Tea is believed to have originated thousands of years ago in Southeast Asia. Modern experts have pinpointed the center of origin to the general area of northeast India, north Burma and Southwest China and Tibet. The Yunnan Province, where today, much of the tea consumed worldwide is grown, is thought to be the birthplace of tea consumption. Interestingly enough, Lincang City of the Yunnan Province is home to the world’s oldest cultivated tea tree, believed to be over 3,200 years old.

Shennong, the Famous Chinese Emperor chewing on herbs.

A popular Chinese legend attributes the creation of tea to Shennong, the legendary Emperor of China, in or around 2737 BC. Considered to be the father of Chinese agriculture and medicine, Shennong was known for tasting herbs and testing their medical value. He is credited with identifying hundreds of herbs (some poisonous) by personally testing the effects on the human body. Chinese legend tells us that Shennong’s discovery of tea was due to burning tea twig leaves being carried up, out of the fire by the hot air and into his cauldron of boiling water. As was ordinary with him, he noted the effects of the beverage and is said to have chewed tea leaves as an antidote to the poisonous herbs he found. It should be noted that tea, in fact, is an antidote for some seventy poisonous herbs.

Early tea use was mainly for medicinal purposes. The cultural mosaic that inhabited the tea growing region had learned of its healthy effects from their ancestors who planted the trees hundreds of years prior. By the time of the Shang Dynasty (1766-1050 BC), tea culture was thriving in the Yunnan province. Championed for it’s medicinal properties, tea was often combined with other herbs to treat nearly any ailment a sufferer could report. Tea was seen as essential to maintaining ones health and wellbeing.

It is believed that the Zhou dynasty (1122-256 BC) was the first to cultivate tea for enjoyment, rather than for use as a medicinal aid. The Zhou dynasty was also instrumental in the spread of indigenous tea trees to other areas, namely the Sichuan Province, just northeast of Yunnan. So the next time you brew yourself a cup of something delicious, we hope you’ll think about the humble beginnings of the cherished leaf from which we derive so much pleasure, and how, without the Zhou dynasty, we might not be drinking tea for enjoyment, as so many of us do today.

In the next installment of “The Story of Tea”, we’ll accompany tea on it’s journey through early culture and it’s association with religion and spirituality. Until then, we’d like to point you in the direction of our RSS feed. By subscribing, you can receive the latest Ocean of Tea blog posts in your feedreader or email inbox automatically. We also encourage you to comment on our posts with suggestions, concerns, thoughts and questions. We’d love to hear from you!

Tea is the second most consumed liquid on the planet, after water. For many of us, we begin each day with a cup of tea, and we know that what lies in that cup will prepare us for whatever lies ahead in our journey through modern life. We enjoy another cup around mid-day, to pick us up and inspire us to finish our ever-growing workload. When we finally arrive home in the evening, we let another cup pull us from the dizzying speed of modern urban life and into a more serene, thoughtful state.

Tea plantation in the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia.

The centuries old relationship between the farmers and their land, and the process of taking their crop to the market is still, after all of this time thriving. Long gone are the days of waiting weeks or even months for ships to cross the ocean bringing in new lots of heavily fermented leaves. With the advent of the internet and modern business, a tea connoisseur can find nearly any variety of tea he desires and have it delivered to his doorstep with minimal effort.

All tea is plucked from the same species of tea plant, known as Camellia sinensis, a sturdy evergreen bush with shiny, green, serrated leaves. There are three primary origin-specific varietal bushes: China Bush, Assam Bush and Java Bush. Much of the flavor of tea is derived from the method of manufacture. A second influence, that of what the French call “terrior” places the subtle nuances that alone, can identify the geographic region and origin of the tea, even as precise as to the estate in which it was grown. Perhaps nothing influences the flavor of tea as much as the culture behind it. For instance, China is famous for it’s sweet, fresh, lighter flavors, while Japan is known for grassy, astringent teas. Each of the numerous variables (soil, growing conditions, pruning of the bushes, timing of picking, leaf style, skill, harvest weather, etc) play an important role in the manufacturing of great tea. In our journey of tea we’ve found great enjoyment in pin-pointing taste, aroma and visual characteristics to each of these variables. Through expanding your palate and tasting a variety of teas you can develop a comprehensive “world view” of tea and learn to enjoy the beverage in ways that a simple teabag and some sugar can’t provide.

In the next installment of “The Story of Tea”, we’ll trace the beginning of tea consumption to its medicinal uses and development of tea culture. Until then, we urge you to check out high quality loose leaf tea selections found in our store.