Tea culture

Tea culture is defined by the way tea is made and consumed, by the way the people interact with tea, and by the aesthetics surrounding tea drinking, it includes aspects of tea production, tea brewing, tea arts and ceremony, society, history, health, ethics, education, and communication and media issues.

Tea is commonly consumed at social events, and many cultures have created intricate formal ceremonies for these events. Western examples of these are afternoon tea and the tea party. Tea ceremonies, with its roots in the Chinese tea culture, differ among eastern countries, such as the Japanese or Korean tea ceremony. However, it may differ in preparation, such as in Tibet, where tea is commonly brewed with salt and butter. Tea plays an important role in some countries.

The British Empire spread its own interpretation of tea to its dominions and colonies including regions that today comprise the states of India, Hong Kong, and Pakistan which had existing tea customs, as well as regions such as East Africa (modern day Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda) and the Pacific (Australia, New Zealand) which did not have tea customs.

Argentine tea culture

Argentine tea culture is influenced by local and imported varieties and customs. The country is a major producer of tea (Camellia sinensis), but is most well known for the cultivation and consumption of mate, made with the leaves of the local yerba maté plant.

History

When Jesuit missionaries first came to Argentina, they tried to ban the popular indigenous tea, yerba maté, out of concern about its addictive qualities. They ultimately reversed their stance and began cultivating yerba maté on plantations in the Misiones province in particular (and elsewhere in South America), until the expulsion of the religious order from the Americas in 1767 during the Suppression of the Society of Jesus.

The first varieties of non-native tea to be grown in colonial Argentina were introduced from Russia in 1920. Beginning in 1924, the Argentine government urged farmers to experiment by planting tea seeds that the government imported from China and then distributed to interested farmers. Farmers tested the cultivation of this tea in the provinces of Misiones, Corrientes, Formosa, Chaco and Tucuman. Immigrant farmers also experimented with planting imported tea on their land. Low prices for tea on the world market dampened farmers' enthusiasm for imported tea crops, however. This tea was also considered inferior to foreign teas. Therefore, domestic production was small prior to 1951, when Argentina's government imposed a ban on imported tea. Tea remained a popular beverage, so the demand led to increased cultivation of local tea. In 1952, new tea plantations were established in Misiones Province in northeastern Argentina, growing a better quality tea than had been cultivated previously. Increased demand for tea led in turn to more farmers cultivating it. By the end of the 1950s, Argentina began exporting tea to Chile. Argentina has expanded its export market over the decades, reaching its current status as the ninth largest tea-producer worldwide.