Drinking Tea To Harmonize With The Seasons: Colour (Type of Tea) As An Indication of Qi Part 2 of 2

Spring- Green- green teas -

The rising energies of spring harmonize with the rising energy of the first green shoots of tea. These first green leaves are some of the first growth of spring and have come to symbolically represent springtime. The cool nature of green tea and its sweet flavour prevents the rising energy from overflowing and keeps us in check. It also cools us to hot weather of which our bodies have not adapted.

Summer- Red- shu puerh-

Although most red teas (hong cha) don't really harmonize our energy with summer, shu (ripe) puerh is often used for this purpose. It's reddish soup and warm nature remind us of summer. With summer comes extreme heat. On these extraordinarily hot days it is sometimes wise to consume warming qi. This is especially so during the peak of summer, the hottest time of the year. In the 24 divisions of the Chinese solar calendar (solar terms), food with warming qi is consumed ritually on the solar term of dashu (Kor: daeseo, Eng: major heat) which takes place around July 23. They consume warm qi to balance the bodies warming energies and store heat on the hottest day of the year so they have enough fire to last through the winter. It is commonly thought in asian cultures that warm qi is best at balancing your body when it becomes overheated. This idea applies here to the consumption of shu (ripe) puerh, especially old shu, on summer days of extremely hot temperatures. Only very keen teamasters are aware of such uses of shu puerh (such as Teaparker in this Tea Masters post).

Late Summer & two weeks before and after the June and December Solstice and March and September Equinox- Yellow- yellow teas-

Late Summer, which usually starts around the third week of August, and the transitional times of the seasons marked by 2 weeks before and after the Equinoxes and Solstices are best harmonized by the qi of teas with a yellow coloured soup such as Korean yellow tea (Balhyocha), Hunnan aged teas, and old ddok cha or oolong. These teas have strong harmonizing and stabilizing effects which prepare us for the sometimes turbulent nature of seasonal change. Often we resist change, these teas reassure our bodies and minds that change is only a normal part of life. These teas are light, sweet, moistening, not too astringent, bitter, or dry, have a mild calming effect, and often have many medicinal properties.

Autumn- White- white tea

Autumn doesn't really apply to white tea as much. Certainly a bit of white tea is okay in autumn. It might help cool and bring down energies in the body preparing it for the coming winter especially for those people who's energy is still forcefully rising. Too much white tea in autumn will store to much cool energy for the winter which is not good. In autumn herbal tea like chrysanthemum tea is much better though. Traditionally many tea drinkers in China and Korea would switch to chrysanthemum tea during this time. Often one drinks "Late summer" teas or other teas of a warmer nature in addition to many cups of chrysanthemum tea, in preparation for the oncoming winter.

Winter- Black- aged puerh

English "Black Tea" (hongcha) does harmonize pretty good with winter but other theories other than colour-qi can explain this one much better, partly is the close relationship between Summer and Winter, fire and water and heat and cool, and other theories of chaqi. Old sheng puerh is the best tea to drink during the cold winter. It's thick, black liquor warms us deeply infusing us with the radiating heat of years of fermented, warm qi. There is no better tea to combat the winters cold than the deep warming nature of a very old puerh.

Consider Local Geography & Climate First

This system is based on the seasonal change in East Asia and China in particular. Here in Victoria one doesn't follow these guidelines so strictly at all because the climate and seasons present themselves so differently here that harmony is achieved through the use of modifications to this season-colour qi theory. So, geographical location and local climate should be considered before the season-colour pairing if harmony with the season is to be achieved in your climate.

Peace