The Perfect Cup of Tea – Milk or Tea First?
The debate on whether to pour the tea or milk
first dates from the 18th century. Twinings recommends the milk first,
while Tetley suggests that you add it to the tea.
According to many experts, the tea should be
the first and only thing in a teacup ...... most tea aficionados (my
girlfriend included) feel that if you prepare the tea correctly, nothing
needs to be added. Milk will only dilute and change the wonderfully
sophisticated, full flavour that tea provides. However, if you must add
milk, you must.
The legend of the custom of drinking tea with
milk has its roots not in taste, but with economics. The long journey from
the Orient made tea prohibitively expensive. Therefore, pouring sour or old
milk onto the tea would spoil it – a costly mistake. Far easier to pour the
milk first thus making sure it was fresh. Others argue that milk was cheap
and the condiment of choice among the lower classes. The amount of milk
added became a telltale of social standing. The wealthy took their tea
undiluted. The middle class poured the expensive tea and then diluted it
with milk. The lower class filled the cup with cheap milk and then added a
splash of the costly tea.
In Finland there is no such argument; guests
are simply served a hot cup of water (water first) accompanied by a tea bag.
But, how should the perfect cup of tea be
made, British style?
Step One. Begin by filling the kettle with
fresh water. Water that has been boiled before will have lost some of its
dissolved oxygen, vital for tea brewing.
Step Two. Preheat your teapot. While the
water is heating, fill your teapot with hot tap water, let it warm, then
drain it completely.
Step Three. Measure into the teapot 1 table
spoon of loose tea for every cup you plan to pour. Some tea drinkers,
especially those who take milk with their tea, add an extra spoon for the
pot.
Step Four. As soon as the kettle boils, pour
a small amount of the hot water over the tea leaves, to allow them to bloom,
or open up, and release some of their bitter tannins. Drain immediately.
Step Five. Fill the pot with the boiling
water. Keep the spout of the kettle close to the teapot, so the water does
not cool as you pour it in. Cover the teapot and leave the tea to brew. In
general, black teas are best brewed for 4 to 5 minutes; green teas should
brew for no more than 3 minutes.
Step Six. When the tea is ready, pour and
serve all the tea. Avoid keeping leaves in contact with the hot water:
Overbrewed tea tends to taste bitter.
Step Seven. To keep the tea warm through
several cups, transfer the tea to an insulated pot or cover your regular
teapot with a tea cosy. Don't apply additional heat to keep the tea warm,
as this will quickly degrade its flavour.
Step Eight. A good-quality tea can be infused
three to five times. Just add more boiling water. Let it steep for less
time with each brew.
The finished tea should be a "rich, attractive
colour" and be somewhere in the region of 65 degrees centigrade – any hotter
and scientists warn that "vulgar slurping" might be required. Believe it or
not - there is a British Standard, BS6008: Method for Preparation of a
Liquor of Tea.
Finally, I am off to drink one of the
estimated 196 million cups of tea drunk every day by the British!
Mike Bangle is the owner of Talking English
language consultancy and can be contacted at mike.bangle(at)phnet.fi
Word List
to pour |
kaataa
juomaa |
aficionado |
innokas
harrastaja |
to dilute |
laimentaa |
sophisticated |
hienostunut |
prohibitively |
kohtuuttoman |
sour |
hapan |
condiment |
mauste,
höyste |
telltale |
paljastava |
splash |
tilkka |
argument |
kiista |
to drain |
tyhjentää |
spout |
nokka |
to brew |
hauduttaa,
valmistaa |
tea cozy |
tee myssy |
to degrade |
alentaa |
steep |
liottaa,
hauduttaa |
vulgar slurping |
rahvaanomainen ryystäminen |
|