A Bud N One Leaf

Feel the best of you blossom intricately and abundarntly with the herabl power...

Tantalizing both your eyes and taste buds with our new launch of Blossom Tea.

Learn classification of China speciality tea, get to know more teas and tisanes, and discover creative designs of blossom tea.

For detailed information, please check via email: xucidar@yahoo.com.cn or service@aboltea.com

Tisane is an aromatic or herb-flavored "tea". Though there is the word "tea" in its definition, it doesn't contain tea (made from Camellia Sinensis). Tisane is made by fresh or dried flowers and leaves, which normally are caffeine-free, and therefore could be a good choice of bedtime drink.

Some common herbal drinks:

Rooibus Lily petal

amaranthChamomile

More will be followed...

Sharing tea moment in the meadow of spring time

This kind of tea gathering are hold in open air. Pre-registration is required, ticket numbers will be allocated to registered attendants, who could then find corresponding units on the ground to settle down for the party.

Each attendant should bring along a sitting mat, tea, tea wares, a thermos-bottle and required accessories. Hot water will be provided by the organizer.

After all attendants are seated and their tea wares are set in good order, the anchor will anounce the opening of the tea party. Attendants start to brew their tea, and pour into 4 cups lined up in front of her/him. Each attendants put 3 cups of the just brewed tea onto a tray, offer them respectively to the 3 attendants sit next to her/his left side, and then return back to drink her/his own cuppa and the 3 cuppa offered by her/his neighbors.

Such arrangement enables attendants to share their tea experience, socializing and find ways of improvement.

(No, don't try to spot me, I was not sit there in leisure, I was running errand for the party.)

An ancient painting depicts tea drinking fashion of the old time.

Notice the two large containers placed in between the lady and the maid, these are water containers. In ancient China, snow water and rain water are considered highest quality water for brewing tea (though no Kyoto treaty to safeguard air quality by the time, the air is muuuch superior than now). Spring water and river water were also good choice back then.

Chengdu is the municipal capital of Sicuan province, it is known as a heaven of leisure. The city is dotted with numerous teahouses and gourmet eateries, where locals like to hang around and socializing over a pot of tea. Most local people have the talent of a good story teller and/or public speaker, and a teahouse is a perfect stage to show off such skills. This teahouse culture is called "Bai Long Meng Zhen" (Arrange the Dragon Gate Phalanx) in Sicuan dialect, means chatting and socializing.

After we experienced this unique teahouse culture (I could figure out about 50% of the local dialect, so won't be as "deaf" as my companion, who was totally shut out of such a grass-root fun), our next stop was WangJiang Park, a park named after an ancient tower (Wangjiang Lou) inside it.

Wang Jiang Lou (River View Tower) across the river

The pictures are taken at a cloudy day in April, we traveled to Wangjiang Park (River View Park) alongside Jingjiang (Jing River, previously the moat of old Chengdu city). The park is very big, with a total area around 12.5 hectare. There is a wide collection of bamboos (over 200 speices) planted in the park.

Bamboos Garden and a stream inside

We followed sign board to Wangjiang Lou (River View Tower), the highest building in the park next to Jing River. It's a wooden architecture built in the Qing Dynasty, this four stoy building at a height of 27.9 meters witnessed hundreds of years past by. In ancient times, the tower (the highest building at the time) is the place where Chengdu people bid farewell to their friends/relatives who left the city via water way.

Wangjiang Lou (River View Tower)

A Peaceful corner of the garden shot from Wangjiang Lou

* Famous speciality green tea of Sicuan: Zhu Ye Qing (Green Bamboo Leaf), its appearance resembles green bamboo leaves. 

Chengdu street delicacies: Zhong's Jiaozi (wonton type dumpling dipped in spicy sauce), Tan's fish steamboat, Lai's glutinous rice ball, Couple spicy beef slice, dandan(carrying pole) noodle, Sis rabbit meat dice, Mrs. pockmark-face's tofu, cool rice jelly, Zhangcha smoking duck (duck smoked over a fire built from camphor tree leave and leaf tea) ... 

A cool and refreshing drink in mid Spring.

Ingredients: 5 gram Green Tea, 180 ml orange juice, 180 ml pineapple juice

Preparation:

1. Pour freshly boiled water into a pitcher (about 160 ml), wait for 1 minute, put in green tea, stir and steep for 3 minutes

2. Strain the tea liquor, set aside to cool down

3. Chill the fruit juice and tea liquor

4. mix together, garnish with a slice of orange, serve with or without syrup added.

From April 2007 onwards, Simao, a city in South Yunan is renamed as Puerh.

Simao municipal government had pursued the name change for 4 years, and finally won the approval from the central government.

Tea merchants and planters in the city are cheered up by the rename; yet opponents point out that the city didn't hold public vote to justify such a costly change, and it might result in unfair competition between Simao (now Puerh) city and other Puerh tea producing cities in the province.

Take down the old sign board in front of the municipal government building

fix the new sign board

Simao (now Puerh) city, with an area near 45,000 square kilometers, is 550 kilo meters away from Yunnan's provincial capital Kunmin. Over half of the population in the city is said working in Puerh tea supply chain.

It's a oolong, not a statue of buddah.  One of my favorite tea.  If compare fine green tea to wihte wine, this oolong is pink wine, more strength, yet not as pungent as black tea.

Fresh Leaves

The leaves are plucked from a tea species known as Iron Goddess, which is a special type ideal for making oolong tea in the same name. Unlike fine green tea, premium Iron Goddess need mature leaves for desired strength.

Loose Tea

The tea is named Iron Goddess too, a famous oolong tea from South Fujian, China, in a shape resembles tadpoles. The process of making Iron Goddes is perhaps the most intricate.

Tea Liquor (2nd brew)

The tea can be brewed for 7 rounds, the liquor is a clear golden lemon color, with a hint of honey sweetness and a lasting floral aroma. After drink up a cup, one could still smell the lingering aroma from the empty cup.

A piece of infused leaf

The infused leaf has a soft touch and silky reflection. There is a light redish rim around the edge, a good feature desirable in orthodox Iron Goddess, which indicates a perfectly controlled oxidation.

Chinese     : 茶 /cha/         ancient Chinese : 荼 /tu/ , 槚 /jia/

English     : Tea

German    : Tee

Dutch        : Thee

Spanish     : Té

French      : Thé

Portugal   : Chá

Italian      : Tè

Russian    : Чай

Greek      : Τσάι

Japanese : 茶

Korean     : 차