Tea

Tuesday’s Tea Time

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(This image is from umiteasets.com)

The above photo is a Japanese cast iron tea pot and induction cooker. It is decorated with Japanese plum blossoms. Isn’t it beautiful? The lid is made of copper and is rustproof. You can find out more about this set here.

In addition to their teapots, Umi also sells tea leaves, tea sets, tea cups, tea accessories, and tea trays and tables.

I wanted to get this post written and posted yesterday for the actual “Tuesday’s Tea Time” post, but unfortunately didn’t have enough time in my day, so you’ll just have to pretend you’re reading this on a Tuesday. (Ha, ha!)

I got four different kinds of Umi teas, and not long after receiving them, I tried the Aged Puerh tea. I have had Puerh chai here in the U.S. and it is my favorite looseleaf chai, so I was excited to try anything with the word “Puerh” attached to it. However, in my limited knowledge of teas from other countries, I expected the Aged Puerh to be a chai.

Umi teas are from China, and Puerh tea is a special tea. Since tasting Umi’s Aged Puerh tea and finding it less than I expected because I was expecting it to have some spice flavor like the chai tea I love so much, I have done a bit of research on Puerh teas. My research led me to the fact that there are two kinds of Puerh teas: Aged and Raw. The Aged Puerh teas undergo a unique microbial fermentation process. This process enhances the tea’s flavor. I found it to be a robust black tea.

According to Umi, their Aged Puerh tea comes from the Yunnan province. This tea has dark and reddish black leaves. It is popular in the Cantonese community due to its effectiveness in ridding the body of toxins and aiding in digestion.

After trying the Aged Puerh, life became too busy for me to take the time at home to have a cup of tea and relax, until yesterday, when I decided to heat a kettle of water and do my own private “tea tasting” with my remaining Umi teas so that I could write this post.

The other three Umi teas I tried were:

  1. Lapsang Souchong, also a black tea. The Lapsang Souchong teas I have had here in the U.S. had a strong smokey flavor. I found Umi’s Lapsang Souchong tea to be milder with just a hint of smokey flavor, and to me, it seemed to have a hint of chocolate flavor. I found this tea quite pleasant.
  2. I also had a tea that was simply labled “Puerh”. It was a tea ball, and I found this tea very pleasing with a mild hint of spices.
  3. The final tea I tasted was Jasmine Oolong. I saved this one for last because I had never tasted a tea with jasmine in it before, but because of my pleasure with lavender in tea, I expected the Jasmine Oolong might be my favorite of my Umi teas. Unfortunately, since I do not know what jasmine tastes like, I cannot honestly say whether or not this tea has a clear jasmine flavor. However, I do enjoy Oolong tea. It is a mild tea, and this tea was no exception. I was definitely pleased with this tea.

If you are a tea drinker and you enjoy looseleaf teas or tea balls, I recommend you check out the Umi website and see, not only all the teas they offer, but their lovely tea sets and other tea related items.

Tuesday’s Tea Time

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I love to drink tea, especially loose leaf tea. There are so many tasty kinds. In the photo above is one of my favorite mugs to drink my tea from. There are three reasons I love this mug: 1) it was handmade by a potter; 2) it holds 15 oz. of tea; and 3) the rabbit holding the sword, in the oval on the mug, is Picket Longtreader, a character from the Green Ember book series by S. D. Smith, which I am currently reading. Picket is one of my favorite characters in the series.

Reason #2 — it holds 15 oz. of tea is important because when I want to enjoy a good cup … uh, mug of tea, I like something that holds a lot of tea. Hence, why I often prefer a mug as opposed to a pretty, dainty teacup. I save my pretty, dainty teacups for tea parties and special occasions, or for when I just want to enjoy a pretty cup.

This particular mug also has a very nice, wide, easty-to-hold handle with plenty of room to get four fingers through.

But, remember, this is only one of my favorite teacups or mugs. I’ll share others in future posts.

Do you have a favorite teacup or mug? If so, what do you like about it? Feel free to share in the comments.

Tuesdays Tea Time

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Several years ago, we had the opportunity to visit the only tea plantation in the United States while on a family vacation. The photo above is a mug and spoon I purchased there. I purchased quite a few other items as well, but the biggest thing is how my tea buying and drinking has changed since that trip.

Why? Because while touring the Charleston Tea Plantation, we learned that all tea comes from the same plant, a bush called Camellia Sinensis. The thing that affects whether tea is white, Oolong, green (otherwise known as Pu-erh), or black is the length of time the leaves are oxidized. White tea is only oxidized for a very short time and black tea is oxidized for the longest time.

