Daniel Reid |
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High Mountain Oolong and The Chinese Art of Teaby Daniel ReidTea, tea pots, and the fine art of preparing tea are one of China's greatest and most enduringly popular contributions to world civilization. Among the many varieties of Chinese tea available on the market today, there is one whose fragrance and flavor surpass all others and make it stand out among teas "like a crane among chickens," as the Chinese would say. This peerless distinction belongs to a noble variety of Oolong ("Black Dragon") tea known as High Mountain Oolong Tea (gao-shan wu-lung cha), which early Chinese settlers brought from mainland China to Taiwan during the late 17th century. Over the centuries, Chinese planters in Taiwan's mountainous central highlands meticulously cultivated this special variety of tea to produce what sophisticated connoisseurs of Chinese tea today regard as the finest tea on earth, the ultimate masterpiece in the Chinese art of tea.
Once you've tasted a fine grade of High Mountain Oolong, properly prepared the traditional Chinese way, you will know exactly what makes it so special. This tea delivers a bouquet of flavors that clearly speaks for itself the moment it touches your tongue and wafts through your nose, creating tastes and after-tastes, tones and over-tones, that cannot be faked or imitated by less well bred teas. A sip of freshly poured High Mountain Oolong introduces itself quietly in the mouth with a dry, slightly astringent foretaste which instantly clears the palate of all other residual flavors. As soon as the sip is swallowed, its marvelous floral aftertaste blooms quickly on the tongue and expands aromatically into the throat and sinuses, unfolding like the fumes of a fragrant flower. This is a very hard act for any other tea to follow, and many tea drinkers become lifelong devotees of High Mountain Oolong after trying it for the first time. |
High
Mountain Oolong is a semi-fermented tea which retains all of the
nutrients and natural healing factors contained
in unfermented green tea, but without the "raw" grassy taste and
harsh impact on the stomach that make green tea disagreeable to most
people. The very brief fermentation process
eliminates harsh irritants from the raw tea and creates
the subtle fragrances and flavors which distinguish this tea from
all other varieties, without producing
the tannins and other toxic compounds found in fully fermented
black
tea. The cultivation and appreciation of High Mountain Oolong is
somewhat similar to fine wine, with each plantation and each mountain
producing its own unique bouquet of flavors, and each year's harvest
yielding its own special character.
To determine whether a tea is good or not,
one should examine the color, scent, and taste of the infusion.
The perfect color is that of the first leaves in spring; the
scent is like that of a young baby. The taste cannot be described
but can be appreciated with experience. Tea is drunk to quench
the thirst, savor the taste, or simply to spend a quiet hour
appreciating the pottery and the general atmosphere that accompanies
tea drinking. There is no need to have a special attitude while
drinking it, except one of thankfulness. |
In his book Vital Breath of the Tao, Master Xhongxian Wu notes that the Chinese art of tea "is a way of classical Chinese spiritual cultivation, which we call cha dao (the 'dao of tea'). One may become enlightened by drinking tea." This is not an overstatement. Chinese te lore abounds with stories of Buddhist monks and Taoist hermits who suddenly "awakened to the Dao" (wu dao) while savoring a cup of tea, and it was customary for spiritual adepts in China to gather together and "discuss the Dao while tasting tea" (pin ming lun dao). Indeed, the proper preparation of tea was highly regarded as a form of esoteric alchemy in which the fundamental elements of nature--fire, water, earth, air, and herbage--were correctly combined to produce an elixir with subtle metaphysical properties and rarefied energies that could purify the vital fluids of the body, boost vitality, and enhance awareness.
The
traditional method of preparing and drinking High Mountain Oolong
Tea has been developed to perfection in Taiwan, where it's known
as cha yi ("tea art") or lao-ren cha ("old folk's tea"), names which
reflect the two essential elements required to properly appreciate
High Mountain Oolong: taste and time. A unique technique in the classical
way of preparing this tea is the preliminary "hot bath," whereby
hot water is poured onto the dry leaves in the pot and immediately
poured out and discarded. This step washes the tea leaves and eliminates
all residual traces of dust, oxidation, smog, fumigants, and any
other contaminants to which the tea may have been exposed during
processing, thereby guaranteeing pure flavor and natural fragrance
with each subsequent infusion.
