Tag Archives: China

Tie Guan Yin (aka Ti Kuan Yin) – Iron Goddess Oolong

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Tieguanyin, Ti Kuan Yin, or Tie Guan Yin are named for the Iron Goddess of Mercy

Iron Goddess of Mercy – Guanyin – By Jakub Hałun (Own work) CC BY-SA 3.0

Tie Guan Yin, also known as Ti Kuan Yin, Tieguanyin, or other variant, is one of the oldest oolongs produced in China. Originating in Anxi in the Fujian province of China in the 1800s, it is named after the Mahayana Buddhist’s Goddess of Mercy, Guanyin. Tie translates into Iron, so the full translation is Iron Goddess of Mercy. Like other Chinese teas, its origin is tied to a myth.

Ti Kuan Yin Myth

A poor farmer named Wei who everyday on this way to the fields walks past a small run down temple to Guanyin. He stops and sweeps out debris from the temple and leaves burning incense each day. One night Guanyin appears in a dream to him and tells him there is a cave behind the temple that holds a treasure and that he is to take the treasure from the cave, plant it and share it with the other farmers in his village. The next morning, the farmer found a tea sprig in the cave, which he took to the fields where he planted and cared for it. When it grew into a bush, he discovered it made a very flavorful tea. He cut off sprigs and gave them to his fellow farmers to plant as well. Everyone in the village began growing tea and named it after Guanyin. The tea provided enough money for the farmers in the village that they restored the temple to Guanyin as a tribute to her sharing the tea with them.

Ti Kuan Yin Oolong Production

The production of Ti Kuan Yin is rather complex, like other oolongs, and can take anywhere from 3-5 days to complete. Like all teas, it is plucked and withered in the sun. Once withering reaches the desired level the leaves are lightly rolled/twisted to damage the leaves to help speed along the oxidation process. The leaves are usually left in bamboo baskets or trays to oxidize between 40-70%. The leaves are not fully dry but are damp. The leaves are then rolled/twisted into their desired form and may be returned to withering if it is determine to be necessary. This process can be repeated multiple times. Once the desired shape and flavor is reached the tea is then baked. It is the baking that creates the nutty flavor of a traditional Ti Kuan Yin.

Types of Ti Kuan Yin

Ti Kuan Yin (aka Tieguanyin) Loose Leaf and Liquor

Ti Kuan Yin, aka Tieguanyin or Tie Guan Yin – Iron Goddess Oolong Tea

There are a few different types of Ti Kuan Yin. The type is tied to the time of year the leaf is picked and how long the tea is allowed to oxidize. A traditional Ti Kuan Yin is picked in the spring and again in the fall. It is oxidized closer to 70%. A Jade Ti Kuan Yin is a less oxidized Ti Kuan Yin that is more like a green tea than oolong that is picked only in the spring. The Jade Ti Kuan Yin is more flowery in flavor while the traditional is nutty in flavor. In drinking any type of Ti Kuan Yin, allow the boiling water to cool to at least 180° Fahrenheit before putting the tea in the water.

As you explore the world of tea, pay tribute to the Goddess of Mercy and enjoy a cup of Ti Kuan Yin.

Earl Grey Tea Infused Vodka Cocktails

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Adding tea to your cocktails is really easy to do and makes for a unique beverage to serve at your next get together. It seems counter intuitive to blend together tea, a beverage associated with health and mental clarity, with alcohol, which is associated with the exact opposite characteristics. However,opposites can and do blend well together. Keep in mind, the British have been putting tea in their alcoholic punches dating back to the 1700’s.

Loose Leaf Earl Grey Tea Infused Vodka

Earl Grey Tea Infused Vodka

History of Tea and Alcohol

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a little bit of the history around tea and alcohol. In China, the two rarely mixed. While the Chinese have been making alcohol, starting with beer from millet for over 9,000 years, it was consumed differently than tea. Beer was produced because straight water could not be trusted for consumption. Tea was consumed as part of a religious and health ritual, it was not really seen as a replacement for water. That may be because it came on the scene much later than beer.

Interestingly tea came onto the wider cultural scene just as alcohol consumption in China was thought to be at its highest. The consumption of tea was thought to be the highest level of sophistication. In order to gain the favor of the emperor, much of the upper class abandoned alcohol for tea. The Tang dynasty (790-835 CE) saw the rise of the tea culture in upper society, replacing the beers,wines and grain alcohols that had been consumed previously. Alcohol became so frowned upon that wine making disappeared from the upper parts of Chinese society until it was reintroduced by the Portuguese and British in the early 1800’s. Tea quickly got added to alcohol by sailors on the trading vessels. Beer would go bad during the trip, and once it did, it was turned into punch with other spices and tea added to hide the off flavor of the beer. As an American, who takes my clean water for granted, it is hard to imagine that beer was the primary drink for sailors, but without clean water, beer was the safest beverage to consume.

