Brewing support among the young

Traditional drink inspires growing interest in customs and gives a fascinating taste of culture

Crushing tea leaves, sifting tea powder, adding hot water, and stirring with a whisk until thick bubbles appear … A special tea party was held at the Tribute Tea Museum of Tang Dynasty in Changxing county, East China's Zhejiang province.

By restoring this ancient ritual, Zheng Funian, a national intangible heritage bearer of the Zisun teamaking technique, together with his apprentices, was celebrating the addition of China's traditional tea-making to the intangible cultural heritage list of UNESCO in late November.

"More than a thousand years ago, our ancestors had already painted or written on the tea foam, which is even more sophisticated than today's latte art," Zheng says, adding that the processing of Zisun tea has existed since the Tang Dynasty (618-907).