Chapter III · The Making · Section 4: At a contemporary tea table — reading “蒸之捣之拍之焙之穿之封之茶之干矣”

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Thesis

“蒸之捣之拍之焙之穿之封之茶之干矣” still has operational value at a contemporary tea table, provided Tang conditions are not silently universalised.

Text

“Steam it, pound it, press it, roast it, string it, seal it — and the tea is done.”

Context

蒸青制茶六道工序：蒸、捣、拍、焙、穿、封。这是唐代饼茶的完整流程。

Evidence

• Collation: 此句为全书制茶工艺的总纲，各本一致。六道工序名目在历代注本中屡有申说，文字稳定。
• Existing readings: 吴觉农指出"六之"即唐代饼茶全流程：蒸青→捣烂→入模拍压成饼→焙干→穿串→封藏；其中"蒸"法奠定中国绿茶蒸青传统，后传入日本演为玉露制法。

Analysis

To repeat this section today is not to copy a Tang utensil list. It is to keep its order of judgment: leaf first, then water and fire, then the table.

Conclusion

The section does not give a universal rule. It demonstrates a method: read the text, the annotation and the Tang context together before making a modern claim.

Source: The Classic of Tea, Chapter III · The Making, section 4; the original is in the public domain.

Storage adds another variable: moisture and temperature. 此句为全书制茶工艺的总纲，各本一致。六道工序名目在历代注本中屡有申说，文字稳定。 Old and young tea do not share one shelf life, so “the older the better” is not a rule.

As a new reader, I first took “蒸之捣之拍之焙之穿之封之茶之干矣” as a conclusion. Reading the annotation to section 4 again, it is clearly a judgment with conditions attached.

Textually, 此句为全书制茶工艺的总纲，各本一致。六道工序名目在历代注本中屡有申说，文字稳定。. The point is that “the original” is not a single stable text; name the edition before making a strong claim.