There is no such thing as flavored green tea in Japan.

When Takafumi Igarashicq first came to the United States from Japan, he was shocked to “find people selling raspberry green tea.”

Like many international students, Igarashi, senior in aerospace engineering, has grown up drinking tea as a part of his daily routine.

“It’s is just a habit for me now,” said Igarashi. “I’ve lived with this stuff forever.”

Likewise, Zifeng Yang,cq graduate in aerospace engineering from China, loves tea. In fact, Yang likes it so much that he makes sure to pack tea from his native country every summer to bring to campus.

Igarashi and other international students from Morocco, Japan and China showcased their love of tea and culture at the Coffee and Tea Tasting Event Thursday in the Memorial Union. The event was sponsored by the International Student Council as a part of International Week.

Rachel Gan,cq (maybe Huey Shin Gan?) junior in food science and coordinator of the Coffee & Tea Tasting event, said that tea ceremonies can be very telling about a country’s cultural background.

“It’s really funny how these little items like coffee and tea bring people together,” Gan said. “If you brew tea and you get all these tea lovers together, you automatically create a social event.”

Morocco

In Moroccan culture serving tea to guests in a metal seneya tray is an act of hospitality.

“When you put out the seneya tray with tea in it, it’s like you’re having a family gathering,” said Hicham Zemmahi,cq undeclared graduate student.

Teacups and glasses are also designed in a very special way, many with Saharan African patterns.

Japan

Tea serving can also be indicative of society, Igarashi said.

Japan is known for Matcha — powdered green tea. Serving it involves an intricate, formal ritual that was once used by aristocrats and samurai, Igarashi said.

Nowadays, a common drink sen-cha — an “unground green tea that is chopped in a very fine manner” — for everyday practices, he said.

“We drink this stuff almost every single meal,” Igarashi said. “It’s so popular in Japan that [you] can buy it in a bottle, in a vending machine.”

Japanese green teas also come in roasted and rice varieties.

China

Getting ready to serve Chinese tea is almost more important than the act of drinking it, as was demonstrated at the Tea Tasting event.

A typical serving tray features two clay containers for tea-making, and two clay utensils for tea-drinking, Gan said.

To make traditional Chinese tea, one must brew a second round after pouring back the tea made from the first brew for purification purposes.

“The second brew is when the real essence of the tea comes out,” Gan said.

After that, drinking also requires special procedures. One must dump it from one cup to the other in a brief, swift act and later perform a sniff-test. This is so the infused flavor will eventually “breathe” into the cup and the smell will linger in the cup longer for the next brew.

As for serving, it is considered bad manners to face spout of the teapot toward anyone.

“There’s a lot of knowledge that you can learn from coffee and tea,” said Gan. “And from that you can indirectly know a person’s culture and background.”

SIDEBAR: How to Make Two Different Teas from Around the World

Moroccan Tea:

1. Boil Water

2. Add green tea and water to teapot and shake

3. Discard that water for cleanliness purposes

4. Put in fresh mint and sugar

5. Add boiled water and gently stir.

6. Store and heat for 5-10 minutes.

—Hicham Zemmahi

Japanese Tea:

1. Warm up teacups with hot water

2. Put green tea into teapot

3. Pour warm water into teapot

4. Wait, then serve

—Iowa State Japanese Association