Tea Quote

One of my favorite tea quotes of all time is from James Norwood Pratt: "No pleasure is simpler, no luxury cheaper, no consciousness-altering substance more benign." How very true! The simple (yet indulgent) ritual of sitting down for a cup (or pot!) of tea brings such a sense of calm and comfort. Of course, the l-theophylline doesn't hurt, either!

L-theophylline is a natural substance found in all true teas (tea from the camellia sinensis plant, not "herbal teas") that creates a feeling of calm alertness. It has been shown to increase the production of alpha waves in the brain. Alpha waves increase left-right brain connectivity and are also produced by the brain during meditation and massage. It's one of the many reasons I am so passionate out tea, but to list those would be a whole other blog post!

Have a good weekend, and enjoy your tea!


Two cups of this year's Darjeeling First Flush at Salon T in NYC

Caffeine During Pregnancy

There's a lot of attention being paid right now to a new study on caffeine during pregnancy. It's bad news for tea-drinking women who want to have children: as little as 100 mg of caffeine a day can double your chance of miscarriage. However, this doesn't mean that pregnany women have to forego all tea. "Herbal teas" (not technically teas, but tisanes) like chamomile and peppermint are still safe. (Do a little research on each one before drinking it, but most of the mainstream herbals are safe.) And there are ways to significantly decrease your caffeine consumption without dropping tea like, well, a BAD habit. Here's an article I wrote a while back that may be of some use: Caffeine and Tea. I feel that it is worth noting that MANY pregnancies have been carried successfully to term with regular consumption of large amounts of caffeine (or much worse). Yes, some of the media attention is valid and, yes, some of it is probably hype. However, I am not a doctor, so please consult with your doctor for more information.

The Taste of Tea

There's a wonderful, quirky little film called The Taste of Tea that will be showing in Williamsburg (Brooklyn) today at 8:30 and Friday at 10. Though tea is not featured as much as the title suggests, it's an integral part of the film. Showing details.

Pantyhose Tea

Though tea is typically drunk without milk in China, Hong Kong has one big exception: "pantyhose milk tea." It is a Sri Lankan or Indian black tea brewed in a "tea sock," strained repeatedly, and blended with milk. It is served in milk tearooms, somewhat similar to the more rowdy diners of NYC. According to a recent Reuters article:

"'You can talk as loud as you like (in the tea-diners) and no one will complain,' laughed Pallas Ng, a bank clerk.

'Starbucks is too quiet. We prefer louder places,' she added."

It sounds like quite a contrast to the US sterotype of tearooms filled with ladies and lace! Read the full article here.

Citrus May Boost Tea's Benefits

Purdue University recently published a study on the absorption rates of catechins in tea with the addition of various common tea flavorants. Lemon juice was found to be the best, followed by other citrus juices. Soymilk, ricemilk, and cow's milk were also tested. Read the full article here.

London Tourism Ad Campaign... with Urination

As one of the world's leading tourist destinations, you'd think that London wouldn't have to go to sad extremes in its tourism ad campaigns. You'd be wrong. What's really weird (but not weirder than urination in a teacup as a tourist lure... perhaps I mean "also weird") is that the guy is supposed to be a punk, but looks more like a skinhead neo-Nazi. What was the stylist thinking?!

Caffeinated Cities

A recent study investigated caffeine consumption in major US cities (or, as I like to call it, "Caffeination Across the Nation"). Read the full article, or just skip to the tea results, which I've copied below.

Most Tea Consumption (Green tea, iced tea, black tea):
1. Miami
2. Tampa
3. Washington, D.C.
4. Philadelphia
5. Atlanta

Least Tea Consumption (Green tea, iced tea, black tea):
1. Minneapolis/St. Paul
2. Detroit
3. San Francisco/Oakland
4. Seattle/Tacoma
5. Boston

Seattle and Boston were non-shockers for the "Least Tea Consumption" list, for obvious reasons. San Francisco, on the other hand, was completely unexpected. Perhaps it's because of the "(Green tea, iced tea, black tea)" specification. What about other types? Had oolong, white, and pu-erh been included, would SF be off the list for "least tea consumption?" Another arguement for SF's low level of caffeination: "...considering how much it costs to live in San Fran (and New York City, which was also on the list), I'm surprised anybody there can afford caffeine once they get done paying the rent." Two points for Widge at NeedCoffee.

