"As for the making tools: if at early spring, during the cold-food days, one gathers with many hands in a wild temple or mountain garden, steaming and pounding on the spot, then dr
"The wind stove is cast of copper or iron, shaped like an ancient tripod."
"The yu storage cabinet is made of wood, woven of bamboo, and pasted with paper. It has a shelf inside, a cover above, a base below, and a door at the side, with one panel shut. Wi
"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."
"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
"The guan skewer is cut from bamboo, two and a half feet long, for stringing tea cakes to roast."
"For tea bowls, those of Yuezhou are best, Dingzhou and Wuzhou next; of the Yuezhou type, Yue is finest, then Shouzhou and Hongzhou."
"The bamboo-shoot-like buds, growing in rich rocky soil, reach four or five inches, like young ferns just unfolding; they are picked while the morning dew is still on them."