Pu-Erh Tuo Cha

What is Pu-Erh Tea?

Pu-Erh comes from Yunnan, a Chinese province against the borders of Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam. It’s a (black and sometimes green) fermented tea, and depending on what type (raw, cooked or aged) the tea will have a different flavour. Like wine, Pu-Erh can be aged for years, even decades. Time brings darker colours and deeper nuance. In ancient China Pu-Erh was transported by mules and horses in long caravans along established routes that became known as the Tea Horse Roads. Traders would bargain for tea in the markets of Pu-Erh city and then hire the caravans to carry the tea back to their respective homes. At some point the tea was compressed into shapes for more efficient transportation and preservation. 

Pu-Erh commonly comes in pressed, shaped forms, such as bricks, cakes (disc-shaped, Bing Cha) and Tuo Cha (shaped like tiny bowls). But you can find it in loose form too, like other loose-leaf teas. Our Pu-Erh comes in the Tuo Cha form. Each nest weighs around 5gr, enough for a small pot or large mug. 

Flavour? Pu-Erh tea is made from a larger leaf strain of Camellia Sinensis. Because of the various conditions and environmental factors, Pu-Erh can have a broad palate in flavour: smooth, fruity, peaty, grassy, musky, herbal and earthy. It often appeals to coffee drinkers and pairs well with rich desserts. The flavour and reputed health benefits of this tea makes it a great option for drinking it as a digestif after a heavy meal!

Healthy or not? Pu-Erh can be beneficial to 'blood cleansing' and digestion. For these reasons, it is often consumed after heavy meals or drunk as a hangover cure. It is occasionally proclaimed as a ‘diet tea’, but like all teas: it is not a magical weight loss potion, but rather a good and pleasant support to your diet. Some studies have shown that it may lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure and increase the metabolism. It gives energy and reduces free radicals.

Let’s talk caffeine: Like all beverages that contain Camellia Sinensis (tea leaves), Pu-erh contains caffeine but, it is essential to note that the time you steep, the age of your tea and your re-steeping moments have a degenerative influence on the caffeine content. So happy re-steeping!

Pu-Erh Tuo Cha looks a bit funny, cute & compact and the best way to steep would be to 'awaken' the leaves (prepare them for infusion). To rinse your Pu-Erh, place the tea nest in a tea-pot (or anything you use to prepare your tea), pour nearly boiling water over them and then quickly discard the water. After you've rinsed your Pu-Erh, you're ready to steep it. Use water that's around 90°C and steep: 

1. Gong Fu style: for 15 to 30 seconds but re-steeping is possible up to 12 times.

2. Western style: three to five minutes, re-steeping is possible up to 3 times.

Happy steeping & re-steeping!

CHAI

Chai What?

The Hindi word ‘CHAI’ comes from the Chinese word ‘cha’ and means tea.

If we’re talking about Chai Masala it is the masala which gives its famous flavour to the tea. But what is this masala? Masala is a spice blend. It contains, traditionally speaking, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, ginger, bay leaves and black peppercorns. The recipes for masala vary across continents, cultures, towns, families and countries (ex. Nepal) and spices can be added or left out. It became so popular that the word masala is often left out. Hence when we talk about Chai, we’re talking about its well known form Chai Masala. 

In our range we have 3 different ones: Chai Masala (golden classic), Koko Chai (delicious coconut) and the BIY Chai (Blend It Yourself). 

How to make this glorious tea?

Milk or no milk? Sweetened or not? That’s the question. Like all beautiful things in life it’s up to you to choose. Just a few rules to keep in mind: 90°C for water/milk/almond/soy milk and steep for 5 minutes. You can steep our tea slightly longer but when it turns bitter you’ve over-steeped. 

Sweetener? Too much is too much but just stay away from aspartame. 

My recipe for my all time favourite? 

I prefer a strong brewed Chai, so I take slightly more tea in my cup (actually, I never make just one cup, I make a huge pot). 

The general rule is 1 teaspoon/cup (about 3gr). 

I make my tea 50/50: 50% full fat milk, 50% water. But like I said before, you can play with it to your liking. 

I use cane sugar to sweeten: 1 teaspoon/cup. I don’t use honey in this case because for me it gives too much of its typical ‘honey flavour’ to it, but again, up to you! 

The brilliant thing with steeping loose leaf tea is that you can reuse it. So 1 teaspoon of Chai gives me the whole day of pleasure re-steeping the same tea.

Heat up your milk water, preferably just below boiling point (a lot of steam), fill your teapot / cup, add tea filter, wait the longest 5 minutes ever. 

Take out your filter and leave it to rest for your next steeping. 

Add your sweetener or not, stir, take a deep breath, put a smile on your face and burn your mouth because you were too eager. 

So set aside and wait again 2 loooong minutes. 

And now, sit back, relax and enjoy this magical potion you’ve brewed yourself!

yeh… guess what I’m gonna do next?

White Tea

White tea is catching up with green tea in popularity, though it’s much harder to find and more expensive.

The origin of this tea is the same as that of green, oolong and black tea. We’ve talked about oxidation and length of aging, but another difference between teas is fermentation.

Green tea is unfermented. Oolong is semi-fermented and black tea is fully fermented. Those differences are pretty clear cut and result in completely different tastes.

