Insani-TEA Blog

The Colour of Magic

2011-01-19T09:19:00.001-07:00

By Jess Hodges

There are a staggering number of different varieties and sub varieties of tea, so many that it can be hard to get a handle on them. An understanding of the basic types makes the whole thing much less daunting. As a general rule teas can be divided into three broad categories; black, green and white. The names arise from the different colours of the tea which derive from the different ways it is processed.

Black tea is the most commonly consumed in the west and undergoes the most processing to transform it from leaf to tea. The leaves are partially air dried then cut and bruised either using traditional methods or a mechanical method called crush, tear and curl in which the leaves are passed through a sequence of rollers with teeth. They are then left to undergo oxidation, a crucial process in which the chlorophyll in the leaves is broken down to produce the tannins which give tea it's distinctive, bitter taste. The tea is then dried for sale.

The green tea production process is very similar but the leaves are heated, by being steamed or cooked in pans, to halt the oxidation process soon after it has begun. Green teas will typically have only around 5% oxidation, Black teas have 100% and Oolong teas are found in the vast region in between.

White tea is the least processed of all. It isn't cooked or oxidised but instead the leaves are allowed to wither on the bush before picking, after which they are simply dried and that's that. This lack of processing allows it retain many of the beneficial compounds in the leaves making it extremely healthy. White tea has been claimed to have all sorts of benefits from helping to fight plaque to increasing the efficacy of anti cancer medication.

There are off course absurd amounts of detail which can be gone into at each stage of the process, hundreds of little intricacies which give different teas their subtleties. It's good to know the basics though before plunging headlong into all of that insani-tea.

Yellow Tea

2011-01-19T09:18:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

The best thing about writing this blog is that I occasionally come across something like yellow tea, which I never previously knew existed. This is probably because yellow tea is extremely rare, being produced only in small quantities and hardly ever heard of in the west. It dates back to the 17^th century in Anhui and Sichuan province in China and gets it name from the golden colour of the leaves and the tea they produce. Yellow tea can also be a name used to refer to the tribute teas which were presented to the Imperial Royal family, yellow then being the colour of royalty in China.

Yellow tea is allowed to oxidise for slightly longer than green tea and is then left to dry very slowly which is when it takes on it's distinctive yellow colour. The result is a tea without the strong grassy flavour of green tea, it has a mellow sweetness and stands up well to repeated steeping. It is therefore ideal for people who want to enjoy the health benefits of green tea but don't like the taste of it.

The process of making yellow tea is complicated and time consuming when compared to other teas which contributes to it's scarcity and relative expensiveness. The specific methods used to make different varieties of yellow tea are often closely guarded secrets and many have been lost over the years.

I encourage you to hunt for some yellow tea, elusive as it may be, I believe it's high time that more people made the discovery. Let's do our bit to increase the demand for this secretive and refined tea before any more of it is lost.

Matcha

2011-01-19T09:14:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

Matcha is a powdered Japanese green tea, best known for it’s use in tea ceremonies and as the green tea flavouring in a wide range of other food and drinks.

Matcha first came into being back when tea used to be stored and transported in bricks. In order to brew the tea these bricks had to be steamed and broken apart which broke up the tea leaves and created a coarse powder. In the Song dynasty the preparation of tea by whisking the powder with water became popular and was ritualised by Zen Buddhist monks.

The tea leaves are prepared before harvest by the covering of the bushes which darkens and sweetens them. The selectively harvested leaves are then dried flat instead of being rolled, which causes them to crumble. The resulting tea is called tencha. To create matcha all of the coarser material such as the veins and stems of the leaves is carefully removed and the remaining tea is ground to an extremely fine powder.

A special bamboo whisk known as a chasen is used to blend the tea with a little hot water at first to create a smooth paste which is then whipped with more hot water. Depending on the amount of powder used the tea can be either koicha (thick) or usucha (thin).

In a traditional tea ceremony the matcha is sieved into a small caddy and then moved into a tea bowl using a bamboo scoop before being whisked with the water. As it can sometimes be bitter it is often served with sweets.

It’s powdered form makes it easy to use as a flavouring and as such it often appears in baking as well as in lattes and smoothies. It’s high antioxidant content makes it much prized for it’s health benefits and it's bright green colour makes it a healthy dye. It is the only acceptable kind of instant tea.

Pu-erh

2010-12-20T08:29:00.003-07:00

By Jess Hodges

I have a new favourite tea. It's a green Pu-erh and after having two cups at an Edinburgh cafe I ended up buying the rest of their supply (not as crazy as it sounds, they didn't have that much left!).

Pu-erh is named after the county in the Yunnan province of China where it originated. It is made from the assimica variety of camellia sinensis which has larger leaves and a slightly different flavour and benefits greatly from ageing. The leaves used should ideally be from old, wild trees making it a scarce and expensive product.

The harvested leaves are first made into a green tea known as maocha. To do this they are sun dried and then briefly pan fried before being rolled and dried again. The maocha can now either be pressed raw producing green pu-erh or ripened first to create an aged pu-erh. This is done by piling and turning the leaves in damp conditions to encourage bacteria and mimic the flavour of a naturally ripened aged pu-erh which can be left for decades to develop.

There are several famous mountains where pu-erh is grown and each produces tea with different characteristics. It's variety, rarity and the benefits of ageing mean that genuine high quality ripened pu-erh can be a collectors item and is extremely highly sought after. Lower cost versions will be blended with more affordable green teas before pressing and a lot of counterfeit versions are sold illegally.

Just a few of the various health benefits ascribed to pu-erh are that it reduces cholesterol, acts as a hangover cure and aids weight loss so it's pretty much the perfect antidote to the modern life style! I'm in love with it though not because of it's wonderful properties or celebrity status but just because it tastes absolutely delicious which at the end of the day is the most important thing.

Visions of tea

2010-12-14T09:31:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

I have made another quest into the murky brown waters of the future, the waters in question this time being those of a particularly excellent cup of chai at my local café, where I'm starting to get quite an audience.

There were loads of leaves left at the bottom of the cup this time making for a very comprehensive reading. The first things I saw were two sad faces, which was a bit worrying, followed by a square, a vampire and a ski slope.

The sad faces cannot possibly bode well and the square shows a need for creative thinking. This can only mean that I need to beware of vampires, especially while skiing.

Things get a bit fishy after that, I saw the letter G, a fish and a cat mermaid thing (top half cat, bottom half fish). Fish mean good things coming to you from across the water but cats mean a deceitful friend, maybe one who's name begins with the letter G? They will try and steal my nautical goodies and I must watch them!

Finally there was a tea pot, a traffic cone, an egg timer, a sauce pan, a tiger eating someone (even more worrying than the cat-fish abomination) and a shooting star. Teapots can only be good things, they are the bringers of good things for certain but traffic cones aren't usually as pleasant. Obviously I'll be needing to poor myself a cup of tea while I wait for some hold up to clear, luckily I didn't see builders. Egg timers are for new beginnings, evidentially things will change once the road works have been removed. A saucepan is for anxiety, a Tiger is good luck with gambling and the star is success so obviously a risk will pay off but unfortunately may result in someone being eaten.

The fates have spoken.

Enough Monkeying Around

2010-12-14T09:21:00.001-07:00

By Jess Hodges

Half the fun of looking into the history of Chinese tea is the multitude of strange myths and legends about it's production, but in the case of Golden Monkey tea the myths are still being repeated to this day. This black tea is grown in Yunnan and Fujian, it's a high quality variety made from only the bud and the first leaf of the plant and it stands out because of the distinctive gold veining of the leaves. It isn't the golden part of the name however that needs to be explained, it's the second part where things get strange.

There are those who say it is called monkey tea because of the appearance of the leaves which look like monkey tails or paws but the most common and surprisingly widely believed story is that the tea gets its name from the fact that it is actually harvested by monkeys. The story goes that the trees grow on such remote and inaccessible cliffs that humans can't reach them and have had to train themselves furry little assistants.

Sadly it isn't true. Aside from the fact that no one would create a tea plantation on a cliff face there are a large number of people being employed to pick the tea who deserve the credit for their own hard work. It is a lovely story but although, given the intelligence of monkeys, it's certainly possible it's hardly a practical method. While monkey tea is more than deserving of fame for it's great taste and high quality it's maybe time we laid the legend to rest and let the tea speak for itself.

Tea drinking, the final frontier.

2010-12-13T08:44:00.003-07:00

By Jess Hodges

“Tea, Earl Grey, hot.”

For those of you who have no idea where that quote comes from I apologise, you're about to become slightly geekier than you were when you started reading this post. That is the standard request made by Jean-Luc Picard, captain of the SS Enterprise when getting a drink from the replicators. There, now you know some Star Trek trivia.

For captain Picard a cup of tea in space is a recognisable and civilised affair, the reality is slightly different. In 2003 astronaut Don Pettit was filmed enjoying his tea on board the international space station. He observed the old Russian tradition of having it with honey and the new outer space tradition of eschewing a cup in favour of chopsticks. Fluids act slightly differently in zero gravity, their surface tension causing them to form balls which if you're careful you can apparently manipulate with chopsticks, plucking them out of the air.

It's not surprising that human beings would take tea with them into space, it's so ubiquitous, so important to so many cultures that the step from international to extra terrestrial seems inevitable. It leaves tantalising scope to imagine what kinds of new tea drinking traditions could be emerging up there above earth's atmosphere. Specialised tea cups used for scooping balls of tea out of the air, teapots with spouts that open and close automatically to release the liquid in manageable quantities, an array of bite sized floating biscuits that can be plucked from the air alternately with the tea, ornate tea chopsticks and probably a large napkin would be in order.

We're not quite at the replicator stage and you probably don't want it too hot given that it's going to be floating about with you but at least we can have Earl Grey for the captain.

Darjeeling

2010-12-13T08:38:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

Darjeeling has long been regarded as the champagne of the tea world, the most highly regarded of all the black teas, although technically they should be classified as oolong due to their level of fermentation. Grown in India but from the traditionally Chinese variant of the tea plant, it's history begins in 1835 with a civil surgeon called Campbell. The experimental planting of Chinese seeds in Indian soil was to yield unique results. The project which began in Dr Campbell's garden was moved into government tea nurseries in 1847 and then into commercial tea gardens by 1852.

Darjeeling itself is located in the west Bengal region of India in the Himalayas. There was little to no tea growing expertise in the area so the production of darjeeling moved forwards by trial and error. Friendly rivalry between tea gardens separated by the peaks and valleys of the region helped to make standards as high as they are. There are 87 active tea gardens in darjeeling today producing the main income of the region.

Darjeeling is a light, delicate brew with a floral, slightly astringent flavour, it is said to be similar to that of muscatel wine. A variety of different teas with different qualities are produced throughout the year depending on the seasons. Spring, Summer, Monsoon and Autumn teas all have their own distinct characteristics.

Four times as much darjeeling tea is sold every year as is actually produced, indicating a pretty serious problem with counterfeit versions. To combat this it has now been given Geographical Indication meaning that the darjeeling brand is protected by international law in the same way as champagne. The tea board of India has bought in a certification mark and logo so if you want to ensure you're drinking genuine darjeeling you need to look for this mark.

The Kettle

2010-12-07T09:34:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

It's definitely the right time of the year for hot drinks again. We can put away the ice tea and reach for the kettle. If there were ever an appliance ubiquitous to modern life surely this is it. Boiling hot water at the flick of the switch, what an incredible luxury that we get to take for granted. The electric kettle is such a feature of modern life in Britain that power companies have to increase supplies during breaks in popular TV shows to meet the demand that comes from everyone switching them on to make a cup of tea at the same time.

The kettle evolved from ancient times when large vessels or cauldrons would be used to boil water over an open fire. These pre-dated the bronze age and would initially have been made from animal hide. These gradually developed into stove top kettles which are simply a way to hold water above a heat source and were usually made of copper. The distinctive kettle shape can be traced back potentially as far as 3500 BC.

Electric kettles were a major step forward as they incorporated their own heat source in the form of an electrical element, making the kettle a separate, independent appliance. The first electric kettle was invented in Chicago in 1891 and took 12 minuted to come to the boil. In 1922 The Swan company developed a much faster version by sealing the electric element in a tube and immersing it in the water. These kettles remained basically unchanged until the second world war when a shortage in metal lead to the production of many ceramic models. The main remaining difference between these kettles and modern ones was that you still had to watch them and turn them off yourself when they reached boiling point. It wasn't until 1956 that Russell Hobbs created an automatic version, finishing the transition from leather cauldron to our modern tea making essential.

So next time you reach for the switch spare a thought for one of our most under appreciated and hard working appliances.

Teapots

2010-12-07T09:30:00.003-07:00

By Jess Hodges

For a while now I've been fighting a losing battle to try not to start collecting teapots. I don't have enough space and I really am enough of a tea geek as it is. Unfortunately my brother has effectively foiled this plan by buying me a teapot shaped like an elephant. It takes my collection up to four, which even I can't pretend I need, and in addition is far too cute to be resisted.

When tea was first beginning to be drunk in China and Japan it was brewed in bowls or pans and it was centuries before any kind of teapot came in to use. The earliest creations resembling teapots come from China and were made from the clay of the YiXing region and dating back to the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). These were originally used for brewing but not pouring, they were individually sized and the tea was drunk directly from the spout, true teapots probably evolved from kettles at a later date.

Teapots were brought to Europe towards the end of the 17th century in the same ships that were carrying the tea along with other luxuries. These early imports acted as inspiration for European craftsmen and teapots became something of a British speciality. With the works of wedgewood and the invention of bone china teapots became items of as much artistic value as practical use.

Teapots today come in an amazing variety of different shapes and sizes including a 35 foot high pink one erected by a Malaysian cult called the Sky Kingdom. There is also the Chester teapot which is a 14 foot hight model found in Ohio and the Utah teapot a virtual 3D model which is used as a standard reference object used in developing computer graphics.

I guess my collection doesn't look too extreme after all!

The beauty of tea

2010-12-06T14:26:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

Over the last few months of writing this blog I hope that I've given you lots of good reasons to be interested in tea so just for a change here's a more frivolous one - it makes you look great. We all know by now that drinking plenty of fluids, especially ones high in antioxidants like tea, is great for your skin but it's doesn't just work on the inside. There are loads of other ways to extract the beauty benefits from tea.

One old trick is instead of discarding your teabags to squeeze out any excess liquid and put them in the fridge. Then after a hard day or night out, once the tea has done it's relaxing, rejuvenating work, you can place the bags over your eyes to refresh and relax them as well. It is however advisable to finish drinking your hot drink before obscuring your vision.

Green tea in particular, with its high vitamin and antioxidant content, is supposed to have an amazing array of beauty applications. Sprizted or patted onto the skin (cooled first!) it's supposed to tone, cleanse, fight spots and help with sunburn. Boiled until reduced and mixed with bicarbonate of soda it's reputedly effective as a home-made toothpaste and it's a key ingredient in any number of face masks and hair treatments.

If you fancy enjoying all of these benefits whilst effectively soaking in a giant cup of tea then get yourself a large piece of muslin, fold in half and sew up two sides to make a pouch. Now add a decent handful of green tea leaves and the other ingredients of your choice. Lavender and chamomile are a good way to go if you want to relax or rosemary if you fancy something more invigorating. Now sew up the top of your pouch and voilà, your own giant tea bag. Add to a hot bath and brew yourself beautiful. Biscuits are optional.

The Beauty of Tea

2010-11-30T11:37:00.002-07:00

Holidays with Tea

2010-11-30T11:29:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

It takes me roughly five minutes to make a cup of tea depending on what type I'm making and how full the kettle is. In an average day I have somewhere between ten and fifteen cups, if we say twelve that makes an even hour of daily tea making. So 365 hours a year spent making tea or just over two weeks, the length of a really decent holiday.

So how do I better capitalise on this unofficial tea making holiday I take every year? Should I cover the kettle with pictures of exotic, far away places or only make tea whilst putting on funny accents? Do I replace my tea time biscuits with foreign alternatives, or maybe some kind of tea making sun hat is in order?

I certainly want to make the most of this two weeks I never knew I had, maybe I should turn it into something virtuous like two weeks of exercise or two weeks of quiet reflection on the meaning of life. Or maybe something daft like two weeks spent on one leg or two weeks dancing or just something nice like two weeks of thinking happy thoughts and smiling. I have until the end of December to decide what I will be doing for the two weeks of 2011 that have been slipping past unappreciated for all of these years.

Whilst this is just a fun exercise for me for many people it's an important consideration. Wherever you travel and whatever cultures you explore there always seems to be ritual associated with tea making, often with religious connotations. Maybe because it's a simple and versatile undertaking that lends itself well to variation but maybe it's because it's such a regular occurrence that all of those little moments of ritual build up and up until centuries of ceremony are carried out every day across a nation.

When you think of it that way putting the kettle on begins to feel like a pretty special thing, certainly something to make the most of.

Oolong Tea

2010-11-29T12:00:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

On the face of it oolong is one of the inbetweeners of the tea world. Produced in the mountains of China and Taiwan, the level of oxidation is more than green tea but less than black and the leaves are either curled or pressed into balls, sort of like gunpowder tea. Despite this you couldn't mistake it for anything else. It's flavour is completely unlike both green and black tea and it bares very little resemblance to gunpowder tea. It is very popular in Chinese restaurants where it is brewed to be strong and bitter. The oolong family contains some of the most prestigious varieties of tea in China.

Like most Chinese teas the origins of oolong tea are shrouded in ancient myth but no other tea can claim quite as many competing theories. Some say it is evolved from a type of cake tea called dragon-phoenix which was a tribute tea offered to Chinese emperors. There are ancient poems and songs which may indicate that it originated in the Wuyi mountains and takes its name from the area it came from but it is also said to have been discovered in the Anxi tea plant and named after it's creator. Some stories attribute its discovery to a man called Wu Liang who was making green tea but got distracted by a deer and allowed the fermentation to go on for too long and there are yet more stories that a travelling army requisitioned a barn where green tea was being made to sleep in. They prevented the workers from getting to the tea, prolonging it's oxidation and they slept on the tea itself, crushing and shaping it's leaves.

It's taste and colour vary widely depending on exactly how long it's fermented for and it's supposed to aid weight loss. Whichever story you chose to believe oolong is certainly a mysterious character and definitely one worth investigating for yourself.

Time for Tea

2010-11-23T08:11:00.003-07:00

By Jess Hodges

In a supermarket the other day I saw a product that struck fear into my heart. Instant tea granules. Not content with the insidious freeze dried blight on good coffee some unscrupulous individual has turned their attention to tea. Is this the next evolution of our favourite drink? As loose leaves gave way to tea bags are we now going to have to watch in horror as the age of granules begins?

I worried about it for a bit but concluded that we were safe, it will never catch on. It seems a strange thing to be confident about in this day and age where every second that can be saved is ruthlessly harvested from our lives by modernisation but the thing about tea is that it takes just the right sort of time.

On those days when you can't spare a tea break but none the less need a cup to sustain you at your desk the act of brewing it can be the perfect moment of respite. Just those three minutes while the tea is infusing can be all that is needed to take a deep breath and return to work with fresh determination and perspective. The classic English ritual of making a cup of tea in times of trouble isn't just about comforting the recipient, it also gives the maker a quiet moment to gather themselves before returning to whatever problems await. Carrying out a simple task that requires you to take your time is the perfect way to slow yourself down and think clearly, letting your stresses float away with the steam.