Green Tea Ice Cream

A company called E-Creamery lets you select your own flavors, add-ins, and packaging for pints of ice cream. Not cool enough already? They have green tea as a flavor, and you can pick a gelato, 12% milkfat base (typical for American icecream), or 14% milkfat base (extra rich and creamy). Personally, I want to try the green tea and coconut gelato with pineapple pieces and mint leaves... or maybe cardamom and cinnamon or clove 14% milkfat icecream with candied ginger... yum.

Tisanes for Sleep

Having trouble sleeping? Learn more on caffeine and tea on my site, and then look over this list of tisanes for something to lull you to sleep.

CARDAMOM

Pros--reduces the effects of caffeine
Cons--doesn't help if you haven't had any caffeine

CHAMOMILE

Pros--sweet and floral, readily available
Cons--a common allergen

KAVA KAVA

Pros--often found in sleep blends, a natural antidepressant
Cons--may cause intoxication when drunk in excess, may cause organ damage when taken in excess in supplement form

LAVENDER

Pros--aids in the reduction of stress and insomnia, tastes good
Cons--some people are allergic to lavender

LEMON BALM

Pros--soothing, pleasant in taste
Cons--not usually used specifically for sleep, but perhaps a useful aid nontheless

MINT

Pros--spearmint and peppermint both taste good and are caffeine-free
Cons--some find the taste to be invigorating

PEACH

Pros--tastes good, caffeine-free
Cons--not used specifically for sleep, but a nice alternative to beverages with caffeine

RASPBERRY LEAF

Pros--many find it to be relaxing
Cons--not used specifically for sleep

ROSE PETALS

Pros--soothing
Cons--You guessed it--not used specifically for sleep

ROOIBOS

Pros--high in antioxidants, particularly antiaging antioxidants
Cons--may cause nightmares in some rare cases

SCULLCAP

Pros--one variety acts as a sedative
Cons--there are over 300 varieties

ST. JOHN'S WORT

Pros--reduces stress and alleviates insomnia
Cons--may interact with some medications

TILLEUL

Pros--soothing, similar in taste to chamomile, (unlike chamomile) not an allergen
Cons--harder to find than chamomile (unless you're in France, where it is very common)

VALERIAN ROOT

Pros--said to be very effective in treating insomnia
Cons--not so popular on the flavor front

For more information on these and other tisanes, read my Tisane Listing articles or consult an herbalist. Sweet dreams!

Tea with Friends

I am so elated. I have finally convinced all of my friends that they a) LIKE TEA (the problem for most was that they had only tried bad tea before) and b) are perfectly fine with meeting me for tea instead of alcohol.

My sister (who NEVER drinks alcohol) would be proud. But the whole tea world from estate managers to tearoom owners should be rejoicing! Tea is getting more and more mainstream in the US every day and it's experiencing a revival in many other countries, too.

In the US, tea drinking basically disappeared after the Boston Tea Party (save for the surge in iced tea's popularity, which began at the beginning of the last century and lingers today), but in a lot of other places it simply became old fashioned. Many people thought of tea as fussy, overly formal, or absurdly frilly. Thanks to a bit of a makeover, tea is recognized for its incredible array of flavors and health benefits, and is becoming popular among Baby Boomers and young hipsters alike. And that, my friends, is why tea is hot.

Tea Videos

Three are tons of tea videos on the internet. I've posted some of them before. Here are a few more. If there's one you'd like me to see, send me the link!

James Norwood Pratt on tea on Chow.com

A tragic love story about tea bags, feat. The Cure

"Good Eats" on tea

Have a good weekend and be sure to drink lots of tea!

