1. History of tea

Millions of people all over the world drink tea and it has become an essential part of their daily lives. As you enjoy a refreshing cup of tea, have you ever thought about its origins, who first discovered delicious beverage and which country is the homeland of tea? It′s an interesting story dating back over 2,000 years.
China is the world’s earliest nation drinking, planting and making tea. It was recorded in Shengnong’s Herbal over two thousand years ago that he tasted various herbals and was once poisoned. Eventually he discovered that tea cured his toxic system , and he also noted that regular consumption of tea can maintain one′s youthful appearance and reinforce vital energy.
For a long time it was an undisputed fact that China was the homeland of tea, but in more recent times this has been challenged in a series of arguments and disputes. India has been credited by some authorities as the homeland of tea, but the facts substantiate that tea did originate in China.
It is known that a Japanese Buddhist monk, called Deng, studied in China and brought tea back to Japan in 805 B.C. He was the pioneer for growing tea outside of China. India, although a country of great history, did not engage in tea planting and drinking in ancient times.
In 1610, tea was first taken to Europe by a Dutch merchant, and it rapidly gained in popularity. There were high profits to be made in dealing in tea, and to take advantage of this, Britain started planting tea in India in 1780. To aid this, successive prime—ministers sent representatives to China to buy tea and learn about plantations. Surviving records indicate that in the eighteenth century, tea was cultivated in at least twelve provinces of China, and two of these——Anhui and Fujian——supplied the largest portion of exports to Europe.