Instant coffee serves its purpose, making a lengthy and involved process short, simple and transportable but in the case of tea, which is all those things already, it only serves to relieve us of a burden than most of us enjoy. The leaves certainly have nothing to fear for the moment.

North African Mint Tea

2010-11-22T07:53:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

North African mint tea is a drink made from a combination of green tea and mint which is drunk throughout western and central Saharan Africa. Most people would be familiar with it as Moroccan mint tea and it is also known as Touareg tea or Tuareg tea after the Tuareg, a nomadic people who can trace their way of life back to the writings of Herodotus (around 50BC), the ancient Greek historian.

Whist being part of daily life in five different countries mint tea is especially important in Morocco, hence the association. The country imports more green tea from China than anywhere else in the world.

To prepare it a pot of green tea is made and then strained into a stainless steel teapot. Sugar is added and the tea is bought to the boil, fresh mint is then added either to the pot or the cup when the tea is served. Mint tea is offered as a sign of hospitality and is traditionally prepared by the head of the family. Brewed in the traditional way the tea should be served three times giving three different strengths of drink which are described by this proverb.

“The first glass is bitter as life,
the second glass is as strong as love,
the third glass is gentle as death”

Mint tea has enjoyed a global increase in popularity with many people enjoying the flavour combination of the two main elements. In Morroco however the mint isn't considered vital with many people now choosing to exclude it due to some of the more alarming pesticides it is often sprayed with.

So mint tea is ancient, traditional, poetic and evolving, most importantly it is also delicious. Rather than buying the instant tea bag versions that exist I would thoroughly recommend buying some green tea and some mint and making it properly. Trust me you'll be more than happy to have your traditional three servings!

Russian Caravan Tea

2010-11-22T07:47:00.002-07:00

By Jess Hodges

The idea of tea being shipped across vast oceans through storms and pirates is certainly a romantic one but it's not the only way that tea used to be transported around the world and certainly not the most arduous. If you've ever wondered what links tea, freezing Siberian winters and thousands of camels (and who hasn't?) then the answer is Russian Caravan tea.

The Chinese started exporting tea to Russia in 1638 and they sent it over land. It was transported by camel caravans which carried a blend of Oolong, Keemun and Lapsang Souchong. Russian caravan tea, as the blend became known, is a strong, full bodied tea with a distinctive smoky taste from the Lapsang Souchong component, though some say this was added to by the camp fires of the weary caravan traders.

The camel trains travelled through Mongolia and Siberia and took six months to reach Russia from the Chinese border. The tea was said to benefit from taking the terrestrial route and avoiding the hot, humid sea air of the tropics but that can't have been much consolation to the travellers struggling through the cold, harsh conditions for months on end.

The route was so difficult that the costs of tea remained sky high until the creation of the Tea Road, also known as the Siberian Route, which was started in 1730 and not completed until the mid-eighteen hundreds. The road started in Moscow made it's way across Russia, through Mongolia and passed through the Great Wall of China before continuing onward to Beijing.

The road made tea transport easier and record volumes began to pour in to Russia but it wasn't to last. With the advent of the suez canal, which saved ships from having to journey around the cape, a general increase in sea borne trade and the completion of the trans-Siberian railway the camel trains were gradually replaced and faded out of history but the distinctive tea they carried remained as popular as ever.

I Love This Tea!

2010-11-12T09:07:00.001-07:00

Gunpowder, Treason and Plot.

2010-11-02T09:31:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

I may have found the smoke for my bonfire night celebrations but as anyone who's ever been to one knows it's just not up to scratch without the gunpowder. Luckily tea can provide me with that as well.

Chinese gunpowder tea is a green tea the leaves of which are individually rolled into pellets. This protects them and allows them to produce a more aromatic, intense brew. It can be historically traced to the Tang Dynasty as far back as the seventh century.

There are two theories as to how this tea got it's name, it may simply be a derivative of the Chinese gāng paò de which means freshly brewed or from the similarity in appearance between the rolled leaves and the gunpowder used in firearms.

Gunpowder tea isn't roasted giving it a fresher taste than other green teas. All except the really expensive stuff is now rolled by machine but otherwise it's production remains unchanged. It's grown in the Zheijang province on the east coast of China. Zheijang has traditionally been called the land of fish and rice but it is also the land of extraordinary tea, producing more than any other province in China. Zheijang also produces Longjing tea or dragon well tea, an extremely famous green tea of exceptionally high quality, known as the national drink of China and enjoyed by world leaders.

My second cup of Guy Fawkes tea may not be producing any actual explosions (except of flavour!) but a tea resembling gunpowder from the country that invented fireworks seems like a fitting way to round off the evening. When I'm celebrating back in England this time next year maybe I'll incorporate this calmer tribute amidst all the mayhem of smoke and gunpowder.

Happy bonfire night everyone.

Remember, Remember the Fifth of November

2010-11-02T09:26:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

November to me can be summed up by two scents, smoke and gunpowder. Wood smoke from the bonfires and gunpowder from the fireworks stinging your nose in the cold air means only one thing, Guy Fawkes Night. It's one of my favourite nights of the year but this year I'll be spending it in Florida where not only is it sunny but bonfires and explosions are sadly at a minimum. How do I capture the November spirit in a true British fashion? As usual tea has the answer.

Lapsang Souchong is a smoked tea originating from the Fujian province of China. Supposedly it was created by accident during the Qing dynasty when workers were prevented from drying fresh tea leaves in the usual way by an extremely inconvenient army. When they were finally able to get back to the tea there was no time for the traditional method so they lit pine wood fires to speed the process. The smoke from the fires gave the tea a distinctive flavour which was an instant hit.

The tea is grown in a nature preserve in the Wuyi mountains, a UNESCO world heritage sight. Home to the clouded leopard and dotted with the remains of ancient Taoist temples it's a very special place and the tea it produces is just as unique. If you don't like your tea strong then this isn't going to be the brew for you but if you can stand up to it then the smoky flavour is unmistakable and very evocative.

So if you, like me, are stuck somewhere sunny this November 5th without even a hint of gunpowder then join me in a cup and spare a thought for England where fires are being lit and things are about to become distinctly less civilised.

Chai

2010-10-28T12:55:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Masala Chai, commonly known as just Chai is an Indian spiced tea that is becoming increasingly popular around the world. Historically tea in India was drunk for medicinal purposes and mixtures of spice and herbs were added for the same reason. It is possible to buy Chai tea flavoured with spice recipes taken from ancient medicinal texts chosen and preserved purely for their wonderful flavour.

Tea drinking didn't really become more popular in India until the Indian Tea Association, which was owned by the British, began to promote it, encouraging employers to offer their workers tea breaks and drink tea in the English fashion. However people preferred to drink their own version made by boiling tea, milk and water with a mixture of spices and a sweetener. This wasn't popular with the Tea Association as the milk and spices added reduced the amount of tea leaves that were used meaning less profit for the British plantation owners.

The spice mixture used varies depending on taste and tradition but usually incorporates a selection of cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, peppercorn, ginger, nutmeg and fennel. The tea is usually a strong black variety such as Assam but the Kashmiri version uses green tea and is generally more subtle in flavour.

Masala Chai is available in instant form as either a liquid concentrate or as dry granules. Western 'Chai teabags' produce a beverage that is similar in character but not as intense in flavour as true Chai and western drinkers rarely add enough milk and sweetener to replicate the original.

However you make it Chai is the perfect drink for this time of year when the nights are getting colder and darker, the spice mix making it festive and warming. It's the ideal tea for battening down the hatches and dreaming of Indian summers.

Tea Around the World – Australia

2010-10-20T09:48:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The first fleet landed in Australia on 26th January 1788, establishing a British Colony and bringing with them a staple drink of the empire, tea. When explorers set off around Australia in the early part of the nineteenth century they would take with them dozens of pound of tea, which was considered to be an absolute necessity.

It continued to be a standard drink and in the countries unofficial national anthem, Waltzing Matlida, the hero of the song was boiling his billy, a can in which he would have been making tea by the pint before getting up to all kinds of mischief.

The first commercial tea plantation in Australia was established by Dr Allan Maruff in 1959, though there had been previous attempts made at growing it. The first attempt was in 1884 at Bingal Bay and was made by the Cutten Family. Though the tea crop was unsuccessful and the entire farm was later destroyed by a cyclone there are tea plants surviving from that time in the rainforest today. These aren't to be confused with tea tree which grows plentifully in Australia but certainly isn't as palatable as it's namesake.

Modern tea drinking in Australia is an everyday occurrence similar to that in America or the UK though coffee has overtaken it in popularity in recent years. Cream tea is known as Devonshire tea after its origins in Devon. Of all of the stamps left on the history of Australia by the English, tea is perhaps one of the most pleasant.

Tea from the Wild – Rose petal

2010-10-19T11:46:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

I'm not really one for picking flowers; I think they look far too good where they are and I'd much rather take a trip outside to appreciate them than shorten their lifespan to bring them in. When it comes to roses, which are my absolute favourites, picking them seems practically sacrilegious. In the name of experimentation though I've forced myself to gather in the few, rather sorry looking blooms that are left at this time of year with the justification that it is obviously going to rain this afternoon and they'll be utterly ruined.

The variety I picked is the Japanese rose, bright pink and highly scented they've been planted around the edge of the field behind my flat and grow in generous abundance. If I was sticking to the true spirit of this experiment I'd be out hunting the hedgerows for dog rose but I think these will do well enough for a first try.

Five petals in a tea cup certainly make for a pretty drink, the bright pink colour has mainly dissolved leaving dappled petals in a delicately tinted infusion. The flavour of rose has been imparted beautifully to the tea and it smells great. It is however a little weak and tastes a little too much like perfume. The dried version isn't all that much different, it's a nice enough drink for the first few sips but after that it's just flower water. It is however worth having in the cupboard if you're ever in an a floral mood because a couple of petals go very well in a cup of normal black tea. Not Earl Grey which seems to enhance the perfume problem but with something a bit more robust like Assam. The overall verdict is it's nice but certainly not worth spoiling good roses for.

Tassology

2010-10-12T07:59:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Having previously written about tassology, I've started wondering what the leaves might have to say to me. Always ready to experiment, I went to my favourite tea house for a very special cup of Indian blue mountain tea and got in touch with my inner mystic.

Starting from the handle and working down and around in a spiral I observed the following mystical symbols. A squid, a cross, the letters TM, a chair, Orion's belt, the big dipper, a vertical line, diglet (it's a pokemon; I can't help the times I was born into), a rabbit and a volcano.

I can't find out what a squid is supposed to mean but I know they're good environmental indicators so I'm going to take it to mean good and healthy things; the cross is a bit strange for an atheist but I am getting married so I chose to believe the tea is predicting a happy married life. A chair apparently means sitting back and looking at your life and stars give you health, happiness and success if you relax and leave things to fate. Clearly I need to just sit back and good things will come to me, possibly in a trademarked chair ™.

I'm taking the vertical line to be some kind of punctuation so we must be moving further into the future. The pokemon can only mean I will continue to be a massive geek well into my old age, rabbits are for overcoming shyness and volcanoes are for terrible arguments probably with the people who are mocking me when, having overcome my shyness, I declare my love of pokemon.

The leaves, it seems, have been kind to me. I have learned that I can expect a lifetime of relaxed happiness marred only by pokemon related bullying which my non-rabbity self will be fully equipped to cope with. I have also learned why fortune telling is normally carried out in privacy... people stare. Especially waitresses who are waiting to take your empty cup!

Tea from the wild – Chamomile

2010-10-07T07:24:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The best I've ever really had to say about chamomile tea is that it's not bad. It's certainly calming, even more so with a drop of whisky added and it makes a nice addition to the recipe for other herbal teas. It's not exactly exciting. Still, having spent at least twenty minutes walking past plant after plant of it the other day I thought I might as well give the fresh version a chance to change my mind.

It might actually have managed it. My first attempt tasted god awful but I think that's mainly because I stuck an entire flower head in a very small tea cup, stem and all. Having thoroughly rinsed both the cup and my mouth I added three flower heads and tried again. Not bad at all.

It tastes, unsurprisingly, like chamomile tea but better. It's stronger and tastes fresh instead of woody like the dried stuff. It's quite aromatic and doesn't taste particularly relaxing though I'm sure a drop of whisky would still do it no harm. It's not as insipid as the dry version, it would work well with cinnamon, I might even add a few flowers next time I come to make mulled wine. All in all I'll probably pick it when I see it but obviously drying it would defeat the purpose so it'll have to be a seasonal treat.

Just a quick note and something I should have said earlier, if you're planning to follow my example and scurry about sticking half of the countryside into your cup then please take a decent identification key and make sure you really know what you're picking. If you wake up in hospital and have to tell the doctors that it was all in the pursuit of tea they will laugh at you.

Tea Around the World – Japan

2010-10-06T08:29:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

When trying to summarise tea culture in Japan it's a particularly daunting task to know where to start, so I'm forced to fall back on tradition and go to the beginning. It has an illustrious history, beginning as a drink of the religious classes, accompanying the rise of Zen Buddism. The first written reference to tea in Japan comes from a 9th century Buddist Monk and the first batch of seeds was imported from China and planted by another monk in 805. The tea was used to help the monks stay awake during meditation.

From these humble beginnings it soon became a drink for royalty when it gained favour with Emperor Saga. In the sixteenth century the Samurai began to adopt another Chinese tradition, the tea ceremony, a peaceful and formal way of drinking tea whilst appreciating art or debate. It was used as a political tool to help seek peaceful resolutions between feudal clans. The Way of Tea emerged, pioneered by Sen no Rikyū, a tea master and owner of the first independent tea house. It's four key principals are harmony, respect, purity and tranquillity and will often be found rendered in beautiful calligraphy and hung on the walls of many establishments.

As the modern tea ceremony began to evolve, tea itself became more and more available to normal people until it was a part of everyday life and the most popular drink in Japan. The tea ceremony is still taught and carried out in Japan as part of it's cultural heritage.

Green tea is ubiquitous to Japanese life and although the country is it's second largest producer only a tiny fraction is exported. They very sensibly keep the majority of their tea for themselves and who can blame them?

The Tea Garden

2010-09-24T13:22:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

I can't be the only person who worries about the distance my tea has to travel to reach me. We hear a lot about food miles these days but it's important to remember the drink miles too. Black tea isn't something I could ever give up completely but I can certainly cut back. The problem is what to replace it with?

If you want to be really environmental and even mitigate some of the damage done by the tea you do drink then you could grow your own alternatives.

Creating a tea garden is incredibly easy, even if you don't have much space a couple of pots on a window sill will go a long way to meeting your needs. Most of the plants commonly used in tisanes need very little care and attention and once established in your patch will keep you well supplied for years to come.

Perhaps the two most rewarding plants to grow are mint and camomile. They both produce delicious, popular teas, give a far better result when picked fresh and grow easily and abundantly. Camomile in particular can be a weed, in my experience the best way to cultivate a huge crop of it is to try and keep it out of a garden! Growing your own gives you the chance to experiment with different varieties and to try other herbal infusions as well. Lemon balm and lemon verbena are both extremely good. You're also likely to find a surprising number of possible tea sources already growing in your garden. Nettles are hardly likely to be missed and the resultant tea is a good cure for hayfever.

If you want to produce a true tea garden why not incorporate a seat in the middle to sit and enjoy the fruits of your labours and reflect on the fact that every cup of home grown tea you drink is a good deed for the world.

2010-09-22T08:28:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

For many of us tea is our everyday drink. It's enjoyable, reliable and safe, just something to make the day go a little more smoothly. We make a cup of tea when we have a break, when we're having a chat or when someone needs looked after. There aren't many people who boil the kettle in celebration, as a rule that's when we start looking for the corkscrew, but does it have to be that way? Does tea have a champagne equivalent?

Tea can go one better. It can offer you something just as tasty as champagne, in some cases just as expensive and with a firework display thrown in. Well maybe not a real firework display but something just as pretty and you can hold it without getting burned, as long as you don't spill it on yourself!

Display teas or flowering teas are a Chinese invention in which the tea is brewed from a handmade bundle of leaves and flowers which have been carefully tied together so that they start off compact and small and gradually unfold like opening flowers when the water is added. Watching the petals gently unfurl in the water makes for a gorgeous and very calming tea drinking experience and is undeniably special.

Flowering tea is usually served in a glass cup or bowl or brewed in a glass teapot so that the display can be more easily appreciated and the bundles can often be reused a couple of times making the price seem slightly more reasonable.

So next time you have something to celebrate why not put down the generic bottle and instead go for something hand crafted, beautiful, special and elegant? Or if you're really feeling decadent why not have one for your next tea break? Find yourself a glass mug and you'll certainly be the talk of the office!

Tea Around the World – Sri Lanka

2010-09-21T08:30:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The tea industry in Sri Lanka was begun in 1867, back when the country was known as Ceylon, by a British man called James Taylor. Since then it has grown to be a industry accounting for 15% of the countries GDP, employing over 1 million people and only recently surpassed by Kenya as the worlds biggest exporter of tea.

Tea was planted as an alternative crop to coffee, which had been the countries primary cash crop before it was devastated by a fungal disease in 1869. Tea production really took off in the 1880s and continued to go from strength to strength until in 1965 Sri Lanka was exporting more tea than any other country.

As with many large scale commercial products, the story of tea is not always a nice one and the conditions for plantation workers in Sri Lanka can be extremely poor, especially for the women who make up the majority of the workforce.

Ceylon tea is famous all over the world, particularly the black tea which has a bright, citrus flavour and golden colour. The quality of the tea varies with the height of the plantation with the best leaves being grown between 3500 and 7500 feet above sea level.

The rise of the tea bag has been bad news for the export market of Sri Lanka with most of the high quality tea being produced in such a way that it is unsuitable for bagging. The industry has also been hit by drought, seriously reducing production rates.

The story of tea in Sri Lanka has been a tempestuous one and it looks set to continue in that vein.

Tea from the Wild – Yarrow

2010-09-21T08:22:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Tea drinking existed long before plantations and even before gardens. The practice of taking plants from the wild to brew drinks for medicinal purposes as well as refreshment has been around for centuries.

In the spirit of recapturing the past and currently forced to do without a garden I'm going to see what I can find from the wilds of Edinburgh to fill my cup with.

The joy of foraging is not only the way it puts you in touch with the seasons and the natural world around you but the way it makes you take a proper look at things. I live next to a huge and regularly mown sports field, on first inspection just a desert of grass. So I was surprised to find my first wild tea growing literally all over it.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is a common grassland plant with distinctive feather like leaves. It has a whole host of purported medicinal uses. It contains salicylic acid (aspirin) so it's good for headaches and has also been used as an astringent, a stimulant, to treat circulatory and digestive disorders and to treat eczema, stop bleeding and promote healing. Quite a resume for a tiny plant!

When picked fresh an infusion of Yarrow is really delicious. It's refreshing, slightly grassy a little sweet and there's a hint of lemon there. If you want to store Yarrow you'll have to dry it by laying it out in a low oven until it's completely free from moisture. Drying intensifies the flavour of the tannins in the leaves making it not dissimilar to black tea initially. Then things start to get a bit musty, it's not bad but certainly an acquired taste and nowhere near as good as the fresh stuff, I would recommend adding a little honey to improve the flavour.

For my first foray into the wild world of foraged teas I think yarrow was a real success and definitely one to look out for next time you're out and about.