Tea during Wartime

The New York Times (somewhat) recently started to allow everyone (not just paying subscribers) to see their full archives online. Here are two articles on tea during wartime that I found to be interesting:

The first is from 1916. It's about the German coffee and tea supplies being taken over by the state. There great was concern that when coffee ran out, tea would act as a coffee replacement (in addition to a popular drink on its own) and run out soon after.

The next article is from a year and a half later, when England's tea supply was nearly gone. The man interviewed blamed the shortage on exportation to Germany earlier in the war.

Other notes on tea (and coffee) during wartime:

During WWI and WW2, people in the US often drank chickory in lieu of coffee and rooibos in lieu of "true" tea (from the camellia sinensis plant).

Russian samovars have a bloody history. During wartime, samovars were often melted down to make guns. During times of peace, the guns were melted down to make samovars. Somehow this always makes me think of the scene in Lord of War where they talk about how the militia snorts lines of cocaine mixed with gunpowder. Yikes!

The Opium Wars were waged over tea. Tea had caused an enormous trade imbalance between the Chinese and the British, so the British started growing opium in India and importing it to China, despite laws forbidding it. Soon, the nation was addicted and the government was outraged. And then... wars. Two of them, to be precise.

Post-Thanksgiving Post

I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving. I did! My menu was as follows:

Endive and Fennel Salad with Feta and Homemade Vinaigrette
Sweet Potato Cornbread
Herbed Baguette with Brie and Camembert
Collard Greens with Cayenne
Broiled Salmon with Mustard-Vinaigrette Glaze
Latkes with Applesauce
Port-Poached Pears, Baked with an Oat-Walnut Crumble, Topped with a Port-Yogurt Granita
Mulled Wine
Honeydew White Tea
Lung Ching
Earl Green

What did you make? What kind(s) of tea did you serve?

Tea Art?

I recently happened upon a site for coffee art. Anyone out there making frothy tea-based drinks into art? I'd love to see it!

I'm off for a few days to do the Thanksgiving thing. What kinds of tea are you serving at your big meal? (Next week, I'll tell you what I served at mine.)

Tea Books

Getting started on your holiday shopping already? (I know I am! Anything to avoid the holiday rush of NYC.) Check out this new book on Korean tea culture and history. Or, peruse Cha Dao's extremely comprehensive post by Nigel Melican, Ten Thousand Titles: The Teacraft Tea Bibliography and see what jumps out at you. Happy holiday shopping!

"Diluting the Benefits of Tea"

The NY Times recently put out an article about howtea may not be so healthy for you. The focus: sugary, high-fat drinks are sugary and high-fat EVEN IF THEY CONTAIN TEA. Wow. Excerpt (quoting a noted NYU nutritionist):

"I see so many educated people who, when I tell them it has calories, look at me and say, 'It does?'" said Dr. Young. "These are people who wouldn’t get the whole milk cappuccino, but they get the venti chai because it’s only tea."

I am amazed by how unaware most people are of their health and what they put in their bodies. Yes, masala chai is delicious, but I NEVER drink it daily, not even when I was in India or when I was writing my masala chai recipes. I ADORE iced tea (I'm from the South), but, once again, it's a treat, not a "healthy" tea. I'm glad the Times is trying to raise awareness on this point, but deeply saddened by the fact that it was so low that it needed to be raised in the first place. Sigh...

Osteoporosis

Apparently, drinking tea may slow bone loss. Excerpt:

The bone mineral density in tea drinkers was higher than in non-tea drinkers. Tea drinkers also had less loss of bone density over a four-year period compared with non-tea drinkers. These results took into account factors such as smoking history and use of calcium supplements.

...

"Other variables, such as dietary calcium and coffee intake, physical activity, and smoking did not appear to be important confounders of the relation between tea and [bone density]," write researcher Amanda Devine, of the University of Western Australia in Perth, Australia, and colleagues. "Thus, overall our data support the concept that tea intake has beneficial effects on bone structure by reducing bone loss."


Cool. If you're interested in tea and the body, read more about tea and iron absorption on my site.

Tea & Global Warming

I know I normally end the week with a positive note, but... not this week. Today I'd like to talk about how global warming is changing the world of tea. This approach may sound somewhat trivial, but I feel that narrowing your focus can allow you to see the potential impact of such a large problem much more clearly. It's an important issue and, maybe, you can take some small steps toward reducing your own carbon footprint with a little effort over the weekend.

