The Tea Thread

[ChasFink]

Up until now, I thought you were British. I too am an American and an old Polak from "Da Region" in NW Indiana. Occasionally my cups sing to me as a preliminary to the handle falling off or the cup cracking. I was raised drinking tea with milk and sugar.

Edit: My first set of in-laws were from the Ukraine, and drank hot tea in a glass with sugar and mint.

Almost off topic, but since we're talking about tea...

My mother's folks were Polish from Brooklyn - her mother via Holyoke, Mass. (My dad was from Canonsburg, PA, where everyone knew Perry Como when he was a barber. But I digress.)

My grandmother often drank her tea from an 8 ounce glass tumbler. I don't think she preferred milk, but my mother and aunt seemed to have it that way much of the time. I wonder if the glass thing derives from the type of tea/coffee cup I sometimes see which has a straight sided glass that sits in a metal holder with a handle. For some reason I associate that with Russia and the Middle East.

 

[EnolaGaia]

... I wonder if the glass thing derives from the type of tea/coffee cup I sometimes see which has a straight sided glass that sits in a metal holder with a handle. For some reason I associate that with Russia and the Middle East.

The porcelain or glass cup in a metal holder is an element of classic Turkish coffee culture - arguably the nexus for migration of coffee into Europe in the 17th century. The cups and entire coffee sets are often labeled 'Turkish' in the retail market.

 

[Lb8535]

Almost off topic, but since we're talking about tea...

My mother's folks were Polish from Brooklyn - her mother via Holyoke, Mass. (My dad was from Canonsburg, PA, where everyone knew Perry Como when he was a barber. But I digress.)

My grandmother often drank her tea from an 8 ounce glass tumbler. I don't think she preferred milk, but my mother and aunt seemed to have it that way much of the time. I wonder if the glass thing derives from the type of tea/coffee cup I sometimes see which has a straight sided glass that sits in a metal holder with a handle. For some reason I associate that with Russia and the Middle East.

"A nice glass tea" is definitely Russian as well.

 

[Kondoru]

Milk, in tea? What kind of a dairy obsessed nomad are you?

I always have mine black with no sugar.

Good quality tea is not bitter. I generally drink china tea; most British tea is Indian.

 

[Lb8535]

OK thanks, just bringing this into the present.

 

[pandacracker]

OK thanks, just bringing this into the present.

Did you warm the pot?

 

[Kondoru]

3 A

Anything else is Heresy

 

[kesavaross]

One thing to remember about the growing of tea and subsequently the buying of tea. Tea is not classed as a food so it can be grown in soil that would not be fit to commercially grow food on. In other words, tea can be grown on contaminated soil and then sold in supermarkets, etc. It's best to always buy organic.

 

[Nosmo King]

One thing to remember about the growing of tea and subsequently the buying of tea. Tea is not classed as a food so it can be grown in soil that would not be fit to commercially grow food on. In other words, tea can be grown on contaminated soil and then sold in supermarkets, etc. It's best to always buy organic.

Tea plants are ericaceous so a bit of contaminated soil might help

 

[kesavaross]

I had to look up ericaceous. That's a nice word. I think I've heard it before but not being a gardener.....

By contaminated I mean contaminated with compounds harmful to health to one degree or another. I read an article a few months back about tea being grown in an area of China in soil that was highly contaminated with heavy metals that was then sold onto a well known supermarket who sold it as their own brand tea.

Fruits, vegetables, etc, are routinely tested for contaminants above accepted levels of toxicity but tea isn't.

 

[Ogdred Weary]

Butter?! I just threw up a little bit.

Rancid yak butter no less.

A friend went to Tibet and they were given some "traditional Tibetan tea" on a tour with butter but it was "normal" butter, presumably to not alienate said tourists. He was disappointed, he knows someone who has had the actual thing and was, unsurprisingly, disgusting.

 

[JaneD]

I thought we put milk in our tea to stop our cheap cups from shattering when the hot water was put in, back in ye olden tymes. Thus allowing generations of British people to whittle on about whether you are a MIF ( milk in first) lower class person or not. Personally i like milk in tea to take the edge off the tannic bitterness and it has to go in after the tea, as otherwise you don’t know how much to put in do you?

 

[IbisNibs]

I love Tea Vic. I’m a least a 10 to 12 cup a day man in the Autumn / winter months.

10 to 12 cups?!!? Of caffeinated tea?!!? Who scrapes you off the ceiling each day?

Thus allowing generations of British people to whittle on about whether you are a MIF ( milk in first) lower class person or not.

I thought the true test of being a lower class person was to drink your tea out of the saucer, like one of my great-grandmothers did.
Sounds potentially messy. You'd have to be deft and careful I think. Either that or not care about spills!

 

[Spookdaddy]

...Tibetans put yak butter in their tea. Some Russians put milk or butter in. I have not run across any other culture that cuts their tea with milkfat.