Tea Around the World – Taiwan

2010-09-16T07:54:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Made in Taiwan is a common enough thing to see on almost any product and tea is no exception. Taiwan is an exporter of tea and has been one of it's great innovators. Some of the best green and oolong teas in the world come from Taiwan. Both Japan and China have influenced the history of Taiwanese tea and it's ideal growing climate has allowed the industry to flourish.

As so often seems to be the case in the east, Taiwanese tea drinking is a delicate mix of everyday practice, ritual and aesthetic pleasure. Many people collect teapots and a visit to a tea house is a common pass time. Taiwan has it's own tea ceremonies and traditions including 'raising the teapot' by brewing tea in them until they shine.

A particularly distinctive Taiwanese specialty is bubble tea or pearl milk tea. Bubble tea refers to a drink which has been shaken to create a frothy mixture similar to a milk shake. There are two main types, fruit based and milk based depending on the primary ingredient used. Often balls of tapioca are added, these are the pearls in pearl milk tea, they are sometimes substituted for gelatin.

Originating in the 1980s, bubble tea quickly became popular throughout the world. It is an extremely versatile drink which is made with various different types of tea, different fruits and fruit syrups and different substitutes for milk. The result is a fun, sweet, refreshing drink with chewy pearls to add interest.

This mixture of tradition and experimentation has made Taiwanese tea drinking both a treat for the modern palate and a tribute to a rich heritage. It makes you wonder what they'll come up with next.

Rooibos Tea

2010-09-14T12:23:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

In our ever more health conscious modern society many people have turned to tea for it's many benefits, substituting it for coffee or fizzy drinks. Some people have gone even further, looking for ways to make their tea drinking more healthy by converting to decaf of switching to herbal teas and tisanes. One alternative to be popularized recently has been rooibos or red bush tea. A popular drink from South Africa, rooibos is full of antioxidants, has no caffeine at all and is very low in tannins.

Rooibos tea is made from the leaves of the red bush plant, Aspalanthus linearis, which is native to South Africa in the Western Cape province and grows in the Cedeberg region alone.

It was brewed and drunk by the native Khoisan tribe originally and became more widely known when it was discovered by Swedish botanist Carl Humberg in 1772. In 1904 a Russian Jewish settler called Benjamin Ginsberg began to manufacture and market 'mountain tea'.

Once the most expensive vegetable seed in the world and extremely difficult to gather, the rarity of the plant and the difficulties in cultivating it meant that the rise of Rooibos tea was slow and challenging. It became gradually more well known but it wasn't until 1960 that it really took of when a South African woman called Annique Theron wrote a book extolling it's various health virtues.

Rooibos is prepared in a similar way to black tea but it should be steeped for a couple of minutes longer. Many people chose to extend the similarity by adding milk but in South Africa it is more normally enjoyed with a little honey or sugar for sweetness or a slice of lemon. Very distinctive in taste, rooibos has been described as naturally sweet and nutty or earthy. As with so many things you really do have to try it yourself to appreciate it.

The Science of Tea

2010-09-13T07:37:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

How to make the perfect cups of tea has been a matter of debate, tradition and personal taste for years, but the scientists at the Royal Society of Chemistry believe that they have the answer. After much arduous work and, the essence of good science being repetition, innumerable cups of tea their instructions for the ideal cuppa are now available to the public.

Perhaps the most controversial result of the new research is it's answer to the raging debate as to when to add the milk. It advises that the milk be added to the mug first. This allows it to warm up slowly as the tea is added instead of being quickly heated as it's added to the tea. This prevents it's proteins denaturing (irreversibly changing their shape) due to the heat and spoiling the taste of the milk.

The research was carried out in 2003 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of George Orwell who among his various other achievements was a passionate tea lover and had very definite ideas as to how the perfect cup should be made. He laid down these 11 strict rules for the making of an acceptable cup of tea.

Use tea from India or Ceylon (Sri Lanka), not China
Use a teapot, preferably ceramic
Warm the pot over direct heat
Tea should be strong - six spoons of leaves per 1 litre
Let the leaves move around the pot - no bags or strainers
Take the pot to the boiling kettle
Stir or shake the pot
Drink out of a tall, mug-shaped tea cup
Don't add creamy milk
Add milk to the tea, not vice versa
No sugar!

Orwell wasn't a fan of scientists and probably wouldn't have been surprised to know that they disagreed with him on nearly every point apart from the use of a teapot and a mug!

In the interests of science why not give both a try and see where you fall in the debate?

Tea Around the World - Kenya

2010-09-09T12:38:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Kenyan tea is familiar to any enthusiast but many would be surprised to learn just how much of it they drink without realizing. Tea has a long and productive history in Africa. In the misty mountains above Nairobi there are tea trees planted over 100 years ago by the British, the first seeds from India were put in the soil in 1903.

Kenya is the third biggest tea producer in the world and it's biggest exporter, accounting for 22% of global exports. Along side the huge commercial plantations there are also a vast number of family scale operations all working to produce over three hundred thousand tonnes of high quality black tea every year. The crop is of vital importance to the Kenyan economy, especially in times of drought.

The tea is picked on a short cycle and only the top two leaves and the bud are taken. This laborious practice is what gives Kenyan tea it's outstanding quality. The cut, twist and curl (CTC) method of manufacture is used to give the tea it's exceptional strength.

The tea is sold at market in Mombasa where a tradition of polite formality has endured and good manners are paramount. The teas are known for their bright flavour and colour and are used in many blends to improve the appearance and strength of the tea.

The Kenyan Tea Board has recently launched a mark of origin in order to celebrate their unique tea and to try and promote it as a brew in it's own right and not just an ingredient. Certainly something to look out for for any tea lover.

The Future of Tea?

2010-09-09T12:28:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

It sometimes seems, in more cynical moments, that the essence of modern culture is convenience and disposability. The epitome of this in the world of tea is the tea bag. In our fast paced lives we rarely pause for long enough to make a pot of tea let alone spend time measuring out spoonfuls of leaves and messing about with strainers.

While the tea bag approach may be easier, it leaves us vulnerable to less scrupulous companies who, knowing that we won't be getting a proper look at their contents, fill the bags with the cheapest, lowest grade of leaves available, essentially no more than tea dust. That is why people are often shocked at the taste of tea made from loose leaves, the quality of the product is drastically higher.

Then there is the effect of the bags themselves, often they will have been bleached or chemically treated and any residues from this will go straight into your tea.

As well as these potential pitfalls we're missing out in other ways when we exclusively use tea bags. Without tea leaves being involved in the process we don't get those remnants at the bottom of our cups which have been so useful to many in helping them predict their futures.

The practice of tasseography required a cup of tea to be poured without a strainer and then drunk in an attitude of quiet contemplation. The dregs and leaves are then swirled around the cup and the patterns interpreted. You begin reading from the rim nearest the handle which represents the present and then proceed in a spiral to the bottom, getting further and further into the future all the while. Standard sets of symbols and their interpretations have been passed down over generations to help you puzzle out the meaning behind the leaves.

So why not take a step back in time and get rid of the tea bag, who knows what you might find?

Tea Around the World – Tibet

2010-08-05T08:55:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Tea plays a central role in the life of many nations but few have made it a matter of such importance as Tibet.

We've all heard tea with rancid Yak butter and to the Western pallet it doesn't exactly sound appealing. In Tibet however it is a daily essential with some people drinking around forty cups a day.

The tea is made in a special churn, a hollow section of bamboo with a fitted plunger or piston. Freshly brewed brick tea is added to the cylinder along with yak butter and salt, after a couple of minutes of churning the tea is transferred to a kettle which is kept warm over a fire for consumption throughout the day.

It is always offered as a sign of hospitality and is served in bowls, it should never be refused. You both start and finish drinking butter tea with a full bowl because it is traditionally refilled between each sip making it even harder to keep track of how much of the drink people consume.

The butter provides a vital source of easily available calories, necessary in the cold, high altitude conditions and it also helps to prevent chapped lips, acting as a protective layer against the high winds. Butter tea is an integral part of meal time, as well as being rich enough to almost be considered a soup on its own, it is vital to the consumption of tsampa. This is a blend of flours which is mixed with the tea to form a dumpling or sometimes a porridge and is a staple food in many parts of Tibet.

As well as butter tea the Tibetans also enjoy milk tea, a drink similar to the tea commonly served in the west but prepared in a unique way. Tea, milk and sugar are boiled together to produce a distinctly Tibetan result. Plain black tea is also enjoyed

There are a lot of traditions surrounding tea drinking in Tibet. Each person has their own bowl which no one else is permitted to drink from and in many families when the husband is away the wife will continue to make tea for his bowl to hurry his return.

All in all, tea drinking in Tibet is a complex and fascinating ritual to rival that of any other country in the world.

Earl Grey

2010-08-05T08:51:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Perhaps one of the world's best loved teas, the distinctive flavour of Earl Grey has been around since the eighteen hundreds when the story goes some was presented as a diplomatic gift to the man who gave it it's name.

The 2nd Earl Grey was Prime Minister of Britain in 1830, a member of the Whig party and one of the main players in the reform act of 1832. This act abolished slavery across the empire and increased the number of men in the UK who were eligible to vote to 1 in 6. In a round about way it prompted the suffragette movement by specifying for the first time that it was legally only men who could vote and annoying a lot of women.

The bill paved the way for parliamentary reforms that would eventually lead to universal suffrage for men and women and the opposition to it was very strong. Initially the bill was thrown out by the House of Lords twice, prompting Grey to retire. However the Tory opposition leader, the Duke of Wellington, found he was unable to form his own government due to lack of support and a run on the bank of England. Grey was returned to office by the King and was able to push the bill through.

Father to ten sons and six daughters in addition to being in charge of the country, you can imagine that the Earl had need of a decent cup of tea on a regular basis. As a radical reformer in the eyes of many, his political life was anything but relaxed. Even after his retirement in 1834 he stayed involved in politics, mainly to criticise his successor, Lord Melbourn.

He is commemorated by a statue of himself in Newcastle which stands upon a 41m column, gazing across the city. His most lasting monument though is the tea to which he gave his name. The unmistakeable combination of black tea and bergamot oil is known throughout the world as a bold and refreshing afternoon tea. Personally I couldn't think of a finer legacy to leave.

Tea on the Lawn

2010-08-05T08:44:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Last week I was in the village of Alfriston in East Sussex and felt in need of a cup of tea. The village in nestled in the chalk hills of the south downs and is as historic, picturesque and quintessentially English a place as you could find anywhere.

I visited the Badger's Tea House and had their 'sett tea' in the courtyard of a 500 year old building amid classic cottage garden flowers, ornaments fashioned from old cups and saucers and the buzz of cheerful conversation under the, frankly slightly alarming, gaze of an ornamental metal owl.

Enjoying a cup of tea outside is something the British weather so rarely permits but the experience was certainly one worth repeating. From now on, when the weather is good I'm certainly consider moving out to appreciate it and taking my ever present cup of tea with me. There is however a slight problem, seeing as I don't have a garden. How do I take my tea with me without ruining it utterly by putting it in a thermos flask?

I've had many flasks over the years, some of which didn't even leak and every single one of them has imparted, to anything other than the very strongest coffee, a pervading flavour of 'flask'. Anyone who's tasted it knows what I mean. It's the taste of metal, plastic, washing up liquid and whatever other drink may have passed through it. If anyone ever uses a flask for soup you can give up on it then and there, it is officially ruined for anything else for all eternity!

I've tried everything. Soaking them in bicarbonate of soda solution, soaking them in lemon juice, soaking them in tea! I've tried different makes and models, different brands and designs. No matter how thoroughly I clean them, the distinctive flavour remains. I don't always mind it, on a camping trip it's as familiar and nostalgic as it is inevitable, but it's hardly conducive to enjoying a spot of Lapsang Souchong in the park.

So if anyone knows how to rid myself of the flask flavoured menace please let me know asap, the British summertime doesn't hang around for long!

When You Can’t Have Caffeine…

2010-08-05T08:33:00.003-06:00

By Alexandra Hoover

Recently, my friend’s mother gave up caffeinated tea to avoid repeated heart problems. Although she is a fan of green tea (which has less caffeine than many hot drinks) she is trying to avoid caffeine altogether. As an avid tea enthusiast who believes in the health benefits of camellia sinensis, I’ve had to change my focus a little. My friend asked me what kind of tea her mother could drink. I suggested white tea, although herbal tisanes might be a better option.

What kind of herbal teas (which are made from the berries, seeds, flowers, and leaves of a variety of plants) are helpful for someone like my friend’s mom, who loves a bit of fruit flavoring? I suggest these teas—which have been sited as safe for pregnant women. I have recorded the reasons. If something is good for pregnant women, it is generally good for all of us!

1. Chamomile—This tea lacks caffeine and is especially good if you need help calming down, or falling asleep.

2. Lemon balm—Not only does it relieve insomnia, but it can help alleviate anxiety and irritability, as well.

3. Peppermint—Mint tea is generally known to help with stomach problems, including digestion problems or nervousness.

4. Rose hips—May help boost the immune system. Native Americans having been using it for thousands of years.

5. Kava—This does not contain any caffeine, unless it is adulterated. It is made from the root of the South Pacific kava plant, if you haven’t already guessed. It is a non-stimulant that is used for relaxation.

Note: If you know a type of herbal tea you would like to add to this list (which is not exhaustive, by any means), feel free to contribute information to the comments section. If you disagree with any of these facts, feel free to heckle me in a informative, tea-related fashion.

Saffron Tea

2010-08-05T08:23:00.002-06:00

By Alexandra Hoover

Saffron is arguably the most expensive spice in the world; nevertheless, it is well worth adding to your tea for an amber colored, health-inducing, flowery experience. In Taliouine, the “saffron capital” of Morocco, purple saffron flowers are found all over the hills in the fall. Only the orange female parts of the flower’s stigma are used in the spice, however. Although not everyone in Morocco drinks saffron tea (mainly for monetary reasons), it is appreciated for its high quality and powerful flavor.

To make saffron tea, either mix the spice in hot water or use saffron tea bags. Cumin may be used as substitute, if desired. Try following this recipe to make “loose-leaf” saffron tea:

You will need 6 green cardamom seeds, 4-6 teaspoons of sugar, 4 cups of water, ½ teaspoon of saffron threads, and 8 teaspoons of loose, black tea. Once you have collected all of your ingredients, start boiling the water. Immediately add the six cardamom seeds, saffron, and sugar. Simmer until half of your water is left. Bring the water to a boil again. Place the loose black tea in the pot and allow it to steep for 8 minutes. You can serve the saffron tea hot or cold, although the traditional way involves drinking it hot.

In addition to its remarkable taste, saffron tea is consumed for its health benefits, as well. People drink this particular beverage to relieve respiratory illness, depression, and insomnia. Research suggests that the crocin and safranal in saffron help relieve some of the problems related to behavioral disorders.

Saffron tea is also consumed as a way to help with arthrosclerosis, which can harden one’s arteries from plaque build up. In general, saffron tea makes people feel relaxed after they drink it. It has been shown to stimulate people’s stomach muscles and cleanse the body of toxins.

Sage Tea

2010-08-05T08:17:00.002-06:00

By Alexandra Hoover

While you might not want to drink sage tea, or Salvia officinalis, as an everyday beverage, this particular infusion has a wealth of medicinal uses. Whether you have a cold, sore throat, or paints in your joints, sage tea has been known to make people feel better.

Sage tea is anti-bacterial and anti-fungal—it is also used as an anti-inflammatory agent. In fact, sage tea is used for any number of problems, including: dental abscesses, gingivitis, indigestion, night sweats, nervous headaches, asthma, bites, dysmenorrhoea, lethargy, lack of appetite, oral inflammation, and kidney problems.

As far back as the first century C.E. the Greek doctor Dioscorides recommended that a decoction of sage should be used externally to clean ulcers and sores. In another part of the world, Native Americans used sage tea both topically and internally. It was desired so much by many different groups of people that the Dutch used to trade it to the Chinese, despite the fact that the latter are known for their own native tea. The Chinese offered the Dutch three times the amount of their own most expensive teas.

To make this versatile infusion, put one ounce of dried sage in a pint of boiling water. If you want, you can also combine sage with lemon, for a more refreshing—and less medicinal--experience. Not everyone likes sage tea, but adding a little lemon can help, especially if you really want to give it a try.

Use a half-ounce of fresh sage leaves, one ounce of fine sugar, and quarter of an ounce of grated lemon rinds. Also include juice from one lemon and a quart of boiling water. To prepare, stir all of the ingredients in the simmering water and steep for half an hour. You can choose to prepare it hot or cold--just make sure to strain out the herbs.

Yellow Tea

2010-08-05T08:10:00.002-06:00

By Alexandra Hoover

Perhaps you’ve never heard of yellow tea; maybe you are an avid enthusiast of this rare tea. Either way, yellow tea is a product of Camellia sinensis that deserves just as much attention as black, green, white, oolong, or pu-erh tea. For instance, although yellow tea is not as widely known as white tea, it contains almost as many antioxidants as white tea. Yellow tea similarly contains bacteria-killing fluoride, which helps prevent and combat health problems.

Why is yellow tea so obscure? It is not easy to make and it is only produced in China. In fact, yellow tea takes more time to produce than green or black tea. The process of making yellow tea involves less fermentation, or oxidation, than black or oolong teas; nevertheless, the production of yellow tea involves other intricate steps. Like green tea, the leaves must be fried. Next, however, the leaves are wrapped and stored in a wooden box. Then, the tea is fried again and re-wrapped, and is repeated for a maximum of three days. Finally, the tea is slowly roasted. The process is painstaking--if people local to Huo Shan or Meng Ding Shan had not been so determined to preserve yellow tea, it could have become entirely extinct like the Huo Shan Huang Ya variety of yellow tea.

While yellow tea’s taste and smell is complicated and hard to describe, it is subtle and sweet without green tea’s grassy, vegetal flavor. If you are lucky enough to get your hands on some, you can brew it similar to the way you would make white tea. Make sure the water isn’t much hotter than 180 degrees F. For every five ounces of water, add one tablespoon of loose yellow tea. Steep for one to three minutes, depending on how strong you like your tea. If you want to get the full benefits of your tea, use a glass cup to gaze at the golden-yellow tint.

People’s Tea, or “Brown Rice Tea”

2010-08-05T08:05:00.002-06:00

By Alexandra Hoover

Genmaicha , or brown rice tea, is also known as "people’s tea" in Japan. As it was—and still is—made from a combination of green tea and brown rice, genmaicha was the perfect way to conserve resources. In Japan, brown rice tea used to be made by people who couldn’t afford plain green tea. They added the brown rice as filler. Today, people of all cultures and social economic backgrounds drink it, given that they have heard of this unusual tea.

Brown rice tea is reminiscent of preparing popcorn, as the rice makes popping sounds when it is prepared; nevertheless, it does not taste like popcorn. The flavor is a slightly grassy variation of green tea with a hint of a nutty, roasted rice flavor. It can be served cold or hot.

The color of this tea is yellow and can be altered depending on the amount of time you choose to brew it. While some people prefer to steep it from three to five minutes, other people prefer a more subtle taste and brew it for one minute, instead. To prepare the rice, toast a thin layer of brown rice on a small to medium sized pan. Toast the brown rice using low heat. Don’t turn off the burner until the rice is brown. This particular step should not take longer than five minutes.

Next, allow the rice to cool. Store it in a container until you are ready to make the rest of the tea. Place a tablespoon of whole green tea leaves in a sieve along with a tablespoon of toasted brown rice. You can adjust the amount, depending on how strong you would like the tea to be. Heat water in a pot until it boils, placing the sieve into the pot when it is ready. Steep from one to five minutes. Then you are ready!