Potent Medicinal Benefits of High Mountain Oolong Tea
In addition to its value as an epicurean and aesthetic experience, High Mountain Oolong Tea also has potent medicinal benefits and is an excellent elixir for health and longevity. Long known in traditional Chinese medicine for its detoxifying and digestive virtues, this tea has been proven by recent scientific research in Japan to have powerful cleansing and protective properties for the lungs. This effect is produced by the volatile aromatic fumes which give this tea its distinctive fragrance and flavor. As gases suspended within the fluid of the tea, these aromatic elements are excreted from the bloodstream through the lungs, not the kidneys, and as they pass through the delicate lung tissues with each exhalation, they dislodge heavy metals, tars, and other toxic residues from the alveoli (air sacs) and bronchia, allowing the toxins to be coughed up and spit out. As a result of this discovery, High Mountain Oolong has become the beverage of choice for millions of Chinese and Japanese people, who rank among the world's heaviest smokers. Studies have shown that smokers who drink this tea throughout the day have significantly lower rates of lung cancer, emphysema, and other respiratory ailments than those who don't.
High Mountain Oolong Tea also has many other health benefits, and these have all been validated by modern scientific research. The most important therapeutic advantages derived from drinking this tea on a daily basis are briefly discussed below:
| Antioxidant: | High Mountain Oolong contains abundant supplies of potent antioxidants known as "polyphenols" and "catechins." These compounds, also known as "free radical scavengers," neutralize and eliminate the highly reactive metabolic and environmental toxins known as "free radicals," which destroy cells, corrode tissues, and cause premature degeneration of the internal organs. The antioxidants in the tea provide constant detoxifying activity in the blood and tissues, protecting the body from toxic damage and preventing formation of tumors. | |
| Anti-Cancer: | Since the polyphenols and other antioxidants contained in High Mountain Oolong suppress tumor formation, drinking this tea daily provides strong protection against the development of all types of cancer, particularly in the lungs and liver, which suffer the heaviest exposure to toxic contaminants in air, water, and food. This protection against cancer is further enhanced by the tea's strong alkalizing action in the blood and tissues, where it counter-acts the excessive acidity associated with all forms of cancer. Scientists already know green tea plays a role in preventing
cancer, but now they know why: EGCG, or Epigallocatechin gallate.
EGCG works in precisely the same way as the chemotherapy drug
methotrexate: Both hinder the action of an enzyme that incites
cells to divide, according to Spirituality & Health (July/August
2005). Since EGCG causes less damage to healthy cells than
chemotherapy, it could become a promising cancer treatment.
High Mountain |
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| Alkaline: | High Mountain Oolong alkalizes
the digestive tract, bloodstream, and cellular fluids, neutralizing
the acidity which permits formation of cancerous tumors and causes
many other degenerative conditions. Blood and tissue acidity
is the primary cause of loss of calcium from the bones and teeth,
and this in turn leads to osteoporosis and tooth decay. Drinking
this tea daily therefore helps prevent these conditions as well
as other health problems associated with calcium deficiency. Diuretic: The tea's mild diuretic properties promote swift elimination of the toxins and acid wastes flushed from the blood and tissues by the antioxidant and alkaline elements in the tea. |
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| Diuretic: | The tea's mild diuretic properties promote swift elimination of the toxins and acid wastes flushed from the blood and tissues by the antioxidant and alkaline elements in the tea. | |
| Deodorant: | By alkalizing the mouth and stomach, this tea eliminates the bacteria responsible for producing foul odors in the breath. The aromatic fumes contained in the tea saturate the blood and bodily fluids with cleansing medicinal elements that help deodorize bodily secretions. | |
| Blood Adaptogen: | High Mountain Oolong contains medicinal factors known as "adaptogens," which adapt the body's vital functions to changing conditions in order to maintain a healthy state of equilibrium. This balancing effect is strongest in the bloodstream, where it regulates blood pressure, balances blood sugar, and prevents thickening of the blood. | |
| Digestive: | High Mountain Oolong assists digestion by neutralizing excess acidity and preventing fermentation and putrefaction in the stomach. It also breaks down fat molecules into smaller particles, making them much easier to digest. | |
