The King's Brew: Just a Teahouse Away

In 2737 BCE Emperor Shen Nong allegedly took the first sip of tea after a few leaves landed in his small cauldron of boiling water. Intrigued by the aroma, the curious emperor bravely sampled the brew. Thus a new beverage was born, one surpassed only by water as the most popular beverage in the world.

Nearly 6,000 years later Camellia sinensis came to me as a boy. Snugly packed in little bags inside the Lipton box, I pegged tea as the choice of my aunts. What surfaced decades later was the old world of tea. There were the black teas, but even more enticing were the oolongs and greens.

The curing of the leaves differentiates the three teas. Black tea undergoes hours of oxidation accelerated by heat and humidity. Oolong is partially fermented and much of this tea comes from Taiwan. Green tea is steamed and/or oxidized only very shortly or not at all. Though all the teas have profound health benefits, green is the most beneficial.

Latitude, longitude, and elevation of where the plant was grown are key to a fine tea, as is the harvest time and stage of growth. The numbers of varieties surpasses that of wine. Also, unlike wine, tea - especially green - has a short life span and must be consumed quickly or it loses color, aroma and flavor.

It is no secret that one reason for tea’s popularity is its ability to conquer fatigue. As a stimulant, the caffeine in tea improves concentration and alertness, accelerating nerve impulses to the brain. Of course caffeine tolerance varies greatly among individuals. Particularly concerning is research indicating a possible interference of fetal development with caffeine consumption. As such, limiting caffeine in pregnancy is paramount.

Caffeine content for tea per 5 oz. is 25-110 mg for black, 12-55 mg for oolong, and 8-36 mg for green. Higher temperatures of the water yields more caffeine, as does ground tea, which is in tea bags. Whole leaves contain less, are fresher and have superior flavor. Drip coffee is estimated at 60-180 mg, decaf coffee at 2-13mg, while a 12-oz. cola has 46 mg.

Quality oolong or green tea can be infused several times with flavor peaking sometime beyond the first infusion. In fact the first infusion is said to be the Prince’s Brew while the second is considered the King’s Brew. In China I drank tea lasting up to 10 infusions.

When first brewing green or oolong, a sense of experimentation is important. Handling the tea with care is the first crucial step. This includes using bottled or filtered water - but not distilled. My tea is steeped in a 16-oz. Chinese Yixing clay teapot. For this I use 2-4 teaspoons of tea depending on type and quality. Water temperature is also important. Gauging the temperature by the bubble size is a skill that further develops a tea connoisseur.

Turbulent boiling water is only for the teas known as pu-erh. Bubbles the size of pearls (195-200°F) are suitable for blacks and oolongs while greens should receive water boiled only to the size of small fish eyes (160-170°F). An inexpensive thermometer can be used to insert into the kettle. You will soon base the temperature on your kettle’s sound.

Most greens should steep for just 30-60 seconds then poured into a holding flask to be served as needed. Oolongs are often steeped for 2-5 minutes, then strained into a flask. If the tea is bitter, it steeped too long; no flavor, too short. Subsequent infusions will need to steep longer. You can reduce some of the caffeine by doing a very quick steeping. Just pour the hot water over the leaves and strain immediately. Your ability to play with these factors will reward you with the perfect cup.

Patience clearly has its benefits with tea preparation.