Tuesday 30 December 2014

Why New Year Always Seems To Be Green Tea's Time To Shine

Today, needing some fresh air, I decided to  dodge the huge patches of ice on the pavements and walk to Morrisons to get something for my tea tonight. As normal, whenever I enter any supermarket, I gravitate naturally to the tea aisle in the vague hope that they may have something new and spectacular to purchase.

Sadly, this morning there wasn't much that interesting on the shelves, but, what was staggering was the green tea section of the shop had been, viking like, savaged. It looked a total mess with boxes everywhere. It has, I smiled, begun. The 'IT' being the post Christmas health boost and green tea seems to be the thing of favour during this time of year.

I will readily admit that last year, I too, started to drink green tea. But not because I felt it was the healthy thing to have done, rather, I had started my blog and the lovely Lorraine from Kensington Tea Company kindly agreed to send me some samples and from that moment, I was hooked on green tea.

But I do not blame people at all for opting for green tea as a healthy drink. There are many benefits to drinking green tea. But also, it's just really nice. So if you can take something that is healthy and just a joy to drink then who can refuse?

However, I have discovered through my tea journey the past year, that it really does pay to drink as best quality green tea as you possibly can - and learning to brew it properly will only enhance the experience.

As I've said here before, I first tried green tea in St Bart's Hospital in London in 2008. My late father was being treated there for cancer, and whilst he was having his radiotherapy to try and control his brain tumour, mum and I went to the cafe to get a much deserved cup of tea. Whilst mum opted for her favourite black tea, I thought I would try the exotic looking green tea. It was a mistake. The poor lady running the cafe was so busy she left the tea to stew, and all green tea lovers will know that using boiling water and leaving the tea in too long will not make a great cup of tea. I was, fairly, I think, put off green tea.

So, I will admit that I was more then a little bit apprehensive when Kensington Tea Company sent their samples. I had read a lot the previous year about green tea and was a little bit unsure how to brew it and had the bad memories of awful tea etched into my memory.

But, I followed the brewing instructions to the letter. I let the kettle cool and timed the bewing process, and without a doubt, I fell absolutely in love.  This instant attraction opened up the doors to a really wonderful world of green tea.

And what a adventure it's been. There are so many options out there. Green tea doesn't have to taste of grass or stale vegetables. It can be utterly beautiful. The options for flavours vary. You can get Christmas tea's, fruity green tea's, and pure green tea.

If I can only offer one bit of advice with regards to green tea it is to go on the internet and explore! There are two amazing companies that I can recommend. Kensington Tea Company have a wide range of green tea's in various flavours and sold in various different weights. It's just a fantastic company who I've had the pleasure to know now for nearly a year and I still purchase regularly from them. Without a doubt they are my "go to" company for green tea and I purchased my trusty Flotea infuser from them. I can recommend several tea's from KTC, Christmas Spice is marvelous and I have a cup of the blend sat next to me now. Also, if you like fruity tea's they do a marvelous Summer Strawberry tea and for pure indulgence I treat myself to their Jasmine Pearl Superior which is out of this world.

Another company I will recommend is TeaVivre. Their green tea, which comes straight from China, is perfectly fresh and is more of a grass roots company. With Teavivre you get pure green tea's. They are totally wonderful, fresh, healthy and delicious. However, they don't come flavoured, so I would advise to get to grips with green tea in it's pure form before ordering from Teavivire. Once you know you like green tea for sure, then, perhaps, place a order. If you live within the UK your order will arrive within 6-10 days. Honestly, they are just fantastic and tasty.

However, green tea from supermarkets, from standard brands is a slightly tetchy area for me, as there are some really lovely blends out there and some wretched ones, too. The quality swings widely from one end of the spectrum to the other. But, in all reality, I know that these are the most accessible - and affordable - tea's for those who want to get healthy in the new year kick.

I will honestly say that Twinings are the best brand of green tea available in supermarkets. From their nicely fruity Apple and Pear green tea to their indulgent Gingerbread Indulgence they produce a varied amount of green tea's. Though, my personal favourite is their Orange and Lotus Flower.

Tetley's Peach and Apricot is also very pleasant but it's certainly very hard to source recently.

There is a whole world of green tea out there waiting to be explored. And believe me, from someone who hated it and who has come to love it, it's worth sticking with the tea because once you have found a blend or brand that you love, it makes for a hugely satisfying cup of tea.

