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想挑到好茶，
先学会问对问题When discussing your impressions of a tea, you discuss things like aroma, mid palate, mouthfeel, and finish – just like with wine.
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想挑到好酒／好茶，先学会问对问题
来源：Austin Yoder 2013/12/19 发表于 The News Lens 关键评论网
Photo Credit: 陈镜 CHEN-CHING 翻译／红凯利
今天这篇文章将要讨论葡萄酒和茶叶的相似及影响。例如喜欢的葡萄酒类不同，是否会影响你选择不同茶叶的购买？如果你花很多时间学习如何品酒、积极培养自己舌尖敏锐度，那你一定知道，问对的问题是一件多么困难的事情！而问出对的问题，可是会走出另一段不一样的旅程。
你了解酒类吗？
购入一瓶新酒前，你期待自己了解这瓶酒多少？你了解你最近喝下的那口酒吗？
出产年份、酒的年龄、出产产地、酿酒师姓名、产地近50年来的天气状况等等，这些问题你都了解吗？
问这些问题不是为了考倒大家，而是品酒经验水平及专业知识的不同，会问出不同程度的问题。接下来的内容，我将列出一系列问题，你可以选择跳过。但请记住，不论你在挑选好酒或挑选好茶，这些问题都非常重要，身为嗜酒如命或是嗜茶如命的你，不能不知。
基本知识：
什么是陈年的酒？这款酒来自世界哪个地区？那地区的葡萄园状况，葡萄园位于山的那侧呢？葡萄是如何采收，手工还是机器？从产地到购买地，是如何贮存的呢？
产地信息：
葡萄所生长土壤的矿物质含量？过去100年间，葡萄园的天气状况？采收于哪个季节或是月份？该地区的采收为手工吗？采收时刻是傍晚或是早晨呢？
设备、用具信息：
该地区使用何种设备或机器呢？用来发酵的木桶属于何种类型呢？你使用何种器皿、酒杯品酒呢？你是否拥有餐桌用的特殊酒瓶呢（含软木塞）？拔出软木塞或是打开新的一瓶酒之前，你是如何贮存你的酒呢？
更深一层的哲学意涵：
对上述问题都有所想法后，可以想更深入一点。酿酒师酿酒流程、酿酒师对于酿酒的信仰为何？酿酒师所受到的正规教育造就出何种酒呢？来自于酿酒世家吗？酿酒师所信仰推崇的哲学是否在你眼前的玻璃杯起了任何化学作用呢？
以上问题，你认为什么才是最关键、最核心的呢？
列完一系列酒类相关问题，相信大家都有点头昏了！待会我要将主角带到茶叶身上。就像我说的，某方面而言，茶和酒之间关联性是非常强烈的。然而，你对茶了解够深入吗？接下来就让我们来谈谈茶。
请你先在心中想一下你喝到的最后一口茶。
有画面了吗？
很好，让我们开始吧！
你了解茶类吗？
基本知识：
你在哪里购买？生产年份、来自世界哪个角落、种植区域在山的哪一侧呢？茶农是怎样的人呢？他们如何采集茶叶，手工还是机器？从产地到购买地，茶叶是如何保存呢？所购买的茶哪一类型的茶呢？对身体健康有益的绿茶？或是美国每一间餐厅都有的茉莉花茶？想想茶的包装，是袋子还是一个大容器呢？上文忘了提到购买葡萄酒时，你喜欢在一般零售店（超市超商）购买？专门贩卖葡萄酒的商店？亦或是直接跟酒庄买？
从谁手中购买是一个非常有趣的议题，你有发现吗？你会想要向谁购买茶叶，是超商超市，还是与拥有来自世界各地茶叶的茶商购买？而这茶商还可以热情地向顾客们道出每一款独特茶背后的故事，从生长环境到当地气候情况，以及许许多多不常被提及的人文风情。
产地信息：
茶叶所栽植土壤的矿物质含量？过去100年间，茶园的天气状况？摘采于哪个季节或是月份？春天还是冬天？该地区的采收为手工还是机器？采收时刻早晨或是傍晚呢？
如果茶叶来自中国，来自哪个省份呢？来自中国北部的茶和来自中国南部的茶，铁定截然不同。如果茶叶来自中国，来自哪座山呢？山的海拔高度为？茶叶的栽植环境又是如何呢？
设备、用具信息：
该地区使用何种设备或机器呢？用来品茶的用具是杯子还是碗呢？那杯子的材质呢？玻璃、黏土还是陶土呢？（我有一篇文章是关于茶及杯子材质的关联性，大家不妨去看一看。）如果茶具是黏土材质，是何种黏土呢？紫黏土、黑黏土还是红黏土？黏土材质好吗？更进一步，你使用怎样的水冲泡茶叶呢？开水、矿泉水还是泉水？
更深一层的哲学意涵：
茶具制造者以及茶叶栽种者是否藉由不同材质的茶具、不同方式的栽种，而细微改变茶叶味道？来自茶叶世家吗？每一阶段的人是否都会赋予茶另外一层意义呢？
我问了那么多问题，是想跟大家分享我始终深信的理念——越深入了解某种东西时，愈能体会到其美妙及迷人之处。
如果你对葡萄酒有所研究，那你一定会比较享受喝酒而非喝茶。然而，同时我会遗憾地认为，你错过许多和葡萄酒一样美好的事物，那就是茶。如果你开始以钻研葡萄酒的心态认识茶，你将会走进一个全新的世界，一个不只对你健康有益，也对家人有益的茶世界。
走进茶的世界并不代表你要全盘重新来过，葡萄酒和茶的知识关联性是极为强烈的。看看以上所列出来的问题，你就可以窥知一二。不论是讨论酒或是茶，所谈论内容包含香气、口感、味蕾感受等等都是相似的。从上文中，相信你应该不难发现茶和酒其实真的很雷同，许多专业术语其实也都差不了多少。根据过往的经验、知识和个人喜好，购买酒或是茶之前的问题也会有所不同。
而我最希望可以持续提供与茶相关的讯息，让人们可以更了解「茶业」以及「茶叶」，让消费者在购买前可以得知一些相关信息，聪明地选择要喝下的那一口茶。
Wine Vs. Tea
