Tea: In English Please! (Part 1)

If I would ask you to bet your money to take a guess on as to the most popular and consumed beverage in the world, what would be your guess?

If you answer WATER, then you are correct! It is in fact not only the most popular and consumed but the universal solvent as well.

Now I will take our betting to the next level. Try and guess now the SECOND most popular and consumed beverage in the world. A bit tricky, I know! So I will give you three chances to come up with the right answer. And no cheating please. Timer starts now.

Time's up!

Did you answer:

SODA?

COFFEE? or

JUICE?

Surprise! Surprise! You have lost the wager. Pay up!

The answer is actually TEA. In fact, many countries fell in love with this delectable drink and are consuming tea on a regular basis. And this is no surprise, since tea is not only very popular for the drinking pleasure it gives but also the health benefits it has been known to offer.

One of them is Great Britain. It is well known not only for being one of the countries to top on consuming teas but is also very popular for making quite an impression on the world of tea-drinking. For the past 350 years (and counting), it is known to create and practice the very regal and fascinating drink with its surrounding culture, the English tea.

How did it all begin?

Let us turn back the page of time...

Imagine the world still innocent of teas. Go further, and imagine the time before the British discovered teas. This will probably be the scenario.

A typical Englishman will go through his day without tea. So basically, he would just have two heavy meals. This would be breakfast in the morning and dinner at in the evening. Breakfast would mainly consist of bread, some beef and ale as refreshment. As for dinner, it would be moved from noontime to a very late hour in the evening. It would be a long but heavy meal consumed at the end of the day.

Boring isn't it?

History in the making...

As many people know and would probably guess, tea originated in China.

Specifically, it was 500 years ago. We all have to thank one person, Chinese emperor Shen Nung. What happened was a very fortunate accidental discovery. It happened this way: One day, as he was drinking his hot water in a cup, some leaves accidentally fell into his cup. It not only turned his drink into a very light color, it also gave out a very aromatic scent. Curious, he drank it and loved its taste. Add with its medicinal properties and Voila! Tea was discovered

And it would not be long until tea will spread its wings. No matter how much they try to keep tea a secret, the Chinese can no longer hold back tea to the world any longer. So from China, tea drinking spread to the West. It continued to flourish to Holland and Portugal eventually making its way to Northern Europe. But it was not until tea went its way to Britain that tea became not only a drink, but a passion and culture instead.

Tea: soon to be English style...

It was Portuguese princess Catherine de Braganza who started the tea craze in Britain. She is the daughter of queen to Charles II and Portuguese monarch John IV. She started making tea drinking a habit, which would eventually be adapted to the nobles of London.

And at first, it seemed to remain that way. For during those times, tea is considered not only a precious commodity but a luxury as well. It has an import tax of 200 percent. This makes one pound of tea equivalent to more than an averaged laborers wage for the week. Because of this, many teas were smuggled and sold in English ports. This way, no taxes were paid and everyone could afford buying tea such as the middle class.

But it was only during the 18th century that tea will make its way not only to the rich and powerful, but also to the masses of Britain. This is because taxes were significantly reduced, making tea more affordable. This also lead to the demise of tea smuggling and made tea even more famous than ever. Ale was now replaced by tea and more and more Britons preferred drinking tea instead. Afternoon tea also began to be established. It started out as a ladies' gathering in a semi-formal setting. Tea drinking was accompanied by pastries and sandwiches and a couple of gossip as a treat.

Britain and India combined!

As tea was growing and flourishing, the British still noticed that the Chinese are still continuing to monopolize tea production. And so they decided to give China a challenge and rival. They began establishing tea plantations and gardens in India. And it would not be long until Indian tea equaled, if not surpassed, the Chinese tea. Quality was established and a variety of teas will soon follow.

Tea varieties in the making...

As a matter of fact, all teas, no matter what variety they are, are produced by one and the same plant – the Camellia sinensis. The reason they come from a wide array of varieties is not the plant itself but the difference in the way each tea was processed. This is called oxidation or fermentation. As a rule of thumb, the more oxygen is permitted for fermenting or oxidation, the darker the tea will become. So in terms of oxidation, the following teas are in order: Black, oolong, green and white tea.

Black tea – is considered the most consumed type of tea. It has the strongest and most robust of all teas.

Oolong tea – is also known as the champagne of teas. It is usually produced in Taiwan and has a very mild, fruity or flowery aroma and flavor like a peach. It also is described with a smoky taste and has a light yellow appearance when brewed.

Green Tea – has a taste similar to nature- earthy and fresh leaves are some of the things that come to mind when drinking green tea. It has a yellow appearance when brewed.

White Teas - are the youngest among the types of teas in terms of it being discovered and grown. It is usually created out of the most delicate buds and youngest leaves. These are allowed to be dried with the aid of the sun or by a different process, called steaming. It has a very mild and subtle flavor. Others describe it with a nutty and sweet taste. The appearance of white teas is usually without color.

to be continued...

Huang Jiung,
Chinese Weight Loss Tea for BEGINNERS