Tea is PART of a Healthy Lifestyle

There seems to be such controversy over the health benefits of tea.  Some say yes, some say no, some say whatever!!  The funny thing about researching on the internet is that you can find any support you want on any topic you are looking up.

I do believe that there are health benefits to drinking to tea.  However, I don't believe that drinking tons of tea alone is going to cure you of your ailments, get you to loose weight or give you a long life.  But, there are certain elements of tea that can help you get to your health goals.  I'm not going to relay those details here, but if you go the website of Roberto Caicedo www.myjapanesegreentea.com (click to follow the link), and type in health benefits in the search area you will find numerous topics on how green tea in particular can be beneficial to your health.  All you  really have to do is google it and you'll get tons of info.

Still there are those that think overall the health benefits of tea should be ignored and teas should only be drank for the pure joy of drinking tea.  Personally, as I've already indicated, I believe that drinking tea can add many benefits to your overall health, but it is not a catch all for having a healthy life.  We still have to honour our bodies with clean eating - eating pure natural wholesome foods that are good for us, we need to ensure we are getting all our appropriate vitamins, minerals, anti oxidants etc., which is where tea can add value to our health regime, and we need to exercise our bodies.

Tea is always in the news for its weight loss properties.  I'm not sure about the science behind those stmts, but tea alone will of course never get us to lose weight.  We have to eat less and exercise.  But drinking tea as a supplement to our efforts could certainly help us along.

The statement to drink tea because you enjoy it is true, but I think enough science has been done for us to know that drinking tea does benefit us, but is not a catch all cure for us whether we are looking to cure ourselves of a particular ailment, or loose weight.

I think it is safe to say that tea is part of a healthy lifestyle, but a healthy lifestyle encompasses many aspects.  So drink tea, enjoy it and know that you are doing something good for yourself!!

Tea is part of a healthy life!!  From top left:  Bottom of Grouse Grind!  On the Way Up!  Success at the Top! and of course the rewards - a Beautiful View and and Cup of Tea!!

What's All The Fuss About Bubble Tea!?

Here I am at the Richmond Chinese Night Market sipping on the second bubble tea I've ever had in my life:

I don't know what to say.  About twenty years ago I tried bubble tea for the first time, and I just couldn't  find any amount of enjoyment in the gelatine balls.  I didn't then, and I still don't now.  It will likely be another twenty years before I try it again . . .

I mean the gelatin balls don't taste like ANYTHING!!  They are gummy and just all around not pleasant.

I did some reading on bubble tea and here is what I found out:

• The tea used in bubble tea is usually black or green tea.  As we know, teas are a healthy low fat beverage that has many health benefits in the form of antioxidants and other nutrients.
• To add flavour to the tea many vedors use a fruit puree, which is good, but many vendors will also use a sugary fruit syrup that is high in sugars, carbohydrates, and fat.
• Milk products may add a creamy texture to the drink, but it also adds additional fats etc depending on what the milk product being used is.
• But the real kicker is in the tapioca pearls.  They can push your drink into the 300+ calorie range - YIKES!!

 I don't know why the gelatin balls are so popular, but the actual tea and fruit juice is pretty good.  Maybe I'll give it another whirl someday without the balls .  .  .

The Chinese Tea Shop

I was in Vancouver recently and paid a visit to The Chinese Tea Shop in Chinatown downtown Vancouver, BC, Canada.  Daniel Liu is the proprietor and the visit I had with him in his tea shop was extraordinary.  He only sells Chinese tea.  Week one of the tea sommelier course covered tea tastings and history of Chinese tea.

We were there for 2 hours.  And in those two hours Daniel sampled us 3 types of Chinese Tea.  A Green tea, an Oolong Tea and a Pu-Ehr Tea.

We sat in his shop

 and he served us tea using the Gongfu Cha tea way.  He used authentic yixing tea pots.  All the while he explained to us how the yixing pots was a superior clay to use for making tea.  He had a gentle way about him as he relayed that the clay came from the province of Jiangsu, in the region of Yixing.  He explained that the clay allows for oxygen to pass thru the pot, thereby not allowing the leaves to 'cook' in the pot.  The oxygen also allows for the best of the tea flavours to come thru and not become bitter.  Here is a collection of tea pots that Daniel uses for his tea tastings:

We sampled a green tea (Dongting  Pi Lo Chun (Bi Lo Chun)).  This tea was not pan fired, and it was very grassy and a touch kelpy in flavour.  We also sampled two types of Pu-erh (Lao Ban Zhang and  Ye Lu Xiang  - Green/Sheng) and a Phoenix oolong tea Mi LN Xiang (honey orchid flavour) Wu Dong Mountain.  I was in love!!  This tea was light in flavour and truly had the sweetness of honey with a light flowery taste!!

