"For each sheng of water, divide it into five bowls and drink while hot, in succession. The heavy and muddy settles below; the essence and fineness floats above."
"For the fire, charcoal is best, and sturdy firewood next. Charcoal that has been used for roasting, stained with fat and rankness, as well as resinous wood and rotten utensils, mu
"Steam it, pound it, press it, roast it, string it, seal it — and the tea is done."
"The gui mold, also called mo or quan, is made of iron, in round, square, or floral shapes."
"Wild tea is best; that of the garden is inferior. On sunny cliffs beneath shady woods, the purple buds are best and the green ones inferior; buds like bamboo shoots are best, slen
"In Jiangnan, teas of Ezhou, Yuanzhou, and Jizhou are pungent in taste; those of Fuzhou, Jianzhou, Shaozhou, and Xiangzhou are excellent."
"When Emperor Hui of Jin, fleeing in the dust, returned to Luoyang, the eunuch presented tea in an earthen bowl to the Son of Heaven."
"Some add scallion, ginger, jujube, tangerine peel, cornel, and mint, boiling it a hundred times, or stirring it slippery, or skimming off the froth. This is nothing but ditchwater
"For water: mountain spring is best, river water next, and well water lowest."
"Some praise tea that is glossy, black, and even — that is the lowest judgment. Some praise what is wrinkled, yellow, and uneven — that is a middling judgment. But to call everythi