Today is National Hot Tea Day — what better excuse for us to take a peek at Japan’s Tea Ceremony?
Have you ever taken part in a tea ceremony? I confess to knowing nothing about them, or the rituals involved, so please leave a comment if you’re au courant. The Metropolitan Museum of Art helped somewhat:
Although the Japanese word for the tea ceremony, chanoyu, literally means “hot water for tea,” the practice involves much more than its name implies. Chanoyu is a ritualized, secular practice in which tea is consumed in a specialized space with codified procedures. The act of preparing and drinking matcha, the powdered green tea used in the ceremony, is a choreographed art requiring many years of study to master. [...]
In the tea room, the emphasis is on the interaction between the host, guests, and tea utensils. The host will choose an assemblage of objects specific to that gathering and use those utensils to perform the tea preparations in front of the guests. Each tea gathering is a unique experience, so a particular assemblage of objects and people is never repeated.
www.metmuseum.org/...
A brief overview of the ceremony and some of its rituals. [10:06]
One site I looked at claimed that the tea ceremony arose among the samurai. The Met doesn’t go quite that far.
The tea ceremony as it is known today emerged in the sixteenth century. It was an elite artistic pursuit that provided a forum for the rulers of Japan, the warrior elite, and wealthy merchants to forge and reinforce social ties. The first ceramic utensils appreciated in this context were ancient ceramics from China that had been handed down in Japan for generations….
www.metmuseum.org/...
What Is Matcha?
Before there were teapots to steep tea leaves, early Chinese custom was to grind tea leaves into a powder then whip or beat the ground tea in a bowl with hot water. While “beaten tea” was later abandoned by the Chinese in favor of steeped tea leaves, the Japanese went on to popularize the method.
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Matcha, like all true teas, comes from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. How the tea leaves are cultivated and processed is completely different than any other tea.
www.teatulia.com/...
So matcha is green tea ground into a powder. But that’s too simplistic. The real answer is so very much more nuanced.
Of course there are different grades of matcha, the most frequently exported being the culinary. But ceremonial grade matcha is more delicate, and more expensive. [10:50]
Wagashi — Traditional Sweets
Of course such a detailed ceremony must include a few bites to go with….
These traditional Japanese desserts are known as wagashi and are usually enjoyed with a cup of green tea or matcha and served during tea ceremonies.
Wagashi would typically use plant-based ingredients like azuki beans, rice cakes, rice flour, agar, sesame paste, and chestnuts. Vegans and vegetarians would be able to enjoy most wagashi without worry.
mai-ko.com/....
Watch the art of wagashi, from a 17th generation confectioner. [11:35]
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So c’mon in and sip a cuppa...
...and enjoy a nice nosh...
...and join us!
New Day Café is an open thread. What do you want to talk about today?