THE tea lover’s COMPANION
A short guide to everything you need to know about the humble cup of tea. Written and Illustrated by Hattie Windley
contents.
04
06
Introduction to Tea.
Types of tea.
08
10
Opinions.
Health benefits.
14
16
Statistics.
How to make the perfect cup of tea.
An introduction to tea. Tea has been around for thousands of years and was thought to be discovered in China by Emperor Shen Nung when some tea leaves blew from a nearby bush into his drinking water while he was boiling it.
Tea in BritAin The arrival of tea in Britain in the seventeenth century altered the drinking habits of this nation forever. The late eighteenth century saw black tea overtake green tea in popularity for the first time, which also accelerated the addition of milk. In the nineteenth century widespread cultivation of tea in India began, leading to the imports of Indian tea into Britain overtaking the imports of Chinese tea. By the mid 18th century tea replaced ale & gin as the
drink of the masses to become Britain’s most popular beverage. And in the twentieth century there was a further development that would radically change our tea-drinking habits - the invention of the tea bag. However, despite tea’s national status as a very English drink, Britain is only the second largest nation of tea drinkers per capita. Ireland is the first.
Types of tea There are an estimated 1,500 different varieties of tea, however, we don’t have time to go through that many! Oolong, green and black tea all come from the same plant but are processed differently. They come from Camellia sinensis which is an evergreen plant that grows mainly in tropical and subtropical climates.
Categories based on processing * White: Wilted and unoxidized * Yellow: Unwilted and unoxidized, but allowed to yellow * Green: Unwilted and unoxidized * Oolong: Wilted, bruised, and partially oxidized * Black: Wilted, sometimes crushed,
and fully oxidized (called ‘red tea’ in China) * Post-Fermented: Green tea that has been allowed to ferment/compost (‘black tea’ for the Chinese)
there’s tea “Where there’s hope.
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- Arthur Wing Pinero
It keeps my body feeling nourished.
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- Paayal Makdani
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The sugar rush gets me through the day. - Peter Daniels
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It’s like a reward or a Green tea makes me feel break, it’s the first thing you cleansed and detoxed. want when you get home. - Amelia Bramwell
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- Gina Windley
A socialising drink that makes me feel relaxed and refreshed!
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- Laura Harris
Health benefits Tea is widely known as a health drink or a detox. Green tea especially has become a health phenomenon over the past few years, gaining popularity for its known metabolism boosting effects.
A healthy mouth Tea is a natural source of fluoride that can help protect against tooth decay and gum disease. Although supermarket own brands of tea can contain toxic levels of flouride, so you can be excused for being picky with your tea choices.
ANTIOXIDANTS All teas from the camellia tea plant are rich in polyphenols, which are a type of antioxidant. These wonder nutrients scavenge for cell-damaging free radicals in the body and detoxify them. “Whether it’s green or black, tea has about eight to 10 times the polyphenols found in fruits and vegetables.” Having lots of anti-oxidants
in your diet hugely reduce the risk of most cancers.
HEART DISEASE Drinking tea could help reduce the risk of heart attack. Tea might also help protect against cardiovascular and degenerative diseases.
PARKINSONS DISEASE Drinking tea is linked with a lower risk of Parkinson’s disease. When considered with other factors like smoking, physical activity, age and body mass index, regular tea drinking was associated with a lowered risk of Parkinson’s in men and women.
statistics I could go on forever back tracking through all the old statistics of increase in sales of English tea, but I thought I could focus on the modern tea market. Below is a table from Whittard’s showing the highest increase in sales of tea this year and interestingly they are all health teas. % Increase in sales
Health Tea
Benefit
83%
Lemon, Ginger & Echinacea
Helps ease nausea, heartburn and indigestion
47%
Fennel, Liquorice and Aniseed
Helps facilitate weight loss and aids digestion
62%
Peppermint tea
Improves digestion and helps ease diarrhoea and irritable bowel syndrome
33%
Chamomile
Relaxing and sleep promoting
67%
Organic Rooibos
Calming and relaxing properties
brewing the perfect cup of tea. Step 1. Warm your teapot with hot, but not boiling, water. Step 2. Add your desired tea - 3 to 4 teaspoons of loose leaf tea is enough to serve 6. Alternatively if using teabags 2 to 3 should suffice. Step 3. Add boiling water. Make sure the water is boiling and has not been reboiled as this will spoil the taste. Step 4. Let the tea sit in the teapot for 3 to 5 minutes. However this can vary on the type of tea you are drinking, for green or herbal teas reduce this brewing time to avoid a bitter tasting brew.
Step 5. Add milk according to your preference, before or after you add the tea as each can result in a different taste. Step 6. Add sugar or just give it a stir. Step 7. Sit back, put your feet up and enjoy your delicious cup of tea.
Fin.