Today we come to you with a few important questions about the wines you enjoy, to help discern which types of tea you will enjoy. If you have spent any amount of time educating yourself about wine, and actively training your palate, you know that asking the right questions can go a long way towards helping you make worthwhile purchases.
What do you know about wine?
How much do you like to know about the wine you are purchasing before you purchase it? Specifically, how much do you know about the last glass of wine you tasted?
Do you know what year it was produced, and hence the age of the wine? Do you know the region it comes from? Do you know the wine maker on a first name basis, and have charts of the weather patterns in that region for the past fifty years?
The questions that you ask about your wine will develop and vary based on your level of experience, and expertise. I'm going to actually list out some of the questions you might ask yourself about wine here (feel free to skip over these), because there are strong and direct parallels to the questions you should be asking yourself about tea.
The basics:
What vintage is the wine? Which region of the world does the wine come from? Which vineyard within that region? Which side of the hill on that particular vineyard? Is the winemaker quirky?
Who picked the grapes? How were those grapes picked – by hand or machine? How was the wine stored in transit from where it was made to wherever you bought it.
The region:
What is the mineral content of the soil the grapes were grown in, and what has the weather been like around this vineyard for the past 100 years? What time of the year were the grapes picked?
How long have they been aging? Were the grapes picked by hand? Were they picked in the morning or in the evening?
The equipment:
What about the equipment? What kind of press was used to press the grapes? What type of wooden cask was the wine fermented in? What kind of glassware are you using to drink the wine?
Do you have a special decanter? How did you store the wine before you opened it up?
The philosophies at play:
You can dive deeper, too. What processes does the winemaker use when preparing his wine?
What are his beliefs, what is his training, how long has his formal education in wine lasted? Is his family a wine family? What are the philosophies he lives by that he is trying to translate directly into your glass, and onto your palate?
