WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - Hyped On Tea: Gung Fu Cha

Episode Date: February 19, 2024

In this episode we dive into one of the best ways to serving methods for tea, the gung fu tea ceremony. Popularized under the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese tea ceremony is one of the best ways to truly appreciate your cup of tea. Listen to this week's episode to learn more. 

You are listening to Hyped on Tea, the show that takes you on a global journey through the world of tea. My name is Josh Hypes, and I'm your host. This week, we're going to cover a method of tea serving called Kung Fu Cha, or the Chinese tea ceremony, diving into the rich culture and history behind one of the best ways to serve tea. We're so happy to have you listening today, so let's dive right on in. Let's begin by dissecting the Chinese term, Kung Fu Cha, which literally, means the mastery of the art of tea. In the West, we're more familiar with the Cantonese variant of this term, Kung Fu, which typically refers to the mastery of martial arts. However, in Chinese culture,

gung Fu typically carries more connotations of self-discipline and excellence. But what does Kung Fu Cha actually look like? Well, it is a highly formalized and regimented way of serving tea that uses a small brewing vessel, typically with a maximum volume of around 60 to 200 milliliters with a high leaf to water ratio with short infusion times over the course of multiple steeps using the same tea leaves. What this means in practice is that you will be using a small brewing vessel typically called a Guywan that looks like a tiny jar with a lid on top, and whenever you're pouring the tea out, you have to crook the lid a little bit. Some less traditional Gaiwan's will have a little spout, so it's easier to pour the tea out. But regardless, that's what you're going to be using, and you're going to repeatedly steep your tea using hot water.

You will begin by washing the tea leaves inside the Gaiwan by pouring some of the hot water into the guywan. After that, you will pour the wash out into a serving class called a cha hi. A chahai is like a glass kettle that is just there for display purposes so that you can see the color of the tea. And then after you pour the wash into the chahai, you then pour it over the top of the guywan to heat the vessel and keep it warm. After the wash is complete, fill the guywan up again with hot water and let the tea leave steep. Usually whenever I'm doing a u-long, I'll start with a 10 to 15 second steeping peeping peep. After the tea is steeped, you will pour it out into the Chahai, where you will then pour the tea into a small porcelain teacup. And then now you can actually drink the tea.

And you do multiple different repetitions of the same process from this point on. So you pour the hot water into the Guywan. You let the tea steep. You then pour it into the chahai, and then you pour it into the tea cup. these multiple different repetitions of pouring the tea between different vessels actually helps with controlling the temperature of the tea. So by the time it's in the teacup, it is a proper temperature to actually be enjoyed. After each repetition, you'll see that the flavor of the tea and the aroma given off will change.

And so this is one wonderful way to truly maximize your enjoyment of your tea. It's also important to note that the type of tea you use during your tea, Kung Fu is very important. I would not recommend using a lighter tea like a green, white, or yellow tea because these teas, whenever they're exposed to higher temperatures, are just going to turn astringent and bitter. Usually you want to use a darker tea, like an oolong, a black tea, or a puir, because these have a much more robust and layered flavor profile that Kung Fu really helps bring out. And just to conclude, one of the most intriguing aspects of the gung-foo tea ceremony is, I think it's display of respect and reverence for the tea. Each step is

meticulously crafted to enrich the experience and encourage mindfulness. I think you find a certain level of peace whenever you're drinking gung-fu because it's such a long process and it's very involved and you get a better idea of what is tea in its essence rather than just, oh, I have to drink this because I'm tired or I'm always on the move. And in a culture dominated by the struggle to capture your attention, for one moment you have total freedom and the chance to just ignore the notifications, the Snapchats, or emails, and just take in the experience of one cup of tea. Well, that's it for now. Thank you for listening. This was the third episode of Hyped on Tea, and I hope you're hooked on tea.