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The Chinese New Year is a celebration of change which equates to the familiar saying, “out with the old and in with the new”. I celebrated Chinese New Year for the first time in Brisbane, with these 10 points in mind.
- Make Time for family – I ventured down to Chinatown with my husband to watch the festivities and shared a cup of a Chinese Herbal containing Chrysanthemum flowers, Goji berries and Red dates.
Chrysanthemum flowers, Goji berries and Red dates herbal
- Accepting Gifts Red envelopes (Lei See) are given as gifts where the red colour of the envelope and the money inside symbolizes good luck and is said to ward off evil spirits.
- Year of the Dragon / Dragon or Lion Dance – A dragon or lion dance is performed on New Year’s Day to bring luck and prosperity for the coming year. People born in the year of the Dragon are said to be strong, self-assured and loyal. What Chinese zodiac animal are you?
Double Dragon, Double Luck
- Kumquats, Peanuts and candies – Kumquats represent prosperity; peanuts, long life and eating fruits and candies are encouraged to symbolize having a sweet and abundant life.
- Imagery / symbolism - Chinese New Year is all about decorating the house with signs and posters on doors and windows with the word for luck (Fú).
- Negative Chi –To ill fortune and negative chi, one must reconcile differences, forget any grudges and sincerely wish peace, love and happiness to all!
- Good Fortune – One must sweep away ill fortune on New Year’s to make way for incoming good luck for the coming year.
- Traditional foods – Many traditional foods served throughout the festivities because the name or look of the food sounds/looks similar to a lucky word. One of my favourites are tea eggs, symbolizing fertility.
- Evil Spirits – As well as wearing red fire crackers are set off to ward off spirits and a way to send out the old year and welcome the New Year.
- Ancestors – Temples are visited to pay respect to ancestors, and food and incense is brought to please the spirits of the decreased.
See also:
Tea and the Chinese New Year
© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog, 2009-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this article’s author and/or the blog’s owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
I decided to take the opportunity to revisit my tea cupboard and whilst there were some teas that had kept well despite years of storage (one of which I had written about in a previous post), there were other teas that were not as fortunate.
Green Tea and Essential Oils
Having enjoyed a sample of Dragonwell green tea I went online and purchased some from the vendor. Unfortunately, upon arrival, the tea had already faded in colour and in aroma. I should really have informed the vendor, but as a typical Brit I don’t like to complain, preferring instead to keep it in the cupboard. I couldn’t bear the thought of throwing away the tea despite the fact that it wasn’t at its best.
I looked at the faded tea and after several conversations with a Twitter friend of mine, we decided to spruce up the tea by adding essential oils. We started by adding a quarter of a drop of peppermint oil to the dragonwell. As I have had very little experience with essential oils, it was felt that one full drop might be too much for me to ingest hence the quarter drop (which we controlled through the use of a tooth pick). The peppermint cut through the astringency of the green tea yet lifted the tea’s natural nutty sweetness. The tea and oil blend was extremely pepperminty on the nose but didn’t come through in the taste of the tea. It was an amazing combination.
We then decided to add a quarter of a drop of lemon essential oil and I felt like Violet Beauregarde (the girl who chews gum all day in Roald Dahl’s children’s books Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) as the taste of the Dragonwell was followed closely by the peppermint and the lemon came through on the taste right at the end. One flavour didn’t overwhelm the other but were equally complimentary to each other: tea-licious!
So the next time you open up your tea cupboard and find some tea that is past its best, why not spruce up the tea with some essential oils? You may be amazed with your tea-search 
)
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I love the Twitterverse and after admiring from afar, I finally had the opportunity to tweet with, and eventually meet, Sally Lynch of Taste Trekkers. It is always a pleasure to meet someone who is as passionate in their field as I am passionate in tea, and Sally is no exception. She LOVES food! She loves talking about food, cooking food and also writes about food. You can imagine my delight when I was invited to an event organised by another influential foodie.
The Christmas Foodie tour consisted of a food shopping tour of Brisbane, visiting stores that sold authentic European food, herbs and spices; a wonderful lunch, care of Taste Trekkers; and a wine tasting from the local winery whilst I provided the tea. You can read more about the event and view some wonderful pictures of the event via Rhubarb Wine’s blog.
Sharing Tea with Foodies care of @rhubarbwine
Welcoming the food and beverage enthusiasts from their Christmas Foodie tour and whilst lunch was being prepared, I was able to talk tea with eager listeners, and on a hot yet rainy day I decided to offer the guests a cold brew herbal infusion. (Cold brew is a method of iced tea which I’ve talked about in a previous post).
