Tea

Congratulations to those who answered the question in a not-so-recent post correctly. My sister, Victoria, was the first person to post a comment with the correct answer, and she requested that her prize be the privilege of selecting the next (translated: future) post's topic. I thought that seemed reasonable, and so here we are with a post all about tea.

The Brits have this tea thing down. They know how to make a mean cup of tea and they drink it throughout the day. It's all very civilized with people offering you tea (and coffee and water) every time you go someplace for a meeting or visit. In my office, every time someone makes a cup of tea for themselves, they offer around and make tea for anyone else craving a dose.

Based on my experience (limited as it is), there is morning and afternoon tea (with actual breaks allotted for this). Many people also make tea as soon as they get to work and again in the evening at home. I like the morning tea and "just got to work" tea the best. Interestingly, "evening tea" really refers to dinner and is not actually about tea. In addition to tea, I've really gotten into the practice of having my morning tea with toast and butter, or biscuits (cookies), as my British/Irish/Australian coworkers have shown me. It's really quite nice.

Now, I think what my sister was actually wanting was a "how-to" post on making a splendid cup of tea. So, without further ado, I will give you the exact science of tea:

Items/Ingredients Needed:

• "Everyday" tea (Tetley is the preferred brand)
• Milk (NOT cream or half & half)
• Sugar (preferably in cube form)
• A small tea spoon
• A lovely tea cup and saucer or a fun mug
• Water
• An electric kettle (this will truly transform your tea making experience)

The fantastic electric tea kettle

Directions:

1. Boil the water in the electric kettle. You can use a regular kettle, but the electric ones are so much fun. They boil the water so quickly and you use them anywhere. Hello, hot cup of tea without having to move from my office/bedroom/bathroom/conference room/etc.

2. Place one tea bag in the cup/mug and pour boiling water in. Leave a little room at the top. Swirl the tea bag around for a bit, until the water is dark. Take the tea bag out and throw it away. (You do NOT reuse tea bags here and you do not leave the tea bag in the water for a long time).

3. Pour a bit of milk into your tea. This is not exact. Just a wee bit, or whatever suits you. I like to go for a nice light brown colour.

4. Stir in one (or two) cubes of sugar. (In all honestly, I hardly ever see anyone but Americans use sugar, but they do always offer it, so I don't feel too inauthentic using it).

5. Drink and enjoy. Toast a bit of bread and lather with butter. Or, treat yourself to a biscuit (digestive or shortbread) or two for an extra treat.



Now, not to rain on the tea parade, but, truth be told, despite my new-found love of tea, I have had to put a little self-restriction into place for the following reasons:

1. I am worried that too much tea will make my teeth turn brown.

2. I am worried that too much tea could lead to unfortunate health problems due to the fact that I like a lot of sugar in my tea. Yes, I could cut the sugar out. But, really, where's the fun in that?

3. Now that I've reached a certain age, I think caffeine has finally started to affect me. I have become that person who says, "hmmm...it's after 5, I really shouldn't have that or I'll be up all night." Sad. But true.

But, do not fear. I have not let these silly worries stop me from enjoying a nice cuppa on a cold, rainy morning (or even on a warmer, dry one). It really does make the day a wee bit brigher. So, cheers! And, happy tea drinking to you.