Colors in the Seasons

Do you like drinking hot cocoa or coffee around this time in November?

Well, if you do, you might want to consider about putting on your list this Japanese tea that I am going to introduce today.

Powdered green tea is presented in tea ceremonies often held in spring and has entertained people with its traditional taste. 

Japanese Tea Set

Tea Ceremony and Tea Set

The custom of having a tea ceremony or drinking powdeered green tea was introduced to Japan, in Kamakura period, 1185 - 1333, with Zen Buddhism by the noble monks from China. A tea ceremony was designed to learn and share Zen teachings, philosophy and arts as well as to have a social gathering oppotunity. The attendants were required to behave in strictly degnified but elegant manners in a ceremony, which was considered to help them with meditation. Reflecting the purpose of a tea ceremony, tea sets played an important roll that would enhance the ceremony itself. Today, many people find more artistic aspects in tea sets that are still significantly important at the ceremonies and daily tea time.

Basic tea set conteins:

• tea bowl
• powered green tea pod
• tea scoop
• tea beater

Tea Bowls:

Powdered Green Tea Pods:

• ceramic:

• wooden:

Tea Scoops:

Tea Beaters:

Casual way to drink powdered green tea

1. warm up a bowl and a tea beater in hot water.
2. put a couple scoopful of green tea powder in the bowl.
3. put hot water in up to one forth of the bowl.
4. mix powder and water like beating eggs until it gets in lather. more lathered, milder and smoother it becomes.

←lather until it looks like this.

• Don’t forget sweets! This green tea is naturally bitter than other kinds of green tea. To appreciate and fully enjoy the bitterness, have some kind of sweets before drink tea. Any kind of sweets are acceptable although Japanese sweets such as manju would be the best complement.

To enjoy more…

• Spring is the best season to have a little chat over powdered green tea watching cherry blossoms. It may help you calm and relax yourself.
• Tea bowls and tea pods are too beautiful to put away. They would look grate wherever in your house.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 8th, 2006 at 3:27 am and is filed under colors. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.