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Tea
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Table of Contents
Teas Noble Birth
Traditional Tea Culture
Modern Tea
Teas Enticement
The English
Tea Monopoly
Tea Plantations In India
Tea in North America
American Tea Trade
Tea Bag
Information
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Teas Noble Birth
T
eas birth story is infused with a blend of myth and fact and colored by
ancient concepts of spirituality, and philosophy. According to ancient leg-
end in China, the story of tea began in 2737 B.C. when the Chinese Emper-
or Shen Nong, a skilled ruler and scientist, accidentally discovered the tea. While
boiling water in the garden, a leaf from an overhanging wild tea tree drifted into
his pot. The Emperor enjoyed drinking the infused water with its unusual and
delicious favor. He felt invigorated and refreshed. As a scientist, this serendipi-
tous event compelled him to further research the plant whereby he found tea to
have medicinal properties. And so, the frst cup of tea, generated by the mighty
leaf, was created by accident.
Emperor Shen Nong
Bodhi-Dharma
H
owever, Indian history attri-
butes the discovery of tea to
Prince Bodhi-Dharma, an Indian
saint who founded the Japanese
Zen school of Buddhism. In 520 A.D.,
he left India to preach Buddhism in
China. To prove some Zen principles,
he vowed to meditate for nine years.
Towards the end of his meditation
eforts he fell asleep. Upon awaking
he was so distraught that he cut of
his eyelids. A tea plant sprung up
from where his bloody eyelids hit the
ground to sanctify his sacrifce.
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S
hennong, also known as the Emperor of the Five Grains, was a legendar y ruler of
China and culture hero. Shennong is considered to have been one of the Three Sov-
ereigns (also known as Three Emperors) who lived some 5,000 years ago. Shen-
nong has been thought to have taught the ancient Chinese not only their practices of
agriculture, but also the use of herbal drugs. Shennong is among the group of variously
named heroic persons and deities who have been traditionally given credit for various
inventions: these include the hoe, plow, axe, wells, agricultural irrigation, preser ving
stored seeds by using boiled horse urine, the weekly farmers market, the Chinese cal-
endar (especially the division into the 24 jieqi or solar terms), and to have refined the
therapeutic understanding of taking pulse measurements, acupuncture, and moxibus-
tion, and to have instituted the har vest thanksgiving ceremony (Zhaji Sacrificial Rite,
later known as the Laji Rite). Pretty much the Macgyver of ancient Chinese agriculture.
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Traditional Tea Culture
W
hatever the legend, tracing teas original roots proves difcult. It is
probable that the tea plant originated in the region of southwest
China, Tibet and Northern India. Chinese traders may have traveled
throughout these regions often and encountered people chewing tea leaves.
From these journeys, the Chinese learned teas use.
Early on, people primarily used tea for medicinal purposes. Not until the Tang
dynasty (618-907 AD), often referred to as the classic age of tea, did consump-
tion become widespread and characterized as Chinas national drink. An im-
position of a government imposed tea tax further evidences the beverages
growing popularity. During that time, compressed bricks of tea leaves were
frst softened by fre and then grated into boiling water.
A Buddhist monk, Lu Yu (733-804) composed the Cha Ching or Classic of Tea
treatise. He described types of tea, uses and preparation and the benefts of
drinking it. More importantly, he imbued the writings with a spiritual aesthetic
that refected Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian religious thought of the time. The
tea ceremony served as a metaphor for expressing the harmony and simplicity
that not only ordered but also streamed throughout the entire universe.
Later, in the Sung dynasty (960-1280 AD.), known as the romantic age of tea,
poetry and artistic references to tea abounded. A precursor to the Japanese
tea ceremony or Cha No Yu to come, the most popular method of preparation
involved grinding delicate tea leaves into a green powder in a stone mill and
whipping it into hot water with bamboo whisks.
During this period, Chinese culture signifcantly infuenced and impacted art,
politics and religion in the Far East. Consequently, around the early 9th century,
a Japanese Buddhist monk, Saicho, is credited with introducing tea to Japan.
While studying in China, Saicho became exposed to tea and brought back
China & Japan
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seeds to start growing at his monastery. Other monks over time followed suit,
