Chinese Tea Ceremony: The Art of Drinking and Serving Tea

The art of drinking and serving tea plays a very vital cultural role in China. It inspires a lot of artists that the Chinese tea ceremony, as it is called, has been written in songs and poetry. The ritual of preparing and serving tea has even held a special place in the hearts and minds of the Chinese aristocracy, court officials, intellectual, poets, and even the common people.

On its most basic, the Chinese tea ceremony emphasizes the tea itself, rather than the ceremony. It focuses on what the tea tastes like, smells like, and how one tea tastes compared to the previous tea, or in inclusive rounds of drinking. It doesn’t mean that each server will perform the ritual the same way and it is not related to religion. Every step taken during the ceremony is meant to be a sensory exploration and appreciation.

How to conduct a Chinese tea ceremony is just so easy. However, it is important to note that steps to assure the finest tasting tea is very exacting. As often said, if done properly you can extract the finest flavor a tea has to offer.

The Teapot and Tea Cup Preparation

The Chinese tea ceremony uses small cups to match the small and unglazed clay teapots. Each cup is just large enough to hold about two small swallows of tea. These tiny cups are particularly popular in Chiujao and Fujian, while in Shanghai and Beijing, large cups are employed.

Curing the teapot and cups is one essential step in Chinese tea ceremony. When you receive your teapot and cups, they have to be cured. The teapot used is usually made from red clay, and to seal the inside of a teapot and the cups, you first need to place loose tea into the pot and fill it with boiling water. Let it sit for three hours to a day.

Some tea masters advise to do it for a week prior to the curing of the teapot, cups and pouring pitcher. This technique is said to seal the inside of the teapot. Also, oils from the tea leaves fill in all the tiny pours of the new clap teapot.

In a Chinese tea ceremony, washing bowls are also needed. You need to pour the hot tea that has been brewing for 5 minutes and fill the washing bowl with hot tea. Let the tea cups also sit in the tea. This is also done to seal the tea cups with the resins of the tea. And, once the teapot, tea cups and pouring pitcher have been cured, the next step is to get ready for the ceremony.

The Tea Preparation
For the tea preparation, all you need to do is prepare the boiling water, and carefully place the tea into the teapot until it is about a third full. Also, make sure that the teapot and cups are now on the tea washing tray. Then, pour the hot water into the teapot until it is overflowing. Place the lid on, and continue to pour the hot water over the teapot. This is done to allow the entire teapot to be hot.

After that, pour the second brewed tea into the tea cups and pouring pitcher. This is to allow the flavor of the tea to penetrate the tea cups and pouring pitcher. Then, pour the boiling water into the teapot for the third time and cover. Place the tea strainer over the pouring pitcher. Wait for the tea to brew. After three minutes of brewing, pour hot water into the pouring pitcher to assure that it is hot and pour that into the teacups. When ready, empty the tea cups and pitcher and then pour the tea into the pitcher through a tea strainer. Pour the tea into the cups, making sure to never fill a cup at a time, but by passing the tea over each cup so they fill equally.

The Importance of Water

The water used in the Chinese tea ceremony is as important as the tea itself. As noted, chlorine and fluoride in tap water should be filtered out as they harm the flavor of the tea. Distilled water is said to make flat tea, thus should be avoided. The ideal water should have an alkaline pH around 7.9.

Note: In Chinese tea ceremony, the aroma of the tea is certainly what is sought after. When using the small tea cups never drink or gulp the tea. Instead, sip the tea through the lips and teeth making a hissing sound. Drinking and sniffing the tea during the Chinese tea ceremony can take over an hour and many fine conversations will ensure. The sign of the tea master is to insure that every round of tea tastes exactly the same.

Foods That Can Help Arthritis Sufferers

Do you suffer from arthritis? If so, over-the-counter pain medication may become a common fixture in your life. Unfortunately, some individuals are susceptible to addiction and there are health complications due to over-consumption. So, what should you do? Consider more natural ways to seek relief. In fact, start in your kitchen. Although there are no guarantees, many arthritis patients see success by incorporating certain foods into their diets.

What type of foods may help those, like you, suffering from arthritis?

Pineapple. Pineapple is recommended for arthritis because it contains a chemical called Bromelain. Many claims this helps to prevent inflammation. In fact, some athletic trainers recommend its consumption to keep joints pain free and flexible. As with any other health foods, it is best to consume fresh instead of canned or frozen.

Oily fish. Those suffering from rheumatoid arthritis are often encouraged to avoid meats. Meat has fat that is known to produce inflammation agents in the body. The only exception to this is with fish. Oily fish, such as mackerel and salmon, are rich in omeg-3 fatty acids. These acids have many health benefits. They inhibit the release of joint destroying chemicals and compounds. Supplements are found in most retail stores, but it is best to get these oils directly from the source.

Celery. The celery plant contains many different anti-inflammatory agents. These can lessen the suffering of arthritis pain and discomfort. It is best to eat the celery seeds. Most recommend placing up to one teaspoon of celery seeds into a cup with warm, but not boiling water. Let stand for a few minutes and drink. This can provide almost instant relief during an attack. The celery plant as a whole contains anti-inflammatory agents; so eating fresh celery regularly has benefits too.

