About
A tea room on Darling Street in Balmain, and the small range of Chinese tea brewed in it.
The tea room
The room is set up for sitting down to tea: gaiwans on the table and the kettle kept hot. A session runs until the leaf is spent.
Max
Max runs Cha is Tea. He grew up around Chinese tea and has spent years drinking and sourcing it. He started Cha is Tea to share the teas worth drinking, brewed the way they are in China rather than the way they are usually served elsewhere.
Where the tea comes from
The range is small, and it comes from working producers in Wuyishan and Yunnan: Wuyi Star for the rock oolongs, Mengku Rongshi for an aged white-tea cake, and Fengqing Fengning for a moonlight white pressed into balls.
From garden to gaiwan
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Grown
In the Wuyi mountains of Fujian, and in Yunnan.
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Made
By the producer, to the traditional method.
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Tasted
By Max, over several sessions, before it joins the range.
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Brewed
At a session in Balmain.
Brewed in short infusions
Chinese tea is brewed in a small pot or gaiwan, with plenty of leaf, hot water and many short infusions. The leaf opens slowly across a session, and each pour tastes a little different from the last. It takes longer than a teabag, and the time is spent at the table, tasting the change.
Tastings are by appointment. Make an enquiry, or see the teas on the shelf.