Tea on the High Seas

2010-07-16T08:00:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The story of tea in the UK is in no small part the story of the success of the East India Company. Granted it's charter in 1600 with the intention of trading with the East Indies the company ended up doing the majority of it's business with India and China. This was the beginning of a success so great that the company actually came to rule large portions of India for many years.

The company history is rife with blood and intrigue, The East India Trading Company featuring in the film franchise Pirates of the Caribbean is a tribute to it's past. While the company in the films is primarily a work of fiction, the influence that it exerts is a fairly accurate portrayal. At one time the East India Company accounted for 50% of the worlds trade on it's own and it's political influence in the UK was extensive.

Battles on the high seas weren't entirely a product of the film maker's imagination either. The company's influence in India began when a strategic foothold was needed from which to more effectively wage war with rival Dutch and Portuguese trading ships.

The company was largely responsible for promoting tea in the UK in the sixteen hundreds. It's ships were sailing out to China with holds full of manufactured goods to trade but were returning half empty. Tea was chosen to fill the gap and was sold in Britain as a health tonic originally before becoming increasingly popular until by 1750 it was the national drink.

In order to pay for this tea the company needed to find a new, high value product to export to China. They settled on opium, smuggled into the country from Bengal to circumvent the ban on it's import. It was a decision which resulted in the addiction of many Chinese citizens and eventually the opium wars and the British seizure of Hong Kong.

The East India Company was eventually abolished after it's rule in India, which had become increasingly exploitative, lead to an uprising. Having redefined world trade and catapulted the British Empire to even greater heights of global power the company left it's mark forever on the history of many countries and products.

Yet another thing to muse on while enjoying your next cup of tea.

Tea Around the World – Turkey

2010-07-16T07:54:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

When you think of hot drinks and Turkey you probably think of the coffee. Made from powdered beans (but in no way to be confused with instant coffee), black as night and terrifyingly strong. Popular throughout the middle east, Turkish coffee and the shops that serve it are something of an institution.

However, these days, tea or çay is becoming more and more popular and is starting to replace it's more caffeinated counterpart with the younger generations. In 2004 Turkey had the highest tea consumption per person of any country in the world and produced 6.4% of the world's tea.

Turkish çay is a black tea grown on the eastern shore of the Black Sea in the Rize province and is generally known as Rize tea. The rise of tea drinking in Turkey was a result of the limited availability of coffee after the Second World War.

The tea is prepared in two kettles, a large one for the water and a smaller one for the leaves which are stacked one on top of the other. Boiling water is added from the lower kettle to the smaller one to create a very strong tea. Drinkers then fill their glasses using both kettles in order to dilute the concentrated tea to their own tastes.

It is served in small, clear glasses, sometimes with the addition of beetroot sugar to enhance it's colour but never with milk or honey. The glasses are called ince belli for their shape and should be held by the rim to avoid burning your fingers. Tea is offered as a sign of friendship and hospitality before and after meals and is drunk almost constantly throughout the day. As in so many countries it is an inherently social drink to be talked over and enjoyed.

As Turkish tea production continues to increase maybe the time had come for Turkish coffee to give way to a new successor?

Tea Around the World – Portugal

2010-07-16T07:48:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to encounter tea, to import it and to produce it, making them the pioneers of a trade that would come to shape the world and a tradition that would come to be central to the lives of many.

The Portuguese navy was one of the finest of the times, making them an important international player. They were instrumental in creating the first trading routes with Japan and China in the fifteen hundreds and they were granted the rights to establish a trading port at Macao as a reward for riding the area of pirates. The Portuguese Jesuit missionary Father Jasper de Cruz was the first known European to try tea in 1560 and wrote about the experience in a letter home.

Despite this documented knowledge of the drink, tea wasn't imported into Europe until the early seventeenth century. A trade route was developed, with Portugese ships bringing tea into Lisbon and the Dutch then distributing it to other European countries.

In the 1660s the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza was married to King Charles II of England and brought with her to her new country the practice of drinking tea. The British had not been as successful as other countries in establishing trade routes with Japan and China and though they would later come to dominate the tea trade they were at the time reliant on Portuguese and Dutch imports.

Where Portugal really stands out from the rest of Europe in it's relationship to tea is it's attempts to grow it commercially. In 1750 trial fields were set up in several different locations to test the viability of tea as a crop. The fields initially produced a grand total of 18kg of tea. In 1883 two skilled workers were brought from China to give advice and the enterprise was made more successful. Portuguese tea growing currently takes place in the Azores and the tea it produces is called Gorreana. It is produced organically by small scale independent farmers using a highly traditional process.

Tea, particularly iced tea, is of increasing popularity in Portugal with the whole nation enjoying a good brew. Given their crucial role in bringing it to the rest of the world they've certainly earned it.

A Touch of the Earl

2010-07-16T07:40:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

In the world of tea there are literally hundreds of specific breakfast blends, all specially crafted to help you start the day. For me, though, they may as well not exist! As far as I'm concerned there is only one blend worth drinking in the morning, the one my dad used to make.

It's a simple concoction, easy to make yourself. Take one teapot, pour in a little boiling water and swirl to warm the pot before pouring away. Now add as many teabags as people who are drinking of your normal, favourite day time blend. Then, the crucial ingredient, add one Earl Grey tea bag and there you go.

My family are typical British tea drinkers, passionate about tea without being particularly bothered with the finer details. Having found a reliable tea bag that we all liked we stuck with it for everything.

We had our own 'blends,' though, based on the standard cuppa. A spoonful of sugar after a stressful day, a splash of whisky after getting caught out in the snow or a drop of honey when it was raining, iced with mint and fruit on those rare sunny days. There's a lot you can do with the humble tea bag and the fact that it's so inexpensive gives you the freedom to experiment without fear.

For me the Earl Grey breakfast tea is the best of all, giving a little hint of sophistication and, after years of association, the inevitable flavour of nostalgia. It inspires me to find more ways to alter the tea I drink, to make it special and personal.

It's so easy to infuse new flavours into a hot drink. Next time you're brewing yourself a quick cup why not dunk in a sprig of the nearest herb you can find, give it a stir with a cinnamon stick or add two different blend to the same pot? You never know what new traditions you might be starting.

Tea with the Ladies

2010-07-08T07:43:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Lady Anna Maria Russell Duchess of Bedford was in all respects a very important woman. Daughter of the 3rd Earl of Harrington, Sister in law to the Prime Minister of England and close friend of Queen Victoria, society ladies didn't come more well to do than this. When it comes to Western tea drinking she is a pivotal figure, being the pioneer of the afternoon tea.

Afternoon tea is usually served around 4pm and consists of a pot of tea and a selection of light refreshments, often served on a stand. Foods served are dainty sandwiches and cakes or scones, usually a small selection of each.

The beginnings of afternoon tea can be found in the eighteenth century when the largest meal was migrating backwards through the day from noon to early evening. This left a long time since breakfast and a new meal, luncheon, was introduced to fill the gap. The new lunch was usually a very light meal and so a lot of people found they were still getting hungry in the afternoon. People began to have a snack to tide them over until dinner but it was Lady Anna Maria who formalised the tradition.

She got into the habit of taking afternoon tea in her rooms and soon became such a fan that she started inviting her friends to join her. It was a huge success and a new kind of social gathering was formed. On the face of it the height of sophistication and refinement, it was really about gossip. Scandals were made and dissected over a pot of Darjeeling and a selection of finger foods. It was the seventeenth century equivalent of cocktails with the girls!

The upper classes being the celebrities of the time a new trend was set. Afternoon tea became a staple of the British tea drinking tradition and has remained basically unchanged until this day. So if you feel the need for a spot of historical re-enactment but don't fancy going this far then next time you're peckish mid afternoon why not follow in the footsteps of Lady Anna Maria?

A Very Civilized Tea Indeed

2010-07-02T11:28:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

If there's one thing I love about being English it's a really good cream tea. It's one of those snacks that probably contains more calories than the average meal (at least if you do it right) but it's just tea so it doesn't count!

There's a lot of heated debate about where you need to go for the definitive English cream tea. Some say it has to be the home counties, a lot of people will go for Devon and I've had brilliant ones in Edinburgh but for my money it has to be Cornwall. This is for the simple reason that Cornish clotted cream is the best you'll find anywhere and this is, after all, a cream tea. I remember as a child on holidays to Cornwall buying clotted cream direct from the farm. Huge blocks of it would be laid out in trays waiting for people to scoop out their portions and rush them home for tea. There are a lot of perfectly good creams in the world but if you ever get the chance to buy it from Cornwall then prepare for a real treat.

The next thing you'll be needing is a scone, it could be plain if you prefer but should usually be fruit. If you accidentally buy cheese scones you're in for an interesting tea time (more easily done that you'd think and decidedly strange!). In the long run it may be safer to make your own.

The third ingredient is the one that introduces the aspect of childish glee to the tea, the jam. There are literally thousands of great preserves to chose from but if you're lucky enough to have a garden it's really easy to capture a bit of your own summer produce in this quick and simple jam.

Add the soft fruit of your choice to a pan and roughly mash to break it up a bit.
Add 50g of jam sugar for every 100g of fruit and stir over a low heat to dissolve.
Turn up the heat and bring the mixture to the boil for exactly 5 minutes.
Pour into sterilised jars and seal.

This is a low sugar jam so once it's been opened you need to keep it in the fridge but it gives you a more fruity, intense taste, perfect for a cream tea.

Finally for the most important aspect, the tea. You might want to go for something strong to stand up against all that sweetness such as Assam. Now while your pot is brewing take one of your scones, still warm from the oven and cut it in half. Smear on a generous portion of cream and top it off with a spoonful of jam. Pour yourself a cup of tea and sit back for a moment of greedy anticipation. What you have before you is a thing of beauty. Luxurious, utterly indulgent and wonderful. Enjoy!

The Decaf Dilemma

2010-07-02T11:14:00.005-06:00

By Jess Hodges

It's one of those petty little quirks of human nature that we often take a dislike to people who are healthier than us. If you are a smoker than non-smokers can be incredibly annoying, if you drink them why would anyone go tee total? Maybe you could stand to lose a bit of weight? Don't you just hate joggers? Right at the very bottom of the pile along with people who run marathons and those lunatics who actually enjoy wheat grass juice are those of us who don't drink caffeine.

I switched to decaf a couple of years ago when I realised I'd gotten up to at least ten cups of coffee a day and was having pretty serious withdrawal whenever I tried to go without it. Since then I'm sleeping easier, have more energy and am generally a happier, healthier person. So why am I not shouting from the rooftops about this fabulous, simple, miracle cure for all ills? Because it really irritates people off, that's why! Next time someone offers you a tea or coffee ask if they have anything decaf, just to see the reaction. I've started telling people I have a caffeine allergy just to stop the eye rolling!

Caffeine is a naturally occurring drug which has a distinctive bitter flavour, plants use it as a natural pesticide to kill the insects which eat their leaves. It acts as a stimulant to the central nervous system and can increase alertness and reduce the feelings of tiredness but these effects will lessen over time as the body builds up a caffeine tolerance. Effects of caffeine withdrawal can include headaches, nausea, insomnia and stomach pains. It can induce sleep and anxiety disorders and has been shown to have both positive and negative effects on memory and learning.

So why are people so defensive about caffeine that I'm having to make up imaginary allergies as an excuse for avoiding all these side effects? Could it be the nagging idea that they could stand to cut back a bit?

So here's my challenge for you all, go one day without caffeine and see how you feel. If all hell breaks lose then maybe it's time for a change. If not then maybe you'll at least gain some sympathy for those of us who must live as hot beverage pariahs!

Tea and a Show

2010-06-25T08:08:00.003-06:00

By Jess Hodges

The day I find a teapot that doesn't drip all over the place will be marked on the calendar for my descendants to celebrate throughout the ages. It is a problem so persistent that I'm beginning to think it's actually down to my lack of skill and I should stop blaming the china. All in all the tea artists at the Shanghai 2010 world expo put me well and truly to shame.

Performing four 45 minute shows a day between May 1st and June 30th, the CHA stage show will incorporate martial arts, acrobatics and magic in it's telling of the story of Chinese tea culture. Award winning director Li Xining, who has worked with Cirque du Soleil, said she was inspired to write the show one day while she was having tea with friends.

“I was stunned by the magnificent and age-old tea culture in China and suddenly came up with the idea of presenting an acrobatic show to promote this traditional aspect of Chinese culture to a foreign audience.” (Quote taken from here.)

If I were to try an imagine a stage show retelling of the English tea story it probably wouldn't involve this kind of thing. You could probably get some worth while drama from depicting the East India trading company clashing with pirates on the high seas, but once the tea actually arrived the action would rather dry up, unless you dedicated a lot of time to posh people beating their servants.

Is now the time for a change? Should I be learning to pour two cups at once while doing back flips and drips be damned? Maybe I could contort myself into strange positions and learn to do the whole ceremony with my feet? Maybe I could learn not to scream like a two year old when I accidentally spill hot water on myself? Or maybe I'll just sit back in my comfy chair with a nice, safe mug of breakfast blend and let those energetic people in Shanghai show me how it's done.

What's in a Name?

2010-06-15T08:25:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

What links your daily cuppa and the first free pharmacy in the Philippines? Does the name Georg Joseph Kamel jog you memory? If you're anything like me then probably not but when I tell you he was also known as Father Camellus maybe that will give you a clue? Bare with me here.

If you've ever wondered where plants and animals on this planet get those snappy Latin names, the answer, for the vast majority of them, is from Carl Linnaeus. Linnaeus is usually thought of as the father of modern taxonomy, the science of classifying life on earth. Linnaeus rearranged the names of a vast array of organisms so that they followed one simple system in which each species has a long list of names starting with the kingdom it belongs to and working down through smaller and smaller groups until you reach the genera and species names that identify it uniquely.

Organising all life on earth into groups and naming them was a mammoth challenge but sorting out the last two, most commonly used names for hundreds of thousands of species was an incredible feat. Often it was just a case of reorganising the current name so it followed the hierarchy but a lot of the time there were gaps to be filled in. Linnaeus named species based on their appearance or defining characteristics, for example Homo sapiens for the sentient ape, but he also took the opportunity to honour those who he felt deserved it.

So we come back to Kamel, a jesuit missionary and botanist in the sixteen hundreds who opened his pharmacy in Manila in order to provide free medicines to the poor. Born in what is now the Czech Republic in 1661 he was sent to the Philippines in 1668 where he made a thorough study of the plant life he found there, including two volumes on the medicinal species.

Linnaeus thought so highly of Kamel that he didn't just name a single species after him but an entire genera, Camellia, a group famous for beautiful flowers such as the Japanese tea rose. The genus also provides an important cooking oil for much of east Asia and is grown ornamentally in gardens throughout the world, many of it's species are a popular food for caterpillars. However, of the hundreds of described species in this group there's only one that concerns us. C. sinensis, an infusion of which you're probably drinking right now.

It is sometimes fun to remember that your favourite beverage is the product of the leaves of a plant which has it's own story and it's own place in the natural world. Belonging to the kingdom Plantae, being in order an Angiosperm, Eudicot and an Asterid, of the order Ericales and the family Theaceae, genus Camellia, species sinensis, that which we call tea by any other name would taste as delicious.

Next time you enjoy a cup spare a thought for two scientists who have absolutely nothing to do with it but have left their stamp on tea forever.

Herbal Tea & Animals!

2010-06-15T08:18:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

As an animal lover, I was getting awfully concerned when my 1-year-old miniature dachshund, Scooter, was a sweaty mess when I would return from a long day of work. My neighbor stopped me in the hallway to tell me that my dog barked nonstop from the time I left, until the time I came home. Not only was I concerned for the sanity of my neighbors, but I was concerned with Scooter’s health. When I would return home from work, his stomach would be drenched from sweat. He’d take his short, stubby front legs and tuck them to his side, propelling the rest of his body by his back feet across the floor drying himself off (hence the name Scooter). He’d then sprint to his water bowl, drinking it all up and about two other ones.

You might be wondering why I am writing about my dog when I normally write about tea. Well, tea not only has helped me out, but it has done wonders for Scooter. I was talking to some friends about how different types of teas have the same effect for animals as it has on humans. I thought I should see if Chamomile tea would help calm him down before I left, so he would stop his non-stop barking and stop dehydrating himself while I was out. I found also, because he was barking tons, he was having digestion problems, due to lack of hydration. Note: Stick to herbal teas when it comes to your animals. Herbal teas also will help your dogs or cats coat regain its beautiful shine and will help heal the dry skin.

The answer to all of my problems, except the chewing, was the Chamomile tea. I make Scooter a nice bowl of Chamomile tea about 1 hour before I leave, cooling it down of course. I told my neighbors that I was trying this out and to report back with me if it made a difference. The neighbor behind me said that he doesn’t hear that much barking anymore. The Chamomile tea has aided his anxiety and has allowed him to relax while I’m away. As far as the digestion problem, because he is not barking anymore, I am glad to report that everything is the way it should be. Herbal teas for the treatment of an animal’s problem are not only convenient, but cheap. I feel much better about giving my dog a natural tea that he actually likes to drink, than giving him a anxiety pill that I have no idea what is it in.

Not only can Chamomile tea be a treatment to our sleepless nights, and digestion problems, if your dog or cat is a sufferer from this as well, go ahead and brew you and your four legged friend a cup of herbal tea. You’d be amazed to see the difference!

Great Gifts for a Tea Lover

2010-06-14T09:25:00.003-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

The way the economy has been going, who has extra money to spend on gifts? No matter if it is a best friend, family member, or a thank you for a job well done; the price tag on a great gift does not have to break the bank or your wallet. Finding the perfect gift at a great price means you just need to know the right place to look to find that gift. I have included a few of many great finds on EnglishTeaStore.com. You can mix and match these to fit your price range and be sure that the person receiving this gift will be very happy. I absolutely love all of their products on this site. Not only do they are fantastic prices, but the shipping is extremely reasonable and fast! Note: By clicking on the titles, it will lead you directly to the product website! Happy shopping!

1. 2 Cup Bodum Assam Teapot 17 oz – $25.49

At this price, this is such a bargain! It is a perfect gift for the recipient if they are brewing just one cup of tea, or has invited you over for a perfect cup of tea too! With the many types of tea you can brew in the center column, the brewing process is stopped with the plunger is dropped down. Along with this gift, I also suggest including a fantastically priced tea for them to try along with their new teapot such as Cranberry Orange Flavored Black Tea.

2. Tea Sampler - Tea Bags - English Favorites - $5.79

Can’t decide on what type of tea to get them? This tea sampler from the English Tea Store allows you to give the gift of multiple flavors without breaking the bank! At less than six dollars, eight different types of tea is a steal! Pairing this extremely reasonable tea with a nice mug is the perfect gift at a perfect price!

3. Mini Honey Pot & Dipper- $5.50

What a fantastic idea it is to include a great mini honey pot and dipper with Organic Honey (only $5.24) with your gift. It is adorable yet practical gift that will sure to get smiles.

Bust Your Stress With Tea!!

2010-06-11T09:30:00.003-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Now that summer has arrived, having a hot cup of tea when it is 80 degrees can seem to be a little too much, making the weather feel warmer. However, when the day is settling and the night is approaching, a cup of hot tea is a great end to my long and busy day.

