Lately I had a few interesting conversations and discoveries - all of them because of TEA! Yeah that's right! *g* Therefore I figured I might as well write a post about that favourite drink of mine (I'm almost infamous for it already since the most frequent present I currently get is - tea).
Did you know IKEA currently sells Christmas tea? To be exact, flavoured black tea. I recently bought it for € 2 at IKEA Wien Nord. I suppose your local branch of IKEA sells it too, so you really should go and grab some.
I also noticed that people seem to remember one very well if one drinks tea more often than coffee. Beats me, though, why that is so. >^_^<
But what exactly is tea and what is a tea plant?
According to wikipedia.com, tea 
"is a beverage made by steeping processed leaves, buds, or twigs of the tea bush, Camellia sinensis, in hot water for a few minutes. The processing can include oxidation, heating, drying, and the addition of other herbs, flowers, spices, and fruits. [...] Camellia sinensis is an evergreen plant and grows in tropical to sub-tropical climates. In addition to tropical climates (at least 50 inches of rainfall a year), it also prefers acidic soils[citation needed]. Many high quality tea plants grow at elevations up to 1500 meters (5,000 ft), as the plants grow more slowly and acquire a better flavor[citation needed]. Only the top 1-2 inches of the mature plant are picked. These buds and leaves are called flushes,[5] and a plant will grow a new flush every seven to ten days during the growing season.
Tea plants will grow into a tree if left undisturbed, but cultivated plants are pruned to waist height for ease of plucking."
There are four basic types of true tea which refer to the degree of fermentation:
- black tea
- oolong tea
- green tea
- white tea
The main producers of tea are China, India, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Turkey.
Apart from this "real" tea, there are also herbal infusions which are also called "tea". Often, they are consumed for medical reasons, but there are also "normal" herbal teas which can be consumed without any problems (e.g., rosehip, peppermint, hibiscus, etc.).
Personally, I prefer black tea either pure or flavoured (such as Milford My Chai, Twinings Earl Grey or Twinings Irish Breakfast), green tea (standard and with Jasmine) herbal teas (peppermint, hibiscus, rosebud), fruit tea (Twinings Strawberry and Mango) and mixed teas (two types of herbal tea mixed, e.g., peppermint + hibiscus).
If I choose to drink black tea, I often drink it like the British do: with milk and sugar. Sometimes, though, I'll also have it with only sugar or with citron and sugar. That purely depends on my moood. :)
What are your favourite teas? Do you like tea at all or do you prefer coffee (I like tea better but still, I'm not opposed to a decent cuppa coffee with lots of milk and sugar)?