and soon small tea plantations sprouted up at secluded monasteries. Howev-
er, due to the isolation, teas popularity did not blossom until the thirteenth
century.
At this time, like in China people only drank tea in powdered form. Inspired by
Buddhist spiritual philosophy, this marks the origin of the Japanese Tea Cere-
mony or Chanoyu.
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Modern Tea
N
ot until the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) was tea prepared by steeping
leaves in water, like it is today. Instead of compressing tea leaves into
bricks, the leaves were dried, rolled and then heated in iron woks.
Brewing simply involved steeping leaves in hot water. The Chinese
government further established a hold on tea trade by opening a Bureau of Tea
and Horses. They introduced laws regulating interactions on the frontier, where
people traded tea for horses. From 1644 to 1911, the Qing dynasty ruled China
and eventually abolished duties on tea, a testament to how essential tea had
become to everyday life and the economy.
In the 17th century, a Chinese monk traveling in Japan brought the new rolled
form of tea that had replaced powdered tea in China. A tea merchant in Uji,
Kyoto, Nagatani Soen invented a new Japanese method of steaming, drying
and rolling green tea during the 18th century. This tea and style of processing
became known as Sencha. The custom of drinking Sencha tea daily lives on
today.
Steeping Customs Emerge
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Teas Enticement
A
lthough Europeans frst started importing tea in the 17th century, it ap-
peared earlier in the West. Traders, missionaries and explorers traveling
back and forth between Europe and the Orient became exposed to the
budding tea traditions in China and Japan. Around the 9th century, references
in Arab trade documents refer to the process of boiling bitter tea leaves. Later
Marco Polo (1254-1324) alludes to tea in his travel writings about the East.
Tea fnally arrived in the West during the 16th century - a Portuguese mission-
ary is attributed with bringing tea to Europe while caravanning back and forth
between Portugal and China.
Tea was not seriously traded though until Dutch merchants entered the pic-
ture. In 1610, the frst shipments of Japanese and Chinese tea arrived in Europe
via ships charted by the Dutch East India Company. Tea also fowed into Russia
early on via camel trains that came from China on part of the famous Silk Road.
The popularity of tea spread to cities including Amsterdam, Paris and London,
however, its high price limited consumption to Europeans royal classes and
aristocrats. Tea drinking, a novelty at the time, allowed the wealthy to partake
in a bit of Eastern adventure during the age of exploration and discovery.
The West
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The English
T
he English did not gravitated towards tea immediately. Coffee re-
mained the preferred drink in coffee houses frequented mainly by
men. The tea fad caught on slowly with women who perceived it as a
genteel drink. In 1657, the first shop to sell tea in England opened, run by
Thomas Garraway. The shop sold tea imported by the Dutch. Teas popu-
larity began to spread and consumption rose in Londons cafes and coffee
houses.
The drink gained further legitimacy when Charles II married Catherine of
Braganza, a Portuguese royal, who adored tea and introduced the concept
of tea time to the court. Soon thereafter, the British East India Trade Com-
pany (also known as the John Company), who was competing with the
Dutch for tea trade, established their first foothold in the East by securing
a tea factory in Macao.
A Birth of a Love Affair
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C
atherine arrived in Portsmouth on 13 May 1662. It had been a long and stormy crossing,
and as soon as she arrived she asked for a cup of tea. So rare was it at this time that
there was none available; the princess was offered a glass of ale instead. Not surpris-
ingly, this did not make her feel any better, and for a time she was forced by illness to retire
to her bedchamber.
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A Tea Monopoly
B
y the early 1700s, the British East India Company established via itself
as the dominant trading power and would go on to monopolize the tea
trade with China. Trading stations sprung up in India, including hubs in
Bombay, Bengal and Madras. The Company, acting as an imperial arm of En-
gland would exercise signifcant political power in helping to create a wealthy
and powerful British Empire. This included not only trading but also the right
to annex land, direct troops and dictate British laws.

