1. In 1484 teas popularity reaches a new height when Zen priest Murata Shuko introduced the Cha-no-yu or Hot Water For Tea ceremony, which celebrates the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of tea preparation and drinking. 

2. In 1560 the first European to encounter tea and write about it was Jasper de Cruz, a missionary on Portugals first commercial trade journey to China. Portugal, the most advanced navy at the time, was the first European country to gain the right of trade with China. 

Source : Boh Tea