Tea Tips

Matcha has been around for a mere 800 years, since the Song dynasty, making it a relative newcomer to the tea world. It is popular with chefs, tea aficionados and health fanatics alike.  Saveur, Gourmet and Bon Appetite have all published a number of recipes using matcha and the professional tea merchant periodicals don’t seem to talk about much else. 

So what is matcha?   It is the finely powdered green tea used in the famed Japanese tea ceremony. In early spring the finest, top leaves of tea bushes that have been shaded for four weeks are carefully harvested, withered, steamed and rolled to break down much of the leaf fiber.  The leaves are then dried and all stems and the hard veins are removed.  This is tencha.  Tencha is then run through granite grinding wheels to make the fine powder that is matcha.  In Japan matcha is used for drinking as well as being used to flavour everything from chips to KitKat bars, HagenDas, pastries, soups and savouries.

A large part of matcha’s popularity comes from how it makes you feel, both long term and immediately. The benefits of matcha outweigh those of whole leaf teas because in the case of matcha one actually ingests the entire leaf.  Because of this matcha is full of antioxidants, 1384 ORAC units/gram to be exact, exponentially higher than any other tea on the market.  L-isometanins are extremely high in tencha and they are the amino acids that release slowly into the bloodstream contributing to a sense of calm and wellbeing as well as allowing one to focus.  Matcha is high in A, B, C, D, P, U and K vitamins. It helps reduce cortisol levels which cause the fight or flight impulse.  One 2 g serving of matcha provides the equivalent amount of amino acids as ten teabags of any other tea providing less caffeine and fewer bathroom runs!

Disadvantages? Not many. Matcha is a bit pricey but it goes a long way and when you consider the 10 fold health benefits it is downright cheap!  Little specialized equipment, if any, is needed although you may want to invest in a Japanese bamboo whisk, a scoop and a tea bowl if you want to be authentic.  Matcha does not stay fresh long so buy small amounts, often and ask how to store it.  The taste is fresh and vegetal with an underlying sweetness.    

Traditionally matcha is prepared in a “chawan”, a rustic clay bowl. A “chashaku”, a shaped bamboo spoon, is used for taking one or two scoops of the matcha out of a “natsume”, matcha canister, and placing it into the chawan.  The ”hishaku” is the bamboo ladle used for scooping hot water into the chawan, over the matcha. The “chasen” is used to whisk the matcha, always moving in an “M” shape until all the lumps are broken and the matcha is frothy.

 Although the traditional way of making matcha can be very beautiful and rewarding it is not necessary to use matcha in this way.  At Tea and Chi we love blending matcha with hot frothy milk or soy milk to make matcha lattes. You can also prepare your latte hot and then pour it over ice for a cold treat.  Ad matcha to your pancake batter, marinate meat or chicken with it, put it into cheesecakes, pound cake or blend with juice.  I recently saw a recipe for a matcha martini! The beautiful   green colour, the freshness of the taste and the versatility of the product make it ideal for experimenting with.

Summer’s here and there is nothing like a tall glass of ice-cold tea to get one through the hot day. Refreshing, calorie free and full of anti-oxidants, iced tea may be one of the simplest and least expensive ways to look after yourself and your family. Although sun tea is a fun way to make a big jarful of iced tea, there are some concerns regarding bacterial contamination during the process. Regardless of the potential issues with sun tea we, at Tea and Chi, find that refrigerator tea is better tasting and easier to make.

The principles remain the same. You will need a big pitcher or glass jar that will fit into your refrigerator and, either a way to strain the tea leaves out or a way to contain them for easy removal. There are many gadgets on the market but I personally favour #4 t-sacs®, a large, unbleached paper empty tea bag, in combination with a tea-click®. If you are going for maximum flavour and health benefits use good quality loose leaf tea. Use 1 oz of tea leaves for 1 gallon of water and refrigerate overnight. In the morning remove the leaves and you will have the best tasting iced tea possible.

Here is another tip. Instead of sweetening your iced tea ahead of time forcing everyone in the family to drink tea with the same amount of sweetness make a simple syrup by boiling 1 cup of sugar with one cup of water for 3-4 minutes. Refrigerate the syrup and allow everyone to sweeten their tea to taste. The refrigerator tea method produces iced tea with very low astringency because the tea is never heated. Encourage everyone to use a tiny bit less sweetener every time they have tea and you might be surprised at how quickly you and your family become tea connoisseurs! You’ll learn to appreciate the natural taste of tea and you’ll get all the benefits without the chemicals or the calories of soft drinks and sweetened teas!

Some suggestions for teas suitable for icing are caffeine free rooibos and fruit based teas for children, lemony, fruity or minty green, black and oolong teas and practically any white tea, if you prefer a light taste. Heavy bodied black teas such as English and Irish breakfast and Assam type teas are typically best drunk hot. My favourite “plain” tea for icing is an organic FBOP Iyerpadi from South India. It makes a wonderful, bright, refreshing iced tea that goes with anything!

