The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide
by Mary Lou Heiss, Robert J. Heiss
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Book Summary Information
Author: Mary Lou Heiss, Robert J. HeissEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-10-01
ISBN: 1580087450
Number of pages: 432
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Book Reviews of The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide
Book Review: A treasure - passion, love, and deep knowledge of tea served strongly brewed.
Summary: 5 Stars
What a revelation! I'm a tea nut (I drink mostly exotic high grade green and Wulong whole leaf teas - often 3 16 ounce jars a day) - so I'm particularly ripe for the charms of this volume - but the achievements of this book are above and beyond. First, there is the artistry of the photography and presentation. This book initially comes off as a coffee table (forgive me - that's the expression) book because it's so beautiful. I didn't read it for over a year because I figured such a pretty book would be textually a lightweight.
However, what's in the text is the real strong suit of "The Story of Tea". First off, you get the story - the history - of tea. It's quite unpredictably fascinating - from ancient roots to England's centuries long struggle with the Dutch over trade with China, the belated discovery of Assam's native teas and the global transformation that followed. The Boston tea party gets in there. Tea is woven deep in the crossroads of East and West. Then you get a rigorous analysis of the drinking practices and their history - and then the production techniques and their history. All of this is beautifully illustrated. The sections on traditional tea production methodology have National Geographic quality photographs of really obscure tea production in really exotic places. The same goes for tea drinking practice and ritual. It's part epicurean, part anthropological, and part pure art.
If you are the kind of person who has sought out these exotic teas (I know I am) then this visual information is really wonderful and will directly translate into your appreciation for your exotic teas. All the world's tea regions are covered. It's not all context. There's a drinker's catalog: a section where the major tea types are depicted as unbrewed leaves on a white background with a brewed cup (in a white cup) immediately above with excellent tasting notes. This section alone is worth the price of admission although it's just a tiny section of the whole book. It also makes this book suitable as an introduction.
This is the best book on the subject of tea that I've encountered. If your interest in tea extends beyond the tea bag you owe it to yourself to devour this and then continue your journey through the incredible world revealed there.
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