Tea and Global Warming

Sri Lankan tea growers are dealing with extreme weather conditions, such as abnormally heavy monsoons, which are causing the deaths of large numbers of young tea plants. Droughts and floods are expected, as are problems with inequity between rice farmers (who work as family units on small farms) and tea workers (who are assured of set wages despite occasional low selling prices).

Erosion and landslides due to heavy rains are already major problems in the areas of Darjeeling I visited this summer. According to Rajah Banerjee of Makaibari Tea Estate, the seasons are becoming unpredictable in terms of temperature (stiflingly hot when it should be warm) and rainfall (torrential when it should be drizzling), which stymies tea growth. Invasive pests such as mosquitoes have appeared with the change in climate. Increased mortality rates due to pest-related disease and landslides have decreased worker morale. Very soon, Indian tea producers in Assam and Darjeeling are going to have to figure out what happens when the glacial runoff from the Himalayas dries up. Some are predicting civil war, which makes sense given the already brittle political situation in Assam. All the obvious consequences of this potential tragedy aside, tea would surely take the back burner at best in these circumstances.

Kenya (one of the world's largest tea producers) suffered a major drought last year that caused its tea production to drop by 19%, in a record-setting decline. It is estimated that id the average world temperature rises by as little as 2 degrees C, then large areas of Kenya's tea-growing region will no longer be able to produce tea. Tea comprises about 1/4 of Kenya's current export earnings, and is, at present, essential to the economic growth of this fragile developing nation.

Meanwhile, one of the few tea plantations in the US is in the middle of a major drought. So much for buying local.

The change in climate has caused the beginning of harvest for first flush teas in China to shift from March 10th (when it has begun for hundreds of years) to March 5th, but that's about it. This means that (as the world's top tea exporter) China would actually BENEFIT (financially) from global warming's damage to other tea exporting nations. Not much of an impetus to ratify the Kyoto Protocol...

Of course, England is LOVING the climate change. Hey, at least they can decrease their carbon footprint by buying tea locally. Too bad it had to some to this before most people even knew what a carbon footprint is.

Soon other countries, including Canada, may have increased food production due to climate change. Right in line with Jared Diamond's brilliant Guns, Germs, and Steel, most of the countries that will be hit the hardest are the ones that are already struggling financially. Could those happen to, oh, I don't know... be some of the same ones tht have low enough labor costs to make tea production profitable? Hmm...

And, of course, some of the major tea companies are getting into the game. Lipton came up with this as a quick fix for a Romanian heat wave (brought on by global warming, no doubt). Gee, that's a long-term solution.

In better news, organic tea production is on the rise in India and elsewhere. Still feeling depressed? Read this article on how to "green" your tea and then follow these simple steps for making your life greener. When you're done making all the immediate changes you can, have a nice cup of tea, and then keep making daily decisions with the environment in mind. I promise you'll feel much better.

The New Museum Knows Tea is Hot...

...and it opens in one month.

tea merch

museum site

Cool!

New Article: Tea and Iron

So, I FINALLY got around to writing a new tea article, and it's a good one. It's all about tea and iron absorption, which is something a lot of people ask me about. Excerpt:

Let’s begin with tannins. Tannins are naturally occurring molecules in tea and (as you may have noticed) they have a bad reputation because of their association with tannic acid (which is used to tan hides to make leather). Though the tannins in tea are in the same class of chemicals as tannic acid, tea does NOT (contrary to popular belief) contain ANY tannic acid. The tannins tea DOES contain are catechins (like EGCG, which is reported to aid in weight loss) and other bioflavonoids (molecules that are noted for their antioxidant properties). Some of these tannins are responsible for the dark color and astringent taste in some teas, particularly black and Oolong teas. Many of them are found in other “healthy” foods, such as berries, pomegranates, and wine.

So tannins are good, right? Yes and maybe also no. It all comes down to iron...


Read more on tea and iron on VeeTea.