In it what is in it

One man's tê is another man's cha

How different are the names for tea around the world? Not very, I was surprised to find. It turns out that just two Chinese pronunciations form the roots from which almost all the world has learned to name tea. From the Hokkien dialect came tê.  The Afrikaans, Estonian and Finnish tee, the Hebrew, Norwegian and Icelandic te, the French thé, the Hungarian and British tea and the Malay teh are just a few of the 40 or so languages that borrowed from the Hokkien original. From the Cantonese and northern Mandarin dialect came cha. This has formed the basis for tea in almost 60 languages. There is the Japanese, Korean and Bangla cha, the Urdu, Hindi, Persian, Pashto, Ukranian, Bulgarian and Swahili chai and variations such as the Punjabi chah, the Assamese saah, the Nepali chiah, as a few examples.  All this you will find nicely tabulated at "tea etymology and cognates in other languages", part of the Wikipedia write-up on tea.

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Steep.it to time your steeping time

Confused by the title or confused by how long to steep your tea? Visit Steep.it for the answer. Hailing itself as "the simplest internet tea timer EVER" the site lets you enter in the time you want to steep your tea. You can enter in "30 seconds" or "3 minutes", or whatever, and the countdown begins. The screen warms up from pale to a dark and satisfyingly deep golden-red-brown color when you are greeted with, "Tea is done!". It is surprisingly pleasant, as countdown experiences go. You also get hints about the right temperature and, of course, steeping times for various teas. For black tea, 206 degrees Fahrenheit is favored, with steeping for 2 to 3 minutes. (I prefer 212 degrees, boiling water, for starting my extreme black teas).  For green, the recommended water temperature is 175 degrees, for 1 minute.

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In praise of Trader Joe's Pomegranate White Tea

I am not sure if it really qualifies as tea. The subtlety of the white tea leaves asymptotically approaches the imaginary -- but the high notes of the pomegranate are unmistakable and joyous. Tea or not, it is a marvelous refresher at any temperature. I favor it hot, and in a clear glass cup, where the passionate red can bleed out in all its glory. Trader Joe's Pomegranate White Tea bills itself as, "An antioxidant powerhouse". I know some who claim benefits ranging from armor against all winter ills through specific hopes that it can prevent H1N1. For myself, flavor rather than health is the motivator. First, the aroma. It is a like a mini sunburst of piquancy, as you pour steaming water onto the tea bag. Inhaling, you almost taste the pleasant fragrance. 

How to make perfect subcontinental green tea

January was National Hot Tea Month in the US. Having missed all the parades :) I thought at minimum I would enhance my tea knowledge. What better place to visit than Top Green Teas? A nice enough introduction to the teas of Japan and China, but what about Moroccan mint tea?  And what about the Indian subcontinent's romance with Kehwah (or Kahwa)? I think I can remedy that last oversight here.

The subcontinental Kehwah, for starters, has nothing to do with the Arabian Qahwah, which is coffee. The starting point here is green tea leaves which are typically from Sri Lanka, or Assam or Darjeeling in India. And then there is cardamom (shown here) -- the magic that makes the tea special.

Which has more caffeine, tea or coffee? The final answer...

As a convert from umpteen cups of coffee to umpteen cups of tea, I am often asked if that doesn't mean (surprise!) more caffeine? I have been taken aback by this and thought I would research this misconception. Turns out that both answers are correct, but with an important difference. As you drink it, serving for serving, tea has significantly less caffeine, a third to half of the caffeine compared to coffee. On the other hand, in dry form tea actually has more caffeine than coffee!  In some cultures where black tea leaves are boiled together with the water, I suspect that the caffeine could well meet or exceed coffee levels.  Black tea leaves, by the way, have twice the caffeine of green tea.  White tea has somewhat less caffeine than green tea.  For a chart and more tea facts, visit this tea health page. Digg

Cool cups for tea

The 'cool' is literal.  These are double-walled glass cups, with a vacuum seal -- nice to your hands while your tea remains piping hot.  Made by teasetc. and sold in twos.

I just got them from Amazon and am thrilled!  Tea just looks beautiful in them, the color and clarity enticing. They are surprisingly light but sturdy, microwave and dishwasher safe.  And the size is just right at eight ounces.  Bodum's Pavina cups are similar but a bit larger at 8.5 ounces.  Some Amazon customers had found the thin walls a bit too fragile so I didn't go for them.

I have  come to like the lack of a handle.  It invites you to 'cup' the cup with both hands -- and somehow that seems more 'natural' for tea.  

The ideal use for these cups would be to put in them the stunning origami crane teabags designed by Russian designer Natalia Ponomareva. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell these exist as a packaging concept only.

Tea with world leaders

 A German company has designed the DemocraTea and RoyalTea tea bags.  Obama or Putin can now join you for a cuppa, as can Her Royal Highness. Clever idea, similar to the more proletariat South Korean "people" tea bags from the 2007 Seoul design festival.

Brewing Green Tea

 I have recently become a convert to tea.  With the fervor of the newly enlightened, I have been pursuing both leaves and tools, while pausing to consider the process.  For green tea, here is authoritative instruction on how to make it, from a delightful Japanese source. 

I have not yet tried O-Cha.com's green teas.  But my friend who forwarded me the link swears that once you have tasted them, there is no other.  One interesting thing to note: these Japanese teas actually look green.  Most green teas that I have had range from pale yellow through golden.