It’s often said that China boasts a sophisticated tea culture: tea was first discovered and drunk in China several thousand years ago and drinking tea has become a daily habit of the Chinese people.

Over time a complicated tea ceremony has developed and when we talk about Chinese tea culture today, we shouldn’t miss an important figure in Chinese history—Lu Yu, often referred to as a “Tea Sage” for his contribution to Chinese tea culture.

Lu Yu is best known for his monumental work titled Classic of Tea - or Cha Jing - the first book on cultivating, making and drinking tea.

Lu Yu's statue in Xi'an

Born in 733 AD in the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD), Lu Yu was an orphan adopted by a monk in modern day Hubei Province. At that time, drinking tea was a nationwide tradition. Though originally tea drinking appeared in Southern China, during the mid-Tang Dynasty it started to gain favor with Northern Chinese.