The Orient Espresso

Ni-how Know-how

Knowing that we would be spending a week in Shanghai I took the time at BTB HQ to master the basics in Mandarin. On the 12 hour journey we all had plenty of time to practice the various basic phrases….however our feeling of smugness lasted until about an hour into the flight when the lovely Sunni, a native of Shanghai, kindly informed us that our careful pronunciations would be wasted as ‘Shanghaiese’ would be the language of the day…..back to the phrasebook then… Throughout the week our pronunciations were met with a mixture of smiles, frowns, giggles, and general looks of confusion; We’d have been just fine if it had been Mandarin……

Bright lights, massive city.

The mega city of Shanghai is massive. Think of the size of London and then multiply it by huge. Skyscrapers as far as the eye can see house the 19 million people that live in just 6340 sq km of city. A new development is shooting skywards on average of one every 3 days. With the city being so large and diverse it is clear to see why the Shanghaiese consider themselves detached from the rest of China. Speaking with the lovely Claudia, our translator and guide, we were told that Shanghai is the ‘best city, has the best people, and is going to be even greater than Beijing.’ Coming from Shanghai it’s fair to say she may be a little biased…. All the new development is a far cry from the Shanghai of the past, a city whose history is rich with swindlers, drug runners, and pimps!

During our time in China, we pounded the streets day and night (at great risk to ourselves due to the crazy traffic) taking in as much of the local coffee culture we could find, we took a trip to the silk museum, the amazing state circus and saw the night skyline from Cloud 9 bar on the 88th floor of the Hyatt Hilton….very Sex and the City and all in the name of research you understand.

All the tea in China

We had time to investigate whether a latte, cappuccino or green tea is the favourite tipple. Although coffee is starting to make an appearance on the streets, with Starbucks running 10 stores in Shanghai, unsurprisingly with its ancient traditions, tea is still the firm favourite. Ever health conscious Chinese women often avoid coffee, as they believe it speeds up the ageing process and damages the skin (the ladies in the BTB office can’t function without an early morning shot of caffeine and we’re all stunning…honestly). Tea in China is fascinating and with countless blends and health properties the choice can be a little daunting. This was made easier with a formal introduction during our visit to the Pear Garden Opera House where we took part in a traditional tea ceremony. The beautifully ornate building has views over the temple-like roof tops of the downtown Yuyuan district and hosts opera to be enjoyed with the tea.

We were each given two cups, the aroma cup; taller and thinner, and the flatter, wider brimmed tasting cup. The aroma cup is turned upside down and circled around the brim of the tasting cup three times to ensure that none of the first cup’s warming infusion remains in the cup before the first cup is poured. Tea tasting is traditionally done in three stages. The first to take in the fragrance of the brew, the second sip to get the flavour, followed by the third final sip to finish the cup and take in the whole flavour of the drink. We left the tea house with Jonathan bouncing off the walls from the Oolong, my sore throat soothed by the Lily tea and Terry’s liver healthier than ever……

All teas made with flowers look particularly attractive in a pot; however, it was the Romeo and Juliet variety that really stood out for us. These tea ‘balls’ are hand stitched together, taking one person a day to make around 30 balls. Once submerged in hot water the balls unravel and out sprouts the flowers….really amazing.

Coffee in Shanghai

Being true coffee heads we wanted to sample the delights of Chinese coffee houses. With the obvious exception of Starbucks, The Coffee bean & Tea Leaf from America and the Jamaica Blue chain (from Australia), coffee houses in Shanghai tended to be more like restaurants. The menus offer the same options as the UK with comparable prices, and a wider range of teas on offer. Whether a latte, or a cappuccino the drinks were generally slightly sweeter due to the sweetness of Chinese milk. The standard of coffee is variable but it is early days and we’re sure as the trend grows so will the level of skill in preparation!

Show time!

Attended by visitors and exhibitors from all over Asia our time at the 2006 Tea & Coffee World Cup Exhibition was a huge success. Sweetbird was a hit with visitors from Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Mauritius, Taiwan and Thailand. He’s now resting up in Tibet (he tottered off muttering something about migration and cold British winters…)

The show was host to the Tea & Coffee Asia World Cup Latte Art Championship and the Asian World Cup Barista Championship. Competition was fierce and the judges commented on the high level of skill at every heat. Sweetbird managed to get involved in the proceedings when the syrup supplied for the show disappeared and we were able to help out at the last minute.

The overall winner for Asia was the talented Young min Lee from South Korea who wowed the judges with his high standards. The 2006 Asia World Cup Latte Art Championship was won by Kelvin Huang from China who went on to compete against Olesya Schichko in an “East Meets West” Barista Champions Showcase. In the true spirit of keeping things friendly, there was no overall winner announced, much to our surprise but the event was enjoyed by everyone, and that is what these events are about.

We finally left Shanghai after making a lot of new friends – huge thanks to Claudia for going above and beyond the call of duty, looking after us and generally keeping us entertained for the whole trip.