Ethnic Yi women perform a tea ceremony. [Photo by Li Hanyi/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Participants of the forum [Photo by Qu Honglun/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Tea is deeply rooted in the traditional culture of China, Japan and Korea. In East Asia, tea is not only a popular drink, but is regarded as a symbol of inner peace and humanity",

Lin Yi, vice-president of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, said at the 2018 China-Japan-Korea Culture Exchange Forum in Guiyang, Guizhou province on Sept 16.

With the theme "explore the potential of tea culture and build a community with a shared future for mankind", tea specialists from all three countries met to discuss the culture and history of the popular beverage.

Kuchong Chung, former president of Korean journal-dongA.com, said it was not difficult to seek common ground between the tea culture of China and Korea as tea was introduced by China to Korea in the Tang and Song Dynasties. Nowadays, Pu'er tea produced in Yunnan is considered a thoughtful gift in South Korea.

Miyasako Masaaki, honorary professor at the Tokyo University of Arts said tea culture helps reinforce East Asian cultural identity and community solidarity.

As foreign tea-lovers looked on, Hu Jicheng, vice director of Guizhou province's Agriculture Committee and the Guizhou Provincial Tea Association, discussed how he hoped to promote Guizhou's tea brand to the world.

"Thanks to the local low temperature and cloudy climate, Guizhou has produced high quality tea since the Tang Dynasty. Today we have 7 million mu (4,667 square kilometers) of tea planted here and hope more foreigners will enjoy the refreshing flavor and jade-green color of Guizhou tea," he explained.

Li Hanyi contributed to this story.