To introduce the guests on the idea of cooking with tea, Sally had made some oolong cooked tomatoes as part of a much wider lunch offering. It was a lovely introduction to cooking with tea as the flavour of the High Mountain Oolong was extremely subtle, and the floral notes of the oolong didn’t overpower the flavour of the tomatoes. It certainly kicked off an interest in the herbal infusion the guests had tried, the oolong cooked tomatoes and the teas that I had on display.
Oolong cooked Tomatoes
I was extremely delighted to be invited to be part of the Christmas Foodie Tour and I’m really looking forward to working with Sally again later on in the year to create a whole culinary experience with tea. The oolong cooked tomatoes was a mere introduction to other tea-based recipes which I am looking forward to writing about in the near future.
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T Bar - Shui Xian Oolong tea in the cup
Carrying on my tearoom theme, I want to draw attention to another tearoom that I had the pleasure of visiting in Adelaide. Tbar is a wonderful tea salon which, according to their website serves loose leaf tea with reverse osmosis water. As I walked into the salon, I was faced with a wonderful array of loose lea tea, with enough variety to satisfy all types of tea drinkers. After looking through the impressive display, I decided to take a seat and look at the tea menu. It’s a beautifully presented menu with no shortage of tea puns as the reader is faced with teas such as diversi-t, visibili-t, prosperi-t. Tea puns never fail to make me smile 
At the bottom of each page is a famous tea quote with my favourite being “Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea”. I finally opted for a tea I haven’t tried for several years: a dark oolong known as Shui Xian (Water Sprite). The tea was presented in the largest teacup and saucer I had ever seen but the tea was fabulous as the distinctive roasted aroma filled my nostrils as I poured the tea.
T Bar - Shui Xian Oolong escapes Tea Ball
Now amongst the seasoned tea drinkers amongst us, I know that tea balls are not everyone’s cup of tea as there is nothing more pleasurable than witnessing the agony of the leaves. However the tea ball is convenient to many cafés and restaurants and I was just pleased that good quality loose leaf tea is readily available and has been at Tbar since 1999.
Back to the tea and whilst I couldn’t discern the spicy notes that Tbar describes is in the cup, the sweet, flowery lingering aftertaste clinged onto the side of my tongue making the experience truly memorable.
I momentarily released the leaves from their mesh ball prison, took in the aroma of the leaves and smiled as I tried my best not to overhear the ladies gossiping over their afternoon cuppa.
© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog, 2009-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this article’s author and/or the blog’s owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
It is Winter here in the Northern Hemisphere, but Down Under, it’s Summer!
I’m a BBC (British Born Chinese) and my wonderful blend of cultures has come together rather nicely on the subject of tea. Growing up, us Brits would always turn to a hot cup of tea in order to cool us down, and growing up in a Chinese family, drinking cold carbonated drinks was very much frowned upon, opting for the flask of hot jasmine tea to cool us down instead. In the hotter climes of Brisbane, however, I found myself drinking a lot more cold water so I thought I would try making some iced tea. After speaking to many tea friends on Twitter, two methods of making iced tea came to mind.
Hot Tea Cooled with Ice
Fans of this method argue that it is quicker to make and the flavours of the tea are fully developed as the components in the tea leaf that contribute to the flavour of the tea wake up at around 113oF (45oC). To make the tea one places double the amount of tea leaves into a jug, make the tea at the desired temperature and preferred steeping time. The tea is then cooled down with ice.
Cold Brew
This method requires patience but in talking to many of my tea friends on Facebook, this appears to be the preferred method. It is a very simple process where the tea is made with cold water and then the jug is popped into the fridge overnight. As the tea is not heated, it is less likely to result in a bitter brew because fewer catechins and tannins are released than in the hot method.
You can see from the picture below that the resulting brew generates quite different results.
Left: hot tea cooled with ice. Right: cold brew method.
The cup on the left shows the hot tea cooled with ice and the cup on the right, the cold brew method. On the nose, there isn’t much of an aroma to discern from the cold brew when compared to the hot brew. On the palate however, the two teas are quite different. The hot tea with ice method had a fuller flavour and with the doubling of leaves, I can see how this method would be more suited to teas that are less temperature sensitive than others. The cold brew method had a refreshing flavour profile and is more delicate on the palate.
What iced tea method do you prefer and what tea do you like iced?
