Japanese tea ceremony

Chado, meaning the way of tea, is at the very heart of Japanese culture. Introduced to the country by monks returning from China, tea was once reserved for the aristocracy. By the following century tea had become politically and socially important, with the aristocracy and samurai taking part in extravagant tea-drinking parties to demonstrate both their power and their knowledge of the beverage.

The drink is now ubiquitous, but the tea ceremony, centred around matcha, remains a revered practice.

The Japanese tea ceremony, known as cha-noyu, is inextricably linked to Buddhism. Each tea ceremony is meant to be an experience, from the guests to the decorations, that is unique. There are also many different types of ceremonies depending on the season, time of day or occasion, ranging from informal to formal.

For example:
*Asa-cha -- Held during a cool morning during summer
*Akatsuki-no-chaji -- Cold winter morning
*Shoburo -- Special tea ceremony in May wherein the ro (sunken hearth in the tatami flooring used during the winter) will be closed off and will transition to the use of a portable brazier (a stove that uses charcoal as its heat source)

Matcha tea is grown in the shade, resulting in a higher percentage of chlorophyll than other green teas, and is the centrepiece of ancient Japanese tea rituals. or the Japanese tea ceremony, it’s placed in a small tea caddy or used straight from the sieve.

In the formal ceremony, small tea-room is used. The entrance for guests is so narrow that he has to crawl to pass through it.

Two to four grams of matcha is scooped into a bowl then 60–80mL of hot (70–85°C) — not boiling — water is added. The mixture is then whisked to a uniform consistency with a small bamboo whisk. This is traditionally served with a small sweet to balance the bitterness. The ceremony is conducted in a solemn and ritualistic manner, taking about 4 hours, during which the host engages his whole being in the creation of an occasion designed to bring aesthetic, intellectual, and physical enjoyment and peace of mind to the guests.
Japanese tea ceremony