Like your cuppa ..............?

If, like me, you enjoy a cup of loose leaf tea, then preparing it correctly will make all the difference!  Lets start with the water, as it makes up over 90% of the end product.! Strange as it may seem, you should never use boiling water, but water just off the boil at a temperature of 85 degrees. Using water that is too hot can result in a bitter tasting tea, and is probably the most common error people make when preparing tea.  And you need good water. The chances are, that if your water tastes good out of the tap, then you will make a good fresh tasting cup of tea. And you should always use fresh water each time you prepare a pot of tea. Water that has boiled previously has lost oxygen which can make your tea taste flat.

The importance of using good water without impurities goes back to the early days when the tea masters, who would sometimes spend as much as two ounces of gold on one or two ounces of their finest tea, demanded only the finest purest water.  This paranoia with water quality and the lengths they went to, to source the best water for their tea can be illustrated by a delightful ancient story.

According to legend, one of the great Song dynasty statesmen, Wang An-Shih, at one time   suffered from a severe pulmonary disease. The emperor presented him with with some special Yang-Hsien tea, which brewed with water taken from mid stream at the second of three rapids along the Yangtze river was believed to be a cure for the disease.  Accordingly, Mr Su, a subordinate to the statesman, was duly ordered to stop on his way back to the capital at the central rapid and collect a big jar of the mid stream water. However, Su was so taken aback by the splendour of the rapids that he forgot his task.  He remembered just as he got to the last rapid so decided to fill the jar with water from the lower level and pretend it was from the mid stream.  When he got back Wang An-Shih was so delighted that he decided to honour Su by making him a pot of the Yang -Hsien tea.   He brewed the tea carefully and waited for it to achieve its characteristic colour. When it did not materialise he asked Su as to where Su had drawn the water. Su assured him that it was from the second rapids to which Wang sternly replied ‘It is wrong of you to deceive an old sick man. Obviously you took it from the lower level’.  Poor Su was overcome with shame and   embarrassment, explained what had happened and begged for forgiveness. He also beseeched his master as to how the lie was detected. Wang revealed that he had learnt from his reading that the upper rapid runs too swiftly, the lower too slowly for the water to be harmonious with the tea, but that the central rapid possessed water which was perfectly in harmony with the tea and     therefore gave the tea its curative properties. Water drawn from the upper rapid would give the tea too much body just as water from the lower rapid would result in tea lacking in body and in taking too long to achieve its correct colour!

The tea masters were right to insist that the flavour of fine tea can be ruined if it is brewed with low quality water. Today, rather than go to the lengths of the ancient tea masters in sourcing the best  water for their tea, a good guideline, is to brew your tea with water that tastes good to drink.

 And always use the best quality leaf tea for the best results. Whichever tea you are using, whether, green, white, oolong or black, make sure there is room for the tea leaves to absorb water and expand as they infuse. This allows water to flow through the leaves and extract a wide range of vitamins, minerals, flavours and aromas. In general terms,  measure a cup of water and a teaspoon of tea for each person, allowing an extra teaspoon for the pot, if you like your tea stronger.  Pour water from a freshly boiled kettle into a cup and then onto the tea in the teapot to get the proportions right. This will also allow the water to cool to the right temperature. Once the tea is brewed, serve the tea liquid into the cup. Pouring all the liquid out of the pot will ensure the leaves don't stew and can be used again for 2 or 3 more infusions.  A tea leaf has so much more to offer than the paltry flavour of a teabag!

Generally, white and green teas don't work with milk, but with black tea, anything goes. Its all a matter of taste.

So go ahead, put your feet up and enjoy the exquisite taste and aroma of a perfectly made cup of tea.