See also:
Iced Tea Roundup — Some Good Teas to Serve Chilled
For Chilled Tea, Go With Basic Black
Trying a Couple of Teas Chilled
Teas That Can Take the Chill
Iced Tea Tidbits & Trivia
Keeping Cool with Iced Tea
Iced Tea: Themes and Variations
Quick and Easy Iced Tea
© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog, 2009-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this article’s author and/or the blog’s owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Carrying on a theme of favourite tearooms, I head back to Australia and this time my tea journey took me to Adelaide. After asking for recommendations on Twitter, two places came highly recommended. In this post I’ll talk about The Perfect Cup. According to their website The Perfect Cup has several retail outlets Adelaide as well as the one that I visited in Adelaide Central Market. The website informs us that the market is 140 years old, home to 80 stalls and is South Australia’s most visited tourist attraction. But I digress: back to the tea. The Perfect Cup has an extensive list of coffee and as I look for the tea menu the lady behind the counter tells me that their tea list is much bigger than the list displayed and invited me to the back of the store to have a look.
After having a pleasant conversation about tea, (it was interesting to find out one of their most popular teas is Bai Mu Dan [White Peony] due to its high antioxidant content), I finally opted for a Lung Ching (Dragonwell): a Chinese green tea I haven’t had for a while. What I was presented with was a beautiful blend of cultures as I mentioned on Facebook. Chinese green tea; presented in a French Press and accompanied by a beautiful English teacup and saucer.
Lung Ching Green Tea, French Press and English Teacup
Presentation is of paramount importance when it comes to serving tea in a tearoom and on this occasion, I had encountered a wow factor moment accompanied by excellent customer service. My husband also set to win that day too. In the same store, they sold one of his favourite teas: Taylors Harrogate Yorkshire Teas. It kinda reminds me of home although admittedly I am a Lancashire lass
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Peppermint Oolong
I am amazed at where my tea journey takes me and several weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to trip to Adelaide and meet with like-minded tea folk. My tea journey stopped at a cross roads where I was invited to choose between flavoured teas or loose leaf tea with no flowers/herbs added. I’ve often tried flavoured teas and felt the experience equated to drinking out of my perfume bottle and so I tend to steer away from flavoured teas. However on this occasion, one flavoured tea jumped out from the tea menu: Peppermint oolong. Peppermint is an amazing herbal infusion and if you’re lucky to find one that is so minty, it needs its own cupboard space; it is a wonderful herb for settling the stomach and to aid digestion. Oolong is a wonderful category of tea from lightly oxidised to heavily roasted goodness. The two of them together I thought, fascinating. I had to try it out.
After sipping the tea, I often take a closer look at the leaves.
Peppermint Oolong Leaves
Despite the ratio of oolong to peppermint leaves, the peppermint still overpowered the aroma and flavour of the oolong, but it wasn’t a bad experience; at least it wasn’t like drinking perfume Lavender Oolong was the next flavoured tea I tried, recommended by a Twitter friend of mine. Lavender is an herbal infusion that has its own set of health benefits and smelling the tea took me to a wonderful memory. It reminded me of a walk I took with my husband once through a lavender garden in South Africa. Ahh the memories…but I digress. Back to the tea and tasting the tea was an equally pleasant experience as the floral aroma of the lavender really brought out the floral notes of the oolong.
Lavender Oolong
So there we have it. My re-acquaintance to flavoured teas was certainly a pleasant experience. What flavoured teas do you like and why?
See more of May King’s articles on the wonders of tea.
© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog, 2009-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this article’s author and/or the blog’s owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Carrying on my series of favourite tearooms in the UK, I turn to a hotel which according to Wikipedia has hosted people of historical significance. Located in Mayfair in the centre of London, my husband treated me to Afternoon Tea on our last UK visit and it was a truly exquisite experience. Greeted by a wonderful host we were shown to our table and greeted with a great list of teas. I opted for Cornwall tea whilst my husband chose Darjeeling 2nd Flush. What impressed me was how the teas were presented. A tea sommelier placed the teapots swiftly on the table, with all the spouts facing the same direction. I know that he’s probably placed teapots on the table a gazillion times before but it was impressive nevertheless. Here is a picture of the teapots with my ineffectual attempt of trying to avoid the camera
Tea at Brown's Hotel
The tea service was impeccable with the sommeliers enquiring as to whether we wanted the tea to be poured or if we wanted it to be steeped a little longer.
They say that the devil is in the detail and whilst I don’t take sweetener with tea, can you see how the sweetener is presented on the table? Protruding out of the sugar bowl (behind the sugar tongues) is one pink sweetener wrapper encased in its own wallet like a hotel key card, as opposed to an overfilled sweetener/sugar bowl: a typical sight in restaurants. Absolutely tea-lightful!
Afternoon Tea at Brown's Hotel
The teas were accompanied by a 3 tiered cake stand. On the bottom were the traditional sandwiches, warm scones with clotted cream and strawberry preserve on the next with the top tier containing an assortment of pastries. Just when I thought I couldn’t possibly have another bite, along came the cake trolley. The carrot cake and Victorian sponge caught our eyes.
