History of red tea

I am very puzzled by the fact that albeit people in China do not drink
red tea, they do produce and export a lot of it for the West. Who and
why invented the red tea in China, and when did it happen? Was it a
special invention for or by the Europeans? Was it red tea at all that
the first Dutch ships carried to Europe - or was it the tea the
Chinese used to drink, for example some kind of oolong?

Thanks for any answers,
Gyorgy

gsajo@m (Gyorgy Sajo) wrote in message news:<492599d1.0408221621.6239d6ba@ com>...
> I am very puzzled by the fact that albeit people in China do not drink
> red tea, they do produce and export a lot of it for the West. Who and
> why invented the red tea in China, and when did it happen? Was it a
> special invention for or by the Europeans? Was it red tea at all that
> the first Dutch ships carried to Europe - or was it the tea the
> Chinese used to drink, for example some kind of oolong?
>
> Thanks for any answers,
> Gyorgy

My understanding of red tea was that it was created in Africa, I think
southern Africa, and it was called Rooibos meaning red bush. But I
could be wrong. Maybe that's why they don't drink red tea. Plus it's
not really a tea since it doesnt come from the tea plant.

mike.thadman@ (Mike Thadman) wrote in message news:<5b569e9c.0408230012.6632594a@ com>...
> gsajo@m (Gyorgy Sajo) wrote in message news:<492599d1.0408221621.6239d6ba@ com>...
> > I am very puzzled by the fact that albeit people in China do not drink
> > red tea, they do produce and export a lot of it for the West. Who and
> > why invented the red tea in China, and when did it happen? Was it a
> > special invention for or by the Europeans? Was it red tea at all that
> > the first Dutch ships carried to Europe - or was it the tea the
> > Chinese used to drink, for example some kind of oolong?
> >
> > Thanks for any answers,
> > Gyorgy
>
> My understanding of red tea was that it was created in Africa, I think
> southern Africa, and it was called Rooibos meaning red bush. But I
> could be wrong. Maybe that's why they don't drink red tea. Plus it's
> not really a tea since it doesnt come from the tea plant.

I was actually talking about the tea which the Chinese call red tea,
and which is called black tea in the West.

> > > I am very puzzled by the fact that albeit people in China do not drink
> > > red tea, they do produce and export a lot of it for the West. Who and
> > > why invented the red tea in China, and when did it happen? Was it a
> > > special invention for or by the Europeans?

Black/Red tea is roughly 100 years old and was a sort of happy
accident, it was not invented with anyone in mind. The story of
modern day Keemun is that of an accidental change in the processing of
green Keemun. Green tea has a much longer history in China than
Black/Red and must be more wrapped up in their traditions and culture.
The Book of Tea talks about which types of tea are favored in asia
and why, it's a very interesting book, highly reccomeded!

Was it red tea at all that
> > > the first Dutch ships carried to Europe - or was it the tea the
> > > Chinese used to drink, for example some kind of oolong?

I think the first tea Europeans drank was green but when given the
choice the European culture with it's different taste preferences must
have been really taken with Red/Black tea. Then in the ninteenth
century when India really took off as a tea growing region the
Europeans were able to process tea however they wanted, (the
processing of tea had been unknown to the Europeans for a long time)
black tea was their main choice.

Derek <news@gwinn.us> wrote in message news:<1atxfky5m4upp.dlg@gwinn.us>...
> Gyorgy Sajo rose quietly and spake the following:
>
> > In 1644 the Manchus came to power in China. They preferred to drink
> > black tea with milk, and this habit spred quickly to Europe, together
> > with the first shipments of tea. From the above follows that the
> > Europeans most probably received black/red tea from China.
>
> Except, the Dutch started importing tea almost 50 years earlier.
>
> It's more likely that this habit spread quickly to England, which started
> importing the beverage around 1650.

You are right about the Dutch being the first to import tea to Europe,
and that in pre-Manchu China they possibly did not experience the
habit of drinking black tea with milk. However, according to my source
(Evans' book), some fifty years later they were the first to introduce
it to Europe:

"Manchu-style milk-tea had astounding repercussions; in fact, it
became the most popular tea outside of China. (...) Following the
publication of a descripition of the Dutch Embassy of Captain Moor
Mautzuiker, Peter de Goyer, and Jacob de Keyser to China on August 8,
1656, which spoke of adding milk to tea, the novel Melkthee [English:
milk tea] appeared at fairs in Holland and Friesland. From there it
gained the rest of Europe."

netstuff@ix.netcom.com (Space Cowboy) wrote in message news:<24a3776d.0408250545.3fc135@co m>...

> When black tea drinking became
> popular in Europe it became popular in China.

Have drinking of black tea ever been popular in China?? My sources say
just the opposite. (Save the drinking habit of the Manchu ruling
class, who was not Han Chinese, but of Mongolian origin.)

bruce_thousandm (bruce) wrote in message news:<5ac8b5e9.0408252259.4b99549b@ com>...
>
> Wow, great info! Thanks for correcting me. I always thought red tea
> was a much more recent invention and I never knew it was only invented
> for foriegners. What dates does that book attribute to the other
> styles of tea?

There are no other dates. Curiously, despite of a very thorougly
researched book, with a welth of information about the history of
green tea, a deep knowledge of Chinese history and society, tea trade
and cultivation from the earliest days until today, the author does
not seem to have any knowledge of other teas than black and green! In
the chapter where he discusses the processing of tea in more recent
time, he mentions only black and green tea manufacture. In the whole
book there is virtually no mention of oolong, white, yellow teas or
puerh. Very puzzling.

What made black tea popular in China was the European addition of a
handle to the teapot. Initially the Chinese imported the adaptation
then copied and exported. Essentially the Chinese realized if black
tea was good enough for the Europeans it was good for them. I don't
know of any breakdown statistics for current green-oolong-black
consumption in China. I'd say the Chinese supermarket brand selection
is less for oolong than green-black. Brand name oolong for the
English markets has essentially dried up. Even when it was available
it was more expensive than the other two. The Chinese oolongs are
cheaper than the Taiwan oolongs at my local tea shoppe. It could be
the relatively high European price is due to domestic consumption
which is certainly true for Taiwan. I've been drinking a wonderful
Taiwan Orange Blossom (flowers) oolong from my local tea shoppe.

Jim

gsajo@m (Gyorgy Sajo) wrote in message news:<492599d1.0408260122.483c6e46@ com>...
> netstuff@ix.netcom.com (Space Cowboy) wrote in message news:<24a3776d.0408250545.3fc135@co m>...
>
> > When black tea drinking became
> > popular in Europe it became popular in China.
>
> Have drinking of black tea ever been popular in China?? My sources say
> just the opposite. (Save the drinking habit of the Manchu ruling
> class, who was not Han Chinese, but of Mongolian origin.)

I looked all over the Internet and can't find Orange Blossom tisane
for sale from anybody. I know it becomes an orange but you'd think
the Florida farmers would harvest before hard freezes. I'll check a
couple of herbal stores locally. My local tea shoppe sells all tea
infusions for the same price. Knowing this I usually walk out with a
cup of the more expensive stuff like silver needles or kokeicha.
Recently he's been selling a genmaicha with matcha making a
psychedelic green concoction. Oh yes he now sells bubble tea. I
don't know what I hate the most tapioca or bergamot.

Jim

Derek <news@gwinn.us> wrote in message news:<19em6zwk0w6sl$.dlg@gwinn.us>...
> Space Cowboy rose quietly and spake the following:
>
> > I've been drinking a wonderful
> > Taiwan Orange Blossom (flowers) oolong from my local tea shoppe.
>
> Now that sounds absolutely tasty.