Tea O'Mania

The Hidden Bonus of Tea.

admin — Wed, 09 May 2012 18:34:19 +0000

As far as I am concerned, tea really is ‘the nectar of the gods’! And because this is (by far) my favourite drink on Earth, I cannot help feeling a bit smug…

You see, the government will always put up the price of alcoholic beverages, but tea will rarely be affected by the budget! I mean, have you ever heard of it getting hammered by the chancellor?

And this has to be good news for anyone with a love for a good strong brew.

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Tea for Me!

admin — Wed, 09 May 2012 18:33:14 +0000

God how I love tea! And believe me, my adoration for the holy hot amber beverage is common knowledge in my household. I drink oodles of the stuff every day and I really don’t think I would be able to manage at all without it. You think that I’m exaggerating? Well, you would be very, very wrong. In fact, the mere thought of life without tea feels me with abject horror!

One of the most important cups of tea (as any tea junkie will tell you) is the ‘first thing in the morning'one. Until I have downed this I am unable to function at a level that is anywhere even close to normal. And the first cup of the day is always the best one too! I have thought about this many times and I have come to the conclusion that it is because my body (and mind… and soul) has been deprived of a good brew for seven or eight long hours.

The other super-important cuppa is the ‘last thing at night'one. This may not be quite on par with the ‘first thing in the morning'one, but it most certainly comes a close second! However, why this one tastes so damn good is a bit of a mystery…. After all, when it gets to bedtime, my body has most definitely not gone without tea as I will have been drinking multiple cups throughout the day! Perhaps it is because I know (on a subconscious level) that I am about to go without a brew for a jolly long time. Hmmm, it could be that my tea addiction is even more serious than I thought…

My love/dependence of/on tea has affected many areas of my life over the years. I will normally only visit friends who know how to make a good strong brew and I will totally ignore conversations about (yuk) Ovaltine, Horlicks or hot chocolate. Consequently this all means that my ‘social circle'could have a far larger diameter…

Over the years I’ve even turned down work because of my tea habit! I have started at a couple of different OT jobs in the past, but I have soon given these the elbow. I mean, how could I possibly be expected to work where the vending machine only has a choice of cappuccino, coffee or espresso??? That is just crazy… In fact, I saw it as a total breach of my basic human rights!!!!

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Mastering tea making- a lot tougher than it seems

admin — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 12:03:07 +0000

Do not make the mistake of thinking that understanding the scientific names of different types of tea will automatically make you an expert at serving this drink. How tea is grown, processed, and transported from one place to another is useful trivia information. However, it need not necessarily help you become better at serving tea to your guests. At what temperature should you boil the water? What kind of water should you use? Hard or soft? Should you dump the tea leaves into boiling water or should you put it in cold water and then let it boil over?

What snacks go well with which type of tea? How to ensure your guests do not feel uncomfortable about the fact that the tea is not matching his or her palate? If you are really serious about tea, then you will be finding an answer to these questions instead of focusing on historical information that does not serve any practical purpose. This is where the difficulties increase.

You cannot just make use of the Internet and jot down a few points and automatically become good at making tea. You will have to make dozens of cups of tea on a daily basis to understand what this process involves. There is no harm in being very scientific and precise about the process. You can make use of a thermometer and experiment with different temperatures to find the right balance. Of course, you will also have to invite a large number of people for the drink because a single individual tasting a dozen cups of tea will obviously not be in a position to give good feedback.

There you have it. Making tea is not as simple as installing frameless shower parts after purchasing it from the Internet. It is something that will require practice, patience and a wide social contact base.

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Life through a Rose-tinted Tea-pot

admin — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 14:33:07 +0000

Naturally, writing for this particular blog, I love tea. And as I have several friends who also love tea, teatime at my house happens several times a week. We enjoy a gentle ritual using loose tea and a pretty tea pot, and the brew is served in fine china mugs or cups (which for some reason makes all tea taste better) Biscuits, especially home made biscuits, are always welcome. We don’t, in the rest of our daily lives, scorn the humble teabag. Teabags have their place… and that place is generally at the breakfast table or at work when time is short. When work is finished, the house is tidy, the radio is on and friends are round, time (and loose leaf tea) is on your side. Leave the ironing, that awkward customer, that unpaid phone bill, your problems with that human resource software or any other everyday worries outside the house and enjoy a relaxing pot of tea and a chat.

Recently I was lucky enough to be given a beautiful box of loose teas from a friend after they returned from China. Some of the tea flavours were ones I’d never tried (or even heard of!) before, which for a tea fanatic such as myself is pretty unusual. Although they’ve recently started appearing in UK supermarkets, black teas with dried fruit or flower petals still aren’t widely available outside special tea shops. More traditional tea blends (assam, ceylon, english breakfast) or herbal teas with fruit are the only range usually available. My box contained teas including black tea with rose petals, black tea with dried lychee, marigold tea and white tea with rosehips.

