The Art of Tea Appreciation in Vietnamese Tea Culture

If wine represents the beauty of the West, then for East Asians, the essence of culture lies in cups of tea.
Drinking tea is no longer just a daily habit for Asians in general and Vietnamese in particular; it is an art that requires the meticulousness and skill of both the tea maker and the tea appreciator. Therefore, the art of tea appreciation always attracts the attention of those who understand tea. In Vietnamese tea culture, this art becomes the criterion for tea lovers to fully experience the flavor of each cup of tea.

Don’t Drink Tea in a Hurry

In everyday life, people are often swept up in the fast pace of life. We are always in a rush, rarely able to be calm and peaceful. Because of that, many of us only see tea as a simple thirst quencher, no more, no less. Many people drink tea with the same habits as drinking iced tea on the street corner—holding the cup without noticing its aroma, ignoring the color of the tea, and gulping it down quickly, leaving nothing behind but the satisfaction of quenching thirst. Many teapots are brewed hurriedly, and many cups of tea are drunk without time to savor them. The art of tea appreciation requires meticulousness and delicacy and does not encourage drinking tea in such a rushed way.

The Art of Tea Appreciation of the Vietnamese

East Asian countries have always been considered the cradle of tea and the place where people elevate tea drinking to a unique artistic practice. The Japanese have a ceremonial tea art, emphasizing many rituals, known worldwide as the “tea ceremony” (chado). In China, although they do not maintain as strict or formal rules as the Japanese tea ceremony, beauty and refinement remain highly valued. In Vietnam, people have distilled these complexities and elaborate rituals into simplicity and familiarity without losing sophistication.

For Vietnamese people, tea appreciation is simple but no less refined.

Simplicity with Refinement in Vietnamese Tea Culture

In Vietnamese tea culture, every person has their own way to enjoy a good cup of tea; it is hard to compare who is more skilled. Some choose to savor the aroma, others the taste. However, in general, Vietnamese tea appreciation is evaluated mainly by aroma and flavor. Vietnamese people value and cherish the fragrance and the peaceful, relaxing feeling that a cup of tea brings, which differs from other cultures that emphasize the aesthetic process of brewing tea. For Vietnamese, the deliciousness in tea leaves and buds comes from the tea plant itself and from the essence it absorbs from the earth and sky.

Raising the cup to observe the tea’s color and feel its aroma.

The two factors, aroma and taste, are most clearly experienced in the first three brews. In Vietnamese tea art, the best tea must be enjoyed within the first three infusions. On the first brew, we savor the tea’s aroma. Holding the cup, do not rush to drink it; instead, try to feel the gentle fragrance spreading around the rim. The aroma varies with each tea type and often reveals characteristics of the tea’s growing region and climate.

Good tea should be enjoyed in a state of calm.

On the second brew, people focus on the tea’s flavor. After the first brew “rinses” the leaves and releases fragrance but before the flavor is clear, the second brew reveals what is considered the purest and most distinctive taste of the tea. Taking a sip, the taste spreads in the mouth, like tasting the pure essence of earth and sky. On the third brew, the tea lover feels the harmony of both aroma and taste and the reflections the tea brings. The art of tea appreciation, not only in Vietnam but throughout East Asia, is called “tác ý” (meaning “intent” or “purpose”). In Japanese tea culture, this is known as “minh triết” (wisdom/enlightenment). Drinking tea on the third brew feels like a cleansing, shedding worries and burdens of life, bringing the drinker back to their true self. Tea becomes a pathway guiding the soul to peace. Those who know how to appreciate tea usually stop at the third infusion, drinking no more. Hence, there is a saying: “Pour tea and invite three brews.”

For Vietnamese people, Vietnamese tea holds full material and spiritual value and is always present in daily life, becoming the essence of Vietnamese tea culture. Tea has its own life, stories that come with it, and truths that people find through tea. To truly understand this “friend” called tea and oneself, the art of tea appreciation is the effective guide. Don’t drink tea hurriedly but be meticulous, cherish it as an artwork. That is the essence of the art of tea appreciation.