shop owners all the luck they need to get through these difficult times.
The cause of flooding has not been concluded. While it’s obvious that the flooding is the result of overflowed rivers, the question remains why tea shop owners haven’t been warned.
The overflown river adjacent to the ancient bridge tea street was named ‘Kwai Phong Chung’, the starting point of the Huadi River and the terminal railway bridge, with a total length of 870 meters.
However, local officials, the tea market management office and local river management has yet to clarify the reason.
Dong Xinwei, a tea shop owner, said “We’re all that waiting for the relevant departments to give conclusions. What we can do now is to clean up the tea waste in the streets, free up space, and resume business as soon as possible, because there’s nothing that can help us, but just ourselves.
When we prepare tea the ceremonial way, a tea pitcher is a must. This pitcher is also known as ‘Gong Dao Bei’ (fairness cup). In modern times, this tool makes sure the tea flavor is distributed evenly among each served cup. What even long-time tea […]
The 18 types of Man Sheng teapots were designed by painter and seal engraver during the Qing Dynasty – Chen Hong Shou (1768-1830), and handcrafted by Yixing zisha (purple clay) craft master Yang Peng Nian. Chen Hong Shou styled himself as “Man Sheng”(曼生), hence the title “Man Sheng teapots”. Meeting Yang Peng Nian In the era […]
Summer is the best season to enjoy the freshness of green tea with the flavor of sweet and bitter grapefruit. And the good news is, everyone can do it. Here’s what you’ll need for two glasses of grapefruit iced green tea:
Ever tried combining strawberry with cheese flavors? Well here’s the new trend from Asia: a strawberry iced tea with a creamy layer of cheese foam. Words can’t explain how fantastic it is, you’ve got to follow the steps below and try! Ingredients: Here’s what you’ll […]
One of the best things about summer is sipping a refreshing drink on a relaxing afternoon. It’s even better when the drink is tasty, healthy and homemade! Now we have 2 summer-ready tea recipes that guarantee to cool you down. Cold-Brewed White Tea Recipe White tea undergoes […]
Fried tea leaves? Oh yes, it exists! It is trendy to add tea into food these days, such as the dish tea-scented chicken we introduced recently.
Both brewed and fresh tea leaves can be used to make fried tea leaves. There are basically two ways of making it. One is to fry them directly, the other is to coat them in flour/cornstarch, or dip them in the batter and then fry, just like the way to make tempura.
How about the taste of fried tea leaves? It is simply amazing! Depends on the way and the degree of frying, the taste can be different, but a magnified tea fragrance and crunchiness guaranteed. The enjoyment doesn’t end after you finish eating – there’s an interesting aftertaste – similar as what you get when you are drinking tea. Unlike other fried food, the astringency in tea leaves “neutralizes” the greasiness which gives your palette a sense of balance.
The fried tea leaves can not only be eaten as a snack, but also can be added to some dishes to “elevate” their flavor, for example scrambled eggs, braised ribs, shrimps, etc.
Are you already thinking about trying it out now? Let’s take a look at a couple of fried tea leaves recipes!
Celebrate the wonderful summer with a refreshing glass of iced tea. Forget the sugar-loaded ice tea packs from the supermarket. Instead go for this highly nutritious and anti-oxidant rich jasmine tea recipe flavored with fresh peaches and natural agave syrup. Experience this amazing taste as […]