The Charleston Tea Plantation first produced their American Classic tea, while the plantation was owned by William Barclay Hall, who purchased the land in 1987. Hall was a professional tea taster, and during the 17 years that he worked to make the farm a commercial operation, his original “American Classic” tea became the first tea ever to be made with 100% tea grown in America.

Therefore, I learned that many of the so-called teas that we can purchase at the grocery store aren’t tea at all. For instance, Celestial Seasonings and other “herbal” teas aren’t really “teas”. They may be made from herbs and flowers and produce a tasty drink, but there’s no “real tea” in them. So, if you really want to drink tea, check the ingredients list and be sure you see: green or black tea listed. (Those are the most common. I have not seen White or Oolong in an ingredients list yet, but have found White or Oolong tea at the grocery stores.)

One more thing I’d like to point out is that when you purchase tea prepackaged in teabags, you’re getting mostly dust or ground tea. To get a better flavor tea, the best place to buy teas are at local tea shops where they sell “loose leaf” teas. When you buy loose leaf teas, you will actually see that these are tiny dried leaves and they will have a stronger, pleasing aroma.

Since visiting the Charleston Tea Plantation and learning about what tea really is, I drink much more loose leaf tea, and much less tea that comes packaged in tea bags in boxes at the grocery store or that is listed as “herbal”. Some say I have become a “tea snob”, but I still enjoy a cup of prepackaged herbal tea from time to time. One of my favorite teas that I get at local cafes consists of ground tea with lots of spices and a few other things — it’s a powder mix known as Chai. However, I do prefer the richer flavors of real loose leaf teas, and I buy and drink many different types of loose leaf Chai teas too — see photo below for an example of one of the loose leaf teas I purchase and drink.

Tuesday’s Tea Time

/ kellyfbarr / 4 Comments

For my first Tea Time post, I’d like to share a wonderful tool my husband bought me for Christmas 2023. The above photos are of my Electric Tea Kettle. It is wonderful! I can make one to four cups of tea with this addition to my kitchen. The top photo shows the tea kettle in action. While it heats the water, it is blue. When the water reaches the right temperature, it clicks off and the blue light goes out.

In the photo directly above these paragraphs, my kettle is empty. However, notice the button on the bottom front. If I heat enough water for multiple cups of tea, I can push this button and it will keep the water at the temperature the kettle heats it too. When I empty the kettle, I flip this button off again.

If you look into the kettle, (it is visible in both photos, but probably a bit clearer in the blue), you will see a cylinder in the center of the kettle, suspended from the lid of the kettle. The cylinder has little holes all around it from top to bottom. I can put loose-leaf tea in that cylinder, as much as I need for the number of cups I plan to drink or serve. Then the kettle brews the tea while it heats, saving me from measuring tea into a cup and steeping it.

As someone who enjoys a lot of loose-leaf tea, I love this tea kettle.

Join me again next Tuesday when I share my favorite tea shop and a couple of my favorite loose-leaf teas.

The Coffee Shop (A Poem)

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The Coffee Shop
by Kelly F. Barr

Oh the hustle and bustle
Over coffee and tea;
Regular or latte–
What flavor will it be?

People chatting, eating,
Looking at their phones;
Conducting business, studying,
Or writing in their zone.

Those who need a pick-me-up
Make it their early morning stop.
Others leisurely sip their choice
At their favorite coffee shop.

Tea and Books

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I do not know if this poem style has a name. Yes, it includes some rhymes, but not in the usual places and not in any sort of scheme. I simply wrote this, freewriting, telling of a couple of things I love. I hope you enjoy it.

Tea and Books
by Kelly F. Barr

Nothing is more relaxing than snuggling in a chair
With a cup of tea and a good book.
Oh the taste of loose-leaf teas in so many flavors
Or convenient tea bags of Oolong, Chamomile, or my favorite–Chai!
And, oh so many books to choose from!

Have you ever taken a look between the pages of a book?
So many wonderful things to find including things that will grow your mind.
Nonfiction choices are informative, inspirational, and educational.
Fiction choices offer adventure, excitement, romance and more.
Fiction can even keep you on the edge of your seat.

Fiction brings you danger, intrigue, suspense, and love.
Fictional characters are heroes, villains, children, youth, and adults
That capture your heart despite their faults.
Characters face trials, disappointments and failures;
They learn and grow and change before the last page.

A good book draws you into the story and makes you fall in love
With places, a time period, or one or more characters.
A good book becomes a close friend and breaks your heart when it ends.
The story or the characters, or both, will linger in your mind and heart;
At least until you pick up the next book to start.