For me, my tea is a stress buster and relaxer. It helps me to settle and fall asleep much quicker than anything else I’ve tried. Chamomile tea is my choice of tea before bed. Originating from Egypt, I prefer the English Tea Store’s tea bag version of this tea. I find that adding a little bit of honey or mint to this tea, makes the fragrant tea taste even better.

Being a new tea consumer, I’ve enjoyed experimenting with things in my own garden. Living on a third floor apartment with a small balcony, it does not give me a lot of room to grow a lot of things. I choose to grow peppermint, in a nice self-containing container, because it has great aroma and baking or cooking properties. I especially love to add the peppermint to my chamomile tea. Not only does the chamomile aid my ability to fall asleep quicker, but the peppermint is nice and refreshing and also helps digestion and upset stomachs.

With a degree in Pastry Arts, I try to create new recipes that will enhance my enjoyment of drinking my tea. Biscotti’s are a great tea dunking cookie because by itself it is very dry. With the addition of the tea, it brings the cookie to life and soaks up the delicious tea. One of my recipes is a Peppermint Biscotti. When eaten while dunked in the Chamomile tea, you can consume the relaxing tea and the refreshing peppermint all at the same time.

Below is my personal recipe for Peppermint Biscotti’s.

Tip: For a stronger mint flavor, you can also add peppermint extract.

Fresh Peppermint Biscotti’s

Ingredients

1 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped fresh peppermint
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla extract. Combine flour, baking powder, peppermint and salt; add to creamed mixture. Stir in almonds. Line a baking sheet with foil and grease the foil. Divide dough in half. On the foil, form dough into two 11-in. x 3-in. rectangles. Bake at 300 degrees F for 35 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven; increase temperature to 325 degrees F. Using the foil, lift the rectangles onto wire racks; cool completely. Place on a cutting board; cut diagonally with a serrated knife into 3/4-in. slices. Place with cut side down on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn over; bake 10 minutes longer. Cool completely on wire racks. Store in an airtight container.

Cooking with Tea

2010-06-04T11:17:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

Like so much else in this world tea seems to go in and out of fashion faster than I can keep up with but there is one trend that even I have noticed. It seems you're as likely to see tea on the menu of a restaurant these days as you are in a café and as often used in cookery shows as it is drunk on soap operas, while characters frantically try to resolve the latest pregnancy/murder/sex change, stealing fortifying sips between whip lash inducing plot developments. With this new context comes plenty of wild experimentation but also a new repertoire of staples, whether it be green tea sorbet or tea smoked trout a whole new dimension of tea appreciation has opened up.

As loathe as I am to set fire to my precious leaves it may be that smoking is a great way to use up those heart breaking packets which slip somehow unnoticed to the back of the cupboard and lose their powers of infusion. A smoker is a surprisingly easy thing to make out of an airing rack and an old biscuit tin. A steamer would do the job perfectly if you lined the bottom with foil so as not to ruin it. It's definitely an outdoor job though so stock up on those disposable barbecues while the sun shines if you aren't lucky enough to have a permanent one. Clouds of indoor tea smoke must be considered antisocial, whatever your stance on nicotine. Tea smoked fish seems to be the most common recipe but I have come across, venison and beef being treated this way. I don't know how well the subtleties of different varieties of tea are imparted but this could be one of those exciting discoveries with endless scope for tweaking and experimentation. Smoking with just tea or with a combination of leaves and wood chips or maybe with the addition of herbs, perhaps one day I'll have a cupboard full of smoking blends to accompany my drinking ones!

One of the most simple ways to translate the magical brew into a food must be ice cream. When made using a custard base it's a simple matter of infusing the milk before hand, making it easy to control the end result with some degree of precision. Here is a good blueprint recipe to try, of course if you have an ice cream maker everything becomes much simpler but I think this is still well worth the effort if you don't.

Gently heat 500ml of cream or milk to boiling with 2 heaped tablespoons (or to taste) of the tea of your choice.
Once infused to the desired flavour strain and return to the boil.
Beat 5 large egg yolks and 100g caster sugar in a bowl until pale.
Slowly pour in the milk while continuing to beat to form a custard.
Return mixture to the saucepan and heat until thickened.
Transfer to a bowl and stand in cold water until cool.
Place custard in the freezer, taking it out and beating every hour or so to break up ice crystals and produce a smooth ice cream.

For the pure kitsch joy of it scoops of ice cream should be served in a cup and saucer with tea spoon and wafer resting on the side.

For me the pinnacle of cooking with tea has to be found in baking, a natural extension of the sublime marriage of tea and cake. My favourite tea to bake with is Earl Grey, strong enough to give a good flavour, subtle and complex enough to be pleasing and robust enough to withstand the cooking process. A wonderful recipe for cookies can be found here, but I'd recommend a slice of cake made to the recipe below accompanied of course by a cup of tea.

Preheat the oven to 160 °C.
Heat 125ml of milk with 2 or 3 heaped tablespoons of Earl Grey until infused, strain and cool.
Cream 110g of unsalted butter with 225g of caster sugar.
Slowly combine 2 large beaten eggs with the butter mixture.
Add 250g of self raising flour in small amounts, alternating with the addition of the cooled milk until everything is combined.
Pour the mixture into a lined cake tin and bake for about approximately 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Leave to cool if you can, eat and enjoy!

Tea Time Again

2010-06-04T11:03:00.002-06:00

By Jess Hodges

When I think of my Grandmother I think of elevenses which is as far as I can find out a fairly ambiguous entry in the daily gastronomic diary, completely open to interpretation and largely forgotten about these days. Though usually partaken of at eleven o'clock in the morning, it has been know to migrate forwards as far as ten and backwards all the way to half past two in the afternoon dependant on such diverse factors as the day, the weather, the style and timings of lunch and simple whim. It's an informal arrangement, is usually enjoyed alone and doesn't require a table cloth.

The main event is of course a very good cup of tea, lovingly prepared and slowly enjoyed. There should also be some form of snack, not necessarily a sandwich but perhaps some cheese and crackers with a few grapes or a couple of biscuits or maybe even a boiled egg. In my experience it is rarely cake, that being a defining feature of afternoon tea, a very different beast indeed! It is yet another example of tea becoming more than a drink and in fact being something of a small scale event. When compared to the Japanese ceremonies it is easy to see modern tea drinking in the western hemisphere as hopelessly mundane but it is often highly ritualised and very personal. I believe that my Grandmother would have committed seppuku if she had ever accidentally added the milk first.

The backbone of elevenses should be a fairly light tea such as darjeeling and it is best served as a break in a busy morning. It should be twenty minutes taken apart from the rest of your day, utterly distinct and refreshing. It should never, ever be scheduled or planned for but must occur naturally as and when it is needed, preferably half way through an important job. You can't try and fit it into a convenient gap, it just won't work. This is not just a cup of tea grabbed in a spare moment this is elevenses, all else must wait until it is complete.

Taking time just for yourself is worth doing and therefore worth doing properly. You need to be sitting at a table with everything set out around you and once you've started you're not allowed to get up until you're done. It's permissible to listen to the radio or even do a crossword, providing it's an easy one but if you can limit yourself to staring off into space and maybe humming a little tune then the whole endeavour will be much more successful. If you must think make sure it's only about ephemeral nonsense and for gods sake not about anything important or practical. If you're having trouble I find that leafing through a magazine and drawing moustaches on all of the people is a good way to achieve the right mindset.

So next time you're hungry way before it's reasonable or suddenly insurmountably bored or just plain cannot be bothered, throw everything down, take the phone off the hook and boil the kettle. Who knows, maybe afterwards you'll find yourself refreshed and reborn as a highly productive and motivated individual with boundless energy and inspiration. To be honest it's more likely that you won't and the kitchen will still need cleaned but either way you'll have had a damn good cup of tea.

All the tea in china?

2010-06-04T10:43:00.006-06:00

By Jess Hodges

I recently visited a café in Edinburgh called Eteaket, where they serve those fantastic kinds of high teas that persuade people to give the more serious stuff a try and go some way towards redeeming the English as a nation. The tea comes accompanied by an egg timer so you know when it's been steeped for the appropriate time and is served in a joyously miss-matched array of old fashioned cups and saucers. Eighty percent of the tea I drink comes from the shotgun marriage of a bag and a mug so I found it fascinating to take a more traditional approach. It made me think about 'tea' as in the event rather than the beverage and wonder how easily I could go about adding the production value back into my daily cuppa.

My first port of call was one of Edinburgh's lesser known institutions, the charity shop. The city is full of them and they're all packed with wonderful finds and stock a dazzling array of second hand crockery. It took me all of thirty seconds to find a pair of floral bone china cups and saucers to go with my teapot at home. If you're buying second hand china give each piece a sharp tap with your finger, if the resulting note rings out then the piece is free of hairline cracks and faults, if the noise is more of a dull thud then put the piece back, it's already damaged. If you hold a saucer up to the light and can see the shadow of your hand through it then it's bone china. There are a multitude of different symbols and makers marks used to identify antique china; I got as far as nineteenth century with mine before giving up. If you have a piece you'd like to identify then this site is a good start but I'd recommend a trip to your local library for a more thorough analysis.

Having returned home and set out my tea pot next to a cup and saucer at least a hundred years older than me I could already feel something of a sense of occasion. I was instantly tempted to raid the cupboard for something appropriately special but the idea of this experiment being to enliven my routine tea drinking I managed to restrict myself to a bag of Twinning's everyday so as not to bias the results.

Pouring myself a cup of tea felt like a real treat, though I'm afraid my quest for a milk jug that doesn't drip must continue. I found myself sitting up straighter in my chair, images of Victorian ladies in London hotels coming to mind. My new cups hold roughly a third of the volume that my usual mug takes so I was forced to spend time over my tea whilst in the same instance having to finish each cup fairly quickly before the thin china allowed all the warmth to seep away. At a rough estimate it tripled the time it took me to drink the volume of tea held by my usual mug. Overall I enjoyed the experience but was worried about how time consuming it could be if multiplied across the entire day.

The results of my experiment being intriguing but so far inconclusive I invited a friend over for tea and tried again. This was definitely a resounding success. The pretty cups were a talking point and constant sips interspersed with the clink of china and the show of pouring the tea made the table feel busy and exciting. It's definitely a chatty way to drink tea, leaning forwards and getting involved rather than sat back in your chair cradling a mug, the presence of all the different pieces turning it into an event rather than an accompaniment. It's an experiment I look forward to repeating, strictly for scientific rigour of course.

And my findings? Charming, is I think the appropriate word, it's a charismatic way of imbibing. It is a style of tea drinking I would definitely recommend, in the evenings at least, if it's not always practical in the mornings and definitely to the exclusion of all others in the company of friends. I think the lady who sold me the tea cups summed it up quite nicely, “It's so nice to meet a young person who still appreciates these things.” I would urge everyone to dig out those forgotten pieces of china and sit down for a good session of tea appreciation.

Taste the Difference: Organic Tea

2010-05-12T07:49:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Some people think that just because a product says organic, it automatically means more expensive. With tea however, it is generally not the case. The cost difference is slight and the benefits make up for it. With tons of people eating organic, no chemicals during the growth or processing, tea is one more thing available to them for the pleasure. I think it is great that something I enjoy very much is made available for those with a special diet.

Why is organic tea better?

A simple tea plant can live for more than a hundred year. However, when fertilizers or pesticides are used in the growth of the plant, the life span of the tea plant is cut short drastically. Organic tea is also better for the tea farmer because they do not have to replace the plants as often as non-organic tea plants.

For the consumer, organic tea has its benefits as well. It is free of chemical residues and also tastes better. In many different tea competitions, the taste of organic tea has beaten the taste of non-organic tea. The color, taste, and aroma have been superior over non-organic tea.

Certified Organic?

Many tea plantations are certified organic. This means that they abide the strict regulations of not allowing the tea plants to come into contact with the fertilizers or pesticides. This can be challenging due to facts like rain runoff, if the plantation is downhill from a non-organic farm which would run the fertilizer or pesticides from uphill farms. Because of variables like this, often organic land and farming is much more expensive to make sure the products have no contact with these fertilizers or pesticides. For tea grown in the United States, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulates the growing conditions. For tea farms outside the United States, the Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM) regulates their growing conditions.

When trying organic tea for the first time, use your judgment. The first time I tried organic tea, I could actually taste the difference. For those who haven’t tried organic tea, taste the difference for yourself!

A Mother’s Love Can Never Be Replaced

2010-04-22T07:45:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

A very special time of the year for those that gave us life is Mother’s Day. May 9th is coming quicker than you think. In the United States it was nationally recognized as a holiday in 1914 after a campaign by Anna Jarvis. In some countries, it follows the old traditions of Mothering Sunday. A great way to honor those whose daily lives include cleaning dirty diapers, cleaning up the messes the little ones make, good ol’ bath time where mommy is most likely to get soaked, and guiding the innocent to grow up to become great adults. Why not give her some fantastic tea or a gift set to show your mother how much you love and appreciate her!

As a woman, I can now look back on the trying days of being a teenager and all the challenges that I faced at that time. The one person who I knew I could count on 100% was my mother. She loved me unconditionally, and was there to talk to whenever I needed her. Whether it be about boys, school, or just life in general, my mom was there to help me make the right decisions and helped me achieve my goals.

My gift to my mother, who if you can’t tell already has a very special place in my heart, will be receiving a great gift basket from the English Tea Store. I do live quite a while away from her, so by ordering it online, it’s convenient for me to order and have it ship right to her house! The “Dear Mom Deluxe Gift Basket” is a fantastic value at only $32.99! It includes: *Dear Mom Easel Book- Including 101 thoughts for Mom * Mom Heart Shaped Wall Hanging * Too Good Gourmet Chocolate Fudge Cookies *Fine French Truffles *Harney & Son’s Mother’s Day Tea * PG Tips Tea * Mom Mug and *Willow Basket.

All that for only $32.99! That sounds like a great deal for someone who has been my best friend for all these years! To all you Mothers, thank you for all that you do! Happy Mother’s Day!

Black Currant Tea

2010-04-22T07:29:00.003-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

When the flowers are in full bloom and fruit is at its ripest, why not indulge yourself with a nice cup of black currant tea! This tea is delicious either hot or cold.

The Taste: a combination of Orange Pekoe black tea with flavors of a fruity black currant bush. The natural sweetness of the currants imparts a mild fruity taste to the brew.

Health Properties: This tea is packed with two minerals- iron and potassium. This tea is especially great for women, who tend to lack in their daily consumption of iron.

Color of the Tea: Black currant tea is dark purple in color.

Caffeinated or Decaffeinated: This tea comes in caffeinated and decaffeinated. English Tea Store’s bags are naturally caffeine free, while the loose black currant tea is caffeinated.

I love the fresh, fruity teas that are not over sweetened. This is one of my favorites to drink with a nice English scone, bought or homemade. For those who would rather buy a mix for the scones, I absolutely love Sticky Fingers Scone Mix. Everything that I have bought from this company is so delicious and this mix is fantastic! Below I have a great recipe for an English Tea Scone for those who prefer to make their own. This recipes includes currants or raisins with is a great compliment to the black currant tea.

English Tea Scones:

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter or margarine, cut into pieces
3/4 cup whipping cream
2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup dried currants or snipped raisins
Milk
Sugar

Directions:

In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter or margarine until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in center of dry mixture. Add whipping cream, eggs, and currants or raisins all at once. Using a fork, stir just until moistened.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Quickly knead dough by folding and pressing dough gently for 10 to 12 strokes or until dough is nearly smooth. Pat or lightly roll dough into an 8-inch square. Cut dough into 16 squares.
Place scones 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush scones with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake in a 400 degree F. oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden. Remove scones from baking sheet and serve warm. Makes 16.
Make-Ahead Tip: Cool and place scones in freezer container or bag. Freeze up to 1 month. Reheat foil-wrapped scones in a 300 degree F. oven for 20 to 25 minutes for frozen scones or until thawed and heated.

Cool Down Hot Days with some Homemade Cold Tea

2010-04-22T07:10:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Growing up, I can remember my mother putting a pitcher of water with tea bags on the back porch. In about 4-5 hours, we had some homemade sun tea. I love all teas, hot, iced, and sun. There is nothing better than working outside in the garden and having a nice glass of cold tea, or anytime of the day for that matter. I love adding other items from my garden into my glass of tea too. Adding some fresh mint from my garden adds a whole other element to my sun or iced tea.

I do prefer to add something to my sun tea, like mint or lemon, because most of the time, sun tea seems to be a little weaker in taste then I am used to from iced tea made using boiling water. However, I love the process of making the sun tea and the fact that the heat emitted from the sun is what brewed this yummy tea.

Below is a super easy recipe for sun tea and some other cold tea drinks that will refresh you in the warm weather!

Sun Tea Can be made with Herbal tea as well.

Ingredients:

4-6 tea bags
1 lemon, sliced into wedges
Granulated sugar for taste

Method:

Put 4-6 tea bags into a clean 2 quart glass container. Fill with water and cover it with a lid. Place the container outside where the sun can strike the pitcher. Move the container if required so that it is in direct sunlight the whole time. Remove from the sun once the desired strength is achieved, usually 4-5 hours. Remove the tea bags. Place container into the refrigerator and sweeten with sugar and add wedges of lemon if desired.

Honey Iced Tea

Ingredients:

4 cups boiling water
12 tea bags
1 lemon (juiced)
¼ cup honey
4 cups cold water

Method:

Add tea bags to boiling water; allow to steep for 3-5 minutes. Remove tea bags and add the lemon juice and honey. Stir to combine. Add cold water and refrigerate. Pour over ice cubes in tall glass and serve.

Tea A La Mode

Ingredients:

2 cups double strength tea
1 pint vanilla ice cream

Method:

Combine tea and ice cream into a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a tall glass.

Drink Your Way to a Healthier Smile

2010-03-26T08:04:00.003-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

All too often we hear that our diet will reflect our chances of future diseases, cancers and other overall health issues. Wouldn’t it be nice to actually add something to your diet to help your health and improve it for the future?

Green tea is known for the benefits it contributes to good health. One of my favorite benefits it has on good health is its benefit for your teeth and the fact that it decreases the chances of oral cancer! Nowadays, we hear about the increasing chances of getting cancer. It’s actually scary to know that most of us will have some type of cancer before we die. But, isn’t it great to know that by adding something as simple as green tea to your diet, you can help prevent cancer!

How does it help decrease oral cancer?

Green tea halts the growth of oral cancer cells and breaks down and kills existing oral cancer. The antioxidants attack the free radicals that are lingering in your mouth. Those not drinking the green tea, the antioxidants cannot break down the free radicals and in return can lead to the growth of cancerous growths. Fact: China’s oral cancer rate is ½ of the United State’s cancer rate! Also, China has about 3 times more smokers than the US.

Death Rates:

7,800 people in the US will die each rate of Oral Cancer!

To reap the full benefits of green tea, you should expose the mouth to about 4-6 cups of green tea per day. By creating wonderful green tea drinks, either hot or cold, you can help significantly decrease your chances of obtaining oral cancer!

Not only is green tea great for preventing oral cancer it is also great for prevent other diseases or cancers and improving your health. Some of the things it can prevent are:

Heart Disease
Colon, Pancreatic and Stomach Cancer

Green tea is known dental plaque and helps defend the immune system.

