The big bowl of tea in old Beijing tea culture

Hello everyone, I am the master of The Beijing Master, today I will talk to you about a very distinctive category in the Tea Culture of Beijing, that is, the big bowl of tea

In the early years, large bowls of tea were once popular throughout the old City of Beijing, and in the streets and alleys of Beijing's Four-Nine Cities, you can often see small traders carrying burdens and selling large bowls of tea along the streets. These small traders carried a flat burden, one end of the basket carried a short-mouthed green glazed large clay pot, the other end of a thorn basket, in which there were several large coarse bowls, and two small benches and a small table, which were shouting as they walked. When I met the buyer, I put on the table and chair bench, grabbed a large handful of tea leaves and put it on the inside, filled it with boiling water, and this was considered to be open. The drinking method of this large bowl of tea was divided into two kinds in the old days: one is into tea, that is, in a large clay pot made of copper or porcelain, the tea is boiled in advance, and the guests come and drink as they please. There is also a kind of sencha, which is to wait until the patron comes, and then put the tea into another, smaller clay pot, and then pour boiling water into it to brew. This way belongs to the drinking method of drinking freshly brewed. In the old days, these people in Beijing who walked the streets and alleys and picked up the picks to sell large bowls of tea were all on call and drank as soon as they stopped. The tea leaves of this large bowl of tea are generally brewed with the most common tea leaves, that is, broken tea foam. When drinking tea, it is 5 people divided into a group, a group of a pot of tea. This price is also very low, generally 2 cents a bowl. At that time, Beijingers went out shopping, ran errands, or passed by tired, especially in the summer, when they wanted to take a break, if they saw these people selling large bowls of tea, they would stop them and bring a bowl of large bowls of tea, so that they could quench their thirst, but also rest their feet and talk about the mountains. At that time, the big bowl of tea was like a flowing flag, all over the streets and alleys of Beijing, and it was loved by everyone.

Later, on the side of the street, along the edge of the Shichahai Sea, near the faces of various city gates, or the area around the pier overpass, as long as it is a crowded place, gradually formed many relatively fixed tea stalls and tea pavilions. These tea stalls are generally selected in the shade or under large trees. A few benches and chairs, a few small wooden tables, and a large bowl of tea on the top of the tea stall, a few large bowls of thick porcelain, and a large teapot made of copper or green glaze on the ground or on the table next to it, which is more than half a meter high, thick and thin, and has a large spout. Plus a tea boy with a black sweat towel on his shoulders... These living scenes are intertwined, and immediately become the "standard" picture of Beijing's large bowl of tea.

This big bowl of tea on the street side drinks casually. In the summer, the tea sellers will fill the large porcelain bowls on the table with tea, and those who have already dried the tea can attract the attention of passing, thirsty pedestrians. In order to prevent dust, a lid was added to each bowl, or a glass piece was placed to cover it. This scenery is so clean and cool. When the customer arrives, he can drink several more bowls in one breath. In winter, the cold invades and the temperature plummets. In order to keep warm, those vendors who sell large bowls of tea will put a quilt cover on the outside of the large clay pot. The big teapot on this tea stall is very eye-catching. Passing by their patrons, unable to withstand the cold weather, they will sit on a bench and slowly pour such a large bowl of tea, and their bodies will immediately heat up, and their spirits will be much better.

Old Beijingers, in all aspects of life, are particularly exquisite, but when drinking a large bowl of tea, they seem so natural and so casual. It generally pays little attention to the shape of the tea leaves, and only pays attention to the taste of the tea. The big bowl of tea of the old Beijingers pays attention to "drinking tea to drink strong tea, then there is a taste." The tea on the tea stall is boiled out after heating the tea leaves in a pot, it has the yellowish color of the tea, but if the taste is compared to the tea brewed from the small lid bowl, it is far behind, so it can only be called "drinking", can not be said to be "taste". In the past, the sellers of large bowls of tea were poor people who were old and infirm and had lost their labor, and they could not do anything about it. "Just like the characters written by Mr. Lao She in the novel "Camel Xiangzi", when he can't pull a foreign car, he can only carry a burden to sell tea along the street, so he is barely able to make a living, and his life is very miserable.

Most of the people who drink tea at the tea stalls are also people at the bottom of society, such as those who pull foreign cars, hawkers who pick up burdens, and those who do hard work. In order to save, they often bring their own stickers, nest heads, plus a piece of pickle lumps or something. Then buy such a large bowl of tea at the tea stall, and eat these dry foods with the tea, then this is a meal. So they also drink tea as a "vegetable soup"!

Because of its closeness to society, close to life, and close to the people, the big bowl of tea is naturally praised by people. In an era when entertainment was scarce and information was closed, drinking a large bowl of tea became a way of socializing and entertaining. Until now, some old teahouses still have such a habit. Even today, when living conditions are constantly improving and improving, large bowls of tea are still an important way to drink tea.

Nowadays, there are still large bowls of tea sold in Beijing, but this is not what it used to be. It has become a business card of Beijing's folk culture. The "Big Bowl of Tea at the Front Door" has also become a tourist attraction. Coupled with the song that spread throughout the capital, the Song "Qianmen Love Thought Big Bowl of Tea" echoed here, which can really attract the patronage of many foreign friends.

However, it is really good to talk about this song, it cleverly integrates the traditional opera elements of our country into the song, making the whole song sound so intimate and natural, full of charm. This song carries the memories of many old Beijingers, and the large bowl of tea has long been a unique cultural symbol of Beijing. A bowl of fragrant "big bowl of tea", a handkerchief, a fan, a group of laughing people... It's both a memory and a life! Drinking a large bowl of tea and watching the ordinary life of ordinary people in Beijing is also the same.

Well, today, I'll talk to you here first, and we'll see you later.