Earl Grey Tea Cocktail Recipes

Flavor infused vodkas have become popular over the past couple of years and it is super easy to infuse your favorite vodka with tea. The first rule to remember, if you won’t drink the tea don’t put it in the vodka.

Earl Grey Vodka

1 tablespoon loose leaf Earl Grey tea

8oz vodka

Combine both ingredients together in a container and allow to sit for 8 hours before tasting to ensure you have the flavor you want. If you chose to use a tea bag instead, cut down the time to 2-3 hours,otherwise you end up with bitter vodka. Feel free to substitute other black teas for the Earl Grey. If they are flavored or blended with other spices, you may want to check at the 4-6 hour mark to see if you have the flavor you desire.

So now that we have a nice base for the cocktails, it is time for a few drink recipes.

Earl Grey Vodka Martinis: A delicious experiment.

Finished Earl Grey Vodka Martinis

Earl Grey Martini (Serves 2)

4 oz of Earl Grey Iced Tea

2 oz of Earl Grey tea infused vodka

1 tsp of Agave Nectar (this can be substituted for 1 tsp of Simple Syrup)

Mix the three ingredients together and then serve in a martini glass. Garnish with a slice of orange or orange peel, if you wish.

 

Earl Grey Tonic (Serves 2)

4 oz of Earl Grey Iced Tea

4 oz of Earl Grey tea infused vodka

3 oz Tonic Water

Pour the vodka into a highball glass over ice cubes. Then pour in the iced tea,followed by the tonic water. Stir and serve. If you want something extra special, make ice cubes using earl grey ice tea.

Note:  If you are fine with a little less Earl Grey flavor, you can replace the iced tea with the tonic water.

 

There are many more recipes you could make with your Earl Grey tea infused vodka. So feel free to play and share your favorite recipes with us.

Tea Eggs and the Chinese Spring Festival

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The lunar new year is fast approaching and with it a chance to look into the Chinese culture and find new ways to use tea. The Spring Festival, which used to be the Chinese New Year, was renamed in 1913 when the Communist Party took over China and put the country on the Gregorian calendar (this is our modern calendar which was introduced in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII). The Spring Festival corresponds with the lunar new year, which starts this year on February 19th. In Chinese culture, It is considered a time for cleaning, gathering of families and celebrating a fresh start.

Like every family gathering, no matter which country you live in, there is plenty of food. A typical dish, which uses tea in a unique way, are Chinese tea eggs. These are basically spiced hard boiled eggs. The combination and concentration of spices are unique to every family. So while I use one combination below, feel free to modify for your taste.

Chinese Tea Eggs Spicing

Spicing for Chinese Tea Eggs

Chinese Tea Eggs

  • 6 large eggs
  • 4 tablespoons of Soy Sauce
  • 1 tablespoon of Black or Puerh Tea (traditionally this is made with Puerh)
  • 1 small cinnamon stick
  • ½ tablespoon anise seeds (3 to 4 Star Anise if you happen to have a good spice shop nearby)
  • 1 tablespoon dried orange peel
  • ½ tablespoon peppercorns

You will need tongs, a bowl with ice and water to cool the eggs and a spoon to crack their shells.

Place the eggs in sauce pan or large pot. You will want the pot big enough to hold the eggs in a single layer and allow you to pour in enough water to cover the eggs entirely. Place the eggs in the pot and fill it with water. Bring the water to a boil and then lower to simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the eggs from the water and put into the bowl with ice water. This will cool the eggs enough for you to handle them without burning yourself.

Chinese Tea Eggs

Completed Tea Eggs

Assuming none of the eggs broke during the initial cooking, just leave the water in the pot as you will be putting the eggs back in it. If one did, drain out the water, it will be foamy, wipe out the pot and fill with fresh water. Pull an egg out of the ice water and use a spoon to crack the egg shell. You are trying to make a lot of small cracks without removing the shell. Don’t worry if you lose part of the shell, just crack the entire shell then place the egg back in the pot. Do this to the remaining eggs.

Once all the eggs are back in the pot, add in the soy sauce, tea and spices. Add more water if necessary to get the liquids above the eggs. Turn the heat back on and bring the water up to a small simmer and allow to cook for at least 2 hours, if you want a darker web on your eggs you can simmer up to 3 hours.

This makes a salted and slightly spicy hard-boiled egg that is also colored by the tea and soy sauce.

Enjoy the lunar new year with a new way to use tea.

Yellow Tea: Unique and Rare Chinese Specialty

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Yellow tea is China’s rarest tea, due to the extensive manufacturing process to get the yellow hued leaves and liquor. Depending on current trends in China, yellow teas come and go in overall availability, making it more difficult to find these teas here in the United States, but they can be found.

History of Yellow Tea

There are a wide range of stories around the creation of yellow tea and when it occurred, without a lot of agreement around those circumstances. Yellow tea is currently manufactured in both the Anhui and Hunan provinces of China.

Yellow is a favorite color in China.