Which of these questions are absolutely essential for you?
What do you know about tea?
Now I want you to think for a minute. After reviewing all of the questions you typically run through in your head before you decide to purchase a bottle of wine, I want you to think about tea. As I said, there are strong and direct parallels between the questions you should be asking yourself about wine and tea in order to increase the likelihood that you are making a good purchase. Let's specifically think about the last cup of tea that you drank. Picture it in your mind.
Do you have it?
Good.
The basics:
Where did you buy it? Who did you buy it from? What year was it produced (vintage)? Which region of the world does the tea come from? Which plantation within that region? Which side of the hill on that particular plantation? Is the tea maker quirky?
Who picked the leaves? How were those leaves picked – by hand or machine? How was the tea stored in transit from where it was picked to wherever you bought it?
What kind of tea was it? Green tea – maybe for the health benefits? Was it Jasmine tea, like they serve in every Chinese restaurant in America? Did the tea come in a bag, or in a big container with a bunch of leaves in it?
Did you get the tea from a grocery store, or maybe from a specialty tea retailer? (Do you tend to buy wine in grocery stores, or wine shops? Or do you only buy wine at vineyards after meeting the winemakers in person?) Even better – did you get it from a tea shop that brings in different teas from all around the world? Could the person or organization selling you your tea converse intelligently with you about the plot of land the tea leaves were grown on? Do you know about weather conditions of the region, the farm, the side of the mountain where your tea was grown?
The region:
What is the mineral content of the soil the tea was grown in, and what has the weather been like around this tea farm for the past 100 years? What time of the year were the leaves picked? Spring, or Winter? How long have they been aging? Were the leaves picked by hand or machine? Were they picked in the morning or in the evening?
If the tea came from China, where in China did it come from? China is a pretty big place, after all. North, or South China? Which province and city in China? Which mountain did your tea grow on in China? What is the elevation of that mountain, and what was the weather like around that mountain during the year your tea was produced?
The equipment:
What about the equipment? What kind of machinery was used in the production of your tea, if any? What kind of glass, cup, or bowl were you using to drink your tea? Did you use a pot to brew your tea? Glass, clay, or something else? If it's a clay pot – who made the pot, where was the clay mined, and how long has the family who made your pot been making tea pots? What kind of clay?
Purple, black, or red clay? What grade of clay was it? What water did you use?
The philosophies at play:
Did the tea maker want to evoke a certain flavor from his childhood in this vintage? Is he quirky?
How long has his family been making tea, and what kind of traditions have influenced the taste you experienced? What are the philosophies he lives by that he is trying to translate directly into your glass, and onto your palate?
The point of all the questions
The more you know about something, the more you are able to appreciate it when it's done well.
If you know significantly more about what went into your last cup of wine than what went into your last cup of tea, you're almost certainly enjoying your wine more than you are enjoying your tea. Not, however, necessarily with good reason.
If you know significantly more about your wine than about your tea, we humbly suggest you may be missing out on something that's just as good as wine. If you can begin learning about tea the same way you learn about wine, you will open up an entirely new world of beverage appreciation and connoisseurship, along with a lifetime of health benefits for you, and for your family.
As you venture into the world of tea, you won't be beginning from scratch. Many of the skill-sets, vocabulary, and knowledge you have acquired from learning about wine translate (almost) directly into tea. For example, you make a big airy slurping sound when you taste tea just the same way you do when you taste wine. When discussing your impressions of a tea, you discuss things like aroma, mid palate, mouthfeel, and finish – just like with wine. We have a complete guide to our rating system here, and overview of commonly used tea terminology here in case you'd like to see exactly how similar wine and tea appreciation can be.
The questions you ask before purchasing a wine, or tea, will vary based on your experience, knowledge, and personal preferences with respect to wine and tea. Our mission is to help ask the right questions about tea, and to provide you with as much information about your teas as possible so that you can make informed and systematic decisions in your own personal exploration of tea.
Sourse：Austin Yoder 2013/12/19 The News Lens
Photo Credit: CHEN-CHING 陈镜