Taiwanese tea culture

In Taiwan most people drink tea, and tea is not only a drink, but also a culture. On weekends after a busy week, Taiwanese people seek a change of pace and atmosphere. Many people visit one of the numerous traditional teahouses or "tea-art" shops, located all over Taiwan.

Tea houses

Taiwanese teahouses are a blend of contemplative serenity and lively conversations. A casual afternoon at a teahouse will bring one to the heart of the social, artistic, intellectual, and political activities brewing in Taiwan. Many of these teahouses are set in elegant cultured gardens, making them ideal hideaways for tea drinkers to relax while sampling a wide selection of first-class teas.

Tea drinking in Taiwan is akin to wine tasting in the west, and tea drinkers will gladly pay a few thousand Taiwan dollars (about $30 to $120 U.S. Dollars)for a half kilogram of good tea leaves. Mountainside tea-art shops and restaurants offering open-air tea drinking, dining, and picturesque views have become favorite destinations for city-dwellers.

Teaware

The typical Taiwanese family owns at least one set of teaware at home. Many people collect teapots as a hobby. Most of the people in Taiwan have purple porous pottery teapots at home. Traditionally, "raising the teapots" at home is a way of life in Taiwan. The teapots are used to brew teas intensively so that the surface of the teapots becomes "bright". The process is called "raising the teapots", which enhances the beauty of purple porous teapots. Tea stores are virtually everywhere. In big cities like Taipei one can easily find tea for sale on nearly every city block.

ee also

*Chinese tea culture
*Hong Kong tea culture
*Pearl milk tea
*Gongfu tea ceremony (generally referred to as laoren cha, or 'old man tea', in Taiwan)

External links

* [http://www.gio.gov.tw/taiwan-website/5-gp/culture/art_tea/ The Art of Tea]