| Detoxificant: | Drinking this tea daily produces a continuous detoxifying effect throughout the body, facilitating the elimination of metabolic wastes and toxic residues assimilated from food, air, and water. | |
| Cholesterol Control: | Studies have shown that High Mountain Oolong Tea removes cholesterol deposits and other sticky plaque from the walls of the blood vessels, thereby preventing arteriosclerosis, heart disease, and strokes. | |
| Stimulant: | This tea contains only 0.5% caffeine, plus several other compounds and co-factors which have mild stimulating effects on the central nervous system. Unlike coffee, which stimulates the body by racing the heart, the blend of natural stimulants in High Mountain Oolong Tea directly activates the nervous system, enhancing alertness, improving cerebral functions, and relieving mental fatigue. They also stimulate swift eliminatiion of wastes from the body. Due to the many nutrient co-factors contained in this tea, the stimulation it provides does not enervate the nervous system, as coffee and black tea can do, and its stimulating properties may be enjoyed throughout the day without any negative side-effects. | |
| Nutrient: | High Mountain Oolong contains significant amounts of vitamins A, C, and E, as well as essential minerals and trace elements. These nutritional factors all have potent antioxidant and healing properties, providing additional support for detox and immune responses and increasing the health benefits of the tea. | |
| Antiseptic: | By producing a clean alkaline environment in the body, this tea destoys a wide range of bacteria, fungus, and other microbes, most of which depend on toxic acid conditions in the blood and tissues in order to survive and spread in the human body. |
The Most Treasured Tea in the World
Today,
the top grades of High Mountain Oolong Tea from Taiwan rank among
the most expensive and highly prized teas in the world, with prices
ranging as high as US$800 per "catty," or "Chinese pound," equivalent
to 600 grams. While fairly good grades of High Mountain Oolong
grown from Taiwan tea plants by Chinese planters in Thailand and
Vietnam
are also available on the market today at lesser cost, the best
grades of this aromatic tea can only be found in Taiwan. As this
tea becomes
better known throughout the world for its unsurpassed flavor and
potent protective health properties, demand continues to drive
up the cost of limited supplies of the best quality harvests. Nevertheless,
since the top grades of this tea are not only the best tasting
but
also the most therapeutically beneficial, it's never a waste of
time to sit down each day to prepare and drink it properly, nor
is it
ever a waste of money to buy the best quality you can afford.
For those who cultivate the Chinese art of tea,
cha dao ("The way of Tea") soon becomes a whole way of life . The
process of preparing and appreciating High Mountain Oolong Tea
the traditional way develops a personal refinement and discriminating
taste that gradually influence and improve every other aspect of
daily life and awaken the mind to subtle nuances of nature that
formerly
went unnoticed. All of the human senses are pleased by the art
of tea, which embraces the most basic elements of nature--earth,
water,
fire, wood, air--in a harmonious interplay of energies that produces
the perfect cup of tea and establishes the perfect state of mind
to appreciate its virtues. In his excellent book, The Chinese Art
of Tea, the sinologist John Blofeld describes the aesthetic and
philosophical appeal of drinking this sort of tea the Chinese way:
| One should recognize that drinking tea is something in itself, to be done for its own sake and not to fulfill an ulterior purpose, for only in this way can the drinker come to "taste sunlight, wind, and clouds." This is a typically Taoist and Zen sentiment. . . Tea, unlike powerful drugs or alcohol, increases rather than dulls alertness and carries with it the essence of sunlight and mist, the spirit of sparkling mountain springs and a pleasant earthy tang. . . Tea mysteriously engenders empathy with nature and kinship with one's fellow beings. |
But be forewarned: once you develop a taste for good High Mountain Oolong Tea, you will lose your taste for all other tea, as well as coffee, and after you start collecting tea pots and cultivating the Chinese art of tea, other hobbies will lose much of their appeal, and the Way of Tea will become a new way of life.
Tea Tidings Newsletter
In conjunction with Oolong-Tea.Org Daniel Reid authors
the highly informative "Tea Tidings" Newsletter, the definitive
guide to the world of High Mountain Oolong Tea.
Click here to view
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