Maria Sparsis
Tea and Chi
Fine Tea Merchants
www.teaandchi.com

Ever wandered what the differences between black and green tea or what on earth oolong, pouchong and, “did you say yellow” tea are?

1. White teas: The least processed, and therefore highest in antioxidants, is white tea. White tea typically contains a lot of “tips” which are the unfurled new leaves. These leaves are fuzzy, and this silvery/white fuzz is how the teas came to be named. The main difference though is the fact that white tea is in no way processed, other than dried, after harvesting. White teas are typically very mild and tend to sweetness. The most common complaint is “it doesn’t taste like anything”. Once you develop a taste for white teas though they can be quite extraordinary. If the taste is too mild for you try a lightly flavoured one. Examples: Silver needles, White peony, White wedding.

2. Yellow teas: until recently considered to be almost a myth these extremely rare teas have one additional step in their production. They are withered under piles of straw. This additional step makes the flavour more complex, gives the teas more body and removes any hint of astringency. Examples: Sparrow Tongue, Huang Shan Mao Feng

3. Green teas: There are thousands of different types of green teas, and that doesn’t include the flavoured ones. Green teas are produced by harvesting fresh tea leaves, allowing them to wither and then rolling the leaves, by hand or machine, to break down the cells. The leaves are then immediately dried with or without steaming first. Examples: Gunpowder, Sencha, Jasmine tea.

4. Pouchongs: Teas that are allowed to oxidize briefly before drying become oolongs. A sub-category of oolongs is pouchongs, comprising of teas that are oxidized less 20%. Pouchongs tend to have more body than green teas, less astringency and, often, notes of cream or butter. Examples: Formosa pouching, spring fling.

5. Oolongs: Some of the worlds most prized and complex flavoured teas are oolongs. Almost green to almost black depending on the degree of oxidation the best oolongs have strong floral or fruit notes. There is evidence that oolongs are particularly helpful with eczema, psoriasis and weight loss. Examples: Ti Kwan Yin, Oriental Beauty, Wuyi.

6. Black teas: Tea leaves that are allowed to completely oxidize before drying become black teas and are the most commonly consumed teas in the West. The traditional “Southern Iced Tea” is a black tea and so are all the “British Teas”. These teas have a lot more body and many hold milk well. Black tea has acquired a bad reputation mainly due to all the low quality teabag teas but black teas can be flavourful, complex and full of antioxidants. Examples: Darjeeling, Assam, English breakfast, Earl Grey, Southern Iced Tea

7. Puer teas: A pile fermentation step, before drying, sometimes followed by aging, much like a brandy, makes puer teas. Not for the faint of heard these teas can exhibit notes of “cave, mushrooms, fish, barnyard, earth” etc. Famous for settling an upset stomach after a heavy meal they are often used to lower cholesterol and aid in digestion. Examples: Tuocha, golden puer, Super Body Fat Burner.

8. Tisanes or herbal teas: Any tea prepared from a plant other than Camelia sinensis should be referred to as a tisane or herbal tea. Many of these teas have a variety of health benefits and wonderful flavours and can be blended with true teas or with each other for visual appeal, flavour or for functional reasons. Examples: Peppermint, chamomile, rooibos, Sleep Better tea.

The tea question I’m most often asked is “What’s the best tea?” There is, of course, the issue of what “best” means. Best can mean price, flavor, overall quality or, most often, the tea that provides the most health benefits. Surprisingly, the answer is the same irrespective of the meaning of “best”. The tea that is best for you is the tea you enjoy drinking.

My tea philosophy has always been that life is too short to drink bad tea. That includes “bad” as in poor quality and tea that tastes bad to you. No one should have to suffer through a cup of tea! Many of our customers come in convinced that they must drink green tea because that’s “the best tea”. True, green tea is very high in antioxidants but the flavor does not agree with everyone. If you can force yourself to down one cup of green versus enjoying a pot of black tea you are getting about the same amount of antioxidants plus the health benefits resulting the peace and pleasure of a half hour’s relaxation with a favorite tea.

There is also a more complex, involved way of looking at tea if the aim is not just the pleasure and flavor of it. Different types of teas do offer different health benefits and certain people should not or cannot consume certain types. White teas for example are reported to have the highest levels of antioxidants (with the exception of matcha tea) and are also very good for protecting the health of your mouth and your heart. Oolong teas have been shown to help those with eczema and psoriasis. People intolerant to caffeine or suffering from kidney stones may want to consider a rooibos tea.

If you have specific concerns about your health as it relates to tea drinking discuss them with both your health provider and your tea supplier. There are literally thousands of different types of teas available and a very good chance that at least one of the will suit both your health needs and your palate.

I look forward  to hearing about your life with tea and answering any tea related questions you may have.

Yours in tea,

Maria Sparsis