After the Cornish tea (much better with milk I thought), I ordered the Organic Bohea Lapsang which is said to be the original lapsang tea made by the same family for 400 years. The smoky aroma filled the air but was much more subtle on the palate. Tea-licious! So there we are: impeccable service, exquisite afternoon tea, a warm and inviting interior, all accompanied by the pianist and his baby piano. Tea-lectable.
See more articles by our tea gal in Australia, May King Tsang!
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In my last post, I talked about revisiting the UK. One of the things I decided to do was get my tourist hat on, take trips down memory lane in London, and in one of my trips, I came across this:
Tea Building Tea Sign
The typeface of the letters against the backdrop of a blue sky made me smile when I walked past. The Tea Building, according to their website, is a centre for the media and creative industry based in East London. I also loved their bill board:
Shoreditch High Street Tea Bill Board
I think we can all agree that we need tea
So, from tea and art in the street, I made a trip to the Victoria and Albert Museum to discover tea and art indoors. There are collections of art from Korea, Japan, and India, and naturally, as a tea enthusiast, I was drawn to the tea ware. When I went to the China room, I was amazed at the vibrancy of the colours. Two pieces really captured my heart.
Victoria & Albert Gaiwan
This gorgeous Gaiwan shown above was made in the 1800’s in the Qing Dynasty. The detail on this porcelain beauty is absolutely divine! I especially liked the hole in the leaf which reminded me of the work of a Jacid ‘leaf hopper’ which bites on an oolong leaf to promote oxidation, but maybe that’s my imagination running wild, I don’t know.
The beau-tea-ful teapot shown below was made in the 1600s. The bamboo detail, especially on the spout and the handle, was stunning.
Victoria & Albert Bamboo Teapot
On we go, from the history of Chinese tea ware to a 20th century movement. Postmoderism according to Wikipedia is a reaction to the modernism movement. It was a movement that was rebellious, a critique, and controversial. The exhibition featured architecture, art, fashion, design and music from 1970-1990 and as a movement; the teapots were wacky, silly, colourful and brought a smile to my face.
Postmodern Teapots
The picture at right shows two of my favourite teapots. Aren’t the colours so vibrant and the design just zany?
Modernism is about design which should derive directly from its purpose, and this last teapot shown below captures the true essence of postmodernism, which argues that form doesn’t have to follow function; it can just be fun. Do you have a teapot in your collection that is both functional and fun?
A Disney inspired design shown below:
Fun and possibly functional Postmodern Teapot
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Tearoom near Matlock Bath
As I returned to the UK for a blend of business and pleasure, I swelled with pride as I went to cafés and eateries and found the bar had been raised on the quality and range of teas available. A visit to the National Memorial Arboretum in the centre of England was accompanied by a lovely lunch at their restaurant, and amongst the usual offerings of tea was a tealightful Yerba Maté fruit blend. My sightseeing trip also took me to Matlock Bath where I enjoyed a loose leaf Russian Caravan. I loved the décor of this tearoom which was steeped in history with displays of teaware and tins of rationed foods.
I went to see a wonderful exhibition at Chatsworth House and naturally at the end of the visit, I took a trip through the gift shop. There were lots of tea paraphernalia, of course, and this tea mug was my personal favourite.
Chatsworth House Tea Mug
Having spent some time in central England, I headed down to London ,which is always a joy to be in when it comes to tea. I revisited one of my favourite tearooms, opting for a loose leaf Darjeeling 2nd Flush whilst my husband tried a Yunnan Gold, but we sought out new tearooms too. After taking a trip down memory lane, we came across a former pub that had reinvented itself. Empire Café sought to return to traditional British foods, locally sourced from the British Isles where possible and, looking at their sample menu, I was particularly excited about their teas. The selection of teas is familiar to the everyday drinker, but they are loose leaf nonetheless.
V&A Tea and Coffee Menu
One of my memorable visits upon my return to London was a visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum and, having taken in several exhibitions (Post modernism, Private Eye, and the House of Annie Lennox), my husband and I treated ourselves to lunch at The V&A Café. I chose Darjeeling First Flush whilst my husband opted for an Earl Grey — loose leaf of course!
So there we have it. The UK, whilst steeped in tea history is no longer just about a teabag with milk and two sugars, the quality and varie-tea have certainly changed.
Tea-lightful!!
Read more of May King’s articles about tea here on The English Tea Store Blog.
© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog, 2009-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this article’s author and/or the blog’s owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
