I was surprised with a beautiful gift the other day from an old childhood friend, Jim Ellsworth. Two fine china dragon teacups that were apart of his mother's collection. I wanted to create this tea in the honor of Jim's mother Christine Ellsworth.
The dragon cups are about 60 years old and were made in Japan, in fact when I was a child a had a very small cup just like these cups that was purchased on one of my favorite trips to China-town in San Francisco. These cups were made in Japan at the time for western tea cup collectors. I choose a pu'er tea to be brewed in a Japanese cast iron pot with a dragon motif. This pot was also a gift from one of my dearest tea drinking friends Susan.
Every good tea ceremony has a calligraphy painting and flowers. The Zen Calligraphy scroll for this ceremony is by Alok Hsu Kwang-han and the painting is called "Zen Shout" There is a practice in Zen, where the Meditation Master will make a very loud shout that breaks all the mind chatter and brings one back to emptiness of no-mind. This painting reflects that moment when the Zen Shout brings Awakening.
The flowers I used are Stargazer Lilies placed in a traditional Japanese Ikebana style vase. Lilies have been traditional used in the West as a symbol of the Mother. Jim's mother, Mrs. Ellsworth has passed away to the Great Beyond, but I invite her to smile down on us as I honor her in this simple tea.
I begin the ceremony by washing the cups and the cast iron pot with hot water. I always use spring or filter watered to make a good cup of tea. Pu'er tea comes from the Yunnan Province in China. This tea has a deep rich brown color with a mellow taste, in fact when I drink good quality pu'er tea I feel a soothing and settling in my stomach.
Pu'er tea goes through a fermentation process and then is pressed into bricks, but in this case it is pressed into a small little bowl. When it is time to make tea you break up the pu'er tea with a special knife and place it in your tea strainer. Unlike your oolongs or green tea pu'er tea needs very hot water and long steeping time to bring out the flavor and it's many health benefits.
This tea is said to boost the qi or life force of a person who drinks it regularly. It also invigorates the blood flow to the spleen, reduces fat, fights free radicals, lowers cholesterol and aids in digestion. It even said to remove aches and pains.
Pu'er tea is consumed years after it is harvested and the older the tea the more valuable it becomes, like a fine wine.
I made green tea cookies also which are made with matcha powder used in Japanese tea ceremonies. I used a basic recipe found on the link below, but I did not use powder sugar or white sugar I exchanged the recipe's sugar for raw sugar instead.
http://appetiteforchina.com/recipes/green-tea-cookies/
All the elements of a perfect tea came together to honor Mrs. Ellsworth. So we tip our cups in your memory and as I drink the last drop of tea a secret was revealed in the bottom of the cup, an image of a Geshia. The Geshia can only be seen when the cup is turned towards the Light.
Mrs. Ellsworth may your soul always know the Worlds of Light and may you Rest in Deep Peace.
