Who invented green tea

Although green tea was invented in China, it also has its roots in Southeast Asia and is now widely produced and manufactured in many Asian countries. It is widely accepted that green tea was first steeped in BC during the reign of Emperor Shennong — a mythical sage and a popular figure in the mythology of Chinese agriculture and medicine.

It is said that during one of his travels, when Shennong and his convoy stopped to rest, few tea leaves fell into his cup of hot water from a burning tea twig that lay nearby. The water turned dark in color, but it went unnoticed by the emperor. When he consumed this water, he found it to be extremely refreshing and requested the members of his convoy to prepare it for him henceforth. It is believed that this was discovered accidentally when some Japanese tea farmers were trying to protect the tea from freezing, covering the tea leaf.

We want everyone to experience the health benefits of Green Tea and show you that this can be an amazing, refreshing, and delicious drink when made correctly. With just a few tips on how to brew this powerful leaf we can change your mind about the taste and enjoyment of drinking Green Tea. We know that you will love this tips to brewing tea and getting the most flavor and elegance out of every cup. You will learn what it is that makes it one of the most popular beverages in the world.

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November 08, Join Green Tea Club Free. Join Ambassador Program. The book's opening passage is about tea's origins in the south, showing that this has been a long-held theory. During the Nara and Heian periods, many envoys were sent to Tang-dynasty China. On several occasions, these envoys were accompanied by Japan's leading Buddhist scholars, including Saicho, Kukai and Eichu. These Buddhist monks brought back with them tea seeds from Tang China, which are said to be the origin of tea in Japan.

In the early Heian Period, Emperor Saga is said to have encouraged the drinking and cultivation of tea in Japan. Tea drinking was first referred to in Japanese literature in in the Nihon Koki Later Chronicles of Japan , recording that Eichu invited Emperor Saga to Bonshakuji temple, where he was served tea.

At this time, tea was extremely valuable and only drunk by imperial court nobles and Buddhist monks. In , in the early Kamakura Period , Eisai, founder of the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism, brought back a new type of tea seeds to Kyoto from Sung-dynasty China. According to the medieval chronicle Azumakagami, Eisai learned that the Shogun, Minamoto no Sanetomo, was afflicted by alcoholism, and sent his book as a gift to the Shogun.

Although there is a theory that Sancha mountain tea originally grew wild in remote areas of Japan's mountains and that this tea was consumed, the first tea grown in Japan is said to have been planted in Seburisan, Saga Prefecture, from seeds brought from China by Eisai.

Later, Eisai gave tea seeds to Myoe Shonin in Kyoto. These seeds are said to have become the basis for Uji tea after being sowed at Toganoo in Kyoto. Tea growing soon spread throughout Japan. At this time, tea was steamed and dried without being pressed Tencha , and became a part of the social intercourse of Samurai culture. In writings of the Nanboku-cho Period, the tea-growing regions of the time are recorded. In several parts of Kyoto as well as in Yamato, Iga, Ise, Suruga and Musashi, tea came to be grown at temples and on temple estates.

In the 14th century, tea growing began in Okukuji, Ibaraki, which is said to be at the northern limit for tea growing. Eisai's book Kissa Yojoki played a major role in spreading tea culture in Japan. In the late Kamakura Period, the practice of Tocha tea competitions , which originated in Southern Song-dynasty China, became popular among the Samurai class and tea gatherings were common.

The tea ceremony rapidly spread, including Chakabuki. From the late 15th century to the late 16th century, tea masters such as Murata Shuko, Takeno Joo and Sen no Rikyu developed a new tea ceremony, referred to as Wabicha.