|
On March 22 2013 10:37 Thereisnosaurus wrote:
honestly, I haven't really heard of it before either. There are references to it in a couple of fiction books I've read and it has clearly been a thing because, well, most of the tea you drink is blended or mixed in some way. There does seem to be a tisane mixing scene, which makes sense because you can basically throw anything together to make one. I got interested in the idea thanks to looking at some really nice chai blends which had a really chunky sort of mixing that you could see whole cloves and cardamoms and shiz in. that particular blend is hella expensive, so I figured it might be easier just to buy the spices wholesale and mix my own chai spice. then I figured, why not do the same with fruits or herbs. I haven't actually tried it much yet, because I'm poor as fuck right now and the weather has been hot, but when we hit winter I think I'm going to do a shopping trip and stock up on stuff to spike my daily tea with. May as well start a of listing of basic stuff, see if anyone else has any wild ideas
Dried fruits: orange, mandarin, lemon and lime peel, crystalised ginger, slivered almonds, wolfberries (goji), dessicated coconut, dried cranberries, dried apple, dried pear, dried peach, dried apricot, dried forest berries (straw/blue/black), dried mango, dried pineapple, macadamia nuts, coffee beans.
Dried florals & herbs: dried rose, dessicated safflower, dried jasmine, dried spearmint & peppermint, fresh eucalyptus leaf, dried cornflower, lemongrass, liquorice root, ecchinea
Spices: green cardamoms, nutmegs, cinnamon quills, cloves, vanilla bean, (when I win the lottery XD, they cost like 7 bucks each here), fennel,
Random stuff: caramel/toffee chunks, various essences incl. bergamot, rose, peppermint etc, ginseng, freezedried chocolate,
Cool list, thanks.
Making your own orange, mandarin, lemon and lime peel is quite easy. When cutting the fruits, don’t cut to deep and avoid the white stuff, which is bitter.
|
Finally completed my tea set today! 
edit: gotta fix the pic 
|
|
|
I am by no means an expert, but I really like Earl Grey. My question to you all is: Is there any tea similar and/or even better tasting than Earl Grey that I should try? Unflavored black or any green is not my cup of tea (Did you see what I just did?).
|
On April 11 2013 19:24 HowardRoark wrote:
I am by no means an expert, but I really like Earl Grey. My question to you all is: Is there any tea similar and/or even better tasting than Earl Grey that I should try? Unflavored black or any green is not my cup of tea (Did you see what I just did?).
I like Lady Grey as well. Both of those teas are my favorites (though Jasmine is really good too, as is white) and depending on my mood in the morning I'll choose between Lady and Earl Grey teas.
|
Not sure if you're from the US, but I just went to the mall a few days ago and we have a store called Teavana that has a bunch of assorted teas. I picked up a creme early grey that's unbelievably good. They seem to have a pretty good selection too I'm going to have to go back soon and grab some more stuff.
http://www.teavana.com/the-teas/black-teas/p/earl-grey-creme-black-tea
Give it a go!
Edit: This was for the guy asking about other Black Teas
|
On April 16 2013 10:17 Watchy wrote:Not sure if you're from the US, but I just went to the mall a few days ago and we have a store called Teavana that has a bunch of assorted teas. I picked up a creme early grey that's unbelievably good. They seem to have a pretty good selection too I'm going to have to go back soon and grab some more stuff. http://www.teavana.com/the-teas/black-teas/p/earl-grey-creme-black-teaGive it a go! Edit: This was for the guy asking about other Black Teas
I already have it. The only thing I don't like about it is that the vanilla rises to the top so its annoying to drink if you dont use a strainer.
I don't really like teavana, they add to much stuff to their tea. When i go to buy tea, I want to buy tea, not apples.
|
I've always found black teas to be too bitter. No matter how they're prepared I just can't get used to the taste.
Rooibos teas make the best iced teas imo... They're naturally sweet so there's no need to add sugar or anything to them. They also taste great with a meal (I like a cup with my lunch). I'm addicted to genmaicha tea atm, it's so delicious!
