In the heart of fast-moving Hong Kong, one place preserves a slower rhythm: the tea house. At Lock Cha Tea House in Hong Kong Park, tea master Wing Chi Ip shares the precise gestures, rules, and meaning behind the traditional Chinese kung fu tea ceremony.
From warming the teaware to pouring the first infusion, every movement matters. The ritual is not only about technique, aroma, and taste, but also about discipline, patience, and attention.
Wing Chi Ip explains why tea became the center of his life after traveling through China’s tea-growing regions and meeting the people who plant and harvest it. Through cups of oolong tea, he reveals a practice shaped by craftsmanship, symbolism, and daily devotion.
Set against the intensity of urban Hong Kong, this documentary explores tea as both cultural heritage and a way of seeing the world. A ceremony, a philosophy, and a shared language of calm.
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Video Summary
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Located in the heart of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Park serves as a peaceful retreat and home to the Lok Cha Tea House. Founded by tea expert Wing Chee Yip, the tea house preserves the traditional Kung Fu tea ceremony, emphasizing precision, mindfulness, and the spiritual connection between nature and humanity through the art of tea.
There are a few oases of tranquillity in Hong Kong, though,
such as Hong Kong Park,
built in the 1990s right in the city centre.
Residents come here to do their Tai Chi exercises
and families to escape the heat and crowds.
The park is home to the Lok Cha Tea House,
a Hong Kong institution popular with tea lovers and collectors alike.
Wing Chee Yip is the Lok Cha Tea House's founder.
It's good.
He's regarded as one of the big names of tea culture.
For a traditional Chinese tea ceremony,
or Kung Fu tea ceremony,
you need a small teapot and three cups of quality oolong tea.
It's called a Kung Fu tea ceremony
because it is similar to a martial art.
It is an art with rules that must be followed to the letter
and which requires a lot of practice to reach a good level.
First, you have to warm the teaware with hot water.
The hot water must be poured very carefully and without stopping.
The cups must be warm and the lid very hot.
Then you add the tea.
But you must not touch it with your hands.
That's why I'm using a teaspoon.
For a tea ceremony, you need a strong, fragrant tea.
Today I'm using a very fragrant, large-leaf tea.
Now you have to pour hot water on the shoulder of the teapot
before pouring it onto the leaves.
With the lid, I remove the bubbles.
The first time you pour hot water into the teapot,
it's to wet the tea leaves so they can start to release their aroma and flavor.
This results in a fragrant and flavorful tea.
The first cup of tea can be served now.
I'm going to pour more hot water in the same way as earlier,
starting with the shoulder of the teapot again.
Then you pour hot water into the teapot in a clockwise fashion.
Cleaning the cups gives the tea time to steep.
Then you pour the tea into the cups,
but not pour from too great a height
because the temperature can drop quickly.
We call this step, Guan Gun, God of Wealth, goes around the city.
Let us contemplate and savor the tea now.
One teapot holds three cups of tea,
which represent the three elements of the universe,
the sky, the earth and man.
In each cup, you have the world.
Before drinking the tea,
you must smell it by making small circular movements.
In this way, you can focus fully on the tea's aroma.
The first sip must be small
so you can check the temperature and not burn yourself.
The first sip coats the inside of your mouth
with the tea's taste and wakes up your taste buds.
The second sip is larger.
When you take the second sip,
you leave it in your mouth for a few seconds
before swallowing it slowly.
This is when the tea is at its most flavorful
and you can take the time to savor and appreciate it.
Let me show you the correct way to drink tea.
You must drink it slowly
and certainly not like this.
Otherwise, people will make fun of you
and say you drink like an ox.
You must not move your head or raise your arm
but simply pour the tea into your mouth.
In 1986, China opened its borders.
So I traveled there to meet the tea planters.
Seeing them planting and harvesting tea
was a real revelation for me.
That's why I spent years
visiting tea fields all over the country.
I started bringing back tea to share with friends.
Everyone was very surprised by my finds.
And in 1991, I joined the tea trade
and I'm still in it today.
I drink 30 to 40 cups of tea a day.
In fact, it's practically all I drink
and it brings all sorts of health benefits.
I'm convinced tea lowers cholesterol
and reduces the risk of diabetes.
But the greatest pleasure tea brings me
is a simpler, more modest view of life.
Tea also enables me to share feelings
with the friends I love.
When you sit down to drink a cup of tea
you remember the simple things in life.
This allows you to refocus on the essential
and your competitiveness with others disappears.
In this way, you feel a greater satisfaction
a fulfillment
which does not come from others
or the outside world
but from within.
This means you can define
what must be at the center of your attention
and then share it with others.
Every day I thank tea
because it allows me to feel all of these things.