The Lao Ban Zhang was dark in color and had a very earthy flavour to it.  The Ye Lu Xiang was light in color and had a bitterness to it, that was not overpowering. He steeped each tea in multiple steeps.

After he was done I purchased a few things that I am VERY excited about.  I purchased my first Yixing teapot, and bamboo brewing set complete with a tray, tongs, and tea scoop.  I also purchased 4 Gunfu Cha tea cups, a justice jar, and a strainer and strainer stand.  I'm excited, but will likely go hungry for a while ;)

Daniel Liu was great, and his tea shop is well stocked with tons of selections.  He is hugely knowledgeable in what he does, and it was a pleasure to be in his shop and learn so much about tea.  He mentioned that the Vancouver Community College also runs the tea sommelier course and he has often had students in the shop asking for demonstrations etc.  I would recommend anybody who is in the Vancouver are to go and give Daniel Lui a visit.  Tell him I sent you!!

Taiwan and Their Oolongs

In the second module we focused on learning about teas from different countries, we also learned about the tea history of those countries as well as how the industries are set- up, and how they compare in the line-up of tea producing countries.  We also talked about the geography, and where in each country the tea grows.

This week we tasted tea from Taiwan and Argentina.  We also did our first cross-sectional tasting.  This involves tasting the same type of teas from different countries.

Taiwan:

Tea History started around1624 when the Dutch established a colony on Taiwan as a commercial base and a military stronghold.  They began to move workers from the Fujian and Penghu regions of China as slave labourers to help build the Dutch colonies.  These Fujians, already knowledgable in tea established various tea gardens in the interior mountainous parts of the islands by using both wild tea plants, and cuttings from China.

By the mid 1700's the Chinese finally expelled the Dutch from Taiwan and more Chinese people began to immigrate.  It is because of this Chinese influence that oolong tea industry became prevalent on the island.  

In the late 1900's the Japanese invested a significant amount of resources to aide in the industrialization of the island by establishing transportation, sanitation infrastructure and revising the education system and farming methods.

Taiwan is famous for its light fragrant oolongs and exports 60% to 70% of its annual tea production.  Oolong means 'Black Dragon' in Chinese and has varied oxidation levels - anywhere from 10% to 90%.

Taiwan Oolong

Oolong teas are produced as follows:

Leaves are laid in direct sunlight to wither, reduce moisture content and to soften the leaves. The leaves from the plants used to make oolong are typically larger in size, and tougher.  After withering, the leaves are shaken in a basket to lightly bruise the leaves and then spread out in the shade to dry.  This process of shaking and drying is repeated several times.  Only the bruised edges are oxidized, leaving the core of the leaf green (oxidization is exposing the leaf to heat, moisture and air).  The leaves always remain whole and should never be broken.  Once the desired degree of oxidization is reached, the process is stopped by pan firing the leaves at high temperature.  Oolongs generally have a lower moisture content than green teas and therefore have a longer shelf life.  Styles can range from open leaf to semi or completely rolled shape.

We also learned generally about other tea growing areas in the world  It was interesting to note that when looking at tea by volume of production, Japan as a country does not make the top ten list.  But Japanese tea is certainly a better known tea than say Turkey or Bangladesh, that produces more volume of tea.  

We also tasted some black tea from Argentina.  The main claim to fame for black tea from Argentina is that it is used in packaged iced tea like Lipton or Nestea etc.  They use the Argentinian tea because it does not get cloudy when brewing for cold tea, so cold tea drink producers use this tea.  Consequently their main export is to the USA.

Well, this was the last week and our exams are coming up.  In Tea 101 the cuppings were relatively simple.  Identify if you are tasting white, green, oolong, black or puerh.  Now we have to identify between different whites and greens, and we have to be able to identify the country of origin for the black teas.  It's a blind cupping, so you only get the liquor in the cup.  No leaves to look at!  I'm worried!!

