It's All About Tea — aesthetics

For any tea enthusiast out there, an essential part of the tea discovery journey is visiting an authentic tea house. In a Chinese style tea hut, we can experience tea the way it has been traditionally enjoyed for centuries. Whether you’re a seasoned drinker, or someone just getting into the vast world of tea, it is important to know about some of the etiquette of tea drinking when you are visiting a tea house. (Read more)

In the somewhat intricate world of tea ceremony, there exists a debate: incense or no incense? 

Personal preference aside, we decided to go deeper into why exactly incense can be burned during tea ceremonies. After all, this is a long tradition that has holds its roots in Buddhism and has made its way into the traditional tea ceremony. (Read more)

When thinking of Japanese culture, many of us have come across the term wabi-sabi. Although hard to define literally, wabi-sabi is a concept centered around the appreciation of imperfection. It is carried throughout many aspects of Japanese culture. From art to architecture, literature, poetry, nature, design, and one of the places it’s seen the most… tea ceremony. (Read more)

Cha Qi (茶气) is… well, there’s not really a definition for what it is. But one thing's for sure — if you’ve experienced it, you’ll know it. And you won’t forget it.

Cha Qi lives in teas that... (Read more)

Overall there are two main types of tea ceremonies in Japan: an informal tea gathering chakai, and a formal tea gathering chaji. Chakai is a more simple tea gathering which will include some sweets and thin tea (usucha). While chaji is much more formal, usually including a full-course kaiseki meal followed by sweets, thick tea (koicha), and thin tea. A chaji is often times around four hours long, with guests taking small breaks to walk around in the garden by the tea hut.

Aside from the two main types of tea ceremonies there are also many other kinds of tea ceremonies which are held in Japan depending on the occasion, season, and time of day. (Read more)