Let’s Talk About Lapsang Souchong Tea

2010-03-25T06:54:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

China is well known for many of their fantastic tasting teas, but sometimes Lapsang Souchong is overlooked by China’s well known green tea and puerh tea. Not only does Lapsang Souchong have a bold and distinct flavor, it can be used for drinking and for cooking! Adding this smoky tea as a substitute for water in many recipes gives the recipe a little added kick. For example, Lapsang Souchong can be added into pastry recipes for a subtle flavor that will be leaving your guests with a puzzling, yet pleasant taste.

What is Lapsang Souchong Tea?

Lapsang Souchong is also known as Russian Caravan Tea. This tea is most famously known for its flavor and smoky aroma. Originating from the Fujian providence of China, this name, “Souchong”, translates to “sub variety”. This is ironically is a sub variety of the other black teas found from Fujian Mountains.

Lapsang Souchong / Russian Caravan Tea?

Also known as the Russian Caravan Tea, the story is quite unique as are the flavor of this tea. The long journey the tea made from China to the markets of Moscow is where the name derives from. On the backs of camels, the tea would travel in chests, most of the time taking over a year to arrive in the markets of Moscow. Russia at this time was often known for the smokiness of their teas, due to the tea absorbing the smokiness of the campfires among Russia.
How is this tea different?

Distinctly, Lapsang Souchong is created by drying the tea leaves in bamboo baskets over pine fires. This is how the tea gives off the smoky flavor. Because of the drying process, the tea’s distinct flavor makes people either love it or hate it. I personally love this tea because of its smokiness qualities. It gives this tea a little personality compared to its other black teas.

Spring Is In the Air

2010-03-25T06:46:00.002-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

The sun is shining through my window, telling me to get up and explore the new and great day. Whether it is work, or just having a lovely day off, I start my morning the same way. I boil a pot of hot water with the intentions of making a nice cup of tea. While I’m waiting for the water to finish, I pull back the blinds, opening the sliding glass door and get my seat ready. I return back inside to finish making my cup of tea. Starting my morning with my tea, and the warm ray of sun on my face, allows me to clear my head before the headache of my day at work begins.

Like I’ve written before, I am new to tea. Never have I used loose tea, before I was just use to getting out a tea bag from the cupboard and microwaving my water and letting it steep until it is light brown. The loose tea also, has a much more intense flavor than tea in the bag form. Never before did I realize before that the temperature of the water and type of tea you use have a great effect on the overall taste of the tea. Around 180 Degrees F, to me, makes the perfect cup of tea. It is hot enough, that when milk is added, it is not warm, but it is also not scolding either.

I recently have been adding lemon to my tea. More than ever, I’ve been drinking flavored tea as well. The lemon in English Breakfast Tea or another type of Black tea, adds a perfect flavor and bitterness. Whether you add lemon, milk / cream, sugar or honey, it all depends on your personal preference. Some will argue it depends on the tea what you should add, but it is your cup of tea, so add whatever you’d like! Enjoy your morning/afternoon/or anytime cup of tea in this beautiful spring weather! HAPPY SPRING!

Time for His-tea-ry

2010-03-19T12:32:00.003-06:00

Kaitlin Koppenal

The ancient tale of how a Camellia sinensis (tea plant) leaf fell into a Monk’s pot of boiling water is by far the most common tale about how tea was discovered. However, nobody ever mentions about what they used to keep their tea in. Not used immediately after the discovery of tea, the earliest form of teapot was constructed out of purple clay made from the YiXing region of China and was found in the Sung Dynasty (about 960-1279).

Prior to teapots, tea leaves were rolled from hand, dried, then ground up to a fine powder. At first, the tea was mixed with salt and formed into rounds and this would be dropped into the hot water, making it a thicker consistency of tea. Eventually, the powder was left loose and whipped up into froth. For over 500 years, this was a very common way of drinking tea. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, in China, they started drinking their tea via infusion. The infusion method is still the most common way of preparing tea today.

The YiXing region of China is known for their experience and craftsmanship of their pottery. The pottery is valued for attention to detail, fine texture, thin walls, and beautiful coloration varying from light beige to deep maroon. These teapots were used to brew the tea, and also acted as a drinking vessel container. The single serving teapots allowed you to drink directly from the spout. The unglazed clay allowed the flavor of the tea to be absorbed, making it a more intense flavor.

With the growth of people consuming tea, teapots were in higher demand. Tea was no longer for medical purposes, but was also commonly consumed for ceremonial reasons and eventually for leisure. The teapot allowed multiple people to share the same tea used for these rituals. Eventually, the teapot was not just for function, it was considered as art. Like any other thing, teapots are considered very collectable. With themes, scenes, and other fun characteristics, teapots come many different styles, shapes and sizes.

Detox and Heal with Tea!

2010-03-15T14:07:00.003-06:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Not only do I love tea, but I also love to cook. Naturally, I love to find recipes that not only taste good but are healthy for me. While browsing the Internet I came across some recipes for tea! I love that these recipes are all natural and that they are easy to make with things that are common around the house.

Honey Lemon Tea

For sore throats, this is one of the most delicious teas. Lemon and honey is very good for treating the throat. This tea can also be served cold with ice.

Ingredients:

½ a lemon
3 cups of water
2 tsp black tea
¼ cup Honey

Directions:

Wash and cut half of lemon.
Crush and put lemon into teapot.
Add black tea and honey into teapot.
Pour boiling water into teapot.
Allow tea to stand for 2 - 3 minutes.
Pour tea into cup and allow to cool slightly before drinking.

Rosemary Ginger Tea

Are you feeling a little under the weather? This tea helps combat the congestion, upset stomach, and all-around “icky” feelings caused by colds, allergies and flu.

Ingredients:

2 slices of fresh ginger root, each about 1/2 inch long
1 3 inch sprig of fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon fresh orange zest (if you are feeling too sick to grate orange zest, just slice an orange and put it in the tea cup)
1 clove
1 star anise
Honey

Directions:

Fill the tea kettle with approximately 1 cup of water and put it on the stove to boil.
Place the herbs and slices in a large tea ball
Pour boiling water in the cup. Cover the cup with plastic wrap, aluminum foil, or even a clean cloth. (The idea is to keep the as much steam in the cup as possible, so that the active chemicals in the herbs are preserved in the tea.)
Allow to steep for 5-10 minutes.
Remove the tea ball and sweeten with honey.

Bedtime Tea

This soothing tea will help you relax, unwind and let you drift off to sleep.

Ingredients:

1/4 teaspoon dried passionflower
1/2 teaspoon dried chamomile
1/4 teaspoon dried lavender
1/4 teaspoon dried catnip
1/2 inch of vanilla bean, or a splash of vanilla extract
Honey

Directions:

Place 1 cup of water in the kettle to boil.
Place dried herbs in a tea ball or tie them up in a cheesecloth bag, then place them in your teacup.
When the water comes to a boil, pour it over the tea leaves. Cover the cup as described in the recipe above, and let them steep for 10 minutes.
Remove the tea ball or the cheesecloth bag, and sweeten with honey to taste.

Ginger and Peppermint Tea

This simple tea is excellent for nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and other "digestive disturbances."

Ingredients:

2 inches of fresh ginger root, sliced into 1/2 inch long slices
2 tablespoons fresh peppermint leaves or 1 teaspoon dry peppermint leaves
1/2 teaspoon dry lemon balm leaves
Honey

Directions:

Place the kettle on the stove to boil.
Place the ginger root and peppermint into the tea ball, or tie them up in cheesecloth. Put the tea ball or cheesecloth into the tea cup.
Pour boiling water over the herbs, and let them steep for 5 minutes.
Remove the herbs, and sweeten with honey if desired.

I love these “tea” recipes. Most of these are considered herbal teas, but they are all so delicious. I hope these delicious recipes will help heal your ailments.

Fight Fat by Drinking Tea

2010-03-10T08:04:00.002-07:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Green tea is thought of already as being a tea that raises the levels of antioxidants in the body to ward off heart disease and cancers. New studies, however, are showing that drinking tea might also help the process of weight loss. For some people, getting those few extra pounds off can be extremely difficult. No matter how often you go to the gym, or how long you run on the treadmill, those extra pounds will just not come off! For women, it seems that the feat of weight loss is much harder than for men. How awesome is it that by now drinking green tea, it can help you lose weight!

How does it work?

The key word to how this all works is “thermogenesis”. Thermogenesis is caused by body heat which is a result of the body digesting food, absorption, and metabolization. By consuming green tea, it increases thermogenesis and well as increases energy expenditure and fat loss! With a faster metabolism, you are able to burn off the fat before it is absorbed into your body.
Fact: It takes 3500 calories to equal one pound of fat!

Also, green tea is very rich in catechins, a type of polyphenol. Catechins, like antioxidants, have anticancer properties. It also possesses anti-inflammatory properties and affects the body fat accumulation and cholesterol levels. Studies have proven, when comparing green tea drinkers to non-green-tea drinkers, the people who consumed green tea, lost more than 2 times more weight than those who didn’t consume green tea!

How much Green Tea?

To achieve results, it is recommended that you drink at least 4 cups of green tea per day. By preparing it cold or hot, you can enjoy your green tea all day long.

Not only do the catechins in green tea help you burn calories, but it is said that it may help decrease body fat as well!

From Field to Cup

2010-03-08T08:59:00.004-07:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Dried camellia sinensis leaves (the plant from which tea is derived) and other plants and herbs make a fantastic brew when allowed to steep for a period of time. Herbal tea is actually not tea at all. Herbal tea is a variation of dried leaves and/or flowers from herbs such as Chamomile, Peppermint, and Lavender. Fruit teas (Tisane) are also not technically tea as well because it is dried out leaves or flowers from the fruit plants.

Despite all teas deriving from the same plant, there are three main varieties.

The India (Assam) – Interesting enough, India produces and consumes more tea than any other country in the world. The first documentation of tea in India dates back to 750-500 BC. Indigenous to northern and eastern India, tea has been cultivated and consumed there for years. Compared to the other varieties, Indian tea has larger leaves and generally thrives in areas with low altitudes. Interesting Fact: Over 70% of tea is consumed in India!

The China - According to legend, tea was discovered by Chinese Emperor Shennong in 2737 BC when a leaf from the camellia sinensis tree fell into a pot of water the emperor was boiling. Seen as being on of the necessities of life, tea is woven tightly into the history of China. Chinese tea leaves are generally smaller and thrive in higher altitudes. Interesting Fact: During the Song Dynasty, tea farms covered 242 countries.

The Hybrid - A cross between the China tea and the India tea. Just like many other crops, conditions of its surroundings affect the tea end result, the taste. The taste of the tea can be radically different based on where the tea is harvested in different parts of the world. The way the tea is processed also will affect the overall taste of the tea. With only type of plant yielding all the different types of teas, it is amazing that it can have so many different flavors!

It's Tea Time!

2010-03-01T08:51:00.003-07:00

By Kaitlan Koppenal

Knock, knock, knock. The UPS guy was delivering my first purchase from the English Tea Store. Boy was I excited to see everything I ordered! Before I submitted my order online, I browsed the English Tea Store’s website for hours. Once I thought I knew what I wanted, I would find something else that caught my eye and that I “had to have,” or so I thought. Not only is the English Tea Store reasonably priced, but no wonder why people love them! Everything is fantastic and is shipped quickly! My first, but not last, purchase consisted of two types of loose tea, chai tea in tea bags, and instant chai.

My loose tea that I ordered was fantastic! I got really cute frosted glass jars from IKEA for around 5 dollars. The jars are great to hold them because I can see exactly which tea I’m searching for, but it’s also great to lock in the freshness. The silicone ring around the lid prevents staleness so my tea lasts longer! My loose teas, English Breakfast Tea (English Tea Store Brand) and PG Tips, exceeded my expectations of loose teas. Before my purchase from the English Tea Store, I’ve never experienced the wonderful tasting loose tea. I was always scared to explore loose teas because I thought when I would drink the tea I would find pieces of the loose tea in my drink. In my purchase, I also included a reusable mesh tea ball. It’s perfect size to fit one tablespoon my English Breakfast tea and enjoy my morning cup of tea.

The Chai tea, in a bag and instant, are fantastic also. When I am at work, I can’t bring milk and sugar with me to take a great chai tea, so the instant chai tea is perfect. It’s so quick and easy and has the spiciness of the chai and a great flavor (raspberry). However, when I am home, I steep my chai tea bags and in a separate glass I warm up a little bit of milk. I use my milk frother to create a gourmet feeling at home! I can honestly say that I am more than happy with my purchase from the English Tea Store! At home or at the office, I can enjoy my purchase! They are a must when it comes to tea!

Explore the Wonderful World of Tea

2010-02-24T10:46:00.005-07:00

Kaitlin Koppenal
PART 2: DARK TEAS (OOLONG AND BLACK)

While Part 1 discussed the process of making a lighter tea (White and Green) from plant to cup, Part 2 discusses my favorites, Oolong and Black teas. I first started getting hooked on teas when we went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. Just having the little cups of tea, sipping and sharing family stories hooked me. I love many types of teas, but Oolong and Black are at the top of the list.

Oolong Tea

Oolong tea is allowed to somewhat or partially oxidize and sits on the color scale between green and black. Depending on how oolong is produced, it can end up being more like green tea or more like black tea. Traditionally, oolong tea is the tea of choice for most people of Chinese and Japanese decent. Oolong has a taste that is more comparable to green tea than to black tea, but the color can range from a greenish yellowish to dark amber. Oolong is also said to have benefits in controlling obesity and has benefits to help prevent some cancers.

Black Tea

Allowed to fully oxidize, black tea is dried and has undergone many chemical reactions causing the tea to take on the black color. Black tea normally possesses a stronger flavor and has a higher concentration of caffeine. Generally unblended teas are named after the region they are produced. Black tea is normally graded on one of four scales of quality. Whole leaf teas are highest quality followed by broken leaves, fannings, and dusts. Whole leaf teas are considered more valuable, especially if they contain leaf tips. Hence, the more valuable the tea, the higher the price tag. Some of the black, unblended teas you’ll come across are: Keemun, Dian Hong, Tibeti, Assam, Darjeeling, and Ceylon.

SUB-VARIETIES AND BLENDS

There are many other sub varieties of tea, such as Pu-erh, Kukicha, Genmaicha, and many blends like Earl Grey, English Breakfast, and many other flavored teas. They are carefully combined to have great body and flavor.

Tisane teas (tee-zahn) include beverages made with anything other than actual tea leaves, including herbal teas, Rooibos, fruit melanges, Heuningbos and many more.

Explore the Wonderful World of Tea

2010-02-23T11:18:00.006-07:00

PART 1: LIGHT TEAS (WHITE AND GREEN)

Like learning any new language, craft or skill, sometimes the bombardment of information can be overwhelming at first. As a new tea enthusiasts, I found myself trying to research all the different types of teas, loose verses prepackaged, black tea verses white tea. To make it easier on myself I broke it down into 2 main categories: Light and Dark tea. Part one will focus on White and Green teas, while part 2 will focus on Oolong and Black teas.

White Tea

While coming from the same plant, “camellia sinensis”, white tea is made with leaves that are processed where they are left to wilt to some extent while they are undergoing oxidation. During this process, the tea is said to lose the “grassy” taste that green tea is said to have. White tea is harvested before the leaves fully open and the buds are still covered with very fine white hairs. White tea can be a little bit on the pricier side, due to the quantity of this tea available. White tea is shown to be one of the best teas out there for the body. Studies run showed that white tea had high anti-inflammatory, has tons of anti-oxidants, anti-collagenase, and anti-elastase properties. The benefits of drinking white tea means it could help potentially reduce the signs of aging (by slowing down the enzyme that breaks down elastin and collagen); reduce risks or heart disease, some cancers. Not only is it delicious, but it’s great for you!

Green Tea

Made solely with the leaves of the “camellia sinesis” plant, green tea undergoes minimal oxidation. Originating from China, green tea is very common across the countries. The tea gets its name from the color of the liquid after it is brewed. The natural flavor of the leaf stands out. Flavor wise, green tea can range from a floral flavor to almost a grassy flavor. While extensive studies are being done to prove the health benefits of green tea, researchers are saying that green tea drinkers have much lower changes to develop heart disease and other certain types of cancer. Also, green tea is also linked to weight loss. Compared to the other teas, green tea is considered to have a lot less caffeine.

I really recommend exploring the lighter teas because not only are they very tasty, but the health benefits are terrific! Why spend money on anti-aging products when you can pour yourself a cup! Some of the lighter teas I recommend are:

Try the Chai!

2010-02-23T07:42:00.005-07:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

If you never had chai tea before, you’re in for a totally new and magnificent experience! From a new tea drinker’s point of view, chai tea has a lot to offer. Many major coffee shops offer their espresso added chai latte which is similar, but like a handbag, the knock off is not as nearly as good as the real thing.

“Chai” literally meaning tea in Hindi, along much of the other languages in South Asia, and is a spiced milky tea, also known as masala chai. This Indian tea traditionally takes a long period of time to prepare while it is brewed over an open flame. The fresh ingredients marinate together to create a great blend of black tea, spices, milk, and sugar. Cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom and black pepper add the perfect combination of spices to an already delicious black tea.

The best types of teas to use for chai are strong black teas—such as Ceylon, Assam blends, or Darjeeling. Today, the once long process of making chai tea has already been done for you and made into a very practical and easy product to use. Like many other loose leaf teas, you infuse the tea with a mesh tea ball or a strainer. Chai, however, is best when let to steep for 8-10 minutes, longer than the normal tea. By adding the sugar, it allows the spiciness of the tea to emerge, yet it doesn’t make the tea too sweet.

Not only does chai tea have a fantastic spicy taste, but it also acts as a natural digestive aid, and it is full of antioxidants. It gives off a warming and soothing feeling to your body like no other. The spices seem to warm you up from the inside out. With today’s technology, many flavors are being added to the chai tea. A favorite of mine is vanilla chai.

For new drinkers, don’t be scared of loose tea. Once you have the infuser or strainer, it’s a piece of cake! Indian spice chai tea is one of my favorite loose leaf chai teas. However, if you are hesitant of using the loose leaf tea, you can always opt for the delicious tea already packaged. Twinings makes a great French vanilla chai tea which is already in a tea bag for you to use!

Drink Your Tea in Style

2010-02-18T07:52:00.005-07:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

While discovering the dos and don’ts of tea drinking, I realized that I did not have all the proper things I needed for having a great cup of tea and/or tea party. While I rummaged around my pantry I found that I only had a few of the essential things I needed of the perfect cup of tea. I really was ashamed to say that I really had about only half of the things that I needed. While on Englishteastore.com I came across many neat things that I think you need to have and serve the perfect cup of tea. Especially when hosting people for tea, you want to make it as proper and pleasant as possible. Along with the tea, the ambiance should be set so that the time you spend with your friends drinking tea will be as enjoyable as possible. Here are the dos for a great tea party!

The Table —Firstly, the table should be set with a nice linen table cloth and matching or coordinating napkins. Include tea cups and saucers along with a plate to discard used tea bags. Using fine silverware makes the experience feel classy and upscale. If you are serving any food, make sure you have the proper silverware and dishes that correspond with the food being served. Also, a nice flower arrangement or centerpiece would be nice to help create the perfect mood.

The Tea — If you are brewing loose leaf tea, make sure that you strain the tea before the tea is served. By using an infuser or strainer, you can avoid your guest finding leaves in their cup. The loose leaf tea allows the tea to move about the pot and will maximize flavor. Pour the brewed tea into the fancier tea pot and present it to the table. Make sure you rinse the tea pot and the cups under some warm water before you pour the tea into them. This will prevent the ceramic or porcelain from shattering. Some prepare their cup of tea with different items. It is a good thing to have lemon, sugar or honey, milk or cream available to suit your guest’s taste. NOTE: Brew and steep the tea before the guest arrives so you have less to do and more time to enjoy.

