Huang Tingjian's Ode of Boiling Tea and Tea Culture of the Song Dynasty
Huang Tingjian had an indissoluble bond with tea throughout his life.His Ode of Boiling Tea(Jian Cha Fu),written while he was relegated to Shu(Sichuan)area,is the only work in the Song Dynasty that focuses on tea matters.The ode has a rich cultural connotation of tea in the Song Dynasty.This is specifically manifested in its mixed use of"boiling tea"(Jian Cha)and"preparing tea"(Dian Cha),presentation of the sensory evaluation and ranking of famous teas,criticism of the tea drinking concepts since the Tang Dynasty,and innovation in the method of drinking tea for health preservation.