Record holder Ngo Thi Thanh Tam and the tea master training project

Tea master - world record holder Ngo Thi Thanh Tam - Photo: NVCC

Record holder Thanh Tam talks to Tuoi Tre about her project.

* Why do you want to open a school to train tea masters?

- I have had many opportunities to talk with young people who love tea, have a good understanding of tea, how to make tea as well as how to enjoy tea. Most of them shared their concerns about the fact that Vietnam does not have an official school to train tea masters.

Young people today partly attend tea master classes abroad. As for the majority of young people in Vietnam, they are doing many positive things for Vietnamese tea, seemingly just learning and accumulating experience from their predecessors, but no one has actually obtained a formal degree.

Many young people who came to me expressed that if a tea academy were opened, they would be the first to study.

* Is the process and method to open a tea master academy or training institute difficult?

- Since I had the idea of ​​opening a tea academy, I have researched all the procedures and cooperated with many schools and tea masters, including my teachers and my fellow students who have graduated and are now teaching.

* Can you share about the qualifications after studying tea master classes?

- After many years of studying, I have obtained certain degrees. There are usually two types of tea masters: tea appraisers - who specialize in tea criticism; tea artists - who learn how to make a good pot of tea, how to perform or organize a tea party.

This is related to tea style, that is, the style and ethics of the tea maker and a little bit about tea appraisal, because to present a good pot of tea, the maker, in addition to skillful movements, also needs to have a certain level of understanding of tea.

For me, there is another important factor, which is the passion and love for tea. I especially love Vietnamese tea.

When performing tea art or participating in conversations with foreign friends, I often introduce Vietnamese tea and it is well received and highly appreciated.

* What are some practical jobs that tea masters can do after graduation, madam?

- In China, if you want to run a tea shop or open a tea house, you must have a tea master degree, at least a tea artist degree. Because before becoming a cultural symbol, tea was one of the drinks that served people's culinary needs.

Just like if you want to do food business, you need a food hygiene and safety certificate, if you want to do tea business, you also need a separate certificate, to ensure that the person doing the business or directly making the tea has certain knowledge, knows how to distinguish types of tea, and ensures safety for the person enjoying it.

* In your opinion, how is tea culture shaped in the overall Vietnamese culture?

- Our grandparents have a saying "a cup of tea is the beginning of a conversation", showing that gathering and reunion are also formed from a simple teapot.

Tea can be seen in most important Vietnamese occasions such as weddings, funerals, Tet, worship, diplomacy ... and in the daily culinary activities of Vietnamese families.

With all that meaning, tea is an indispensable cultural feature in the general culture of our Vietnam.

The use of tea today is not only a cultural issue but more broadly a health issue. People enjoy tea not only because of the unique features of each type of tea but also to maintain their health.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ky-luc-gia-ngo-thi-thanh-tam-va-du-an-dao-tao-tra-su-20240420095219602.htm