The China History Podcast

More Ming Dynasty tea history this time. Innovations from China's tea artisans further improved the taste and experience of tea. The famous "zisha" 紫砂 clay teapots and tea ware from Yixing 宜兴 are intr...

19 Jan 201520min

Tea's epic story continues on the heels of the advances made in tea production and tea culture during the Song. After surviving the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, Camellia sinensis experiences a sea change of i...

18 Jan 201526min

The loving embrace of tea given by those of the Buddhist faith continues on into the Song Dynasty. Some Chan Buddhist master came up with the term "Tea and Chan Buddhism are one taste" 茶禪一味. There's a...

17 Jan 201524min

The once bitter brew sharing a Chinese character with the one used for a bitter vegetable is now long a thing of the past. Starting around a thousand or more years ago, royals, officials, scholars, an...

5 Jan 201525min

In the post-Lu Yu world, tea starts to take off like a rocket. It will take a little longer for tea to get the needed traction in Japan but during the Tang, Japanese get to see it and appreciate it up...

28 Des 201423min

We looked at Lu Yu last time and all that he did to popularize the merits of tea in the Tang Dynasty. This time, we give a once-over to his masterpiece, The Cha Jing 茶经 or Classic of Tea. The national...

20 Des 201423min

Thank you for your patience. In this fourth installment of the history of tea, we finally make it to the immortal Tea Saint. Lu Yu 陆羽. What Elvis was to rock n' roll, Lu Yu was to the popularity of te...

13 Des 201419min

After centuries of trial and error, tea starts to transform from a bitter medicinal brew into something worthy of presenting to the emperor as tribute. Tea's development during the 326 years of the Su...

6 Des 201424min