Tea, glorious tea

Teas always bring back memories to a friendly neighborhood Chinese merchant in Parian (A. Bonifacio St.) and the ever-present pot of tea that seems to pour an endless stream of this beverage. He has drunk so much tea that even the immaculate white porcelain cups were permanently stained... by tea. In our residence then, we had fresh milk, sikwate, kape and the only time tsa was served was when you need a liquid assistance to help digest a rather heavy meal.

A few years later, nothing new was brewing in my world of tea until my father returned from a study tour in Australia. He had acquired the custom of mixing fresh milk (butter fat of 4.4%) with tea. I tried the mixture with the strange liquid shocking my guts; I simply threw up! I wonder what my reaction would be if my father had come from Tibet and mix brick tea with yak butter?

Many years later, I have become more familiar with some of the nuances of tea. The plant named Camella sinensis has actually some 8,000 varieties. It can grow almost anywhere but the better tea grows at "higher altitudes where the cool atmosphere matures it slowly, thus producing a richer, more complex leaf".

There are several types of tea and these include the green tea, white tea, yellow tea, black tea, red tea, cliff tea and the scented teas. So many teas! These are versions that involved the Camella plants and there are still other plants the leaf, flower or bud of which are used as "tea".

Then there's the manner of preparation of the tea, the kind of water used and the temperature of the water. Boiling reduces the oxygen content of the water and the tea leaves absorb oxygen during brewing so that the essence (a kind of oil?) is released "giving the brew it's distinctive and rich flavor."

Even the container where the tea is brewed has its own peculiarities and earthen ware is recommended since the porous nature of the clay allows the mingling of the surrounding air and the steaming brew which will "enhance the vitality of the tea."

The production of tea grew in sophistication and stringent rules were applied in its cultivation and processing. The tea leaves and buds have to be handpicked and some of these rules are applied even to the diet of tea pluckers. Young women have been forbidden to eat garlic and strong spices to prevent contamination of the delicate leaves through the sweat of their fingertips.

All this information came from a magazine article entitled "Tea" by Lee Loque that I treasure in my library.

The art of drinking tea has reached a certain degree of sophistication that you need a Tea Master, Chinese Chef and a destination to enjoy the niceties of tea drinking and Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort & Spa can provide all of the above.

Your favorite food columnist (ahem!) had the opportunity to take a tour of China via a Tea Appreciation Lunch with Chao Zhong Wan (Tea Master) and Chef Khor (Chinese Chef) that was held at the Tea of Spring with an invitation from Sharon Samarista (Shang's Director of Communication).

And to guide you on this tea journey, a map of the People's Republic of China was provided that shows the type of tea served and from what place in China it came from. For example, the tea called "The Perfect Harmony" comes from Hainan Island, one of the few places in China that grows coconuts. I noticed however, that none of the teas were from the province of Fujian and it was in a small street shop in Xiamen, that I had a wonderful encounter with green tea.

Seated with Vincent Tian Keat Kong (F&B Manager), Richard Alarcon (Promotions manager) and Samantha Lazarte (Communications Exec), I began lunch with a Chinese Appetizer Platter composed of Marinated jellyfish with homemade Thai chili sauce, Roasted chicken with fragrant tea leaf, Deep fried crispy bean curd sheet roll and Poached squid with herbal soya sauce.

The first tea that was served was called Longjin Dragon Well, said to contain high levels of Vitamin C and powerful antioxidant properties. This was harvested in Zhejiang province (formerly known as Chekiang) with its capital in Hangzhou.

With the second pot of tea brewing (The Perfect Harmony), we relish on the soup, the Pumpkin broth with braised diced scallop.

The next dish was Fish fillets in lemon sauce with stir fried fresh lily bulb and squid. The Taiwan Dongding Oolong tea escorted this fish and from F&B Manager Vincent, I learned that the lily bulb was fresh (all the lily bulbs I have seen were dried) because it had a nice plane ride to arrive just in time for the Cebu Media Tea Appreciation Lunch.

Beef tenderloin in fresh ginseng with wok fried king prawn among spicy fragrant oats was next on the menu. To complement the beef, a naturally aged fermented tea - the Old Pu-er (8-10 years) - was poured. Like red wine, which harmonizes with beef, the Tea Master chose this dark red tea to match the beef.

The last dish as the Braised black mushroom bean curd, with Tea of Spring fried rice. Another tea to complement the meal was the Heavenly Robe. This tea comes from the province of Anhui and the delicate sent of the jasmine flower dominates the flavor of this tea.

A dessert called the Chilled sweetened black glutinous rice served with buko ice cream came along with a concoction called Everlasting Memories. This was made from a cocktail of osmanthus, rose and apple flowers which gave the tea its slightly sweet taste.

But I missed the green tea of Fujian province.

In the past I had the occasion to drinks many cups of tea in one seating. But this was the first time I had eight cups of eight different types of tea that were perfectly matched with the dishes served. It was indeed an experience to enjoy, an education to cherish and this kind of activity can only happen at the Tea of Spring.

* * *

E-mail: [email protected]