The British would exploit the tea trade for proft and political power over the
next century. However, geo-political change involving new American colonies
abroad and the French and Indian Wars in 1763 began to threaten the British
East India Companys privileged position. In addition, the Company would
struggle burdened by fnancial mismanagement, corruption and growing tea
smuggling operations.
British East India Company
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Tea Plantations in India
D
espite the Companys dominance, interestingly enough, up until the
mid 1800s, China remained the sole source of tea for Western de-
mand. Looking to discover the tea growing secrets and to end their
reliance on Chinese tea, the British Tea Committee sent Robert Fortune,
an English botanist, on an undercover mission to China. Disguised as a
Chinese merchant he traveled around the country learning about farming
and processing techniques. Most importantly, he sent back tea samples
and brought back Chinese tea experts who played an important role in
enabling British tea planting and experimentation in India.

In around 1823, a British Army Major Robert Bruce stumbled upon indig-
enous tea bushes growing in the Northeast region of Assam, India. With
this discovery, the British East India Company seized the opportunity to
experiment with growing tea in not only Assam but in Darjeeling, a region
in Northeastern India at the foot of the Himalayas. An East India Company
employee, Dr. Campbell, first planted Darjeeling tea seeds in his garden at
Beechwood, Darjeeling. The planting proved so successful that in 1847 the
British government began developing tea estates in the area.

This marked the beginning of a new tea industry in India and an end to
reliance on Chinese grown tea. With tea plantations springing up all over
parts of India and the advent of the industrial revolution, the tea trade in
India would flourish.
The Birth of Indian Tea
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Tea in North America
T
ea initially came to America in the mid 1600s via the Dutch who
started a settlement in New Amsterdam, which after acquiring the
colony, the English renamed it New York. A favorite of colonial wom-
en and wealthy colonists, a heavily taxed tea trade flourished between the
colony and England. To bolster up the Companys failing financial posi-
tion, it had convinced the English Parliament to enact the Tea Act, which
allowed them to ship tea duty-free directly to the colonists and profit by
excluding the colonial merchants. The general notion of taxation without
representation brewed great dissent among the colonists.

Political tensions came to a climax with the Boston Tea Party, as colo-
nists protested Englands high taxes by dressing as Native Americans and
dumping tea into the water off East India Companys trading boats. This
act provided an impetus for the American colonies fight for independence
in 1776.

Although the American Revolution set back the Company, it managed to
survive due to its immense size. But, when Richard Twining and thousands
of independent tea merchants organized a campaign to reveal the Compa-
nys corrupt practices and pressured the English government to end their
monopoly, it would eventually crumble.
Tea Gone Overboard
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American Tea Trade
American clipper ships began importing tea directly from China to
America starting in the 1850s. In the wake of the Companys downfall
and the repeal of the Navigation Acts, which dictated that all tea must
be shipped directly from England to colonist ports, clipper ships quick-
ly became the preferred method for transporting tea. These graceful
and sleek vessels with three masts easily outdated trading ships. Built
for speed, the British and Americans raced clippers back and forth be-
tween China and England bringing the best teas for auction.
Clipper Ships
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The Tea Bag
During the 19th century, tea drinking played an important role in social
life, from tea parties to afternoon tea in both England and America.
New tea traditions began to develop in America as the beverages pop-
ularity grew.

Iced Tea originated in 1904 at the Worlds Fair in St. Louis, Missouri. A
tea merchant and plantation owner from abroad had intended to pro-
vide visitors with free hot tea samples. However, due to the unusually
hot weather, it was not a big hit. To promote sales, he asked a nearby
ice cream vendor for some ice. The American iced tea tradition was
born when he dumped the ice into the hot brewed tea. Today, ice tea
sales make up at least 80% of the entire U.S. tea market.

The original tea bags were handmade, hand stitched muslin or silk
bags. Patents for tea bags exist as early as 1903. However, Thomas Sul-
livan, a tea merchant from New York is often credited with creating the
first commercial tea bag concept.
An American Invention
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This Issue of Tea
T
his issue was to gauge my interest in Tea, which it has, so I am going
to continue the Tea series. This edition was the History of Tea, with all
of the writing taken from MightTea.coms History of Tea section.

All the writing credit should go to the company Mighty Leaf Tea Canada.
Im unsure of how to approach the next issue, perhaps I will do my own
research and write for myself. Which isnt a bad way to learn about my
favorite beverage - of course tea!
History of Tea
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Next Issue of Tea
T
he next edition will go through the different types of teas. Before this
project I had zero understanding of tea. For instance, I would leave
my tea bag within my tea pot until I was finished with the tea. I also
thought that Black Tea and Green Tea were two different species of tea
plants. But, Im learning.
I will go through the popular types of teas, explain what makes them
unique. I will probably provide general examples of the flavor, color, and
aroma of the type. I think it is a great way to learn about teas and finding
types that you feel would be exciting to try - for me its matcha.
Follow the Tea Series At:
Issuu.com/shawnganz

Twitter: @shawnganz
Types of Tea
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