Gong Fu (tea preparation)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Utensils for making tea in Gong-Fu style: On the tray at the back a tea filter, jug and decanter, at the front two tea bowls and a presentation bowl with tea leaves. To the right of the tray is a container with tongs and a tea chute.

The preparation of tea in the Gong-Fu style ( Chinese  工夫茶 or 功夫 茶 , Pinyin gōngfūch á , W.-G. kung 1 fu ch'a 2 , Jyutping gung 1 fu 1 caa 4  - "tea [ preparation ]] with special care “) Is an element of Chinese tea culture and is particularly widespread in southern China ( Yunnan , Sichuan , Fujian ) and Taiwan .

etymology

The two Chinese terms 工夫茶 and 功夫 茶 are pronounced almost the same in Chinese (e.g. Standard Chinese , Cantonese , Hokkien ) and only differ by nuances in their original meaning as “person who does certain work”. The two Chinese spellings have their reasons in the historical development of the Chinese writing . The different romanized spellings come about through the use of two different phonetic transcription systems ( Hanyu Pinyin and Wade-Giles ).

The first character " 工 " ( gōng , neutral tone ) is older than " 功 "; it can already be found on oracle bones of the Shang dynasty (approx. 1600–1000 BC) as a pictogram for a tool. The character “ 功 ” only appears in isolated inscriptions about a thousand years later. It represents an extension of the sign “ 工 ” - “work, effort, diligence, artistry” - through a structural element 力 ( lì , 4th tone ), which expresses “power, strength, power”.

The second character " 夫 " ( fū , neutral tone) - "adult person, man" - serves as the second syllable of two-syllable words. " 工夫 " and " 功夫 - gōngfu " can be found in the meaning of "work companion , worker" as early as the Western Jin Dynasty (266-316). At the time of the Tang Dynasty (618–906) the meaning expanded to "ability, talent". In contrast to “ 工夫 ”, “ 功夫 ” is found more frequently than average in Buddhist texts of this time, which led Mair (1994) to the assumption that this spelling got into high-level language via colloquial language. Today it is “time (effort for a project); Quality; Skill acquired in long practice ”translated. “ 功夫 ” emphasizes the powerful, masterful association. Both terms are therefore much older than the collective term for Chinese martial arts , which only became popular in film and television in the 1960s under the name " Kung Fu ".

Finally, the third character " 茶 ( chá , 2nd tone )" is the character for " tea ".

history

The emergence of the Gong Fu tea style goes hand in hand with the technique of making tea by pouring boiling water over the tea leaves, which emerged during the late Yuan (1279 to 1386) and Ming dynasties (1368 to 1644). This had replaced the older technique of frothing powdered green tea , which has been preserved in the tradition of the Japanese tea ceremony to this day. In the 18th century, the preparation in the gong fu style probably originated in the Wuyi Mountains in Fujian Province. It has been developed and refined over the centuries. The method is mainly used with semi-fermented and post-fermented teas, i.e. Oolong and Pu-Erh teas .

Utils

Tea equipment: tea chute, teaspoon, tea tongs and tea funnel

A number of utensils used for making tea in the Gong Fu style, the whole as chájù ( 茶具 be called).

  1. Teapot ( 茶壶 Chahu ): Yixing- or porcelain pot; alternatively a lid with a saucer (gaiwan).
  2. Decanter ( 公道杯 gōngdàobēi , vessel for uniform distribution ') for the infusion to be distributed uniformly in the shells.
  3. Boiler ( 煮水器 zhǔshuǐqì ) for heating the water.
  4. Teetablett or tea table ( 茶盤 Chapan ) to the resulting abundant excess water trap; alternatively a 茶船 ( cháchuán , tea ship ') is used. This consists of a small plate that stands in a larger bowl. The teapot is placed on the small plate, the bowl catches the hot water poured over the pot.
  5. Tea towel ( 茶巾 chájīn ) for drying the equipment.
  6. Tea cups ( 茶碗 cháwǎn ).
  7. Additional vessels ( 品茗杯 pǐnmǐngbēi , aroma cup ', or 聞香杯 wénxiāngbēi to enjoy fragrance cup') to the tea leaves before the infusion to examine and smell the tea brew.
  8. Strainer ( 漏斗 lòudŏu ) for dispensing of the tea.
  9. Teaspoon or Teeschütte ( 茶匙 CHACHI )
  10. Tongs ( 挾 xié ) to better grip the hot tea cups.

preparation

At the beginning, hot water is poured over a small teapot, for example a Yixing teapot made from unglazed clay or a gaiwan, as well as the handleless tea bowls ( chawan ). Then the pot or gaiwan is filled with the amount of tea required for the infusion (a little over half the vessel). Hot water is poured over the tea leaves and immediately poured off again; this is known as "washing" the tea. Then the jug is filled again. After a short time, the infusion is either distributed directly into the tea bowls or first poured into a decanter from which the bowls are filled. The tea can then be infused several times, with the second infusion being considered the most aromatic. Tea is enjoyed in a similar way to wine or other alcoholic beverages.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c Joseph Needham: Tea processing and utilization . In: Huang-Tsing Tsung (Ed.): Science and Civilization of China, Vol. 6, Part 5: Fermentations and food science . Cambridge University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-521-65270-7 , pp. 561 ( monoskop.org [PDF; accessed February 4, 2018]).
  2. ↑ a b c Victor H. Mair: Kung-fu (Gongfu) Tea. (No longer available online.) In: Language Log. University of Pennsylvania, July 20, 2011, archived from the original September 21, 2017 ; accessed on August 4, 2019 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu
  3. ^ Victor H. Mair: Buddhism and the Rise of the Written Vernacular: The Making of National Languages . In: Journal of Asian Studies, 53.3 . 1994, p. 707-751 .