For anyone experiencing allergies this time of year, I totally recommend nettle tea. It has antihistamine and anti-hemorrhaging properties. Beware of the smell though! It smells like wet dog to me and the first few cups I had caused me to gag. Only have one cup per day for the first week or so because you might get diarrhea but once your body gets used to it, go to town (though I don't know many people who truly enjoy nettle tea).
Tea is definitely superior to coffee in all respects. It's healthier, considerably less caffeine, and doesn't leave you feeling like a dehydrated energizer bunny.
For the people who are consuming over 3L of tea, I seriously recommend taking some form of salt supplements. Over 2.5L/day of any fluid isn't recommenced and salt supplements are necessary if you want to continue to drink large amounts of tea.
|
@ zodiac. The key to getting a mellow black is to use slightly under boiling temp water and a very quick steep. So you only want to steep the leaves for maybe 10 seconds with a teabag, or 30 seconds with full leaves. Also, pick teas known for their sweetness or maltiness as this generally counteracts bitter flavours.
My personal favourite gentle tea is melbourne breakfast
|
On April 16 2013 14:34 Thereisnosaurus wrote:@ zodiac. The key to getting a mellow black is to use slightly under boiling temp water and a very quick steep. So you only want to steep the leaves for maybe 10 seconds with a teabag, or 30 seconds with full leaves. Also, pick teas known for their sweetness or maltiness as this generally counteracts bitter flavours. My personal favourite gentle tea is melbourne breakfast
Hmm... ten-thirty seconds seems so short... I will look for teas that are sweet though. I might just not be made for black tea. Who knows...
|
On April 17 2013 02:49 zodiaczerg wrote:Show nested quote +On April 16 2013 14:34 Thereisnosaurus wrote:@ zodiac. The key to getting a mellow black is to use slightly under boiling temp water and a very quick steep. So you only want to steep the leaves for maybe 10 seconds with a teabag, or 30 seconds with full leaves. Also, pick teas known for their sweetness or maltiness as this generally counteracts bitter flavours. My personal favourite gentle tea is melbourne breakfast Hmm... ten-thirty seconds seems so short... I will look for teas that are sweet though. I might just not be made for black tea. Who knows...
10-30 seconds does sound very short to me. I think it would result in a quite weak tea unless you increase the amount of tea leaves.
I usualy drink black tea in the morning, but sometimes I got a little sick of drinking strong black tea on an empty stomach. When I drink black tea on an empty stomach now I reduce the amount of tea by roughly one third and let it steep for 2 minutes and I feel fine. I also liked my tea sweet especially in the mornings I always added sugar to my tea. I stopped adding sugar to my tea at some point and after a short period I got used to drinking it like that. Maybe a month later I tried a cup of tea with sugar and I didn't like it at all. It is the same with certain types of tea, for example most people don't like green tea when they first try it, but once they got used to it they really enjoy it. Maybe you are not a black tea person, or you are just not used to it.
|
yes, overloading tea leaves are a reasonably good way of getting strong tea without the woodyness. 30 seconds with a double serve of tea leaves is fine. My usual brew is two teabags in a mug about twice normal mug size, jiggled for about 10 seconds. It might be a bit weak for some, but it's a good, smooth taste.
|
If you want a light tea to start your day, try out chinese jasmine leaves, preferably whole young leaves curled and dried into balls. Light and floral (brewed below boiling) tea for those who dislike a cup of heavy black tea in the morning. Personally I like New Zealand Breakfast teas in the morning with a touch of milk.
|
On April 17 2013 12:57 vic_gn wrote:Show nested quote +On April 17 2013 02:49 zodiaczerg wrote:On April 16 2013 14:34 Thereisnosaurus wrote:@ zodiac. The key to getting a mellow black is to use slightly under boiling temp water and a very quick steep. So you only want to steep the leaves for maybe 10 seconds with a teabag, or 30 seconds with full leaves. Also, pick teas known for their sweetness or maltiness as this generally counteracts bitter flavours. My personal favourite gentle tea is melbourne breakfast Hmm... ten-thirty seconds seems so short... I will look for teas that are sweet though. I might just not be made for black tea. Who knows... 10-30 seconds does sound very short to me. I think it would result in a quite weak tea unless you increase the amount of tea leaves. I usualy drink black tea in the morning, but sometimes I got a little sick of drinking strong black tea on an empty stomach. When I drink black tea on an empty stomach now I reduce the amount of tea by roughly one third and let it steep for 2 minutes and I feel fine. I also liked my tea sweet especially in the mornings I always added sugar to my tea. I stopped adding sugar to my tea at some point and after a short period I got used to drinking it like that. Maybe a month later I tried a cup of tea with sugar and I didn't like it at all. It is the same with certain types of tea, for example most people don't like green tea when they first try it, but once they got used to it they really enjoy it. Maybe you are not a black tea person, or you are just not used to it.
