Chapter IV · The Vessels · Section 9: Words and things — reading “酌之以匏酌置于碗内令沫饽均沫饽汤之华也”

Photo: Wikimedia Commons · CC0

Thesis

The key words in “酌之以匏酌置于碗内令沫饽均沫饽汤之华也” are not ornament. They mark where Tang tea names, vessels and provenance meet.

Text

“Ladle it with a gourd into the bowls, so that the foam is evenly divided. The foam — the froth — is the flower of the soup.”

Context

酌：舀。匏：葫芦瓢。沫饽（mò bō）：茶汤表面的浮沫。华：精华。

Evidence

• Collation: 各本一致。"沫饽，汤之华也"为千古名句，道尽茶汤浮沫之美。
• Existing readings: 吴觉农指出唐代茶汤尚"沫饽"（细密的浮沫），视其为茶之精华——这与今人泡茶"以沫为嫌"截然相反，却是宋人点茶"咬盏"之美的先声。

Analysis

The annotation matters less as philology than as a distinction between name and thing. 各本一致。"沫饽，汤之华也"为千古名句，道尽茶汤浮沫之美。 Once names settle, picking, grading and trade can share a language.

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 IV · The Vessels, section 9; the original is in the public domain.

Textually, 各本一致。"沫饽，汤之华也"为千古名句，道尽茶汤浮沫之美。. The point is that “the original” is not a single stable text; name the edition before making a strong claim.

A maker reads “酌之以匏酌置于碗内令沫饽均沫饽汤之华也” through weather and soil first. 酌：舀。匏：葫芦瓢。沫饽（mò bō）：茶汤表面的浮沫。华：精华。 That is not far from how we judge a mountain and a picking window today.

The vessel is not background. 酌：舀。匏：葫芦瓢。沫饽（mò bō）：茶汤表面的浮沫。华：精华。 The same leaf in a different bowl, grinder or sieve changes aroma and texture; vessel and tea are defined together.