The 2012 Shanxi Tea Industry and Culture Exhibition opened at the Shanxi Coal Museum on August 2. The exhibition also presented dark-red enameled pottery works.

It was the first tea industry exhibition held in Shanxi province, and it served to promote the tea industry in the region. The exhibition aimed at publicizing Chinese tea culture and advancing the tea industry in Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi province.

The head of the Tea Academy, Wu Fengming said that as people's lives gradually improve there will be a greater number of tea enthusiasts. It is a large leap for Shanxi province to host the first tea exhibition in Taiyuan because the province does not produce tea itself.

In the exhibition, tea, tea sets, dark-red enameled pottery works and tea handicrafts from 16 tea producing provinces were on display. In addition, 15 national masters of crafts presented their exquisite dark-red enameled pottery works and created pottery on the spot for auction.

The tea industry has developed quickly in Shanxi in recent years. Taiyuan, for example, already has 10 tea towns and more than 700 tea houses and shops, becoming an influential retail area nationwide. More people prefer high-class tea and consider drinking tea a healthy habit.

Many Taiwan-based tea booths were crowded with people as businessmen and consumers from mainland China were quite interested in renowned Taiwan teas. A Taiwan businessman said, "As the economic and cultural communications between the Straits become increasingly frequent, Taiwan tea is being widely accepted and welcomed by consumers from mainland China".

The exhibition also had booths setup for dark-red enameled tea works. A local pottery fan named Liu Xiaoyi was very pleased about the exhibition and said, "I love collecting dark-red enameled pottery. I often take planes to participate in such exhibitions in other places. This time we had the tea exhibition in Shanxi which thrilled me for a long time. I plan to bring some good stuff back home".

By Wang Suo