Now, if your tea tastes run to earl grey or lady grey blends (as mine do) then these deliciously fruity or floral flavours with black china tea are something you should look into. Even if you are generally more into builders tea with two sugars, I would recommend trying one of these (particuarly the rose blend which is gently flavoured and very accessible) for a change. They are delicate, light teas perfect for a relaxing afternoon with friends.

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Tea Leaves - Drink for Relaxation, Drink for Your Health

admin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:33:38 +0000

While browsing the web for shopping, reading or surfing www.crownoiluk.com for your oil needs, why not pour yourself a hot cup of tea. Although drinking tea can be relaxing while you are surfing the web, it can also be healthy.

A great deal of modern scientific studies verified that tea leaves consist of several biochemical components that are strongly related with human wellness. Tea leaves possess a wide range of medicinal effects on the human body, for example rejuvenating mental performance, helping in weight loss, promoting digestion, relieving restlessness, reducing phlegm and increasing the secretion of saliva. These medicinal effects of tea leaves primarily originate from tea polyphenol, lipopolysaccharide, caffeine and so on.

Tea can assist in slowing down aging. Tea polyphenol carries a strong oxidative stability as well as biological activity. It’s a scavenger to clean up the free radicals in the body. Based on an appropriate study, tea polyphenol may block this peroxidation of lipid, plus eliminate active enzymes in the human body, producing an an anti-aging result. Response of experiments demonstrates that this anti-aging result of tea polyphenol is actually 18 times greater than the essential Vitamin E.

Tea may help manage cardiovascular diseases. Tea polyphenol has an impact on the metabolic process of fat in the human body. When there is an excessive amount of triglyceride and cholesterol accumulating in the body, it can trigger a fat deposit on blood vessel walls, therefore resulting in atheroma along with other cardiovascular diseases. Studies show that tea polyphenol may hinder this hyperplasia of maculosus, reducing the fibrinogen which can boost the viscosity of blood clots, in order to prevent cardiovascular diseases.

Tea may help prevent plus combat cancer. Tea polyphenol may obstruct this synthesis of numerous forms of carcinogenic compounds in the body, like ammonium nitrate. In addition, it also provides the result to specifically destroy these cancer cells plus improve immunity of the human body.

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The Corporate Cuppa

admin — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 09:33:05 +0000

It is interesting to consider the advent of modern office technology and its effect on British Culture. A tea break is vital to a happy working environment. It gives that needed lift, as well as a time to socialize informally with your office mates. This inter office networking is actually quantifiable in its usefulness. My office, however, recently acquired time tracking software, and the managers are asking the staff to speed up our regular tea breaks in order to become more efficient. As horrifying as this may seem, there are actually some brilliant ways, both old and new, that can help the tea break go a little bit quicker.

As I work in quite a progressive office, the management was open to suggestions. The first one was to get an instant boiling water tap. This saves the time it takes to boil the kettle, and generally improves the nature of the tea break, as you won’t have to cut down on drinking time rather on preparation time. The next suggestion was to take turns with a tea trolley service. The idea was that on a rota, one person would make tea for everybody in the office. This was a great idea, yet, it would definitely eliminate socializing time from the tea ritual. As an office we decided to use our human resources software to figure out during the course of one week, when we drank tea, how much time we spent drinking it, and the activities we engaged in while drinking it. We used the results to work out a multi pronged approach to cutting down on wasted time, yet ensuring that we didn’t disrupt certain functions of the office. Do you know what the big solution in the end was? Reintroduce the tea pot.

Making tea by the pot turned out to be the perfect solution to enjoying a cuppa, socializing and cutting down on wasted time. Tea made in a pot allows for the perfect amount of time spent steeping, as well as the ideal temperature for drinking. It also enables the pouring of the milk first, which results in a superior cup of tea, as well as endless hours of debate as to whether it is better to put tea or milk in first. These days, our office has a thrice a week trolley service with three different pots of tea: bog standard, fruity, and red bush. In addition, the other days we set pots out at our meetings and we have an official tea pourer, as well as a minute taker.

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How very British

admin — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 11:03:22 +0000

There is no denying that there is not a nation in the world that loves tea the same way that the British do. There is nothing quite like an afternoon tea of cucumber and cram cheeses fingers sandwiches, egg mayonnaise triangles and smoked salmon open tops were fresh, warm scones, clotted cream, strawberry jam and a huge jog of top grade afternoon tea.

