twistedleaves.com

08.27

I was rudely awoken this morning by my boyfriends alarm. At 06.30. An hour earlier than it usually goes off (don’t even get me started…) and to be honest, it doesn’t usually wake me up when it goes off at 07.30.
And I am feeling rather tired, having been up for two hours more than I should have today. In fact, I’m feeling rather knackered.

So, I thought, wouldn’t this be a good time to put the English Breakfast Tea to the test? Can it really wake me up more that a coffee would? Will it make any difference at all?

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The Great Teas

Yes, I think I have made you wait long enough. The results are in, the teas have all made it to the finish line - and boy, was it close.

Without further ado, may I present to you: The Great Tea Debate - The Results

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Roll Up! Roll Up! Get your tickets here!

For tonight, and tonight only, we will bear witness to the great Battle of the Teas.

On my way home tonight, I will be purchasing some high-grade Indian Black teas from Whittard (why Whittard? Well, the teas are good… and I already have the Assam from there. But I will be testing many other brands shortly), and proceed to do a scientific-tea-comparison-experiment when I get home. Watch this space.

Teas I will be comparing:

• Darjeeling - The Champagne of Teas
• Assam - strong, rich, Indian tea
• Ceylon - Strictly a Sri Lanka tea, but will be participating in this experiment anyway.

How exciting.

Ahh.. the Assam. One of my top 5 teas. Most people refer to Darjeeling as the ‘Champagne of Teas’, but

personally I don’t think you can beat a good Assam, when brewed properly.

Whilst the tea is brewing, here’s a quick snippet of what Wikipedia has to say about the Assam:

Assam is a black tea named after the region of its production: Assam, India. This tea, most of which is grown at or near sea level, is known for its body, briskness, malty flavour, and strong, bright colour.

Making The Perfect Assam

Step One

Get your cups, teapot (if required), milk, sugar, and spoons out and ready. Fill the kettle…

Get out the Assam, and put into the pot one teaspoon of tea per person,

and ‘one for the pot’. Today, I was making tea-for-two so I used 3 teaspoons of tea. If you like your tea a bit stronger use more of it, but I personally find Assam to be sufficiently strong for even my builders-tea-tastes!

Step Two

Pour the water into the teapot. Top Tip: Always pour the water into the tea whilst it is still boiling, otherwise the tea will not infuse to its full potential!

Leave it to steep for 5 minutes. Have a biccie!

Step Three

When the tea has steeped, pour it through the strainer into your cup; add sugar and milk as required. Stir. Enjoy!