05 Rare Tea

Recently in Vancouver I stopped in to a relatively new tea shop called O5 Rare Tea Bar.  It is truly a unique and amazing shop.  Pedro, the tea shop owner has such a passion for tea.  You feel it when he speaks about tea, and his business of direct trade with specific farmers that he has developed long standing relationships with.

When you enter off the street into his shop you are in quite a small space, with one long counter that has about 3 teas brewing stations set-up.  Upon sitting down a person comes out right away and greets you and serves you a sample of one of their house made elixirs.  Today it was a rootbeer elixir that was to die for!!  We then perused the menu and the server asked what types of tea I was interested in.  I mentioned that I preferred greens and oolongs and she made some suggestions.  I ended up trying the Balhyocha Noeul oolong.  A dark longer oxidized tea.

To start with they pulled out a chest of the tea

from behind the counter to smell and view the tea, then they took some out and put in in the brewing pot.  They brewed the tea similar to Gungfu Cha with more leaves and shorter infusions.  They re-steeped the tea as many times as you wanted them to.

I had the oolong.  The oolong was a long oxidized tea, and the dry leaves smelled of cocoa.  It tasted like cocoa as well, with hints of fig and plum.  It was the most exquisite oolong I have ever tasted to date!

 and Brian ordered the ginger beer elixir.  It was cold, and it was bubbly.  It was also quite spicy.  They served it with candied ginger that had been sitting in honey.  Together they were to die for!!

Soon after we were lucky enough that the owner Pedro was in the shop and he came over to chat with us.  He talked about the tea, that it was from South Korea, and how he meets the farmers and sets up deals with them.  He had a slide show from his tea travels where he would select pictures from to show you and further enhance the experience.  He also entertained us with stories about Pu-Ehr, and showing us the differences between and handmade and machine made cakes.  I definitely recommend this place to anyone searching out a unique experience - whether it be tea related, or 'just something different'.  Here is the link to his website.

O5 Rare Tea Bar - It's about obsession with Origin.  5 natural elements that make-up terror:  Earth, Fire, Water, Wind and Void.

I ended up purchasing the Balhyocha Noeul Oolong from South Korea.  I can't wait to get home and make it!!

Africa!!

Africa conjures up images of the Serengeti with lions, zebras, elephants etc.  But there is also a significant amount of tea that is grown on the African continent as well.  Some of the bigger tea producing areas include: Kenya, Malawi, Uganda and Tanzania, but tea is also cultivated in Cameroon, Mozambique, Ethiopia, D.R. Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and Mauritius.

Historically and still currently, Africa produces mainly tea for the tea bag industry, and for tea blends, so they use the CTC (cut tear curl) method of producing tea.  This results in very small fine granules of tea, that produces a typically darker and stronger tea.  The tea in Africa is generally know for its full body and strong and robust liquor quality that is ideal for blending.

Since the rise in speciality tea, they have begun to produce more Orthodox teas as well as some very good white and green teas as well.

Tea was first brought into South Africa for experimenting with in 1850.  In 1877 the Assamica variety was successfully planted and grown for commercial purposes.

Below is a summary of the teas that were tasted in the Tea 102 Tea Sommelier Course - Week 5.  All the teas from Africa that we tasted were black teas.

Malawi:

Tea has been grown in Malawi since 1890.  The first area to be planted was Mulanji, and then subsequently Thyolo.  Malawi is located in Central Africa and grows approx 3% of the total world production of tea.  The tea is sold primarily thru the Blantyre auction centre, and most of this tea is exported to the UK and South Africa. Some other large importers of Malawi tea includes Germany, Netherlands, USA, Pakistan and Canada.  The tea is sold primarily thruThe tea season runs from November to May - which is similar to the rainy season.

We tasted a CTC from Malawi.

Malawi Black

As you can see it has a very dark liquor.  The aroma was of a sweet floral honey type.  However when I drank it, I found it to be a bit on the bitter side at the back of my tongue.


Kenya:

Kenya has been 'settled' by a variety of groups.  First by the North Africans, and then by the Arabs and Persians.  The Portuguese, as one of the first Europeans in the tea trade arrived on the scene as well. By 1730 the Omani Arabs had managed to send the Portuguese back to Europe, but it wasn't long ( in the 1880's) before the British and Germans arrived to expel the Arabs.  In 1895 The British proclaimed Kenya as part of their 'group', and by 1963 Kenya was finally independent.