No, no.
Especially when it comes to black teas the idea is to manipulate the flavor with the steeping time, not with the amount of leaves. The amount of leaves dictates how "strong" the flavors will be. However, most people err on the side of using too much tea. If you have a high-quality product using about half of what is in your average store-bought teabag gets very good results and using more leaves would most likely harm the flavor of the tea.
Steeping time. In a nutshell the longer the steeping time the more bitters get released which counteract the caffeine. What this means in practice is that (in general) a steeping time of 1-3 minutes makes for a stimulating tea and 5-8 minutes makes for a tea that will calm you down instead. The longer the steeping time the more bitter and "fruity" the tea becomes while a short steeping time results in a more "crisp" or "natural" kind of flavor.
Also, in general, the worse the product in terms of age and quality the more you have to tend to the long side of the above numbers. If I compare my "omg I'm so bio and garden"-Darjeeling to a random store bought Darjeeling the latter needs more around 3 minutes while the former gets his best results around 1.5 minutes. 30 seconds steep time isn't way out there, it all depends on the specific tea and how it was processed. Again in a nutshell, the weaker the fermentation process the longer the tea will need.
|
5003 Posts
No, no.
Especially when it comes to black teas the idea is to manipulate the flavor with the steeping time, not with the amount of leaves. The amount of leaves dictates how "strong" the flavors will be. However, most people err on the side of using too much tea. If you have a high-quality product using about half of what is in your average store-bought teabag gets very good results and using more leaves would most likely harm the flavor of the tea.
there's a style of brewing that just uses extremely high leaf to water ratio with very short infusion times, just throwing that out there, which is what I think the 10-30 second infusion time is referring to. (but why they would brew this style with a blend, i have no idea, so carry on)
|
Twinning's Earl Grey all the way!
|
On April 17 2013 14:49 r.Evo wrote:
No, no.
Especially when it comes to black teas the idea is to manipulate the flavor with the steeping time, not with the amount of leaves. The amount of leaves dictates how "strong" the flavors will be. However, most people err on the side of using too much tea. If you have a high-quality product using about half of what is in your average store-bought teabag gets very good results and using more leaves would most likely harm the flavor of the tea.
Steeping time. In a nutshell the longer the steeping time the more bitters get released which counteract the caffeine. What this means in practice is that (in general) a steeping time of 1-3 minutes makes for a stimulating tea and 5-8 minutes makes for a tea that will calm you down instead. The longer the steeping time the more bitter and "fruity" the tea becomes while a short steeping time results in a more "crisp" or "natural" kind of flavor.
Also, in general, the worse the product in terms of age and quality the more you have to tend to the long side of the above numbers. If I compare my "omg I'm so bio and garden"-Darjeeling to a random store bought Darjeeling the latter needs more around 3 minutes while the former gets his best results around 1.5 minutes. 30 seconds steep time isn't way out there, it all depends on the specific tea and how it was processed. Again in a nutshell, the weaker the fermentation process the longer the tea will need.
I absolutly have to disagree that it harms the flavor of the tea, but it greatly depends on which tea you are using. I find that the gongfu cha method produces an overall better experience when used for oolong or pu-erh tea, or at least I find it more enjoyable. I have not tried this method on any Indian black teas and I was also not recommending using it, since I have never tried it before and thus can't provide an educated statement.
I would be curious, have you actually tried doubling the amount of tea leaves and reducing the steaping time when preparing black tea? Or is it something you have heard that you should not do?
