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Now I'd be uncomfortable if tea weren't elevated as quite important in my life, demanding all the accoutrements that are appropriate to its graces. There were recommendations in the book that I wasn't comfortable with at first, like that getting serious about teaware might include acquiring some Yi Xing teapots. This was the first book I ever bought on tea. It seemed appropriate for a beginner and it indeed was a great place to start. It didn't take long until the opposite was true.
Check out Pettigrew's book. I would have been happier just getting that one alone. Not something I care about in the least and for something that (to me) is so insignificant, I found that too much time was given to the information. I had hoped to learn more about specific types of tea, but instead the author tells how to plan and execute a tea party. Though I read this book first, I was most impressed by Tea Companion. I ordered both this book and The Tea Companion: A Connoisseur's Guide by Jane Pettigrew. Tea Basics seemed to have a bit more depth when talking about the history of tea, but it disappointed me most was the end. All in all, not a bad book, but you can really do better.
Not a lot of pretty pictures here. It even has a good brief description on how to cure a new yixing pot. Throw in Okakura Kakuzo, one of the paperbacks by Diana Rosen and you have yourself a nice present to give someone just starting out with tea. Going through the recently published books on tea I found this one which is a nice paperback book on tea basics. You have been warned. I like it when a "book on basics" is done well for a topic, and this one is in that category.
WARNING to tea novices, this stuff is addicting and before you know it you will have an assortment of kettles cups and pots, thermometers, scales, infusers, tins and a dogeared copy of John Blofeld's book. To try to prevent my niece from spending all of her time in college going to starb%#ks I recently put together a care package of tea brewer, a few starter books on tea, and some nice loose leaf teas in tins. It has a little filler but covers all of the fundamentals in a concise way, a brief history of camellia sinensis, where it is grown today, grades, types, how the market for tea works, tea vocabulary, some pros/cons on how to brew, and has a nice list of tea resources appended to the back. just some good basic information on tea.
This book is great for tea drinkers of any kind. I liked learning about "TGBOP", Oolong teas, how to brew teas, teas from different countries, etc. I absolutely was intrigued by this book, read while sipping a cup of tea. My favorite teas are Republic of Tea, I'd recommend those as well. I am by no means a tea snob, just a tea lover.
This book describes the general regions, whereas the Tea Companion book describes the individual tea gardens (which may or may not be useful to you). I have five books on tea so far (a beginner), and this is my favorite. Many resources are listed in the back. The health section is pretty basic, so if that interests you, you might want to also look at a health-related tea book (green tea). This book impressed me. It is easy to read, has a personal feel, and covers all of the basics (what tea is, history, where it is produced, how to brew it, tea tasting, tea ceremonies, etc). If you only want one book on tea, this is my recommendation.
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