All the Tea in China

Many purveyors of tea like to speak upon the popularity of tea in China, lending to a rather vague impression, by intention or not, that all teas are universally liked with little differentiation from region to region.  I'd like to take a moment to perhaps dispel this misnomer by sharing from my impressions when I lived there eons ago.

Let's first consider for a moment that China is a huge landmass, roughly the size of the United States.  In contrast to our relative homogeneity, also consider regional distinctions that are more akin to the so-called "old world."  For example, although France and Germany are neighbors, there are marked differences in their cuisine.  Similar contrast exists from province to province in China as well.  This means, by way of illustration, that in China people don't go out for "Chinese" food, but rather for Sichuanese, Hunanese , or Cantonese.  Whereas these are but names of restaurants for the vast majority of egg-foo-yung serving restaurants here in the States, these names importantly designate a distinctive type of cuisine that would most certainly ensure that most State-side Chinese restaurants would not survive long in China for the fraud they perpetrate.  Furthermore, the food and drink of each region are in part an organic medicinal response to the environment.  Thus, dry regions favor oily foods and damp regions favor spicy food, all as a way of achieving balance with the elements.  These variables additionally shape the landscape for all the tea in China. 

 When I lived in China in the early 90s, the restaurants served jasmine tea. without exception, because that is the tea preference in northern China.  My students from tea-growing regions were always sure to share their local variety, some quite remarkable.  All of these teas were green tea.  Though I did have some very iffy quality brick tea when eating at the Uighur restaurants in Beijing, I never had a proper serving of pu-er till visiting Yunnan when on holiday.  Yunnan is in far SW China, bordering Burma and Laos.  Pu-er, which comes in many forms: brick, cake, or bird's-nest, is a tea favored by the Western minorities, particularly the Tibetans and Hui, who consume large quantities of meat and very few vegetables.  It is considered a stable of the diet for reasons of digestion, hence the brick tea at the Uighur restaurants. 

Now that we've cleared a few things up about tea in China by understanding the variety expressed throughout such a huge landmass, below you will find an enumerated list to help you remember who drinks what where.  Perhaps a bit of context will enhance your drinking experience, as you begin to imagine how each variety works within our own internal and external environment.

Regions of China and Tea Favored
1) North/Beijing-- Jasmine (aka Hua-cha)
2) South/Shang-hai-- Green (aka Lu-cha)
3) "Deep" South/Hong Kong-- Black (aka Hong-cha)
4) Western-- Pu-er

 Enjoy!