Kenya is one of the most successful agriculture regions in Africa.  Tea was planted in about 1925 by the British Settlers.  By 1933 the Kenyan Tea Growers Association offered a way to organize and protect the industry.  This was followed up by the Kenyan Tea Development Authority in 1964.  CTC is the primary product, with Orthodox becoming more popular as of late.  Kenya is now the largest tea producer in Africa.  The majority of the teas is sold thru Auctions, similar to Malawi.

Kenya Black Orthodox

The Kenya Orthodox tea we tasted is lighter in colour than the Malawi.  The dry leave smells of sweet hay which translates into a nice floral honey aroma to the liquor and a fairly smooth, but full bodied sweet tea.

Kenya Black CTC

Tanzania Black

The Kenya CTC was similar to the Orthodox, except that it had more body and a touch less smooth going down.

Uganda Black

Tanzania:


The basic history of settlement is fairly similar to Kenya with the Arabs, the Portuguese, and the British and Germans.  In 1902 the first German settlers planted tea, and commercial production began in 1926.  By 1960 Tanzania was yielding approx 3,700 tons of tea.  Tea is the fifth largest export crop for the country, and they export  over 75% of their tea for foreign markets.  In the 1980's the industry experienced some ill effects of poor economic maintenance, and some major reforms were implemented in the early 1990's.

The tea tastings from Tanzania and Uganda were fairly similar. Both were fairly dark in colour but not as dark as Malawi tea.  Both teas were not very distinctive, and were fairly mellow, not really too sweet and also not bitter.  They are both primarily used in blending.

Overall I liked the Kenyan tea the best.  I guess it's fairly obvious why this tea is the most know growing region in Africa.

Human + Tea = Humanitea

Nepali Tea Traders is taking tea to a higher level.

In a few of my previous posts I've touched on tea and how tea has evolved into more than just a beverage.  Tea is community, it builds relationships between people, cultures, and faiths.  Tea builds bridges, even where there are deep chasms.

Community:
Take for instance my post Tea Builds Relationships, where I discuss my relationship with my boyfriends daughter and how tea has cultivated a common ground between us.  We have sat down and drank tea together and evaluated the teas colour, aroma and flavour.  The other day I even received a text photo from her from a tea shop she was in.  Now that was amazing!!

Intention:
Tea is also associated with intention.  Zen buddhist monks have long used tea as a way to prolong their meditative practices.  In the modern world we can use tea to slow down the pace of life, and reflect on the important things in our lives.  Or just simply sit back and have an opportunity to unwind and relax.  Check out my Meditate With Tea  post here.  We can also be intentional in how we interact with others, what products we purchase and how we choose to spend our lives.

Compassion:
We also use tea compassionately to help others.  Tea offers companionship.  It also consoles in troubled times.  But most often tea lifts us up to face the world and create a better life.  I touch on this briefly in The Oneness of Tea post located here.

Nepali Tea Traders:        

Nepali Tea Traders is taking these three concepts, compassion, intention and community to create a better world.  Their model allows us to come together and help others by essentially helping ourselves. If you've had the chance to drink Nepali tea, you would find it to be as good, as the Darjeeling teas.  It is smooth, with several layers of sweet complexity in the flavour.  It is grown in Nepal across the border from India, which is the Darjeeling region.  The teas are also grown at altitude with first and second flushes.

Nepali Tea Traders  is a social enterprise based out of Colorado, USA located here.  Their model is to import tea from Nepal and sell it in North America.  All profits get donated to the

Nepal Youth Foundation located here, to bring health, shelter and education to the children of Nepal.  This concept is near and dear to my heart.  I truly believe that the best way to assist a country out of poverty is not just to give money to fund projects, but to create trade so that the country can lift itself out of poverty by actively engaging in export of their goods and services to other countries.  Nepali Tea Traders is doing exactly that, and donating all profits to a charity as well.  Education is necessary to give people the ability to engage in trade and move themselves forward.

A weak spot in their campaign, that I feel is important if they truly want to be a social enterprise, is they should be more transparent.  These organizations should provide us with more insight as to what constitutes 'all profits'.  I mean somebody is getting paid, and profits refers to income after expenses, so that would include wages.  How much do the stake holders get paid?  How much profits are actually being donated?  What are they doing to ensure that the tea farmers are getting fair prices and that those fair prices are being passed down to the farm workers?

