How To Make Perfect Tea

As a tea drinker of some 30 years experience here is my contribution as to what makes the perfect cup of tea. The best way to make tea has been a subject of great debate for centuries.
Good quality water is essential for the perfect cup of tea. If you use tap water then run the tap until the water is cold and fresh. Spring water is best due to its purity and lack of additives such as chlorine and fluoride which can affect the taste. Always use fresh water if possible.

1.
2. Preferably use a teapot made of china or earthenware.
Pots made of certain types of metal such as enamel silver
or copper can impart flavor to the water. Stainless steel
is okay.
Warm the pot beforehand with a little hot water. 3.
4. Add at least one level teaspoon for each cup of water
that you are going to add. Adding loose tea to the pot is
the best way for the tea to infuse properly but many people
prefer to use a tea strainer or infusing basket for
convenience sake.
Pour boiling water directly onto the leaves and then stir the water before placing lid back on the teapot. 5.
6. Let the tea steep for between four and five minutes. If
using green tea three minutes is best.
Remove or strain the leaves to avoid overbrewing. 7.
8. The cup that you drink out of can greatly affect the
taste of the tea so choose wisely. A good quality cup made
of china will definitely enhance the whole tea drinking
experience. Avoid wide shallow cups which cause the tea to
cool in next to no time.
9. Pour milk into the cup first. Ah, yes this is the step
that causes most controversy. Many an argument has been
had concerning whether or not it is best to add the milk to
the tea or vice versa. I have always preferred milk first
then tea but my husband argues that it is easier to
regulate the right amount of milk by adding milk
afterwards!
Now scientists have waded into the debate and the verdict
is clear. The UK Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)has warned
against the practice of adding milk to tea after it is
poured. It seems that dribbling a stream of milk into hot
water makes "denaturation of milk proteins" more likely.
And who would want that?! At high temperatures, milk
proteins - which are normally all curled up foetus-like,
begin to unfold and link together in clumps. This is what
happens in UHT [ultra heat-treated] milk, and is why it
doesn't taste as good a fresh milk," says Dr Andrew
Stapley, a chemical engineer at Loughborough University.
It is better to have the chilled milk massed at the bottom
of the cup, awaiting the stream of hot tea. This allows the
milk to cool the tea, rather than the tea ruinously raise
the temperature of the milk.
Umm, somehow I don't think so!! The milk or tea first debate is now over! So it is now settled.
10. Lastly, drink tea without any sugar. I must admit to
being a reformed sugary tea drinker and you know what that
means. Yes, I am now passionately against putting sugar in
tea. As one who has sat on both sides of the fence I can
say that tea is so much better without sweetening. Sugar
only serves to mask the taste of the tea. Not only that too
much sugar is not good for you and why spoil what is now
being recognized as one of the world's great health drinks
by adding sugar. When I stopped taking my two spoonfuls of
sugar in my tea it took me about three or four weeks to get
used to the new taste. However once I got used to it there
was no going back.
So there you have it - the perfect cup of tea!
Lorraine Bevere is the webmaster and operator of FOG
Tea
For questions or comments about this article, please visit: which is a premier source of information about tea.
http://fogtea.com

The Hidden Benefits of Green Tea

Do you drink green tea? If you are not aware of the goodness of green tea then you should read this article. Green tea is one of the best drink available today. It's not only easily available today, green tea are sell at very reasonable price.
Green tea leaves can be used as a medicine for body aches and pains, poor digestion, , headaches and also to improve general well being.
Generally, Green tea leaves contain tannins ,caffeine, essential oils, proteins, vitamins, minerals and trace elements such as fluoride, zinc and potassium. Very minimal processing is required to produce green tea.
Green tea is naturally also rich in antioxidants. It will help the body to protect cells from free radicals (unstable molecules found in our cells). This antioxidants will neutralize the free radicals. As such, drinking green tea regularly has been linked (via loads of research) with the prevention of cancer; help in lowers the risk high blood cholesterol and also harmful blood clotting and stroke.
One of the other benefits is that green tea is very good for arthritis sufferers. It this because of its anti-inflammatory properties will help lesser the pain.
Most of the people not aware that the caffeine in green tea has an invigorating effect and it promotes concentration. This is not only good for those who need more concentration in accomplishing their work or do well in study like student and professionals.
It is also ideal after dinner as a palette cleanser. Apart from that, Green tea is also antibacterial and the trace element fluorine helps to fight tooth decay.
Other nenefits of green tea is that it is capable to cleanse the body. In fact it has been use for quite some time to all types of detoxification diets.
Green tea is an excellent thirst quencher. It is a great and refreshing drink too. refreshing drink.
Let look at the usual Preparation of The Tea.
Then pour the water over the tea and leave the tea to brew. Boil your water and then let the water sit for a couple of minutes - to cool slightly. Use one level teaspoon of tea leaves per cup.
Brewing the tea for 2-3 minutes will give you a mild tasting but highly stimulating tea.
Brewing the tea for 4-6 minutes yields a less stimulating and stronger tasting tea.
Please take note that the caffeine in green tea can cause heart palpitations in extra sensitive people.
Green tea is a great topic to discuss and it has become increasingly
important topic today, Follow the experts advice
correctly and you'll greatly benefited from green tea.

Brewing Green Tea - The Top Ten Reasons Your Green Tea Didn't Turn Out Good

I've put together a top ten list explaining why this may have occured. Perhaps it may have been too bitter, or not really as "green" as you had anticipaged. However, if you have ever tried to brew it, there is a good chance it didn't turn out like you may have wanted it to.

Japanese green tea, when brewed correctly, is quite delicious.
You brewed it too hot. If you brew it too hot, it will become bitter. This is probably the most common of all mistakes, and one which has the most influence over the taste. Depending of the variety of green tea, it should be brewed around 175 degrees F, give or take 5 degrees.
You started off with old green tea. Green tea, "when properly packaged", has a shelf life of about 6 months. Once opened, you have about 2-3 months to use it. That's for properly packaged (vacuum packed or nitrogen packaged) tea - If your green tea wasn't packaged properly and is exposed to any amount of air, it probably was never good to begin with.
You can get this throughout the year, however. It's no big secret - the best green tea comes from the first harvest in late April, early May. Your green tea was from a late harvest.
You brewed it too long. This depends on the variety, but generally speaking, no more than 2 minutes.
You used too much tea. This is where you have more room for adjustment. Again, it depends on the variety, but for normal sencha, about one teaspoon to 8-10 ounces of water. For one type of tea, you may have to use an even level teaspoon, and for another a heaping teaspoon; it will vary from tea to tea.
You didn't use enough tea. For gyokuro, you won't get good results unless you use double the amount used for sencha.
You didn't start out with good water.You need good water.
You tried to use a tea ball or paper filter. Green tea is compact. Once you brew, it really expands and needs plenty of space to open up.
You tried to use a 2 liter English Teapot. If you really know what you are doing, it is possible to use a Western teapot to brew green tea. However, you would be way better off using one designed for green tea.
Just because it's from Japan doesn't necessarily mean it's good. Even in Japan, the quality levels of green tea vary considerably. You started of with low quality tea.
Kevin Moore, owner and operator of
http://www.O-Cha.com
, was one of the first online shops dedicating itself to selling Japanese green tea. Based out of Japan, O-Cha.com offers a large variety of loose leaf green teas, matcha, and brewing supplies, in addition to helpful advice on all aspects of green tea.