Tea Fact Friday/Saturday

Well, someone was asleep at the switch! Tea Fact Friday will be on Saturday this week. Sorry to keep you waiting. Today's Tea Fact is about the Opium War waged by Great Britain against China in 1840-41. Opium was the primary trade commodity of the East India Trading Company. The Company grew opium in India and sold it in China. China moved to outlaw the sale of opium and Great Britain declared war in defense of the Trading Company. After losing the war, China was forced to cede Hong Kong to Britain and open 4 ports to British trade which was opium. Ultimately Britain/East India Trading Co. gave up opium production for tea production, but that is another fact.

Thanks again to James Norwood Pratt's Tea Dictionary, Tea Society Press, San Francisco, California. Printed in India

See you Tuesday - Julee

Tea Myth Tuesday - Back Again

Hello again! It feels like ages since I have looked at tea and myths, but it was just one week.
Amazing our perceptions of time. OK! Here we go! Today's myth is: White Teas have less caffeine than green or black teas. Here are some figures from my friend Nigel Melican that I got at the World Tea Expo:
White teas had a caffeine range of 3.4 - 5.7% with a caffeine mean of 4.9%.
Green teas' caffeine ranged from 1.7 - 3.9% with a caffeine mean of 2.9%
Black teas' caffeine ranged from 2.0 - 5.4% with a caffeine mean of 2.5%.
The same amounts of white and green teas were measured with slightly MORE black teas measured. Therefore, I declare this myth BUSTED! See you Friday for Tea Facts!

Julee

Thanks to Nigel Melican at Teacraft, Ltd. , Bedford, England

Tea Fact Friday

Hello! I am back to Tea Fact Friday! Had a wonderful experience at the 1st annual Los Angeles Tea Festival. Two full days of nothing but tea with people who love tea and can talk about it all day long!! Over 1000 people attended which is terrific! I can't wait for our 4th annual NW Tea Festival, October 1-2 at Seattle Center! Mark your calendars!

Here is a fact: There is nothing to make me more exhilarated than drinking and discussing tea with other tea lovers for several hours a day!

Another fact: Ceylon is the colonial name of the island of Sri Lanka. The ancient Sinhalese name was re-adopted by the island when it became a Sovereign Republic in the Commonwealth in 1972. It was always known to the Arabs as the Ilse of Serendip. World-famous teas grown on the island continues to use the colonial name.

Thanks to James Norwood Pratt's Tea Dictionary, The Tea Society Press, San Francisco, Printed in India 2010/

Tea Fact Friday - Grading

Hello, welcome to Friday again:
Today's tea fact is Grading: The final step in the manufacture of black tea. The made tea is passed through several sieves of progressively smaller mesh sizes to separate the leaves into different sizes called: GRADES. Machines have been invented to do this work but all of them use the basic principal of shaking screens with varying mesh sizes.

Thanks to The Tea Dictionary by James Norwood Pratt, The Tea Society Press, San Francisco, Calif. Printed in India 2010

Tea Myth Tuesday - Caffeine Tea vs Coffee

Hello and late again:
Today's myth relates to caffeine: Tea and Coffee have the same amount of caffeine.
OK this one has two parts:
Part One: Dry product caffeine (g/kg)
R&G Arabica 9 - 12
R&G Robusta 18 - 22
Typical green/black tea 29 - 35

Part Two: Prepared product caffeine (mg/250ml)
Drip Brewed Coffee 106 - 173
Percolated Coffee 128 - 216
Starbucks Decaf 15
Assam 86
Green 59
White Bai Mu Dan 75

So, there you have it - partly Busted partly accurate. I guess it depends on whether you drink your tea dry or wet. See you next time.

Oh, Thanks to Nigel Melican and Teacraft for the information

Julee

Tea Fact Friday - Fruit Infusion

Hello: Running a bit late today, it seems everyone I know needed to talk to me before noon today! Oh well, I am here now. Today's Tea Fact - Fruit Infusion: concoctions made without Camellia sinensis, caffeine and tannin-free. Many are blended on a base of hibiscus, rose hips and various other fruits, berries and flowers. Can be enjoyed hot or cold and frequently make exquisite iced drinks. They are ideal for people who are caffeine intolerant.

Thanks again to The Tea Dictionary by James Norwood Pratt, The Tea Society Press, San Francisco, CA 2010.

Tea Myth Tuesday - Green Tea is better than Black

Good Morning, again: Nice to greet you once again.
Today's myth is that green tea is better for you than black. This myth is about antioxidants and the way we are being manipulated by media groups with a specific agenda not necessarily related to tea.
This myth has several parts:
a) Antioxidants are removed by processing making green teas better than blacks. At this point there is no indication that processing removes ANY antioxidants. BUSTED
b) White tea has significantly higher antioxidants than green or black. Also not true. BUSTED
c) Black tea has far less antioxidants than Green Teas (see #a) NO. BUSTED
d) Milk wipes out the antioxidant benefits of tea - NOT AT NORMAL LEVELS. BUSTED
e) Green tea pill supplements are as good for you as drinking tea - NO - A pill provides only tea extract and a few cathecins but does not provide the full spectrum of elements that you receive in a cup of tea - whatever style. BUSTED

Thanks again to Nigel Melican at Teacraft for his inspiration and facts. He is curreently in Uganda and when he gets back I will regale you with more stats than you can imagine.

Please check my spelling!

See you Friday,
Julee