Properly Pouring—By having the tea at a perfect temperature (around 180 degrees F for lighter teas and 212 degrees F for darker teas) it allows the flavors of the tea to really blossom and provide a full-bodied cup of tea. Make sure when you pour a cup of tea for your guest that you remember to hold onto the lid so the hot tea won't spill onto your guest’s lap. Try not to fill the cup up too close to the rim or they will be unable to add milk or sugar into their tea.
Some items I found on Englishteastore.com that I think would be great for a tea party or just to enjoy a nice cup of tea for one are: Note: hyperlinks take you to desired website.

Tea pot and cup set

Tea for one set

Tea strainer or infuser

Sugar and creamer sets

And of course, the tea itself!

Also, you can add some tasty treats or snacks for your guest have to munch on.

Sip Your Way to Good Health

2010-02-17T08:14:00.008-07:00

By Kaitlin Koppenal

Being a new tea explorer, I came across a website online that talked about the health benefits of different types of tea. Naturally I was intrigued, because why spend tons of money on supplements and other remedies they might not even work! Not only do I love the taste of tea, but I love the overall experience of it! Curling up on the couch, watching a movie or my weekly show with a cup of nice hot tea makes all the problems in my world disappear and allows me to wind down from a long, stressful day.

While starting my research on the health benefits of drinking tea, I was shocked to find all the different advantages it has. Tea is known to include many great antioxidants. The antioxidants' role in the body is to protect it from being damaged by dangerous and very destructive molecules called free radicals. The body is exposed to these free radical molecules through pollutants, when the body breaks down certain medicines, sun light, chlorination and other chemical sources.

Not only is tea a great source of antioxidants, but it is known that it has many other health benefits as well. Here are some other great facts about tea that help your body:

White tea has more antioxidants in it than most other teas.

Fresh brewed teas have more antioxidants than instant or bottled teas.

Studies have proven that tea drinkers are most likely to have lower blood pressure than non-tea drinkers.

Black teas may lower LDL, “bad” cholesterol.

By drinking tea you can help decrease skin damage and aging that are thought to be caused by free radicals and oxidation in the body.

Antioxidants are thought to help and prevent some disease like coronary artery disease, some cancers, macular degeneration and Alzheimer’s disease.

Tea is thought to boost the immune system, building your body’s defense against infection and disease.

Not only are you having a great experience by pouring yourself a nice cup of tea, but you’re helping your body as well! Who could resist?

The Tea Towel

2009-12-18T11:20:00.002-07:00

You have undoubtedly used one to dry your dishes, and did you know that it has its roots in the great, British tea tradition? In England in the eighteenth century, the tea tradition was in its infancy. Along with the budding tradition of afternoon tea came all of the paraphernalia and accoutrements of the tea service.

In upper class homes the tea service was very likely an expensive set of the most delicate bone china, or it may even be an ornately crafted silver tea service. The common household servant was not to be trusted with the delicate duty of drying these precious tea trappings, and so this duty fell to the mistress of the house.

Of course to perform her duties she would require a special, drying cloth made from the finest linen. While the housemaids were responsible for hand sewing the woven linen into the first tea towels, they were not allowed to actually use the towels on the fine china. Tea towels were traditionally made of linen, because the linen fibers come from flax or linseed plants. These plants are very absorbent; thus using linen for a tea towel made a functional, absorbent and lint free towel for the mistress’ delicate task of drying the tea service.

During this time the mistress of the house may very well embellish her tea towels for decorative use such as covering food during tea. Tea towels have been adorned with various and sundry themes and scenes over the years, and they began being mass-produced during the industrial revolution.

In today’s world, tea towel and dish towel are used synonymously, and they are made from fabrics that are soft and absorbent like the traditional linen fabric as well as cotton, terrycloth and microfiber.

Decorating with Tea Tins

2009-12-18T11:14:00.002-07:00

While tea tins began as a strictly functional piece of equipment in the tea industry, they have made huge inroads into the world of decorating. Tea tins have a rich history, and as with any historical memorabilia they can be collected and traded. You can trace the social and political changes through the actual tins themselves, and by collecting tea tins, you tell the story of our world through tea.

Not only are tea tins collectible from an historic standpoint, but simply from an aesthetic standpoint as well. They are bright and colorful, and they have bold and interesting graphics. Tea tins come from all over the world, so their designs are limitless. They come in all shapes and sizes, so they can be used for a multitude of things around the home, and best of all, with each tea tin comes a delicious batch of tea.

Tea tins make a beautiful display as vases in your home or at your next luncheon. They are the perfect size to line up along a windowsill with petit bouquets of garden fresh blooms in them to add interest and color to your room. For a luncheon, you can arrange a group of tea tins in different sizes, shapes and colors to make an interesting and colorful centerpiece for your table. Add flowers to them for additional color, or fill them with sand to make a one of a kind candle holder.

Larger tea tins can be used on your countertop to store flour, pasta, cookies and even tea, and they will add color and interest to kitchen. A collection of brightly colored tea tins also look great displayed along the top of your kitchen cabinets or on floating shelves on the kitchen wall.

In your home office, use tea tins to hold pencils and pens, or add a magnet to the bottom of a small tea tin to make a great place to store paperclips on your desktop. There are many, many uses for colorful tea tins in your home, just look around and be creative.

Tea Championships at Tea Expo

2009-12-18T08:05:00.002-07:00

The World Tea Expo is an annual trade show that revolves around the tea industry. This year attended by just under 5,000 professionals in the tea industry the annual event unites education, innovation and invention. This tea exposition offers industry insiders the perfect venue to gather, compare notes and learn from each other.

The tea industry was a $7 billion industry in 2008, and it is expected to grow to a $10 billion industry by the close of 2010. The catalyst for growth is specialty and premium tea, and therein lies the industry’s current focus.

This event is not open to the public, rather it consists of thousands of tea room owners, retailers, spa managers, grocers and other professionals who gather to view over 300 specialty wholesale tea suppliers and vendors. Over half of the companies in attendance exhibit their innovative products only at this tradeshow. For many retailers, this will be the only chance that they have to meet with these elusive suppliers.

The World Tea Expo offers educational conferences encompassing the most comprehensive education available in regards to tea. There are sessions designed for new retailers as well as research and development and core business sessions.

The main event showcases the World Tea Championship, which is an independent competition judged by professionals looking for the best tasting, highest quality commercial teas available. It has two classes, which are Iced Tea and Hot Tea. The judging is a blind evaluation, and each category within each class awards a first, second and third place winner.

The World Tea Expo held its first tea industry trade show in March of 2003, and it is one of the fastest growing trade shows in North America. An annual event, the World Tea Expo continues to grow with no end in sight.

Green Tea Side Effects

2009-12-11T08:51:00.004-07:00

While there is a lot of hype and fanfare about all of the amazing, healing properties of green tea, you do not hear much in the way of warnings about its side effects. If you think for a minute, it only makes sense that if green tea can fight cancer, stave off heart problems and cure acne, it must have some negative side effects.

The other reason that some side effects of green tea may manifest themselves is that, in an attempt to be healthy, people go from drinking no tea at all to drinking too much tea too quickly. So while green tea is likely to have no adverse affects if imbibed in moderation, here are some of the side effects that you may experience if you are an overzealous green tea drinker.

While green tea is good for you, it also has about half of the caffeine that coffee does. So if you are drinking it in large amounts, you may find yourself restless and irritable. You may also notice any of the other symptoms that go along with ingesting too much caffeine like tremors, hart palpitations, nausea, rash or suppressed appetite.

If you have a sensitive stomach, you may also find that drinking green tea can cause upset because it stimulates gastric acid. Adding milk and sugar can lessen the effect. You also want to be aware that tea blocks the absorption of some nutrients like iron. So if you tend to be anemic at all, you will want to be aware of this property of green tea.

To avoid many of these problems a little common sense can go a long way. If you simply follow your grandmother’s advice and do everything in moderation, you should be fine. If you are adding green tea as a new component to your diet, start slowly, and enjoy everything there is to enjoy about a good cup of green tea.

The Three T’s of Brewing a Perfect Cup

2009-12-10T07:00:00.004-07:00

Since tea is 99% water, you would think that it would be virtually impossible to prepare it incorrectly, however, that tiny one percent is the single component that makes or breaks a great tasting cup of tea. There is a proper way to prepare tea, and in many societies entire rituals are built around the act of preparing tea. For our purposes, we will keep it simple and just worry about the right tea, the right temperature and the right time.

The most delicate tea is white tea. Plucked as a tender bud and not processed, the white tealeaves are young and tender. The perfect temperature is 180 degrees and brew time is just about 6 minutes.

Next in line you have green tea which is barely processed. Still a young leaf at the time of plucking, green tea’s brewing temperature is 160 degrees and brew time is 3 minutes. Partially oxidized oolong tea goes through a partial oxidation process after plucking. Its perfect brewing temperature is 190 degrees and brew time is 4 about minutes.

Black tea is left to oxidize completely after plucking, and it is the most widely distributed tea in the world. The brewing temperature for black tea is to bring water to a rolling boil, remove from heat, pour over tealeaves and brew time is 4 minutes.

When you are brewing your tea, never boil your water for a prolonged period of time, because it will remove all of the oxygen from the water and leave your tea tasting a little flat. All of the brew times listed above are approximate, and as you get proficient at brewing your tea, you will discover the exact right time and temperature for your perfect cup of tea.

House Cleaning with Tea

2009-12-09T07:17:00.003-07:00

If you're trying to be more planet friendly, then green tea may be just the thing to help you become more “green”. Why not replace many of your cleaning products with green tea? It can hold its own as it helps keep your house spick and span.

You can brew a pot of tea and use it to clean wood furniture and floors. All you need to do is brew a couple of tea bags in a liter of water and then let it cool down completely. To clean your wooden furniture, simply dip a soft cloth into the tea and wring out the excess tea. Then you can proceed to wipe away any dirt or smudges on your furniture. Finish up by buffing with a clean, dry cloth and your furniture and floors are ready for guests.

After all of your floors and furniture are clean, you can brew a pot of very strong tea, and again let it cool. Use a soft cloth and dip it in the tea and wring it until it is simply damp. Then wipe it over the complete surface of the mirrors. After it dries buff it with a soft, dry cloth and you will have the perfect, streak- free shine on all of the mirrors in your home.

With clean floors and mirrors, it is time to turn your attention towards your fireplace. Before you begin gathering up the ashes, simply sprinkle your wet tealeaves over the entire area, and the wet tealeaves will keep the ashes from kicking up a lot of dust as you remove them from the fireplace making a messy job quite manageable.

On to the bedroom now where it is time to replace the sachet in your lingerie drawer. Replace the spent contents of your lace sachet pouch with your favorite herbal tea. After brewing a delicious pot of tea simply open several of the used teabags and spread the wet tealeaves on a sheet of newspaper to dry. After the leaves are completely dry, simply add them to your lace sachet pouch, and your lingerie smell delicious.

Naturally Decaffeinate Tea

2009-12-04T11:47:00.004-07:00

While a cup of tea only contains about half of the caffeine found in a cup of coffee, it still does contain caffeine. However, there is an simple, easy way to naturally remove most of the caffeine from your cup of tea right at home, and it takes just a few more seconds than brewing a regular cup of tea.

Start by filling a tea kettle with fresh, cold water and bring the water to a boil. Then place your tea in a small cup for the “decaffeinating” process. Use either an infuser or a t-sac to contain your tea leaves. Allow one scant teaspoon of tea leaves per cup of tea, and for a large pot of tea you will want to use four teaspoons of tea leaves.

Then pour just enough hot water over the tea leaves to barely cover them, and wait about a half a minute. Remove your tea leaves and discard the water from your cup. This water contains most of the caffeine from the tea.

Now take your infuser or t-sac with the wet tea leaves and do your final brew. Place your tea leaves in a pot or cup and pour more hot water through this time to brew for several minutes. For black tea you will brew for about 4 minutes, and when you are done steeping simply remove the infuser or t-sac from your cup or pot.

Now you have a delicious, naturally decaffeinated cup of tea brewed hot, fresh and ready to enjoy. So the next time that you steer away from enjoying a late evening cup of tea for fear that the caffeine will interfere with your good night’s sleep, simply brew a cup of decaffeinated tea, the natural way.

Tea Superstitions

2009-12-04T11:32:00.004-07:00

Tea is enjoyed worldwide, and has been for many centuries. Over time, in any culture, fables and stories develop as a way of passing the wisdom of one generation on to the next generation. In the early days these tales were passed verbally from father to son and from mother to daughter. With time these stories evolved, sometimes accidentally and sometimes with purpose.

It is in this fashion that tea superstitions grew to be commonplace. They started as a simple comment, were spoken to a new generation, and then they were regarded as fact. Whether they are true or not is really up to each individual to decide, and you can look to your own life to see if you believe the tea superstitions or not.

If you want to stir up trouble simply stir your teapot counter clockwise, and you will get what you are looking for. Yet if you spill a little tea, it indicates that lady luck is about to smile on you. On the other hand if you spill tea from the spout of a teapot while carrying it to the table you can expect a secret to soon be revealed. If you accidentally leave the lid off of your teapot, you can expect to receive bad news from a stranger.

As you are steeping your teabag in your cup, if the tag falls off, then you will lose something during the next seven days. If, when you taste your tea, it is a little stronger than normal, you have a new friendship on the horizon. You want to take care to add milk to your tea last, because if you add your milk before your sugar you will cross the path of love and very likely never marry.

As you are setting places for your tea party take care not to accidentally place two teaspoons on the same saucer. Doing so indicates that a wedding or pregnancy is on the horizon, and if two women pour from the same teapot, one of them will have a baby in the next year.

However, as you are sipping your cup of tea, you do want to find a few bubbles floating on top, because each bubble represents a kiss.

Fruit Flavored Tea

2009-11-18T09:55:00.003-07:00

If you find yourself drinking the same cup of green, oolong or black tea simply because you can never decide which new flavor to try, a really easy way to get out of your rut is to simply brew it with a little fruit. You can begin with any flavor of tea and add fruit peels or dried fruit pieces for an extra fruity infusion. You can enjoy your flavored tea either hot or cold.

A great iced tea flavor combination is white grape and lemon. You can make a pitcher of this tea as quickly as you can simmer water. Heat a gallon of water and brew six bags of black tea. After you're done steeping, add one cup of sugar and three quarters of a cup of white grape juice. Stir in one envelope of unsweetened lemon KoolAid. Pour the mixture into a pitcher and chill, and you have a delicious and refreshing flavored tea.

While iced tea is refreshing for those of us in the warm, southern states, our northern tea drinkers are already settling in for the winter. For them a nice hot spiced orange brew would be a perfect way to usher in the cold weather. Start by heating two quarts of water and brew eight teabags, black, oolong or green for five minutes. Boil two cups each of water and sugar to make simple syrup and add it to the brewed tea. Then add one and a half cups of lemon juice and three cups of orange juice. Stir it together and add a cinnamon stick and a teaspoon of whole cloves tied in a cheesecloth. Bring everything to a simmer and let it cook for about twenty minutes. Remove the cinnamon and cloves, and you are ready for a delicious, fruit infused cup of tea.

So when you are standing in the store, and you cannot decide if you should get lemon, mango, cinnamon, holiday spice or vanilla tea, take comfort in knowing that you can simply buy your favorite black, oolong, or green tea. Then add whatever flavor you fancy when you are ready to brew.

Airstream Teapot!!

2009-11-02T12:26:00.005-07:00

Check out this AWESOME Airstream Trailer Teapot! This thing rocks! It was designed by the Tea Pottery of North Yorkshire, England, and is hand painted with a mirror-like finish that's meant to replicate a shiny aluminum Airstream trailer. Oh, man! I've got to get myself one of these!

2009-10-29T12:42:00.005-06:00

I stumbled upon what looks like a great recipe for sesame cookies with matcha icing. In case you don’t know what Matcha is, it’s a powered green tea used in the Japanese tea ceremony.

Apparently, these cookies are great with either black or green tea. You can also make the cookies into any shape you like, including that of tea leaves. According to author, you should use the best quality matcha that you can find. Just keep in mind that matcha is by no means cheap.

Lapsang Souchong

2009-10-28T09:41:00.005-06:00

Last night I sat down with a nice hot cup of Lapsang Souchong from the English Tea Store. I’ve been drinking Lapsang Souchong for years, and I’ve come to love its smoky flavor and aroma. However, I had never tried the English Tea Store brand, so I thought I’d give it a taste.

When I opened the bag, I noticed that the tea’s aroma was not overwhelmingly strong, as is often the case with Lapsang Souchong. In fact, it smelled wonderful, like a warm campfire I once built beneath the stars along the California coast at Big Sur.

I got out some spring water and put it on the stove to warm. When the water was warm enough, I poured it into my teapot where the Lapsang Souchong was waiting. I used a bit more than the recommended one teaspoon of tea per cup, hoping to fully experience the taste.

After steeping for about five minutes, I poured the tea through a strainer into my favorite tea cup. I held the cup and let the steam rolling off it touch my face. A few seconds later, I tasted the tea. Its flavor was strong enough for any lover of Lapsang Souchong, yet light enough to be enjoyed by all, and perfect for a rainy night at the end of October.

After the initial infusion, I re-steeped the tea and found that my second pot-full was just as delicious as the first. I would certainly recommend this tea to any tea drinker, especially those that enjoy Lapsang Souchong. The English Tea Store also sells an organic Lapsang Souchong that I’ve yet to try.

Darjeeling Tea

2009-10-27T08:14:00.009-06:00

Unlike the majority of teas from India, Darjeeling tea is made using the small-leaved Chinese variety of the Camellia sinensis plant. In the past, it was always made as a black tea. More recently, however, Darjeeling green and white teas have been gaining in popularity.

As its name suggests, Darjeeling tea hails from the Darjeeling region of West Bengal, India. The region’s tea plantations date back to the middle of the 19th century, when the British were moving into the area. Over the years, Darjeeling’s tea growers developed unique black tea hybrids as well as their own techniques for fermentation. Today, many Darjeeling tea blends are recognized worldwide for the extraordinary level of quality they offer.

There are five major varieties of Darjeeling tea. The first variety, known as "1st flush," is harvested in mid-March immediately following the spring rains. 1st flush Darjeeling tea has a very light colour and aroma, while the "2nd flush" variety, which is harvested in June, produces an amber, full-bodied, muscatel flavored cup. "In between" Darjeeling tea is, as you may have already guessed, harvested “in between” the two “flush” periods.

The last two Darjeeling tea varieties are known as “Monsoon / Rain” and “Autumnal flush.” Tea belonging to the Monsoon / Rain variety is harvested during the monsoon season. It is more oxidized than other Darjeeling teas and for this reason much cheaper and rarely exported. Autumnal flush is harvested in the fall, after the monsoon season. It offers drinkers a cup of not-so-delicate, full-bodied tea with a darker colour.

Throughout the Darjeeling region there are countless tea estates producing a wide variety of teas. However, some of the most popular estates include Arya, Chamong, Glenburn, Lingia, Castleton, Jungpana, Makaibari, Margaret's Hope and Risheehat.