As a Brit, I think we should wholly embrace the tradition of afternoon tea. For too long, the British have been accused of being culture-less, of having no cuisine of their own and basically, or being completely retarded when it comes to all things foody. The critics have obviously never visited the Ritz for an afternoon tea break, For some reason, the rest of the world will just not let us have any glory when it comes to food and drink.

Italy has hundreds of pasta recipes, the Spanish have wonderful tapas, Greece has kebabs, India has curries. Every other country in the world is allowed some kind of food tradition to claim as their own and now, as a tea loving Brit, I am claiming afternoon tea to be out very own culinary experience that is not to be sniffed at.

Help me out with this guys. get a groups of friends around, a fantastic tea pot, some fine china cups, and of course a tea cosy. Have a scope around your nearest supermarket for all the makings of a perfect afternoon tea experience and embrace it. Afternoon tea is about as British as Wimbledon, even the queen enjoys it.

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Rooibos tea

admin — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 19:33:04 +0000

I know that most of you prefer classic English teas like Earl Gray and English Breakfast, but besides being very tasty tea can also be very, very good for your health. There are lots of herbal teas which have a positive effect on your body. Mint for example is one of those pure elixirs which calm your nervous system, cures stomach aches and indigestion. Recently, our team stumbled upon a very interesting tea called Rooibos tea. The tea plant grows only in a small province in South Africa were no gas companies pollute the air. This exceptional plant with needle-shaped leaves has unique properties. After it is chopped into small pieces it passes a complex process of fermentation. However, this is not so important. What is important is its health benefits. First of all it is caffeine free, so those of you who cannot handle this stimulant would appreciate Rooibos very much. Second of all the tea is extremely rich in antioxidants. It keeps the skin healthy and neutralizes the free radicals that cause aging. It strengthens the immune system and also eases stomach discomfort. The tea works as a mild laxative for some people. Rooibos tea also calms the nervous system and it is actually one of the best anti-depressants out there. It is called by some the tea of the modern businessmen as it keeps them calm and cool headed. The tea can be consumed both hot and cold. Most people flavor it with lemon juice and honey. You can have as many cups of this tea as you like.

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Proper Chai

admin — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 11:33:21 +0000

So many basic and brilliant things are ruined once mass marketers get a hold of them. Water springs to mind! Remember when drinking water just involved turning on the tap? Instead of selecting still or sparkling from a multitude of bottles. Chai, a South Asian spiced tea is another example. It arrived in Britain with the waves of immigration from the sub continent. It did not meet popular tea culture, however, until the hippies and travellers got a hold of it. Now, you can find pre-spiced bags along with brewed and bottled teas in every major supermarket. If you are desperate for a home-made authentic chai, you need to become clever in the way that you search for online recipes. The middle classes on the sub continent are very active on the internet, and you can find sites where housewives and mums trade recipes. I had instant and enormous success asking google for Mumbai Chai Recipe! Bingo, I got to Madhu’s Zone and a list of various authentic recipes. Every region has a different spice blend, but all use a basic method:

Bring a sauce pan of water to a boil.
Add a pinch of spice blend for each cup.
Return to boil and add milk
Boil again for a minute.
Allow to steep or strain immediately into tea cups.

Chai is traditionally sweetened by the person who is brewing it and is drunk very very sweet. The spice blend includes some of the following and varies according to region and taste:

black pepper
fresh ginger
green cardamom
cinnamon
fennel seeds
nutmeg
coriander seeds

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Tea or not to Tea

admin — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:03:07 +0000

Can Protein shakes replace a cup of Rosy Lee? Will it satisfy the warm craving that a cuppa does time and time again, there are as many ways of having a brew as there are people who drink a cup of the good stuff. The Chinese got it right with oolong tea, the name says it all you could be one of those folk that hates the black stuff and you want it green, white or even yellow, yes yellow tea strange yet true.

With milk, lemon, sugar honey or is it some other enhancer that floats your boat, some call herbal infusions tea, peppermint, lime leaves, camomile to calm, ginger to perk you up. Pour on hot water maybe a spoon of honey cool and drink, refreshing, tasty and healthy but they are not tea.

The growing tips and leaves of the “Camellia sinensis” plant, is strictly speaking the original tea, called the Mother of Tea, originating in Southeast Asia she is now grown on high hill tops the world over, for her intense flavour and ooooonesss a cup that lifts the sprits, warms the cockles, the chirpy cup that picks you up, calms you down, relaxes you after a hard day and sorts you right out first thing in the morning.. Giving us a huge selection of taste and smells from Darjeeling to Sencha, whatever type you like the one thing we all agree is we love tea.

No sorry you coffee drinkers, you glass of milk kind of people, it’s a mega mug for me thanks very much with sugar and so strong your spoon stands right up out the middle of it.

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