ArtOfTea - Page 151 of 152 - Exploring the Passion and Fusion at Art of Tea

Brewing Art of Tea

January 8, 2007

“The journey of a thousand cups begins with a single sip”

-Steve Schwartz Founder of Art of Tea

Finding that perfect taste experience is part of the craft. These are general guidelines, so feel free to experiment. Teas from Art of Tea can be prepared in teapots, infusers, and other teaware.

1. Enjoying the process of preparing your tea can be part of your daily ritual, taking a few moments to heighten your senses and enhance your tasting experience.

2. Fill your kettle with freshly drawn water and bring to a boil.

3. Place recommended amount of loose tea per cup in your choice of teaware. For a stronger infusion, simply add more tea with the same steep time

4. Pour hot water over your tea leaves, cover, & infuse according to your Steep Time Chart

5. Enjoy your customized tea and allow your taste buds to unfold the unique characteristics within your cup. Most teas can be re-steeped multiple times

Enjoy!

OPFBOP – Part 1

September 3, 2006

So when dealing with teas, there are certain abbreviations when describing the size of the tea leaf. The terms mainly go off of OP, or Orange Pekoe. You probably have seen the term Orange Pekoe on boxes of tea at supermarkets, but have you ever wondered what in the world it means? No? Well do you want to know? You do? Great!!!

Orange Pekoe is a classification of black tea based upon the origin of the leaf. To be classified as pekoe, the tea must be composed purely of the new flushes – a flush being the flower bud plucked with two youngest leaves.

The term Orange Pekoe (pronounced “Pea-Koe”) has nothing to do with the taste of orange.

It is believed that the term Orange refers to the Dutch noble House of Orange-Nassau, the Dutch having had a central role in bringing tea to Europe. The origin of the word Pekoe is also not definitively known, though a popular explanation is that it is derived from the Chinese word “Bai Hwa”, which means “White Flower”, referring to the flower bud content of the tea.

When crushed to make bagged teas, the tea is referred to as “broken”, as in “Broken Orange Pekoe” (or “Broken Pekoe”), sometimes sold as loose leaf for reduced price. Bagged teas often also include fannings and dust, which are simply tiny remnants of the sorting and/or crushing process.
Orange Pekoe is often referred to as “OP”; the grading scheme contains several other categories considered to be of higher quality than OP. The grades for whole leaf orthodox black tea, in ascending order are:

OP (Orange Pekoe)
FOP (Flowery Orange Pekoe)
GFOP (Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe)
TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe)
FTGFOP (Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe)
SFTGFOP (Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe)

Pu-erh

August 22, 2006

Tea Bits About Pu-erh

As with many teas, Pu-erh is named after the region where it was first harvested. There was a small town in the Yunnan province called Pu-erh. All teas have a wide spectrum of health benefits, but Pu-erh has an extra one. Drinking Pu-erh tea can help reduce cholesterol, according to scientific studies. By helping digestion (particularly of fatty foods), Pu-erh is the perfect tea after a heavy meal. I personally drink it at night after my evening meal.

Though Pu-erh has some caffeine content it has been known to assist in sleeping by helping the body digest. The tea is darkly red, and has a bold, earthy taste. This is due to fermentation (not the oxidation used for oolong or black teas). Pu-erh is often compared to wine, as it improves with time (and is very hard to get the stain out if spilled on white carpet).

Pu-erh should be prepared using boiling water and a long steeping time (5 to 7 minutes). The tea can be enjoyed many times over with multiple steeping. Come discover Pu-erh for yourself.