I experienced that there are a lot of different ways to prepare your tea and it is not only different between cultures and specific teas but also every person likes their tea a little different and often they will recommend you prepare the tea in which way they like it. That is not necessarily the method of preparation you like the most. There are people who like their tea stronger and others who like it weaker and you can't say that either of the two is preparing it incorrectly. Usually the recommended method of preparation is the one which most people find enjoyable.
|
I don't know if its just me or not, but so far my experience with twinings tea, their pure green and chinese oolong, the tea taste kind of plastic-like in a way and makes me not want to try any other flavors. I thought maybe this has something to do with their packaging since the tea packets smell like a fresh pack of a trading card game
|
On April 19 2013 02:54 vic_gn wrote:Show nested quote +On April 17 2013 14:49 r.Evo wrote:
No, no.
Especially when it comes to black teas the idea is to manipulate the flavor with the steeping time, not with the amount of leaves. The amount of leaves dictates how "strong" the flavors will be. However, most people err on the side of using too much tea. If you have a high-quality product using about half of what is in your average store-bought teabag gets very good results and using more leaves would most likely harm the flavor of the tea.
Steeping time. In a nutshell the longer the steeping time the more bitters get released which counteract the caffeine. What this means in practice is that (in general) a steeping time of 1-3 minutes makes for a stimulating tea and 5-8 minutes makes for a tea that will calm you down instead. The longer the steeping time the more bitter and "fruity" the tea becomes while a short steeping time results in a more "crisp" or "natural" kind of flavor.
Also, in general, the worse the product in terms of age and quality the more you have to tend to the long side of the above numbers. If I compare my "omg I'm so bio and garden"-Darjeeling to a random store bought Darjeeling the latter needs more around 3 minutes while the former gets his best results around 1.5 minutes. 30 seconds steep time isn't way out there, it all depends on the specific tea and how it was processed. Again in a nutshell, the weaker the fermentation process the longer the tea will need. I absolutly have to disagree that it harms the flavor of the tea, but it greatly depends on which tea you are using. I find that the gongfu cha method produces an overall better experience when used for oolong or pu-erh tea, or at least I find it more enjoyable. I have not tried this method on any Indian black teas and I was also not recommending using it, since I have never tried it before and thus can't provide an educated statement. I would be curious, have you actually tried doubling the amount of tea leaves and reducing the steaping time when preparing black tea? Or is it something you have heard that you should not do? I experienced that there are a lot of different ways to prepare your tea and it is not only different between cultures and specific teas but also every person likes their tea a little different and often they will recommend you prepare the tea in which way they like it. That is not necessarily the method of preparation you like the most. There are people who like their tea stronger and others who like it weaker and you can't say that either of the two is preparing it incorrectly. Usually the recommended method of preparation is the one which most people find enjoyable.
Oh, yeah, I'm talking about black tea exclusively, oolong or pu-erh are a different story. From my understanding when it comes to green teas (since techincally oolong or black tea are just more fermented green teas) the less fermented the tea is the less leaves you need as a rule of thumb.
I've tried both increasing/decreasing the amount of leaves and playing with the steeping time. I'd say the steeping time influences the kind of general flavor (mostly bitterness) and the amount of leaves the "strength" of that specific flavor. However, the higher quality the tea the less leaves I need to get the "right strength" together. Wording it this way probably makes more sense.
@Milkis: Got any more info what that is referring to? That sounds interesting. :>
|
5003 Posts
(since techincally oolong or black tea are just more fermented green teas)
Hmmm. It's not exactly fermentation, it's oxidation of the leaves before processing. Although you're right in that part of the aging process is the leaves slowly getting oxidized, but there are very few teas that do well to long term aging. Also a big part of it also depends on processing.
Anyway...
However, the higher quality the tea the less leaves I need to get the "right strength" together. Wording it this way probably makes more sense.
The higher the quality the tea the more you're wasting it if you're not using enough. This is the point of gongfu brewing -- only the best quality teas can stand up to gongfu style brewing without being terrible. Most teas can taste somewhat decent if you just brew them lightly, but only the good ones will stand up to the test of being brewed gongfu style.
Although when you're brewing gongfu style it's a completely different philosophy than western style tea brewing, since you're looking for more things than just aroma and flavor
Anyway I was referring to gongfu brewing
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
