"Among the Three Sovereigns, Shennong the Fiery Emperor; of the Zhou, the Duke of Zhou Dan of Lu; Yan Ying, prime minister of Qi; and of the Han, the immortals Dan Qiu-zi and Huang
"The finest powder is fine as rice-grains; the inferior is coarse as water-chestnuts."
"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 pestle and mortar, also called dui, are best when they have long been in constant use."
"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 Qianzhong, teas of Enzhou, Bozhou, Feizhou, and Yizhou are only occasionally obtained, yet their flavor is 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
"Ladle it with a gourd into the bowls, so that the foam is evenly divided. The foam — the froth — is the flower of the soup."