All the Tea in China [Paperback]

Kit Chow (Author), Ione Kramer (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This lavishly illustrated book explores both the historical lore of tea in China, Japan, and the West and the health and aesthetic virtues of the beverage. Chow and Kramer draw on English-language secondary literature and their experiences in China to argue that tea is at least as worthy of studious appreciation as wine, and they bolster this claim with intriguing descriptions of 50 famous Chinese teas. The authors also describe the role of tea-houses in China today, tell where and how to buy the unusual varieties they describe ("Lushan Cloud and Mist," "Green Snail Spring," etc.), give hints on how to brew a "nice cup of tea," and even tell how to get the most out of a tea bag! A charming and informative addition to any library collection.
-Charles W. Hayford, Northwestern Univ., Evanston, Ill.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 187 pages
• Publisher: China Books & Periodicals Inc.; 1st edition (September 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835121941
• ISBN-13: 978-0835121941
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 7.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #501,430 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not much information on Chinese tea, June 6, 2002

By 

Phan Rik (Amherst, Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: All the Tea in China (Paperback)

This book might be useful to someone looking for a book with general information about tea, but for someone who wants to learn about the real art of Chinese tea, this book is useless . The book does not go into any detail about important elements of Chinese tea drinking such as Yixing teapots and the gongfu brewing method; it just tries to explain them in a few sentences. After reading this book, you will hardly have gained any knowledge of Chinese tea at all.
The book is obviously an imitation of John Blofeld's "The Chinese Art of Tea", which is an excellent book on the subject of Chinese tea. This book even copied the format of "The Chinese Art of Tea" by inserting small drawings in the margins, and they also copied the teahouse section of "The Chinese Art of Tea". The only thing they forgot to copy was all the good information.

The section in this book on tea brewing, entitled "How to Make a Nice Cup of Tea", provides instructions on making tea that could only be used to make tea for your dogs. The book does not explain any of the Chinese brewing methods, it seems like the authors just read the back of a Lipton box and copied into their book. If you are interested in Chinese tea, it is much better to find a few good websites on Chinese tea than to buy this book. Anybody who has even a small amount of knowledge of Chinese tea can see that this book is very badly made.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Perfect First Tea Book, June 24, 2004

By 

Fredrik W. - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: All the Tea in China (Paperback)

A great general introduction to the topic of tea. The title may be a bit misleading as the book broad-brushes tea on a worldwide basis not just Chinese tea. It covers origin, history, production, health and techniques. Well illustrated, with plenty of useful lists in the back of the book including names of many teas in both English and Chinese.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Tea Books, Period, February 20, 2008

By 

Tobias Boyd "Blacksmith Tobias" (Portland, Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All the Tea in China (Paperback)

I have a dozen or so tea books, but this is pretty much my favorite. Partly because I prefer Chinese teas, but also because it covers the production of tea in great detail. It also has a good overview of many famous tea varieties.