So where does that leave the white variety of tea? This type of tea is actually produced from tea leaves that are harvested prior to full maturation. In fact, the leaves are not completely open when they are picked. The tea is referred to as white because at the point the leaves are picked, the buds of the plant are covered with a soft white fuzz.

Very little processing is involved in making this tea since there is no fermentation whatsoever. The resulting taste is described by many to be light, sweet and delicate. White tea is typically produced in China and Japan and has the added benefit of having less caffeine than other types of tea.

White tea contains many of the same healthy antioxidants as green tea and may in fact contain even more polyphenols due to less processing. Studies have shown that the tea can fight cancer causing cells and help maintain a healthy immune system.

If you’re having trouble finding white tea, there are many online stores selling it and it is worth a splurge. If you’re looking for a change to your typical green tea, give white tea a try for a boost to your taste buds.

Herbal Tea

Most herbal teas are not made with tea leaves from camelia sinensis in the blend. Instead, they use any number of other herbs.

Herbeal tea can be made from the leaves, flowers, roots, bark, seeds, berries, and stems of herbs. Various blends may contain chamomile, thornberry, licorice root, and any number of other herbs that are understood to contain nutrients and minerals that are good for the body in some manner.

The herbal tea industry will never stop churning out new combinations, or fusions, to try.

Depending on the combination of herbs, it is possible to buy fusions that are purported to help with insomnia, improve weakening eyesight and even aid in weight loss. A qualified herbalist can provide you with information about what herbs are best for any particular health complaint you have.

If you are making tea from leaves or flowers you will need to make an infusion. Place 2 tablespoons of dried herbs or a handful of fresh herbs into a teapot and pour in a pint of boiling water. Cover and steep for 10 to 20 minutes.

If you are using tougher herb parts, like bark, roots, seeds or berries, you’ll need to crush or chop them first.

Matcha Tea

Matcha tea is thicker and stronger than most tea (photo by Savored Sips)

Matcha tea is a finely ground powder made from specially grown green tea leaves. You then mix the powder with hot water to make tea. In this way, you’re not discarding the brewed tea leaves as you would with regular green tea, you’re actually drinking the whole leaf.

There are some main differences in the leaves grown for making matcha. They are fairly pampered plants, grown only in the shade. This increases their chlorophyll content, resulting in a bright green powder.

Before the leaves are crushed, the stems and ribs are removed from the leaves, and they are slowly ground down in a process that lasts up to an hour and is done in complete darkness.

The best matcha tea is made in Japan and is used in traditional tea ceremonies. Because of the laborious process, high quality matcha that has the best benefits and flavor is quite expensive.

So what are the benefits of matcha? Well, matcha has the same benefits of green tea. But it is likely contains more catechins, particularly EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate) per gram than brewed green tea. So it’s effects might be stronger, though there aren’t really any studies proving it.

If you’re looking to harness the benefits of matcha tea, be sure to go with a high-quality loose powder.

Olive Leaves Tea

For thousands of years, Greeks extolled the beauty of the olive tree. Edible olives were being grown as a crop on Crete 3,500 years ago. In the time of Homer, between the 12th and 8th century BC, Greek olive oil was highly valued for anointing the body.
An overview of the benefits of drinking Greek olive leaf tea notes that olive leaf extract contains iron, zinc, selenium, chromium, vitamin C, beta-carotene and a wide range of amino acids
“There’s also clinical evidence of a blood-pressure-lowering effect, and preliminary studies have shown a blood-glucose-lowering effect, suggesting it may be used in future diabetes treatments,” according to healthyfoodguide.com.

Black Tea

Black tea comes from the leaves of the tea bush, Camellia sinensis. This is the same bush that white, green, and oolong tea leaves come from, as well. The difference is in how long each tea leaf is allowed to age in the air before it is processed into its final form.

Black tea is aged to a very dark color and completely oxidized, which takes from two to four weeks.

In contrast, white tea is picked and processed immediately, with no aging. Green tea is aged only one to two days and oolong tea is aged between two and fourteen days.

Not only does black tea have a stronger flavor, it also contains more caffeine than its lighter counterparts.

Black tea also contains a group of polyphenols and flavonoids called catechins that have antioxidant properties. Consuming these nutrients on a regular basis may help reduce many risk factors for heart disease, including high cholesterol, blood pressure, high triglyceride levels and obesity.

Consuming black tea can also improve your focus and increase relaxation, which is something we could all use. This is likely why the British believe a cup of tea is so therapeutic.

Green Tea

Green tea has risen in popularity over the past decade and is now one of the most consumed types of tea in the world. It has exceptional nutritional and health benefits.

In addition to its cancer fighting properties, green tea is also thought to improve cardiovascular health, lower LDL cholesterol levels, and to be effective for weight loss, because of its ability to boost the metabolism without dangerous side effects.

All of these benefits can be traced back to the high concentration of antioxidants contained in green tea. Because green tea leaves are one of the least processed types of tea, and is unfermented, it has a higher concentration of antioxidants than others like black tea.

Antioxidants are thought to slow or prevent the growth of cancer cells in the body, so the higher level of antioxidants in green tea potentially makes it more powerful.

There are many different types of green tea made around the world, like sencha, genmaicha, and tencha. Nearly all of the tea grown in Japan is green tea.