Nowadays, I drink black and green tea in equal measure. I can go week's gobbling up every black tea I can find, then suddenly, I will crave the lightness and refreshing qualities of green tea and spend a couple of months drinking that. I'm fortunate that I love both tea's!

I really hope that you discover your love of green tea, be it through a New Year health kick or just out of interest. I know you won't regret it and it will simply expand your love for tea further.

Enjoy the adventure. I know I am!




9 comments:

  1. I've really enjoyed reading this post. I'm one of those people who have purchased green tea as a way to get fit and well in the new year but I will admit I'm struggling with it. I brought some Tesco/Morrison/Sainsburys own branded green tea and though it's not at all awful it's just a bit ... blurghhh. Help!

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  2. Thank you, nameless, for your comment!

    I can totally understand why you feel it's slightly flat and sadly that is commonplace for green tea produced for supermarkets etc.

    Can I just ask how you are brewing it? There are some definitive rules about brewing green tea.

    Firstly, never, ever use boiling water on green tea. If you use boiling water it scorches the leaves and you'll loose all the gorgeous flavour and just end up drinking a bitter mess. The temperature for green tea is between 70 and 80c. Green tea is not as robust as black tea. If you EVER see ANY green tea packet that says add boiling water ignore it. You'll never get a nice brew from that. Also, infusion time must be carefully timed. DO NOT brew for any longer then three minutes.

    Sadly, I have to admit, as much as there are some green tea's in supermarkets that are just awful. Here are some tips:

    I) If you don't like any of the green tea's you've brought do try and brew them again, following the instructions I've given above and stick to them strictly.
    2) If the flavour is still not to your liking (I'm assuming you have gone for flavoured rather then pure green tea) I am going to have to say is you've probably brought a lower quality tea and you may struggle to get a decent brew from the tea.
    3) The VERY BEST green tea that is available in supermarkets is Teapigs Mao Feng green tea. It's superb and nothing betters it. It's expensive but I can assue you that if you follow the brewing instructions closely you will get a decent cup of green tea.

    But the best advice I can give is go online to a specialised green tea shop. Most companies do sell in sample sizes of 50g's, some companies even sell in packets per cup size such as ten cups. This is a cheaper alternative to paying for a full packet.

    I hope this helps.

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  3. Hello Laura. I noticed I hadn't included my name, it's Sian by the way. Thanks for the advice regarding the tea. Yes, it's flavoured tea I've been using and it's been really bitter. Do you think adding sugar/sweetener to it will help? I do drink Teapigs tea but haven't tried the green one. I will invest in a box. Oddly, despite what you advise the info on the tea box said to add boiling water. That was a Twinings tea.

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  4. Welcome to Laura's Tea Room, Sian, lovely to meet you.

    I do know that Twinings do say to add boiling water on some of their green tea's. I'm by no means a professional but I would generally disregard that advice if I'm completley honest with you. Boiling water and green tea are not exactly a match made in heaven. In fact it could mean the difference between you buying Twinings tea again and not, so I am surprised that they advise that.

    With regards to adding sugar or sweeteners, some green tea drinkers do find it helps to just take off the bitter edge to it, so if that works for you then I'd say go with it. But, bare in mind that most artificial sweeteners do included aspartame. Personally, given the choice, I'd prefer a smaller amount of sugar (you can get half spoon sugar now) then anything containing aspartame as that gives me chronic headache. Even adding a bit of honey could work too!

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  5. You mentioned in your post to use green tea websites. I noticed they are all loose tea. Is this better then the bagged version. Or is it all just the same? Sian.

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  6. There is a vast difference in quality. Take your bog standard green tea bag (which you are struggling with) and loose tea. It's rather like comparing an fish finger to a nice, fresh piece of cod! Both are very nice but very different at the same time! Loose tea tends to be of a higher quality, fresher and generally nicer.

    In tea, whether it be black, white, green or yellow, my philosophy tends to be a smaller amount of something a bit more expensive. I've learned that over the past four years of tea drinking and the last year of blogging. That's just my view, though!

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  7. Thank you for all your help. I'm defo going to stick with it and failing that try loose tea.

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  8. Wonderful post! I was going to suggest Teavivre as soon as I started reading the post but I was happy to read that you took care of that. I love green tea and Teavivre has one of the best and freshest teas out there.

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  9. Thank you for the lovely comment Kamyria. And we can both agree that Teavivre rocks! :-)

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