Nepali Tea Traders is a social enterprise.  They are doing the right things, but I think the consumer requires more transparency.  Consumers want to know that if they choose to support an initiative, that these organizations are doing what they promise to do.  There have been to many disappointments in the past.  Overall I love what they are doing!  Nepali Tea Traders has got it right, but there is as always still room for improvement.

Tea is community.  Tea is intentional.  Tea is good.

Darjeeling = Black Tea True or False

A couple of weeks ago there was a discussion on linkedin regarding Darjeeling black tea and whether or not it should be classified as a black tea.  This discussion was under the group Tea Enthusiasts and Entrepreneurs.  If you are a linkedin user you can ask to become a part of this group and participate/follow in any discussions they have.

The argument was that Darjeeling tea is not a fully oxidized tea, and therefore should not be classified as a black tea.  I learned this in my tea course when we tasted the tea from Darjeeling.  They dry leaf, more so in the FF, but also present in the SF was a mixed bag of colour - from green to dark brown.

FF Darjeeling

Some of the contributors stated that Darjeeling tea should be classified as an oolong tea since it is only partially oxidized.  Others argued that oolong has to do with varietal, origin and processing so Darjeeling's don't fall into the oolong category either and perhaps they should be in a class on their own, noting that other areas such as Nepal and Newara Elia also follow similar processing methods.

The rebuttal to the above was:  if it's reclassed to oolong, then we're creating instability to the 'system', and starting to confuse what exactly the two classes are.

There was also discussion around why there is a difference in oxidization levels.  Darjeeling teas are grown at high altitude, and the FF in particular is a slow growth.  The plant has been in a dormant stage for a period of time and it's growth up to the FF plucking is slow.  The tea plants in Darjeeling are also a mix of the Chinese variety sinensis sinensis and the Indian variety sinensis assamica.  All these factors create a very delicate complex flavour to the tea.  In order to capture those subtle nuances in the flavour, the tea is not fully oxidized.

 The discussion goes into much more depth, and I encourage anyone with interest to follow the conversations.  What do you think?  Should Darjeeling black tea be classed into another category?  Or should it be in a category all on its own?

From my limited experience, I know that the big differential about black tea is that they are fully oxidized.  But the Darjeeling, and perhaps some other teas as mentioned above are not.  The tea classes are all about the processing method, and if we are saying that the Darjeeling is not a true black tea because the processing differs, then from what I understand, it can't be an oolong either because there are still differences in the processing methods used.

I've also read the the tea classifications evolved before tea was being processed in the Darjeeling region, so perhaps it is time to add a new class to the standard group and give these groups of high altitude teas a class all their own.  Based on the processing method - not the growing regions.

Does anyone have any comments they would like to share??

Tea in India - Brief History

India's history is of course far more rich and interesting than I could possibly write.  But I am going to stick with the tea history, and start from the point in time that the English came to India and the tea history started being documented.

There is actually documentation of tea in India dating as far back as 750-500 BC, but the first modern records were written in 1598.  Jan Hughen van Linschoten had been travelling extensively in India at the time and he kept some journals.  In these journals he wrote about tea, and how it was not only consumed as a drink, but the leaves were also eaten as a vegetable.  There are further recordings in 1788 that a British Bontanist Joseph Banks wrote that the climate in North East India was perfect for growing tea.  However, there was no mention of any indigenous tea plants being noted at that time.

Photo contribution

In 1823 Robert Bruce was credited with 'discovering' tea growing in the wild in the Assam region of India.  Unfortunately for Bruce he passed away without ever really knowing if the plants he found were indeed tea plants.  But his brother Charles took over and sent samples to be analyzed and it was confirmed that the plants were indeed Camillia Sinensis var. Assamica.  Soon after this discovery the British East India Company was taking over and cultivating the tea.

They tried to introduce the Chinese varietal Camillia Sinensis var Sinensis, but in the Assam region, they just would not grow.  In 1838 the first shipment of non-Chinese tea was shipped to England.  In 1841 they had already started planting in Darjeeling, and here they were also able to plant some of the Chinese varietal.

The first war of independence was in 1857, and it shook the foundation of the British East India Company.  India continues it's protests for autonomy and in the early 1900's Mahatma Ghandi leads non-violence as a campaign to gain independence.  On August 15, 1947 India gains their independence, and all that is left of the British are the tea gardens.