Chaai cha-cha-cha!
I know I promised a review today, but I have had so many questions about teas in general, I am going to let this week’s review be a compendium of sorts about tea. The reviews will start next week.
First question most people ask me about tea is where I buy it - there isn’t one single place for me. I have bought good tea from Tom Thumb, Central Market, World Market, online - from all over. Most grocery stores are getting into the chai business these days and are beginning to stock more than the usual lipton iced tea.
Another question I frequently get is about the kinds of teas. Briefly, there are 4 broad categories -
Black Tea - this is the most common, most processed and the most caffeinated version of the teas. Pretty strong in tate and has the least amount of antoxidants.
Green Tea - this is also pretty common and this is processed a lot less than the black tea, so it retains a lot more antoxidants than black tea. This tea needs to be brewed carefully. Don’t ever use boling hot water to brew green tea. Instead, let the hot water cool for a minute before you put your tea bag or tea leaves in. Don’t overbrew this tea, since that will release the bitter tannins from the tea. Brew this tea about 3-4 minutes for optimal taste. Green tea is not quite as strong as black tea in taste and it’s taste can be enhanced by the subtle fragrance of jasmine flowers in it, a slice of lemon, a few drops of honey or all of them together.
White Tea - said to be the rarest of teas, this tea is made from the tea-leaf-buds and with minimal processing so as to preserve the antoxidants. This tea is extremely subltle in color and taste. The tea has a slightly sweet taste to it and is one of my favorites. This tea should also be brewed like the Green Tea.
Herbal Tea - technically speaking, this is not tea at all, but a brew of various herbs like licorice, lemon, ginger, chamomile, etc. with supposed medicinal properties. I love a blend of licorice and mint that has the minty freshness with the licorice after-taste adding a subtle sweetness that is out of this world.
Tip: Most teas, in tea bags and full-leaf can be rebrewed upto 3 or 4 times. This applies to the green tea and white tea even more, since you want to take the bag/leaves out of the water in 3-4 minutes while there is still some potency left.
Lastly, what is the difference between tea bags and tea leaves? Tea bags are most of the time, the powder left behind after the packing up of the full-leaf teas - I say most of the time, since there are also some full-leaf tea bags available. I always recommend full-leaf teas for the best and the cleanest taste. Well, ask me if there are any more questions and we will start on the tea journey few teas at a time starting next week.