2011 January | Chadao, Way Of The Tea Europe

The Oolong Year

20/01/2011, posted by Cha in journal

Practice. A lot of practice. That is how I understand gong fu (kung fu). This year I will focus on learning more about oolongs. I have two fine taiwanese teas that I use to prepare myself before emerging into the samples I have acquired (a lot of them, the oldest from 1970).

Pouring over oolongs is hard. Very hard. I have tons of area I want to improve. I wonder if I am the only one (or among the few) who constantly tells himself : You need to improve.

Oh, how I wish I would have somebody to learn from. I hope I will catch some tricks when I’ll visit Hong Kong or next year, in my tea trip to Taiwan. Until then, solitary practice, research and then practice again.

The pics bellow are from some of my practice sessions.

Categories:journal Tags:gong fu, oolongs
Greeting the new year

08/01/2011, posted by Cha in journal

The pics bellow are from the first tea setup from this year. I was really tired at that point, in the previous day I traveled almost 20 hours. I required something not so light to restore my senses. I chosed my 2000 Yiwu sheng puerh, a cake that was very unforgiving to me at some point in the past.

As I setup my tea table, I realized that almost each item has a story now and a particular significance. I brewed from a cake that served me as a teacher and now it’s a great companion. I used a teapot that found it’s way to the right tea and taught me the value of the right teapot. I used my first Cha Bu. The Cha Bu and the cups connect me to a blog which influenced me the most. The tea pitcher also comes from a local shop which had it’s own role. All the items now have a story and a meaning. They help me to realize how things connect.

I started the year with a setup that reflected many things from my personal history. I hope the future will bring me many more experiences that will help me to grow.

In a way of another every blog listed here, every person reading my blog, everyone who likes or dislikes me, everyone has helped me to grow. Thank you all.

Categories:journal