宋代斗茶初探

本从宋代斗茶的兴起与鼎盛、斗茶之茶、斗茶之器具、斗茶之程序、斗茶胜负的标准、斗茶的消亡、斗茶在茶化史上的地位、龙凤团茶的试制及斗茶茶艺的开发等方面论述了斗茶。认为斗茶出现于晚唐而盛于宋代,北苑之名始于南唐北苑使,而非因其面北而名北苑,论述了北苑茶的加工方法、层出不穷的茶品,介绍了斗茶的程序、斗茶胜负的标准,分析了斗茶器具的特点、斗茶消亡的原因,总结了斗茶在茶化史上的地位,通过龙风团茶的试制及系列试验,分析了影响斗茶胜负的因素。

A Primary Research on Tea Competition in the Song Dynasty

In this paper, the author introduces the tea competition in the Song Dynasty from the following aspects: the rise and prosperity of tea competition, the variety of tea and tea set for competition, the competition process, standards for awarding championship, the extinction of tea competition, the status of tea competition in the tea history, the trial making of dragon-phoenix ball tea, and the evolution of tea-making art in the tea competition. The author holds that tea competition rose in the late Tang Dynasty and prospered in the Song Dynasty and provides a detailed introduction of one of the famous teas used in tea competition, the North Garden tribute tea. The North Garden tribute tea, which was believed to have got its name for the fact that tea competition participants normally faced north in competition, was actually named after the title "North Garden Officer" of the Nantang Dynasty, a dynasty eliminated by the Song Dynasty. The author describes the processing method for North Garden tribute tea, the colorful and rich tradition of tea drinking and the process of tea competition. The characteristics of tea sets used in such competitions, the causes for the extinction of the tea competition, and the status of tea competition in the tea history was reviewed. The author further illustrated how the result of tea competition was affected with the example of efforts in trial making and experimenting the dragon-phoenix ball tea.