Dec 1st, '07, 18:19
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scruffmcgruff
I rekon it's the British / Irish blood in me that periodically calls for milk in my 'tay'...discussions of adding milk to tea has a strange effect of causing my eyes to glaze over and my AATD to kick in.
Some drink Coffee black, some w/sugar... same deal. Guess it's habit of mine that goes back to my coffee drinking daze
It is totally true that some teas are naturally astringent. Take young pu-erh for example. That stuff is pretty much guaranteed to bite your astringency-sensing taste buds.
My comment was in reference to your comment on bitterness in green teas. Although I like to brew my sencha so that it has just the smallest astringent bite to it, many do not like it that way at all.
Sencha can easily be brewed to be a purely sweet drink, but I have gotten used to brewing sencha, and can now beat up the leaf a tiny bit to bring out the astringent notes I desire.
Therefore, when someone complains that their green tea is coming out bitter, its almost surely a case of them brewing it a little harsh (either too hot water, or steeping it for too long).
My comment was in reference to your comment on bitterness in green teas. Although I like to brew my sencha so that it has just the smallest astringent bite to it, many do not like it that way at all.
Sencha can easily be brewed to be a purely sweet drink, but I have gotten used to brewing sencha, and can now beat up the leaf a tiny bit to bring out the astringent notes I desire.
Therefore, when someone complains that their green tea is coming out bitter, its almost surely a case of them brewing it a little harsh (either too hot water, or steeping it for too long).
Milk or lemon in tea?
Right on guys. It is whatever you like. "The Russians" drink tea (their favorite tastes a bit like lapsang souchong but is usually called "Russian Caravan") while holding a teaspoonful of jam in their mouth. You shouldn't knock it until you've tried it.
A particularly silly scene in the Da Vinci Code makes the question almost a life or death matter. Like questions regarding white or red wines, etc., this should be ignored.
A particularly silly scene in the Da Vinci Code makes the question almost a life or death matter. Like questions regarding white or red wines, etc., this should be ignored.
Hock
yeah... I think some cultures (arabic?) hold a sugar cube in their lips or teeth and pull the tea thru. It's all good. I've been starting to lean towards the Gold Monkey/Yunnan Jig/Yunnan Gold as my favorite daily morning teas... brewed strong with some honey and a touch of milk... but today I had the monkey with a small bit of honey and it was perfect... as it, either way is good for me
At this point, I'm trying to pin down a black and green tea that I'd like as my regulars... and then dabble once in a while
At this point, I'm trying to pin down a black and green tea that I'd like as my regulars... and then dabble once in a while
Dec 20th, '07, 02:34
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Joined: Nov 28th, '07, 21:16
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evilive
Ahmad, whom I mentioned in depth in the 'Big Brand Name' thread showed me this. Placing a cube of sugar in one's lips and then sipping tea from a tea saucer. Apparently they all do it in Iranmstuartev wrote:yeah... I think some cultures (arabic?) hold a sugar cube in their lips or teeth and pull the tea thru. It's all good.
Dec 21st, '07, 01:58
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Location: Somewhere in the wilds of Montana, but never without a teacup.
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skywarrior
Dec 21st, '07, 02:13
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evilive
I thought, In Russia, they had metal holders around their glasses...skywarrior wrote:I thought that was a Russian way for drinking tea.evilive wrote: Ahmad, whom I mentioned in depth in the 'Big Brand Name' thread showed me this. Placing a cube of sugar in one's lips and then sipping tea from a tea saucer. Apparently they all do it in Iran
Some aspects of Western (European) Russian and Persian tea style overlap. Both were pretty much on the far leg of China's tea horse road, so they developed similar customs over the ages. Drinking tea through a lump of sugar held between your teeth is done both in parts of Russia and Iran, and both countries make wide use of the samovar for their brewing needs.
The father of modern Russian literature--Alexander Pushkin--once even wrote that "Ecstasy is a glass of tea and a piece of sugar in the mouth," and you'll often find references to drinking in this style throughout much of 19th century Russian literature, thanks in large part to Realism's dominance in that era. You'll also find tons of references to samovars, which eventually sort of became a literary symbol of hearth and home.
The father of modern Russian literature--Alexander Pushkin--once even wrote that "Ecstasy is a glass of tea and a piece of sugar in the mouth," and you'll often find references to drinking in this style throughout much of 19th century Russian literature, thanks in large part to Realism's dominance in that era. You'll also find tons of references to samovars, which eventually sort of became a literary symbol of hearth and home.
hi,
i have to agree with hop_goblin.. from what i've read, adding milk to tea- any tea - pretty much nullifies the health benefits of the tea. personally, i drink white tea mainly, mixed with some camomile. i ad only raw organic honey to my tea (White Gold Canadian honey and Sweet Clover by Bee-Raw are my favs)..
I used to drink a lot of black tea. A friend of mine from India introduced me to a black chai sort of tea her family makes every morning and night. you take black tea (not sure type- bought bag of it at indian grocery in Manhattan), you boil it with half water, half milk and some sugar. i used lowfat milk and raw sugar. (skim didn't work).. the tea is beautifully rich and sweet and very full of caffeine.. i loved it. but all that milk was making me a bit bloated, too much fat & calories as well. and, once i learned about mixing milk with tea, I switched to white. i drink white peony, mixed with a bit of silver needle, and a bag of camomile. a small amount of some buttery honey tops it off. now, if i have black tea w/ milk, it's more of a treat for myself, but no longer part of my regular diet.
i have to agree with hop_goblin.. from what i've read, adding milk to tea- any tea - pretty much nullifies the health benefits of the tea. personally, i drink white tea mainly, mixed with some camomile. i ad only raw organic honey to my tea (White Gold Canadian honey and Sweet Clover by Bee-Raw are my favs)..
I used to drink a lot of black tea. A friend of mine from India introduced me to a black chai sort of tea her family makes every morning and night. you take black tea (not sure type- bought bag of it at indian grocery in Manhattan), you boil it with half water, half milk and some sugar. i used lowfat milk and raw sugar. (skim didn't work).. the tea is beautifully rich and sweet and very full of caffeine.. i loved it. but all that milk was making me a bit bloated, too much fat & calories as well. and, once i learned about mixing milk with tea, I switched to white. i drink white peony, mixed with a bit of silver needle, and a bag of camomile. a small amount of some buttery honey tops it off. now, if i have black tea w/ milk, it's more of a treat for myself, but no longer part of my regular diet.