I watched a drama series recently where an individual was warned that the Sami (and maybe far northern Swedes in general - can't quite remember) put butter in their coffee. I'm an adventurous eater, and rarely turn my nose up at anything - but I have to admit that the very idea made me want to boke there and then.

 

[Ogdred Weary]

I thought we put milk in our tea to stop our cheap cups from shattering when the hot water was put in, back in ye olden tymes. Thus allowing generations of British people to whittle on about whether you are a MIF ( milk in first) lower class person or not. Personally i like milk in tea to take the edge off the tannic bitterness and it has to go in after the tea, as otherwise you don’t know how much to put in do you?

That's interesting, I was aware that putting milk first was considered more "common", that would explain why. I put milk last, simply because it's easier to judge the correct amount.

I thought the true test of being a lower class person was to drink your tea out of the saucer, !

 

[Nosmo King]

I thought we put milk in our tea to stop our cheap cups from shattering when the hot water was put in, back in ye olden tymes. Thus allowing generations of British people to whittle on about whether you are a MIF ( milk in first) lower class person or not. Personally i like milk in tea to take the edge off the tannic bitterness and it has to go in after the tea, as otherwise you don’t know how much to put in do you?

That's interesting, I was aware that putting milk first was considered more "common", that would explain why. I put milk last, simply because it's easier to judge the correct amount.



View attachment 46743

I always go with putting the milk in first if you make tea in a pot, and after if you make tea in a cup.

 

[Ogdred Weary]

I always go with putting the milk in first if you make tea in a pot, and after if you make tea in a cup.

You put milk in your teapot? That's an outré technique.

 

[pandacracker]

I thought we put milk in our tea to stop our cheap cups from shattering when the hot water was put in

I've heard that as well.

I was told by this gentleman that saying someone was "a bit 'milk-in-first'" meant that they had ideas above their station.

 

[Sollywos]

I thought we put milk in our tea to stop our cheap cups from shattering when the hot water was put in, back in ye olden tymes

I thought it was because hot tea would shatter the delicate china cups that the rich people had. Women who'd been 'in service' brought the habit home to their humble cottages and cheapo cups and mugs!

I thought the true test of being a lower class person was to drink your tea out of the saucer, like one of my great-grandmothers did.
Sounds potentially messy. You'd have to be deft and careful I think. Either that or not care about spills!

Ah yes tea drinking etiquette and class! My female antecedents had all been 'in service' (ie skivvying at the 'big house' for the idle rich) where they had picked up some of the manners and some of the accents. The men had also worked for the same type of people but outside gardening or farming so had not been quite so influenced. I'm generalising a bit but it was the women who on leaving to get married nagged their menfolk for such things as using dialect words and drinking tea from the saucer! Grandad maintained that he did it to cool the tea, granny would sigh and look 'meaningful' at him as she raised her cup to the lips the 'proper way'sticking out her curled (of course) pinky finger .

 

[ChasFink]

I thought it was because hot tea would shatter the delicate china cups that the rich people had. Women who'd been 'in service' brought the habit home to their humble cottages and cheapo cups and mugs!

Ah yes tea drinking etiquette and class! My female antecedents had all been 'in service' (ie skivvying at the 'big house' for the idle rich) where they had picked up some of the manners and some of the accents. The men had also worked for the same type of people but outside gardening or farming so had not been quite so influenced. I'm generalising a bit but it was the women who on leaving to get married nagged their menfolk for such things as using dialect words and drinking tea from the saucer! Grandad maintained that he did it to cool the tea, granny would sigh and look 'meaningful' at him as she raised her cup to the lips the 'proper way'sticking out her curled (of course) pinky finger .

View attachment 46754

The font on that picture is a little to Village-ish for my taste.

Anyway, remember TV show The Invaders? The aliens disguised themselves as humans, but for some stupid reason their pinkies were all bent at an odd angle. When Mad magazine did their parody the splash panel had a man in the background in an English business suit, drinking tea with the raised pinky.

 

[Zeke Newbold]

I watched a drama series recently where an individual was warned that the Sami (and maybe far northern Swedes in general - can't quite remember) put butter in their coffee. I'm an adventurous eater, and rarely turn my nose up at anything - but I have to admit that the very idea made me want to boke there and then.

This is common in Central Asian countries (as is the drinking of tea with salt in at times). It is not at such a great remove from putting milk in tea, if you really think about it.

Both practices are seen as odd by Russians who drink their tea black (often with lemon and sugar as the only additives).

 

[Lb8535]

I watched a drama series recently where an individual was warned that the Sami (and maybe far northern Swedes in general - can't quite remember) put butter in their coffee. I'm an adventurous eater, and rarely turn my nose up at anything - but I have to admit that the very idea made me want to boke there and then.

Aha! Reindeer butter!

 

[Victory]

@Dick Turpin

I have been past that Twining's Shop hundreds of times, it's long overdue that I went in.

