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What
is tea?
True "teas" are made from the dried
leaves of the Camellia sinensis, the tea plant, which was first
cultivated in China and found growing wild in India. Chinese monks
and European traders introduced it to Japan, Sri Lanka and other
countries. Today there are more than 3000 varieties of tea, each
having its own distinct character and named for the district in
which it is grown. Green tea is produced by steaming fresh-picked
leaves before heat-drying. Black tea is produced by allowing picked
tea leaves to completely ferment before firing. Oolong teas are
only partially fermented.
What
is a Tea Brick and is the tea drinkable?
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Centuries ago the inventive Chinese,
who created the earliest banking system with coins and paper
bank notes, found that their currency had no value when trading
with people in far away Mongolia and Tibet. Their solution
to this problem was to turn their most valued product, tea,
into bricks. The tea bricks were even scored so they could
be broken to make change. Today, these sculpted tea bricks
with traditional Chinese motifs, are mainly used for decoration
as the quality of the tea is very poor. They make very unique
gifts and interesting conversation pieces.
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Tip: If
you choose to purchase a tea brick you may want to apply a coat
of clear lacquer to protect it from humidity. |
How
much loose tea should I use to make a cup of tea?
To make an 8 ounce
(250 ml) cup of tea, use the following chart as a guideline. Adjust
to taste.
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| White tea |
2 tsp. (20 ml) |
| Green tea |
1 tsp. (10 ml) |
| Oolong tea |
2 tsp. (20 ml) |
| Black tea |
1 tsp. (10 ml) |
| Herbal "tea" |
Start with 1 tsp. (1 gm),
and increase to desired taste. |
Are
there really any health benefits gained from drinking green tea?
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Green tea has a high content
of vitamins and minerals. It contains ascorbic acid
(vitamin C) in amounts comparable to a lemon. Green
tea also contains several B vitamins which are water
soluble and quickly released into a cup of tea. Five
cups of green tea a day will provide 5-10% of the daily
requirement of riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, and pantothenic
acid. The same five cups of green tea also provide approximately
5% of the daily requirement of magnesium, 25% of potassium,
and 45% of the requirement for manganese. Green tea
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is also high in fluoride.
A cup of green tea provides approximately 0.1 mg of
fluoride, which is higher than in fluorinated water.
Scientific studies have shown strong evidence that green
tea may help reduce the risk of strokes and heart disease,
and may also prevent some cancers.
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What
are "herbal teas" and "herbal infusions"?
Herbal "teas" contain no true tea
leaves, but are created from an international collection of herbs
and spices such as Moroccan rosebuds, Oregon mint, tropical hibiscus,
cinnamon from Indonesia and more. These all-natural botanical
ingredients are combined to create exciting flavors and aromas
in a rainbow of colors from pale yellow to deep red.
How
do you brew the Matcha tea?
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Matcha tea is used in the traditional
Japanese Tea Ceremony. For the ceremony the powdered Matcha
is measured with a chashaku (bamboo spoon) and is placed in
a chawan (serving bowl). Hot water is added, then whipped
with a chasen (bamboo whisk) until frothy. The thick, frothy
tea is consumed straight from the bowl.
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Tip: For home use,
add 1/2 teaspoon Matcha to 8 ounces of freshly boiled water,
stir vigorously and enjoy. |
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