THE RITUAL OF THE KETTLE.

Putaruru Press, Volume VIII, Issue 368, 11 December 1930, Page 3

THE RITUAL OF THE KETTLE.

AND THE TEAPOT. Only in two parts of the world, in England and in China, is tea drinking taken seriously, tout although Engiisn people pride themselves, and rigutly, on the excellence of the tea they make they have not quite the respect for it that the Chinese have. A Chinese of high birth or of moderate wealth will not grudge money spent on good China tea, and will spend far more on it than a corresponding Englishman will. He would not consider 10s a pound, for instance, an excessive price. There are, of' course, many kinds of China tea, and the best of all is mandarin tea, the tea which was originally prepared for the mandarins, to be taken at the end of the evening meal, as a delight to the palate and an aid to the digestion. The growing and preparing of mandarin tea is still carried on as a little industry in certain villages where the climate and soil are just right and where tin villagers who grow it sell it direct to the families who use it. The tea is grown and blended carciully until, on a certain day in the year and at a certain hour of that day, it is ready for picking. Then it has to be dried for a while and afterward mixed with jasmine, so that the 1 perfume of the flowers may mingle 1 with the flavour of the delicate tea I leaves. Eater on every scrap of jas- ; mine has to be picked out again, and ■ the tea is stored in chests made in j three layers, with a partition between j each, until it is taken away. But only in watching a Chinese per- I son making mandarin tea can an Eng- ?

| iis lmein to realise the drop rover- | mice tin? Chinese have for their uationJei beverage, for the making of it is a ; ritual i:i itself, declares a . writer in jan English paper. In the first place, | everything must be got ready, the i 1 kettle, lull of clear, unboiled water, ' ■ 011 the fire, and the teapot must be i ( warmed. But the teapot must not bo . j warmed in the way it is often done, * : l *y being filled with hot water and i then emptied out of it, lor it has to f be absolutely dry inside. Therefore, 1 it must stand in a .varm place so as to ; j be warmed from the outside, and just L • before the kettle boils the tea can be . put in. Only a very little tea. perr haps one small spoonf 1 for half a ! dozen people, as the subtle flavour will t ! be lost if it is too strong. Then, as the kettK begins to boil, r the critical moment approaches. It must boil neither too much rior too t little; as soon as the steam comes out in a fierce straight line the moment J has come for pouring quickly into the pot. At once the lid must i>e .put on, : and on no account must the lea be I stirred or even look d at until it is j ready for drinking. Even then, if see- | ond cups are wanted, the pot must ii< be filled up with hot water, though j water may be added in the cups. . Such tea. of course, must be drunk J without milk or sugar or lemon, or any | further additions, but no one tasting it. would wish to add anything, the smell alone is so sweet and so snt-s- ---! fving. The taste, too, is subtle and | beautiful enough, but perhaps one J should be Chinese fully to appreciate i ***