Understanding Tea's Nature | Choosing a Tea That Suits You

In the Tang Dynasty, Lu Yu wrote in The Classic of Tea: "Tea as a substance is cold in nature. As a drink, it is most suitable for those who practice restraint and virtue." The fundamental nature of tea is cold. Because of its coldness, it can awaken the mind; because of its coldness, it can bring calmness. The ancients understood the principle that "warmth and fullness breed lustful thoughts," and thus pointed out that the cold nature of tea is more appropriate for "people of refined conduct and frugality."

In reality, people's constitutions vary. Some individuals cannot tolerate the cold nature of tea. With the enrichment of material life, more people have developed cold-type constitutions. Therefore, from the Ming and Qing dynasties onward, humans began to modify the natural properties of tea, creating and innovating different types of tea to better meet the constitutional needs of different people.

Currently, in China, tea is classified into six categories based on color and fermentation level: green tea, yellow tea, white tea, oolong tea, black tea, and dark tea. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine health preservation, these six types of tea have different natures and health benefits. To maintain health through tea, one must learn to choose a suitable tea according to the season and one's own constitution.

First, one must understand tea's nature—that is, to know the different properties of the six major types of tea. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, tea can be classified as cool, neutral, or warm in nature. As shown in the image above, green tea retains the original cold nature of tea to the greatest extent, while black tea completely transforms it. Other tea types modify the nature of tea to varying degrees through different processing methods.

It should be noted in daily life that raw Pu'er tea is bitter and cold in nature, but after years of storage, its nature turns sweet and warm. Ripe Pu'er tea, like other dark teas, is bitter and warm in nature.

Many people find it difficult to determine their own constitution, making it hard to judge which type of tea suits them. In such cases, one can try a certain tea first and observe whether any discomfort arises.

Discomfort mainly manifests in two ways: gastrointestinal intolerance, such as abdominal or stomach pain or loose stools after drinking tea; and excessive stimulation, such as insomnia, dizziness, weakness in hands and feet, or a tasteless mouth. If a certain tea feels beneficial to the body, one may continue drinking it; otherwise, it should be stopped.