Xian, China – Temple at Night

It is thought that the tea was produced in honor of the emperor, though which one specifically is not really clear, with yellow being the imperial colors of all five imperial dynasties in China. In Chinese culture, yellow is considered the most beautiful color. It is associated with Yin and Yang and the perfect center of everything. Yellow is paired with red in decorating alters and imperial palaces and is also associated with heroism in China.

With yellow holding such an important place in Chinese culture, it is only natural for tea producers to experiment and ultimately produce a tea that is both yellow in color as a dry leaf and as the beverage.

Producing Yellow Tea

Yellow tea resides somewhere between white and green teas both in flavor and appearance. Like a white tea, it is picked as either only a bud or a bud and single leaf. However, it is steamed during production. Like other teas, yellow tea is picked, withered in the sun and then pan dried. However, at the end of the pan drying, it is then laid back out and covered with a damp cloth and allowed to steam for a few hours. It is then returned to the pan to dry and may then be wrapped again. This process of steaming and drying may be repeated several times until the tea reaches the required color. Keeping the buds and leaves whole while going between the pan and the steaming clothes requires great care, adding time to an already time consuming manufacturing process. The process ends with the final drying in the pan.

All of that work produces a tea that ranges from buttery to floral in flavor depending on which yellow tea you get and at what temperature you steep it.

Types of Yellow Tea

Ahnui Yellow Flower Yellow Tea

Anhui Yellow Flower (Ho Shan Huang Ya) Yellow Tea

Yellow tea is quite rare and there only a few available including Jun Shan Yin Zhen from the Hunan province and Huo Shan Huang Ya from the Anhui province.  Jun Shan Yin Zhen is bud only and tastes buttery with slight floral aroma.  The Huo Shan Huang Ya was originally a tribute tea dating back to the Ming Dynasty and brews with a floral aroma and slightly nutty taste.  These teas can be brewed at temperatures between 185-200 degrees Fahrenheit for 3-5 minutes for a cup. We would recommend a gaiwan for this tea so you can enjoy the beauty of the infused tea leaves.

So when you are in search of your next tea experience, keep your eyes open for these teas.  They are worth a try.

White Tea: Bai Hao vs Bai Mu Dan

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In the middle of a cold snap, there  is nothing better than enjoying a warm drink that reminds me of spring. White tea fits that bill beautifully. There are not that many pure white teas in the US market, there are plenty of flavored white teas. The two most commonly found here in the states are Bai Hao (Silver Needle) or Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) also known as Bai Mudan. These two teas couldn’t be more different in appearance or taste.

Bai Hao (Silver Needle Tea) White Tea

Bai Hao Silver Needle White Tea

Bai Hao Silver Needle

Bai Hao, or Silver Needle White Tea, is the grandfather of white tea. This bud-only tea is believed to have been around since the Song dynasty (960-1279 CE) but only appeared in the late 1800’s in European publications. The cultivar Da Bai of Camellia Sinensis is the plant typically used to make Bai Hao as it produces the longest and largest buds. Bai Hao is only picked in early spring, usually in April and consists of the buds from the first flush (first growth) of the season. These buds produce the longest of the silver hairs that appear on the outside of the leaf. The name Silver Needle comes from the appearance of needle shaped buds covered with downy hairs. The buds are typically dried in the sun, some may be dried in a drying room if it is large production or weather prevents drying outside. The tea is usually only 5% oxidized. Brewing this tea requires care as you do not want to put boiling water on it as it will burn the tea. If brought to a boil, the water should be cooled down to 170° Fahrenheit before adding the tea. It only needs to be steeped for 2-3 minutes and will produce a pale yellow drink with a smooth sweet flavor.

Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) White Tea

Bai Mu Dan White Tea

Bai Mu Dan White Peony

Bai Mu Dan was developed in the 1920s in Fujian as China worked to meet the demand for unique teas from the United States and Europe. Bai Mu Dan is usually a bud and either one or two small open leaves. When you look at the dried leaves they resemble small peony flowers; hence the name White Peony. The bud in Bai Mu Dan is shorter than Bai Hao typically as it is made from different cultivars of Camellia Sinensis. Bai Mu Dan is also dried in the sun. However,it is typically baked after drying resulting in a wide array of colors in the leaves from silver to the dark brown you would expect from a black tea. Still,the tea is only around 5-7% oxidized. This white tea can be brewed just like Bai Hao, however you should experiment with brewing it like an oolong, with a water temperature up to 190° Fahrenheit and 3-5 minutes of steeping. It produces a very different flavor  depending on how it is prepared. Brewed as you would a white tea you get a smooth floral tea. Brewed as you would an oolong (closer to 190°) and you will get strong muscatel flavors with a hint of nuttiness from the very pale yellow liquor. Unlike Bai Hao, this tea is used as the base for most flavored white teas, as it is produced in much larger quantities making it a more cost efficient.

Whether Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) or Bai Hao (Silver Needle), white teas are a smooth and refreshing addition to your tea collection.