Red chili pepper. Red pepper, also known as cayenne pepper, can help relieve the joint pain associated with most types of arthritis. As for how, you may be amazed. Many claim it causes the release of natural endorphins. Essentially, your body itself stops the pain. Not only should patients consume red chili pepper, but a topical mixture works too. Many recommend mixing up to one quart of rubbing alcohol with once ounce of cayenne pepper. It is important to note, this mixture is to be applied to the skin during bouts of pain. Under no circumstances should you drink the mixture due to the rubbing alcohol.

Sesame seeds. The Chinese have long believed and used sesame seeds to combat the inflammation caused by arthritis. As with oil, sesame seeds contain healthy fatty acids. For the best results, eat sesame seeds straight. If you dislike taste or texture, opt for incorporating them into your meals. Eat sesame seed rolls and use them when preparing dinner at home. They can be added to most foods.

Ginger. Ginger is well-known and widely used to fight inflammation. Most commonly used as a cooking spice, it has many health benefits. In addition to reducing inflammation, it assists in treating diarrhea and nausea. Available in a spice format, it can and should be sprinkled atop cooked vegetables and other foods. As with omeg-3 fatty oils, it is best to go directly to the source. Fresh ginger is easy to peel and cook. Wrapped in a towel, bag, and freeze for months. It is also found in the non-carbonated ginger ale drink.

Raw cabbage. Although not as well-known and as popular as the above mentioned foods, many also claim raw cabbage assists with arthritis relief. Some recommend the regular consumption of raw cabbage or cabbage juice. They claim this relieves both joint paint and swelling.

The above mentioned foods may assist those suffering from arthritis. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees. Our bodies each process food in different ways. For example, celery can work to reduce joint pain for one individual, but it may actually trigger additional pain with another. In fact, some forms of rheumatoid arthritis are trigged by certain foods. For that reason, be prepared to experiment. Trial and error can help you determine which foods are the best at relieving your own, unique pain.

Troubleshooting Home Brewing

Stuck fermentation
Stuck fermentation occurs when your beer fails to
ferment to completion. This can result from the
use of old yeast or poor ingredients. The best
way to take care of this problem, is to prevent
it from starting. To do this, you should:
1. Re-hydrate the yeast by adding it to
some water and adding wort to the yeast an hour
or more before you pitch. This will help ensure
that your yeast is still active.
2. Use an all malt or a recipe that has
a lot of it, as yeast needs nutrients to stay
alive. Corn and sugar lack these nutrients. If
your yeast still fails to survive, it cannot
reproduce. For this very reason, distilled water
shouldn’t be used when making beer.

Under carbonation
If you’ve used the proper amount of priming sugar
and your beer is still flat, it’s probably due
to the fact that you didn’t properly rise the
sanitizing solution from the bottles. If too
much sanitizer is left in the bottles, it can
kill the yeast, which results in flat beer. The
only way to prevent this is to stop it from
happening.

Over carbonation
Over carbonation can cause your beer to turn into
a foam disaster. It can result from these causes:
1. Too much or uneven priming sugar. You
should measure your primer carefully and dissolve
it thoroughly in boiling water and allow it the
proper time to cool. Before bottling, make sure
to stir this into your beer.
2. Bottling your beer too early can also
result in too much carbonation.
3. Poor sanitization is also a cause. If
you allow your beer to come in contact with wild
yeast, it can result in over carbonation and
possibly even off flavors.
4. Bottles that are under filled can
also contribute to over carbonation. You should
allow 1/2 inch of head space to allow your
beer time to pressurize.

By taking the proper time to fix problems, you’ll
ensure that your brew comes out great every
time you brew it. If you happen to run into a
problem, always take the time to rationize it
before you rush into fixing it. If you rush into
fixing a problem, you may start another one.

You should expect problems, especially if this
is your first time brewing. Even for expert home
brewers, problems can occur from time to time -
which is something you’ll learn to deal with.

Process Of Homebrewing Microbrews

The normal batch of homebrewed beer is five gallons
in volume, which is enough for 2 cases, or 48 12
ounce bottle of beer.

The typical homebrewed beer is produced by boiling
water, malt extract and hops together in a large
kettle and then cooling the resulting wort and adding
yeast for fermenting. Experienced homebrewers will
make their own extract from crushed malt barley by
a more complicated process of mashing the grain in
boiling hot water.

With both cases, the wort is boiled for 15 min to
an hour, to help remove some impurities, dissolve
the character of the hops, then break down some of
the sugar. The wort is then cooled down to a
pitching temperature.

The cooled wort is then poured into the primary
fermenter in a manner of aggression, as to aerate
the wort. Sufficient oxygen is also necessary for
the yeast’s growth stage. The yeast is then put
into the wort.

The primary fermentation will take place in a large
food bucket or carboy. Sometimes it is left open
but often stoppered with the carbon dioxide gas
that’s produced by venting through a fermentation
lock.

The process of making microbrews takes a lot of
time indeed, although you can take the necessary
short cuts once you learn more about how the
process works. If this is your first time brewing,
you should always use common sense and know what
you are doing.

One of the best things about making your own
homebrews is the fact that you can experiment with
ingredients and brew your own creations. You can
brew almost anything, providing you have the right
type of equipment – which can easily be found.

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