Chinese tea has a history of over 5,000 years, during which a series of unique tea culture have come into being, covering from tea plant cultivation and conservation, tea-leaf picking to processing and sampling tea. Tea-leaves are mainly produced in the southern area to the Yangtze River for mild climate and fertile ground there, such as the provinces of Zhejiang, Yunnan, Guizhou and Fujian. There produce an abundance of renowned tea varieties, e.g. Longjin, Wulong, Pu’er, Tieguangyin.
Tea culture is one of the common traits shared by all the 56 ethnic groups in China. Many Chinese people believe that a day is not perfect without a cup of tea. Either in the warm southern mountain area or on the frozen northern grassland, stuff like Gongfu tea, buttered tea and milk tea are all among the favorite drinks. Furthermore, both ancient and modern Chinese people tend to indulge in elaborating on poems, essays, dances and dramas on the tea.
茶在中國已經(jīng)有5000年的歷史。在漫長的歷史中,圍繞茶的栽培、養(yǎng)護、采摘、加工、品飲形成了一整套獨具特色的茶文化及相關(guān)藝術(shù)。長江以南是中國茶葉的主產(chǎn)區(qū)。浙江、云南、貴州、福建等地氣候溫和,土地肥沃,十分適合茶葉的生長,造就了龍井、烏龍、普洱、鐵觀音這些馳名中外的名品。
茶文化是中華多民族文化中的一個共同特征。五十六個民族都有飲茶的習俗。許多中國人在生活中不可一日無茶。不論是在溫和潮濕的南方山區(qū),還是冰天雪地的北方草原,工夫茶、酥油茶、奶茶都是人們特別喜愛的飲品。以茶為題的詩歌、散文、舞蹈、戲劇更為人們特別津津樂道。