GONGFU—New Moon Tea Gathering

Join us in a traditional silent ceremony to set intention for the upcoming lunar cycle and beyond. Spaces are limited.

Attention to tea-making quality has been a classic Chinese tradition. All teas, loose tea, coarse tea, and powdered tea have long coexisted with the “imperially appointed compressed form”. By the end of the 14th century, the more naturalistic “loose leaf” form had become a popular household product and by the Ming era, loose tea was put to imperial use.

The related teaware that is the tea pot and later the gaiwan lidded cup were evolved. It is believed that the gongfu approach began around the AD 18th century. Some scholars think that it began in Wuyi (Bohea) Mountains in Fujian, where the production of oolong tea for export began; others believe that it was the people of Chaozhou in the Chaoshan area in Guangdong started this particular part of the tea culture.

Oral history from the 1940s still referred to gongfu tea as “Chaoshan gongfu tea”. It is likely that regardless of the earliest incidence of the approach, the place that first successfully integrated it into daily life was Chaoshan area. Chaozhou is recognized by some as the capital of gongfu tea.