Book of Tea (English-Chinese Edition): Lu Yu‘s Classic on Tea, Translated by Feng Zhijie

You drink tea. But do you really know tea?

Green, black, white, oolong — what actually makes them different? What defines a truly good cup? How did people brew tea centuries ago?

The answers were written over 1,200 years ago by a man named Lu Yu. He spent more than two decades traveling across China, tasting teas from every region, and compiling his findings into the world’s very first book devoted entirely to tea — The Classic of Tea.

The book covers ten chapters, starting with what the tea plant actually is, then moving through cultivation, harvesting, processing, brewing, drinking, the tools you need, famous tea drinkers in history, and which regions produce the best tea. In short, it covers everything.

Why this edition?

There are many versions of The Classic of Tea out there. This one has a feature that makes it genuinely useful: it’s fully bilingual, Chinese and English side by side. You don’t need to read classical Chinese, and you don’t need to guess at technical terms. For international readers, this is the most accessible entry point into Chinese tea culture.

This edition also includes illustrations. Some printings are hardcover — please refer to the actual product images.

Who is this book for?

• Tea lovers who want to move beyond “I like it” to actually understanding what makes a good tea

• Chinese learners who want to study the language through a classic text, with English right there for reference

• Tea professionals — café owners, buyers, sommeliers — this is the foundational text of the industry

• Anyone curious about Eastern lifestyle — tea is more than a drink; it’s a way of paying attention

Bottom line: This is the book that turns a tea drinker into someone who truly understands tea — and it’s bilingual, so anyone can read it.