Tea-Stain.com

2008-12-10T07:59:00.003-07:00

Greeting readers,

Today, I want to tell you about a website where you can build a custom tea mat for your tea club or reading group. The mat features 8 "places" to put a tea cup, as well as names of the members of your tea group.

The site for this product is basically a site where you can personalise a mat to sit on your tea tray for all the people in your tea round, say at work or in a book club etc.

The mats are neat, and of excellent quality. They are intended to be placed upon your tea tray, and to act as a serving tool for your tea.

Check it out at tea-stain.com. I recommend this product, and hope you will consider giving it a try!

Again, that website is http://www.tea-stain.com/

Over and out,
Relz

Love Your Mug!

2008-12-03T13:05:00.003-07:00

Hey all,

I just received an email about a neat promotional program that I thought you would all like to know about.

The promotion is called Love Your Mug. The idea is that you get to create your own personal tea mug, with your tea and sugar preferences printed right on it to use at the office, or whatever. Or, purchase a set for your tea club, so that you know what to make for everyone when it's your turn to make the tea!

Love Your Mug has been invented by Cravendale for thse people who love to sip the perfect cup of coffee or tea in the office and at home. Everyone can now personalize their very own mug with their own name, which drink they want, the strength of the drink and if they want sugar or not. Every mug is decorated with a lovely and happy cow grazing under the blue skies.

These mugs look great. I'd encourage you all to visit the website and check it out.

The website is found at: http://www.makethetea.com/loveyourmug

Over and out,
Relz

Tempted by Tulsi (TeaTulia Style)

2008-11-22T11:40:00.003-07:00

Hey Readers,

I apologize for taking so long between posts, but the semester is winding down, and school is busier than ever. However, I do have a review for you today, and it's one which I think you'll find rather interesting - it is new to me, and thus presented itself as an ideal candidate for review on the blog.

Recently, I was contacted by Teatulia Teas (formerly known as Tetulia), who informed me that they had not yet shared with me one of their favorite blends - Teatulia Tulsi Infusion. They asked if I would like some samples, and I said yes, eager to try something new.

Now - Tulsi is not just a name for an infusion. It is called the Tulsi Infusion because it contains an herb called Tulsi, otherwise known as Holy Basil. I had not heard of Tulsi before being invited to sample this infusion, so I was most eager to give it a try. Tulsi fanatics boast a plethora of health benefits from this herb. I'm not sure how many of these benefits truly pan out, but I'm sure it's a very healthy thing to take into your body. You can read more about the health benefits and properties of Tusli at the following website:

http://www.teatuliablog.com/?p=58

Now, to review the Infusion. The tulsi addeed some very interesting characteristics to this tea, which was excellent. It incorporated a certain earthiness, as well as a very subtle spiciness to the brew, and I almost detected some minor notes of nuttiness as well. The tea portion of the blend was also excellent - whole leaves, mostly unbroken - exactly as it should be.

This brew is excellent for this of you that yould like to try something new and different, and it a welcome addition to any tea lover's stash. I thoroughly enjoyed this blend, and hope you will consider trying it as well - I'm sure you would love it.

As for the packaging, it was excellent. Colorful and informative, with brewing instructions, and a pyramidal teabag - the highest form of tea bag (however when I brewed it, I opened up the teabags and poured them into my Timolino mug.)

Overall, an excellent tea, from an excellent tea company.

Additionally, readers of this blog can get a 10% discount for the next 30 days on all TeaTulia products. Just enter code "INSANITEA" (without the quotation marks) at checkout to receive an instant discount! I hope you'll try this out!

Thanks for reading this week's review! Let me know what you thought of it!

Over and out,
Relz

Plucker's Pick Tea Critics Club

2008-11-20T10:03:00.003-07:00

I just received an email from Pluckers Pick that I thought my readers might like to know about. Here's what the email said:

Hello!
Have you seen my Plucker's Pick Tea Critics Club? Check it out here.

It allows people to order Plucker's Pick and a sample of four other tea brands to compare and rate against various characteristics... and I'm only charging for the shipping!

I'm posting the results in real-time because I want people to know truthfully how my product compares to other more established tea brands. If you would like to participate, simply click on the link above. I would really value your feedback!

Thanks!

I thought this was a great idea, so I figured it'd be worth it to let you all know! If you decide to accept the offer, let me know how it goes!

Also, stay tuned over the next couple of days, as I have a review in the works that I think you will enjoy!

Over and out,
Relz

The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea

2008-10-25T13:49:00.003-06:00

Hi,

Recently, I discovered the Harney & Sons Guide to Tea while browsing at the Barnes & Noble. I emailed the publisher to see if they would be willing to send me a review copy, and luckily for me, they said yes! This truly is a delightful book, and it really covers it's bases well. I will be using and recommending this book for years to come.

The book is written by Michael Harney, a master tea blender working at Harney & Sons. He is a very credible source on the subject of tea, because of the large amount of experience he has had at Harney & Sons.

The book contains a section on tasting teas, which I found very interesting. It includes a lot of tips, such as examining the leaves, brewing for the proper time and temperature, using the proper sort of water (filtered water), etc. The tasting guide is second-to-none, and I highly recomment you all give it a look.

The book also contains a brief history of tea, a "Tree to Tea" appendix, a lot of tea sources, and so forth.

But the bulk of the book is spend describing in detail over 50 of the most common types of tea, the temperature at which they are to be brewed, how to distinguish a good tea of a certain type from a bad tea of a certain type, etc. He also includes details about what the dry leaves should look like, what the liquor should look like, the types of aromas the tea should posess, the body that the tea should have, and the flavor notes you should be able to detect from the tea.

All in all, this book is an exhaustive resource on the various types of teas that are available, and the author has done an excellent job providing all the details you would want to know when brewing a cup of tea.

I highly recommend that you all pick up a copy of this book. I think you will find that it is an invaluable resource for any tea drinker to own.

Thanks for reading,
Relz

Video on Tea Steeping

2008-10-22T14:57:00.003-06:00

Hey all,

I just got emailed this video about steeping tea that I think you might enjoy. Here is an excerpt from the email that I received:

"Think you've got steeping down? CHOW.com has a fun new video that may change your tea brewing ways. David Wong, director of tea culture and education at Tillerman Tea, is on CHOW with the three "hows" of steeping. Check it out: http://www.chow.com/stories/11367"

So, if you feel like it, I recommend checking out this video! it is very interesting.

Again, it can be found at: http://www.chow.com/stories/11367

Thanks for reading!

Relz

Tea Cozies by El Donna

2008-10-11T16:55:00.005-06:00

Greetings readers!

Today's posting won't be an actual tea review. Instead, I'll be reviewing a tea-related product.

Recently, I was contacted by Amber Malley of a company called "By El Donna." She asked to if I would be interested in helping her raise awareness about their new line of tea cozies. Naturally, I said yes, since I am always interested in raising awareness about quality products in the world of tea.

So, she sent me a sample cozy to check out, and today's post will consist of me commenting on the cozy.

I've used a lot of tea cozies over the years, and throughout my experiences with tea cozies, I think I can safely assert that all tea cozies are NOT created equal. I have used many quality tea cozies, but I have also used tea cozies that are definately NOT up to par.

Once, I ordered a cozy from a popular tea company on the internet (which company shall remain nameless), and the item I received from them looked great, however, upon using it, I discovered that they did a poor job on the stitching, and the product literally came apart at the seams when I tried to use it.

Another time, I purchased a cozy from my local Target store, and while the tea cozy looked great, and managed not to fall apart, it wasn't made of a thick enough material, and when I used it to handle a particularly hot teapot, I burned myself, because the material did not do a good job of insulating against the hot teapot inside.

Thankfully, neither of these scenarios are the case with the product I received from By El Donna. The very day I received the cozy, I put it to immediate use. I used the cozy to insulate my favorite glass teapot while I handled it, and moved it from place to place. Not only did this cozy hold up under the pressure, it also did an excellent job of insulating my teapot! The cozy barely felt warm to my hands while it insulated my teapot - a sign of utmost quality.

Additionally, these cozies look GREAT! I love all of the cozy designs on her website, especially the one she ended up sending me, which is called "Quite Reflections." They have colors and designs available to suit a teapot of any color that you might imagine.

Another point I would bring up is that each of these cozies is hand-stitched, which is an excellent sign that this company is one that is committed to a very high quality standard.

I would refer you to the image I have posted if you would like to get a closer look at the cozy.

So, the tea cozy held up to my highest expectations! I would highly recommend these cozies to anybody shopping for one!

I would encourage you to drop by their website, and have a look at their offerings! Their website is also very well-designed, by the way. You can find the site at the following location: http://byeldonna.com/store/

I'd highly encourage you to take a look and see what you can see!

Well, as always, thanks for reading! Stay tuned in the coming weeks for several reviews that I am currently working on. I have several different reviews in the works, so I will try my best to have a new review up every 1-2 weeks. Since I am a student, that is the best I can do. I'd love to be able to post more frequently, but my studies always come first!

Thanks again for reading, and I hope you all have an excellent fall, and an even more excellent winter! Winter, my favorite season, is almost upon us! And with the rapidly cooling weather, we are on the verge of the ultimate season for hot tea!

Over and out,
Relz

Revolution 3D

2008-09-27T13:52:00.002-06:00

Hey all,

Today I am reviewing a new beverage from Revolution Teas called
Revolution 3D. It is a canned tea beverage, with an interesting idea
behind it.

The beverage combines the benefits of a vitamin drink, and the
antioxidant power of fruit juice with the natural refreshment of tea.
It's a lovely idea.

The beverage is sweetened only with pure cane sugar and agave syrup,
which I think is admirable. However, I still have not addressed the
most important question: How does Revolution 3D Taste? The answer -
It's actually pretty good. I think that Revolution did an excellent
job with their combination of high-quality tea and fruit juice.
Neither flavor ever overpowers the other, which can be a real
challenges with beverages of this variety.

The beverage comes in 4 flavors - Blueberry, Green Apple, Pomegranate,
and Mango, all of which are excellent. My favorite, however, was the
Mango, as I thought that Revolution did an especially good job with
the blending of this flavor. Mango is a flavor that easily overpowers
other flavors, especially the delicate flavors often found white tea,
which is the base that the beverages use. Not so in this case,
however. It ended up being a very light, mellow beverage with a good
contrast between flavors.

So, if any of you are looking for a new beverage to try, I'd encourage
you to get ahold of a can of Revolution 3D. It really is pretty good,
and I highly recommend it.

You can check it out at revolutiontea.com.

Thanks for reading, and watch out in another couple of weeks for my next review.

Over and Out,
Relz

Whole Leaf Organics - A Choice Product

2008-09-06T11:00:00.002-06:00

Hey readers,

Well, the semester has officially started, so my posts here are going
to become somewhat less frequent, as I am taking alot of classes this
semester, and am also heavily involved in some extra-curricular
activities. So, the once-weekly posts you have been getting used to
are, for now, a thing of the past. Once the semester ends, I'll start
posting more often again.

Today, I'll be reviewing another offering by Choice Organic Teas.
This time, however, instead of a loose-leaf tea, I'll be reviewing
some of their organic premium tea bags in Pyramid infusers. I have
always liked the looks of the pyramid infusers, and find them to be a
superior form of the tea bag, allowing more water movement, and far
more room for the product to expand in.

Although they sent me several samples, I'll only be reviewing two or
three of the samples today. Maybe in some future posting, I'll review
some more of these teabags.

First, I will address the packaging for these, which is excellent.
The pyramids are packaged in individual biodegradable paper envelopes.
The design of the packets is fairly attractive, with lots of color
and a very simple, pure design. The front of the package displays the
name of the tea, and a short description, as well as the "Whole Leaves
Organic" designation, and the Choice Organic Teas logo. It also
contains that all-important USDA organic stamp, and a stamp indicating
that the tea is fair trade certified.

Being fair trade certified is also very important for a tea. I'll
post a more thorough article on what Fair Trade means for a tea, and
why it is so important that fair trade guidelines should be followed.
This is an important ethical issue in today's world of tea, and one
which I want to dedicate an entire posting to at some point in the
future.

On the back of the packet, it lists the ingredients, brewing
directions, and so forth, as well as the tidbit that these teabags
also happen to be fully biodegradable, which is nice.

Choice Organic Teas has always been a company that takes their
environmental obligations seriously. This is part of the reason that
they have chosen to deal only in Organic teas. Additionally, they
recognize the value of using only fully biodegradable packaging and
materials, so that the end result of your cup of tea does not spend an
eternity in a landfill.

Now, I will review a few of the teas themselves.

The first tea I will review is the Jade Green blend. Jade green is a
blend of various green teas, with no additions. As far as greens go,
this is a pretty decent blend. It has a nice vegetal flavor. It's
dry scent tells of floral notes, which is interesting. For the
negative, however, I would point out that this blend has somewhat more
astringent than I like to find in a well-blended green tea.
Additionally, the term "Whole Leaf Organics" seems kind of misleading,
as I found quite a large number of broken bits of tea leaf contained
within the pyramid, and very few whole, unbroken leaves. It isn't
quite as bad as the tea dust Lipton likes to serve you, however I was
somewhat disappointed with this. This area could use a bit of
improvement.

The end result, that it to say, the brewed cup, did not suffer
tremendously from this, as it still does seem to be a very
well-blended tea, with a good profile of flavors.

The second tea I will review is the Sweet Liquorice Mint blend. This
blend, I have found to be a true delight. It pleased me in many ways,
and the combination of liquorice and mint always entrances me. I
particularly enjoyed the spearmint flavor in this blend. It has a
excellent cup clarity, with very little cloudiness, and has an
excellent cup colour against my white teacup. However, with all of
these positive traits noted, I must mention a few things that need
improvement with this blend as well. As with the Jade Green, this tea
also suffers from alot of broken bits of leaf. I would have preferred
to see much larger pieces of herb, rather than the crushed remains.
Once again, the end result did not suffer much from this, but
remember, one of the signs of a truly excellent tea is the inclusion
of whole, unbroken leaves and herbs, or at the very least, large
peices (in some cases, the herbs and their various parts are too large
to include without some breakage or separation.)

Overall, this is a pretty good blend, however. And I would recommend
it to those who enjoy liquorice blends, or mind blends, as it
satisfies both characteristics without overpowering either of them.

And the third blend that I would make mention of is the Chamomile Citrus.

In quality, this is the best of the tree blends. It does much better
with the breakage problem I found in the other two blends, using large
bits of herb to acheive it's goals. This tea contains both hibiscus
and chamomile. As you all know, I am fairly particular when it comes
to chamomile teas. As most of you probably also know, both hibiscus
and chamomile are very delicate, and are easily overpowered. In this
blend, however, Choice Organic Teas has done an excellent job
preserving both herbs, and the citrus notes, both lemon and orange,
are very notable, without being brutish and overpowering to the rest
of the blend. I would say that this is the most well-blended of the
three teas I have reviewed today.

The hibiscus and the chamomile complement each other perfectly, and
they have included just the right amount of citrus to get the job
done. I would highly recommend this brew to lovers of chamomile
blends.

Well, thanks for reading, and I hope you'll stay tuned for further
reviews and developments on the blog.

Over and out,
Relz

33 Health Benefits of Drinking Tea

2008-08-14T14:43:00.003-06:00

Hey all. I recently encountered an excellent article that sums up
many of the health benefits of drinking tea, and I thought some of you
might enjoy this.

You can find the article at:
http://www.nursingdegree.net/blog/18/33-health-benefits-of-drinking-tea/

Over and out,
Relz

In Search of the Golden Ibis

2008-08-12T20:36:00.003-06:00

Greetings readers,

It's been only a week since my last posting, and I am already feeling
ambitious once more. Today, I have another review for you, from a
company I'm fairly sure you haven't heard of until today.

Recently, a representative of Golden Ibis Tea contacted me, asking if
I would be willing to review some samples for him. I did, of course,
gladly accept. But before I proceed to make specific mention of a few
of the teas that were sent, i want to take a moment to say a few
things about this new tea company. Since they are new to the tea
world, very little information is available about them, so I decided I
would try to help them ot by spreading some info about their company
first.

Golden Ibis puts great attention into where they purchase their teas
from, and they buy teas made in a time-honored tea producing
tradition. This, to me, seems admirable. They also have an
interesting philosophy on tea, where they believe that tea should be
made in the most authentic way possible, but also believe that tea
should be attainable (although not too attainable.) This can provide
an interesting balance between the most expensive of teas, made
authentically, in a time honored tradition from a single estate, and a
more attainable tea that is still made with authentic, high quality
standards, but also is cheap enough to be affordable.

We will see if the samples they sent hold up to the high standards of
excellence that they seem to be proposing.

Also, since Golden Ibis is so new to the world of tea, they haven't
had enough time to figure out packaging, so I will not be discussing
that aspect. For this review, I will stray outside of my norm, and
eveluate them based only upon the tea samples themselves.

The first sample I will be reviewing is a Phoenix Oolong tea. I am
very particular about oolongs, but this one seems to be up to the
task. When I opened up the foil packet, the smell is the first thing
that hit me with this blend - it has that characteristic nutty sort of
scent that all good oolongs tend to have. The dry appearnace of this
tea was also perfect - mostly whole, complete leaves, with only a few
broken up parts.

This tea was also a pleasure brewed. It imparted a decent cup
clarity, and had that nice light amber color that a good oolong should
have. As far as flavor goes, I can tell that great effort was put
into all aspects of this tea's processing, as it retained the
characteristic nutty flavor of an oolong, while having very little of
the astringent properties common to improperly produced oolongs. This
was a very clean, smooth tasting brew that imparted the best
characteristics of an oolong.

While it is not the best oolong I have ever tasted, it was pretty
good, and maintains that delicate balance between availability and
quality which is so important to this particular tea company.

The second of the samples that they sent was a Long Jing green tea.
As far as straight green teas go, this is actually one of the better
ones I have been given the opportunity to sample. It was particularly
good at maintaining that mild vegetal flavor that quality greens
always hold on to. However, this blend did posess a bit more
astringent than I like, which leads me to believe that it might have
been rushed a bit in it's processing, or may have been harvested a bit
too late. Other than the slight bitterness problem, this is an
excellent brew, having a brilliant cup clarity, a perfect cup
coloration, and an excellent assortment of flavor notes, from that
stereotypical vegetal flavor to a very slight nuttiness, to a very
slight fruity flavor.

I would highly recommend this brew as one of the better straight
greens I have tried.

And the third sample I was sent by this company is an apricot white
tea, which I won's spend much time discussing, other than to say that
it is an exceptional white, and to say that the amount of apricot was
expert - just enough to add some character, while not distracting from
the delicate flavor of the white tea it is based on.

Overall, I would say that these samples are above average for such a
new tea company, but could still use a little bit of improvement. I
suspect that many of the improvements in suppliers, etc, are alredy
being made. Since this is such a new company, these slight
shortcomings are very forgivable.

I would recommend these teas to most people, although I would caution
the more developed drinkers out there that these blends won;t really
compare to their more expensive counterparts available from other tea
companies. These teas do represent an excellent compromise between
expense and quality, however, which seems to have been the goal.

Thanks for reading. I hope you will all give this new tea company a
try - they really deserve to be getting some attention, as they are
doing quite well for being so new to the world of retail tea.

Over and out,
Relz

Clever tea videos

2008-08-05T18:14:00.003-06:00

Hey readers,

I ran into a couple of clever videos about tea, and thought to share
them with you. Hope you enjoy these!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mkXwd-Jq1U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K2IAUF6Y7A

Over and out,
Relz