Before this class I thought Chinese tea was just green tea, not particularly good and with some vague health benefits :). After the class and Miki’s expert guidance I was truly proven wrong. Chinese tea is as diverse and interesting as wine and there is a strong social element to sharing tea between friends and in business.
There is a ceremony around serving tea that one as a westerner might find maybe overly elaborate. Cups and tea are washed. Tea is poured in a specific way. You hold the cup in a special way. The tea is savored. It takes time and it is far from just brewing a pot and having it for breakfast :). The ceremony is as peaceful as it is beautiful. You feel relaxed and it is a fantastic icebreaker when meeting new people. Miki does a great job in guiding you through this and explaining the details. The environment in the tea shop is authentic, non touristy, and you really feel you are there for a class, not to be pushed into buying expensive tee.
I got the possibility to test six different types of tea white tea, green tea, oolong tea, black tea, dark tea and yellow tea. You learn about the differences and how to brew them. Contrary to how I have brewed my morning cup, Chinese tea is brewed for less than a minute can brew up to 15 times if the tea is really good. So even if some teas turn out to be pretty expensive you get a lot out of very little. The two teas that I found stood out was the white tea, which is just dried non processed leaves and the black Puer treat that grows on trees and is the only tea that you can store for years. The white tea turns out to be great for the evening since it has less theine and the Puer tea helps you loose weight (so awesome:)).
Miki has an in depth knowledge and you feel she is really passionate about Chinese tea and sharing her love for it. She travels the country to learn more and more about growing, processing and types even if you get the feeling she is already a master.
After the class Miki can also help you with buying tea and a tea set if you are interested. There is no pressure on this. She will help you get the same deal as the locals and explain the differences between tea sets to help you out. A good one is not for free, though it is a beautiful souvenir.
In the class I also learnt about, Lishang xiaozhong which we call Lapsang souchong and the history behind it. In my ignorance I have always thought this was a tea from India.
A fun benefit from this tea class was that I the week after was in Xiamen where the tea culture is very strong. There I was served tea expertly by one of our customers and for the first time I understood the importance of this and really appreciated the courtesy. So probably this tea class should be mandatory if you want to make friends or do business in China :).
All in all a really nice and interesting morning in Shanghai with probably the best guide there is.