Tea Culture

Tea the Drink that Changed the World
by Laura C. Martin

I fell in love with tea my sophomore year of high school when I read Tea the Drink that Changed the World by Laura C. Martin. I had always enjoyed tea, but after I read Martin's book I was not sure what I loved more, drinking tea or the idea of tea. Tea the Drink that Changed the World focuses on tea in early Chinese, Japanese, and Korean history. After reading the book I entered a phase of tea drinking focused on Asian black, green, and jasmine teas without milk or sugar. I loved the rich, strong flavor that stood on it's own that often reminded me of the book I had just read and it's influential role is Asian countries' history. Drinking tea made me feel as if I was part of something bigger than myself: history.

However, over the past year with the influence of an English friend, who has taught me more about English tea culture, I have started to enjoy my morning with a cup of English Breakfast tea. I start off by boiling water, steeping the tea in the teapot, pouring a bit of milk in my cup, mixing in sugar before pouring the English Breakfast into the cup. I don't know why the tea tastes better when you add the milk first, but it sure does. In this phase I love the creamy milk combined with dark caffeinated tea. Once my friend came back from England with tea spoons, a milk pourer, a tea strainer, and a few bars of chocolate flake for dipping I became officially obsessed with English tea.

Chocolate Flake

What country do you turn to for your tea culture?

Until next time,
Tea Cup!