To remain fresh and prevent mold, tea needs to be stored away from heat, light, air, and moisture. Tightly rolled gunpowder tea leaves keep longer than the more open-leafed Chun Mee tea. The addition of milk to tea in Tea Spins Europe was first mentioned in 1680 by the epistolist Madame de Sévigné. Many teas are traditionally drunk with milk in cultures where dairy products are consumed. These teas tend to be very hearty varieties of black tea which can be tasted through the milk, such as Assams, or the East Friesian blend. The Han Chinese do not usually drink milk with tea but the Manchus do, and the elite of the Qing Dynasty of the Chinese Empire continued to do so.
History of the tea trade
The popularity of tea played a role in historical events – the Tea Act of 1773 provoked the Boston Tea Party that escalated into the American Revolution. The need to address the issue of British trade deficit because of the trade in tea resulted in the Opium Wars. Traders from other nations then sought to find another product, in this case opium, to sell to China to earn back the silver they were required to pay for tea and other commodities. Tea is also made, but rarely, from the leaves of Camellia taliensis and Camellia formosensis. There are many types of tea; some have a cooling, slightly bitter, and astringent flavour, while others have profiles that include sweet, nutty, floral, or grassy notes. Tea has a stimulating effect in humans, primarily due to its caffeine content.
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- Through the centuries, a variety of techniques for processing tea, and a number of different forms of tea, were developed.
- The divergence of Chinese small-leaf tea and Assam tea would correspond to the last glacial maximum.
- Tea, however, was not widely consumed in the British Isles until the 18th century and remained expensive until the latter part of that period.
- The popularity of tea played a role in historical events – the Tea Act of 1773 provoked the Boston Tea Party that escalated into the American Revolution.
- Compressed tea is prepared by loosening leaves from the cake using a small knife, and steeping the extracted pieces in water.
- Turkish tea is an important part of that country’s cuisine and is the most commonly consumed hot drink, despite the country’s long history with coffee.
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Tea Facts
Since there are no known wild populations of this tea, its origin is speculative. An early credible record of tea drinking dates to the third century AD, in a medical text written by Chinese physician Hua Tuo. It was popularised as a recreational drink during the Chinese Tang dynasty, and tea drinking spread to other East Asian countries. If there are a high proportion of tips, the leaves may be called golden flowery orange pekoe. If buying flavoured tea, check whether the flavouring is natural or a ‘nature-identical’ synthetic. Many of these teas have set times for seatings, so booking in advance is always a good idea.
- “Instant tea”, similar to freeze-dried instant coffee and an alternative to brewed tea, can be consumed either hot or cold.
- The Chinese tea plants he brought back were introduced to the Himalayas, though most did not survive.
- The most important chemicals in tea are the tannins, or polyphenols, which are colourless, bitter-tasting substances that give the drink its astringency.
- In Britain and Ireland, tea was initially consumed as a luxury item on special occasions, such as religious festivals, wakes, and domestic work gatherings.
- Peter Mundy, a traveller and merchant who came across tea in Fujian in 1637, wrote, “chaa – only water with a kind of herb boyled in it”.
- During the Tang dynasty, as described by Lu Yu, compressed tea was ground into a powder, combined with hot water, and ladled into bowls, resulting in a “frothy” mixture.
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Tea Guides: How To Make Your Perfect Cup Of Tea
The British introduced tea culture into India in 1836 and into Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1867. At first they used seeds from China, but later seeds from the Assam plant were used. 80% of office workers say they find out more about what’s going on at work over a cup of tea than any other way.
Discover Tea
- Western tastes, however, favoured the fully oxidized black tea, and the leaves were allowed to oxidize further.
- The Han dynasty work “The Contract for a Youth”, written by Wang Bao in 59 BC, contains the first known reference to boiling tea.
- The need to address the issue of British trade deficit because of the trade in tea resulted in the Opium Wars.
- The Mongolian Khan donated to Tsar Michael I four poods (65–70 kg) of tea in 1638.
- Certain volatile oils contribute to the aroma of tea, and also contributing to beverage quality are various sugars and amino acids.
- While some teas provide more benefits than others, there’s plenty of evidence that regularly drinking tea offers numerous advantages.
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The infused leaf is bright red or copper coloured, and the liquor is bright red and slightly astringent but not bitter, bearing the characteristic aroma of tea. Oolong and pouchong teas are produced mostly in southern China and Taiwan from a special variety of the China plant. The liquor is pale or yellow in colour, as in green tea, and has a unique malty, or smoky, flavour. While some teas provide more benefits than others, there’s plenty of evidence that regularly drinking tea offers numerous advantages.
May improve gut health
“Instant tea”, similar to freeze-dried instant coffee and an alternative to brewed tea, can be consumed either hot or cold. Additives such as chai, vanilla, honey or fruit, are popular, as is powdered milk. Compressed tea was the most popular form of tea in China during the Tang dynasty. In Mongolia, tea bricks were ubiquitous enough to be used as a form of currency. In addition to a zone 8 climate or warmer, tea plants require at least 1,200 millimetres (47 in) of rainfall per year and prefer acidic soils. Many high-quality tea plants are cultivated at elevations of up to 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) above sea level.