Alright, let’s gab a bit about them traditional Chinese tea sets, you know, the ones them fancy folks use. I ain’t no scholar or nothin’, but I’ve seen a thing or two and heard a whole lot more, so listen up.

First off, they call these tea sets somethin’ fancy… “Jun…Junzi Loo-jee-ow”? Somethin’ like that. Sounds like a mouthful, don’t it? Anyways, it means a whole bunch of stuff comes in the set. You got your tea vase – that’s the “Cha Tong,” where you keep your tea leaves nice and dry. Then there’s this “Cha Ze,” looks like a little scoop, for gettin’ the tea out. And a little spoon, “Cha Shi,” I guess for stirrin’ or somethin’.

Oh, and don’t forget the “Cha Lou,” that’s a funnel, keeps you from spillin’ tea all over the place when you’re puttin’ it in the pot. There’s also these little tweezer things, “Cha Jia,” for pickin’ up the hot cups, I reckon. And a tiny pin, “Cha Zhen,” maybe for pokin’ the tea leaves if they get stuck or somethin’. See? Lots of stuff!

• Tea Vase (Cha Tong)
• Tea Scoop (Cha Ze)
• Tea Spoon (Cha Shi)
• Tea Funnel (Cha Lou)
• Tea Tweezer (Cha Jia)
• Tea Pin (Cha Zhen)

Now, I heard tell that Chinese and Japanese tea ain’t the same. Them Japanese folks, they steam their tea, makes it taste kinda… I dunno… “oo-ma-mee”? Sounds fishy to me. But the Chinese, they dry their tea leaves in a pan or somethin’, gives it a different taste, I guess.

Makin’ tea ain’t just dumpin’ hot water on leaves, ya know. You gotta heat the water, then pour it on the leaves for just a bit, maybe 20 or 30 seconds. Not too long, or it gets bitter, like my old neighbor’s personality! Then you pour the tea into another pitcher, so it don’t keep steeping. And get this, them fancy folks, they even sniff the lid of the pot after pourin’ the tea, to smell the leaves. Imagine that!

Them tea sets, they come in all sorts of stuff. Some are made of glass, which is nice ‘cause you can see the tea. And they ain’t too expensive, which is good for folks like me. Others are made of fancy things, like that… uh… “vintage” stuff. You know, the kind that looks old but costs a fortune? And they got all sorts of patterns and pictures on ‘em. Flowers, birds, dragons… you name it.

And the teapots and cups, they come in all shapes and sizes too. Some pots are big, some are small. Some cups are tall, some are short. It’s enough to make your head spin! But I guess it’s all about what you like and how many folks you’re servin’ tea to.

I seen these tea sets used for somethin’ called “gongfu-style” tea. Sounds complicated, but I think it’s just a fancy way of sayin’ they take their tea real serious. They use special sets and do everything just so. It’s like a whole ceremony, ya know? Not like me, I just boil water and dump it on the leaves. Works just fine for me!

So, there ya have it, a little bit about them traditional Chinese tea sets. They got a lot of pieces, come in all sorts of materials, and folks use ‘em for all sorts of fancy tea-makin’ stuff. Me? I’m happy with my plain old mug, but it’s nice to know a little bit about how the other half lives, right?

Now, if you’re lookin’ to buy one of these sets, I hear tell you can find ‘em online pretty cheap. But be careful, don’t get ripped off by them city slickers tryin’ to sell you somethin’ for twice what it’s worth. And remember, the best tea ain’t about the fancy set, it’s about the company you share it with. So, go on, brew yourself a cuppa and enjoy!

And another thing, don’t go spendin’ all your hard-earned money on somethin’ you don’t need. A simple cup works just as good as a fancy one. Remember that.

Tags: [Chinese Tea Set, Tea Ceremony, Junzi Liujiantao, Tea Culture, Tea Accessories, Gongfu Tea, Traditional Tea, Tea Making, Tea Utensils]