There is a perfect book for everyone, and for tea drinkers, those about tea may be as interesting as the tea itself. Learning about tea may help you understand your favorite drink better, choose types of tea you never knew existed, or try teas that were drunk many centuries ago. Read like a pro, drink like a pro.
First books about tea
A drink so old as tea earned its place in many books around the world. The first book about tea was written in China, the birth country of tea. It was written by Lu Yun almost 1240 years ago and called the Chajing or the Tea Classics [1]. This book included the knowledge about tea origin, names, and characteristics, tools for producing and harvesting tea, tea making techniques, tools for brewing and details about drinking tea. Soon after, writing about tea wasn’t as rare as we would assume. This book was followed by the Cai Xiang and his Record of Tea in the 11th century[2], and many others after. Today, there is a great selection of books about tea, some more suitable for beginners, and some taking a lot of effort to introduce every single detail of our favorite drink.
Our selection includes only some, not all of them. There are many others worth checking out that will pull you into the incredible tea world and make you read and taste more.
Best tea books for tea beginners
1. The story of Ceylon tea by Maxwell Fernando
If you love Ceylon tea, you will love this book too. The story of Ceylon tea offers a great insight and a lot of details about Ceylon tea. It’s big, heavy, and very interesting. It’s one of the rare books in English about Sri Lankan tea.
2. Chinese Tea by Liu Tong
In you are interested to learn more about the history of Chinese tea, learn about popular Chinese tea types – from green tea to black tea, get an insight into a Chinese tea ceremony and read interesting legends, the Chinese Tea by Liu Tong offers all that and more. Easy to read and full of great information for both tea beginners and those that are already very familiar with tea but want to get a great review and interesting new information.
3. The Korean Way of Tea by Brother Anthony of Taize and Hong Kyeong–Hee
The Korean Way of Tea is very likely the only book in English that focuses on Korean tea only. It covers everything from growing and harvesting Korean tea, to the Korean tea philosophy and history of tea in Korea.
4. World Atlas of Tea by Krisi Smith
World Atlas of Tea is exactly as the name implies – a book about tea from different countries and regions, with a very clean structure, recipes, information about processing, brewing and tea facts. This great guide to tea is an interesting read if you want to understand how big and versatile tea world really is.
5. All the Tea in China by Wang Jian
If you are a Chinese tea lover, this small, but very interesting book offers an insight into Chinese tea throughout the history. Full of great facts, tea poems and tips, and a perfect read for tea enthusiasts.
6. World Tea Encyclopedia by Will Battle
World Tea Encyclopedia is one of those books you’d like to always keep close by and read while sipping your favorite cup of tea. It’s easy to read and full of information that may bring a world of tea closer and help you understand all about tea types, processing, brewing and tea tasting.
Best tea books for advanced tea drinkers
7. Darjeeling Tea: The Golden Brew Hardcover by G. D. Banerjee and Sirjeet Banerjee
With over 500 pages, this is the most comprehensive and informative book on Darjeeling tea. It’s a must for any advanced tea drinker that wants to really understand the history and story behind Darjeeling tea.
8. Pu’er tea: ancient caravans and urban chic by Jinghong Zhang
An incredible book about Pu’erh tea, and the only comprehensive book about pu’erh tea in English. The amount of study and research put into this book will amaze even the most advanced tea drinker. You would like this book even if you don’t like pu’erh.
9. Kakuzo Okakura, The book of tea
A Japanese tea classic published more than 100 years ago, that’s about tea, but not about tea only. The book of tea is a book about simplicity, aesthetics and art, about what’s hidden behind tea, and what matters. A book that’s not easy to read, but a must if you want to get a real understanding about the Japanese tea culture and the tea drinking culture in general.
References:
[1] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51094965_Between_Classical_and_Popular_The_Book_of_Tea_and_the_Popularization_of_Tea-Drinking_Culture_in_the_Tang_China
[2] All the tea in China, Wang Jian
