Concerned about how many disposable items you use in a day? Or the ridiculous over-packaging that's rampant in our stores? Or the mountains of plastic accumulating in our oceans? Want to make a bit of a difference with minimal effort? If you drink mainly teabag tea, just switch to loose leaf. Besides having a dramatically … Continue reading Be Kind to the Environment When Making Tea
Working from home. The words alone conjure up such a satisfying picture of amazing creativity, sustained productivity. A steaming cup of tea, natural light, a comfortable workspace, prevailing quiet. Except when it's not. When focused attention is punctuated by the dog needing to go out (my husband's duty most of the time, until this week's … Continue reading Working from Home (in Theory) and Contemplating the Temperature of My Tea
Having looked at how (and if) water itself impacts the flavor of your tea (see post), what about its temperature? Does that matter? Yep, it matters. A lot. Even back in the year 780 when Lu Yu wrote the still-classic The Classic of Tea. Tea master Lu Yu specified his method in great detail. Water (ideally from … Continue reading Why You Must Pay Attention to Water Temperature When Making Tea. Really.
You paid money for that tea. Maybe even a lot of money! So here are some simple, easy-to-follow, considerations to ensure you correctly match your water to your tea leaves (especially useful for that first brew of the day when you're already late for work). Do not, do not, use untested water, or unfiltered water, … Continue reading Why You Should Pay Attention to Your Water When Making Tea. Or Not.
Continuing the oolong theme here for a bit, let's take a look at a tea that is both an oolong and a specialty tea. Unique to China, it is also unique among teas. Milk Oolong: How It's Made This exquisite tea is produced in mountainous Fujian Province—the birthplace of oolong tea—located on mainland China's southeast … Continue reading Milk Oolong Tea, Deliciously Creamy
I drive my family crazy by wanting to buy fruit only when it's actually in season. Mouthwatering tomatoes (yes, a fruit) can be had only when just off the vine—coupled with just plucked basil, mmmmm. I hated papaya until I had it fresh picked, sunshine warmed, with a complexity of flavor. And your fruit teas should … Continue reading Fruity Teas
The world of loose leaf tea can be intimidating—so many choices! And how do you decide how much to buy? Those pesky grams . . . It doesn't make it any easier that bulk tea is often sold in grams or in odd amounts of ounces. That is because most of the world uses grams, and the U.S. … Continue reading How Much Loose Leaf Tea to Buy
Diaries. The word alone conjures up dreams, disappointments, secrets, confessions. . . . When my husband found his grandmother's diary, we felt guilty opening it—as though we were violating her privacy, although she passed away decades ago. But after reading—repeatedly—that the day's laundry dried well, we didn't worry so much about the ethics. Because her words didn't offer much insight … Continue reading Butter Tea, Lipton Tea, and an Infested Tea Table—from a 1930s’ Diary
Somewhere in time, after teabags became ubiquitous, the idea evolved that making tea with loose leaves is complicated. Or time consuming. Or best left to someone more experienced. But really, truly—you can quickly make a great cup of tea! As far as what you need, you probably already own it. Nothing fancy required here! Measuring out your … Continue reading New to Tea? Here’s All You Need to Brew the Perfect Cup
According to researcher Dr. Vuong (Hoh 2017), brewing tea in a microwave oven imparts greater health benefits and results in tastier tea. So, About This Claim While I cannot test the health factor (see my previous post), I can test the flavor! Admittedly my little experiment wouldn't meet any laboratory standards, but anyway. I brewed teabags (standard teabags, purchased from … Continue reading Should You Microwave Your Tea? Part 2: Flavor
It's More Than Tea 