Monday, October 1, 2007

a dash of milk?

So although I have talked a lot about putting milk in your tea I have yet to mention the rules. Oh yes, there are intense rules when it comes to milk and tea, and all avid tea drinkers obied by them.

This recently came to mind when I was given green tea with milk and sugar. I didn't say anything cause I'm not a pretentious tea drinking beast. I quietly drank my couldve been delicious green tea that now tasted like lukewarm dishwater...bah... This is no good, no good at all. Teas like green, white, oolong, jasmine or any kind of herbal should never have milk added to them. They have such a mild taste already that if milk is added it completely drowns out the flavor of the tea. Making it pretty much tastes like you are drinking hot water with a dash of milk, which is just gross, and not tea at all.

Although you can add milk to black teas, and in my opinion should, you have to be careful about it. Lots of people just put in the milk as soon as they add the tea bag, or even worse, before they add the tea bag. Milk stops the tea from brewing, so if you add the milk too quick the tea stops brewing and again you just have hot water with milk... BLEH. Black teas should be left to brew for at least 3 minutes. Once 3 minutes is up add your milk and sugar and it is magic.


So don't make dishwater tea because you couldn't wait for it to brew, dishwater tea is not tea at all.

Danke!






Tea of the moment: jasmine downy pearl tea.... no milk please

3 comments:

Dee said...

I threw up in my mouth a little bit from your sharing the green tea/milk experience...No I'm totally kidding, but just the thought of it sounds gross.
I grew up on black tea with milk and sugar. As I got older I slowly switched over to green tea and my boyfriend (who is not asian), went to Japan on business for two weeks, became addicted to green, oolong, jasmine, etc. None of which we drink with sugar and milk.
While in Japan, and working for Canon USA, he's learned not to boil water for tea. Thanks for the brewing tip, I'll pass it along to my boyfriend.

Casey said...

and what are your views on milk in weed tea?

also, that would make a great blog: a weed tea recipe. remember our plottings freshman year?

Anonymous said...

really great post, goddess of tea. really very solid. your suggestions are definitely going to come in hand in my tea drinking experiences. as you're not a pretentious tea drinking beast, my roommate, who is not you, unfortunately is. i now notice whenever i have tea, i add milk and sugar to everything. green, jasmine, whatever. i can only imagine the angst i've caused my roommate. and, wow, about milk stopping the brewing. your knowledge of tea blows my mind.