There was a nice documentary which I cannot find online, presented by Barry McGuigan, where he went to a Twinings factory and tasted about 400 different blends of tea.
He liked only two of them!

https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a150097/barry-mcguigan-my-brilliant-britain/

 

[Spookdaddy]

This is common in Central Asian countries (as is the drinking of tea with salt in at times). It is not at such a great remove from putting milk in tea, if you really think about it....

Yes. As dairy products go, butter and live yoghurt have a longer shelf life than raw milk - and I suspect that modern usage often references the historical practicalities involved.

That said, milk probably wouldn't work on crumpets.

And I have to admit that even the idea of cream in coffee gives me the dry heaves.

A couple of years back I was in a bar in Sitges - along the coast just west of Barcelona - when I took a punt at something which was listed on the board as a nuba. I hadn't taken much notice of what it consisted of and, besides, have inherited a propensity to try absolutely anything; I actually quite enjoy ordering things without really knowing what I'm going to be faced with.

Big mistake this time. It was basically the tea based version of a latte - a big glass of hot milk with a tea-bag waved over it. It was revolting.

 

[Dick Turpin]

@Dick Turpin

I have been past that Twining's Shop hundreds of times, it's long overdue that I went in.

There was a nice documentary which I cannot find online, presented by Barry McGuigan, where he went to a Twinings factory and tasted about 400 different blends of tea.
He liked only two of them!

https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a150097/barry-mcguigan-my-brilliant-britain/

View attachment 46793

Always been a huge fan of McGuigan Vic. Takes me back to the mid 1980’s and his title fights.

One of my mates parents were both Irish, and our little gang used to congregate in their living room to watch the bouts – his dad even used to throw in a few cans of lager as well – we would only have 13/14 years of age. Happy days.

"I don't drink alcohol and I know bugger all about horses, so I'm unlike any other Irishman you'll ever meet!" - That did make me laugh.

 

[Ogdred Weary]

This is common in Central Asian countries (as is the drinking of tea with salt in at times). It is not at such a great remove from putting milk in tea, if you really think about it.

Both practices are seen as odd by Russians who drink their tea black (often with lemon and sugar as the only additives).

A couple of novels I read a few years ago had Russian settings and/or characters and there are references to Russians drinking black tea sweetened with jam, I think specifically apricot in one case.

 

[Victory]

Always been a huge fan of McGuigan Vic. Takes me back to the mid 1980’s and his title fights.

One of my mates parents were both Irish, and our little gang used to congregate in their living room to watch the bouts – his dad even used to throw in a few cans of lager as well – we would only have 13/14 years of age. Happy days.

"I don't drink alcohol and I know bugger all about horses, so I'm unlike any other Irishman you'll ever meet!" - That did make me laugh.

I spent an afternoon with him back in the mid 1990's, for work reasons.

We got on well, he autographed one of my Boxing books.

He invited me to attend his regular training sessions.

I regret that now, but at the time I had images of him making me run and run and run and run and skip and skip and skip some more and I just was not up for that!

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's today's cup of potential paranoia ... Newly published research indicates brewing tea with tap water causes the formation of multiple compounds whose medical effects are little known or unknown.

Are There Disinfection Byproducts in That Cup of Tea? Many Unknown DBPs With Uncertain Health Effects

Surpassed only by water, tea is the second most consumed beverage worldwide. When boiled tap water is used to brew tea, residual chlorine in the water can react with tea compounds to form disinfection byproducts (DBPs). Now, researchers reporting in Environmental Science & Technology measured 60 DBPs in three types of tea, unexpectedly finding lower levels in brewed tea than in tap water. However, they also detected many unknown DBPs with uncertain health effects.

Although disinfection is important to ensure drinking water safety, a downside is DBP formation. Tea contains about 500 compounds, including polyphenols, amino acids, caffeine, and others, that can react with chlorine to form DBPs, some of which have been linked in epidemiological studies with cancer and adverse birth outcomes. ...

The researchers brewed the teas and then measured the compounds using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Levels of the 60 DBPs were higher in tap water than in the brewed teas ... The team identified 15 of these compounds – which likely form from the reaction of chlorine with natural phenolic and polyphenolic precursors in tea leaves – for the first time in the beverage. Although no “safe” levels have yet been established for most DBPs, for the ones that are regulated, an average person would need to drink 18–55 cups of tea per day to exceed the limits established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ...

FULL STORY: https://scitechdaily.com/are-there-...y-unknown-dbps-with-uncertain-health-effects/

---

PUBLISHED RESEARCH REPORT:

Are Disinfection Byproducts (DBPs) Formed in My Cup of Tea? Regulated, Priority, and Unknown DBPs
Jiafu Li, Md. Tareq Aziz, Caroline O. Granger, and Susan D. Richardson
Environ. Sci. Technol. 2021, 55, 19, 12994–13004
Publication Date:September 15, 2021

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c03419

 

[escargot]

Yerba mate is the way forward.

 

[Tempest63]

Milk, in tea? What kind of a dairy obsessed nomad are you?

I always have mine black with no sugar.

Good quality tea is not bitter. I generally drink china tea; most British tea is Indian.

Black with lemon please