Water Temperature – Crucial for that perfect cup of Tea

Some teas suffer from being infused in water that is too hot. On this subject, its a fact that you cannot make a good cup of tea if the water has been boiled, even if it is then left to cool down. In fact, when water boils too much, the oxygen evaporates, and the tea leaves need this oxygen during infusion to release all their flavours and aromas.

Water temperature is absolutely critical for making the perfect cup of tea. Correct water temperature has always been the “Holy Grail” of making the perfect cup of tea. Each type of tea needs a different temperature for best results. For example, for black tea, fully boiling water (about 212°F/100°C) is ideal. For the delicate types of tea, such as green tea or white tea, cooler water is preferable. Water that is steaming rather than boiling (about 175°F/80°C) is more suited to such delicate teas to avoid the tea leaves from being burnt and muddying the brew.

Water that is too hot can burn the leaves and can produce a muddy tasting green tea which people would not like to drink. Some very delicate Japanese Green tea does best when the water is as cool as 145°F/63°C. Partially oxidized Oolongs which are between Black and Green tea in oxidization levels, require water temperature that are in-between the optimum water temperature required by Black tea and Green tea. Since there is such a variation in the oxidization levels , the optimal steeping temperature can vary as well. Some most lightly oxidized oolong can respond well to steeping temperatures like green tea and requiring cooler water. A light to medium oxidized oolong will require a slightly hotter water at around 185°F/85°C while a medium to strongly oxidized oolong requires a lightly boiling water at around 190°F/88°C.to 195°F/91°C.

So you see, some things which we take for granted while making our tea are not so insignificant in fact.

The Science of Cold Brewing of Tea

Cold Brewing Tea

Cold brewing is a gentler way to brew tea. The cold brewing process extracts different flavors from the tea than traditional hot brewing. The result is often a sweeter, smoother cup. Cold brewing is a new way to enjoy old favorites. The shift in flavour profile is an exciting way for foodies to explore the tastes of their teas. As much as you love your favorite teas hot, you’ve probably also tried them iced or paired with foods, and maybe you’ve had them as a lattes or as ingredients in food. This is just another way to taste them.

The Science Behind Cold Brewing

When you brew tea using traditional hot water methods, you extract flavor and substances, such as caffeine, tannins and polythenols from the tea very quickly. This makes for a stronger, richer and fuller flavor profile.

When you cold brew tea, you extract flavors and substances more slowly, easing them into the water, rather than forcing them. Cold brewed teas tend to contain fewer catechins and less caffeine. Due to this reason, cold brewed tea tends to be less bitter.

How to Cold Brew Tea

To cold brew tea, simply take 2-3 teaspoons of tea per 8 ounces of cold or room temperature water and combine in a glass pitcher or jar. Refrigerate for 9-12 hours, and strain.

There are many variations on how to make cold-brewed tea, the most obvious of which is the type of tea you choose to brew. You can use any type, so long as you rinse tisanes and Pu-erh with boiling water first. The sweeter, smoother flavor profiles cold brewing reveals makes it ideal for sweeter Oolongs, Pu-erhs and more tannic Black teas  

Serving Cold Brewed Tea

Cold brewed tea is best served over ice. You can also add honey or milk to create a sweeter, creamier iced tea beverage.

Tea Suggestions

The best teas for cold brewing are those that are fragile and can become easily bitter.

Tea prices set to go northwards by Rs 15-20 per kg

Owing to shortage of stock and higher cost of production, tea prices are likely to increase by Rs 15-20 per kg this year. The Indian Tea Association (ITA) feels that low yield last year coupled with insufficient rainfall in tea producing states, is likely to push tea prices upwards in India. According to ITA, the average tea price at different auctions is ruling at Rs 99-110 per kg.

Gautam Bhalla, advisor, ITA, said, "While the demand is good but the supply is not adequate as last year's production was low. Moreover, we are also spending higher on our labour and their families which further pushes our production costs higher." He added that tea demand in India is growing by 3 to 4 per cent every year. The major tea growing states in India, Assam, Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala, have not received sufficient rainfall in the past three months.

The Tea Board's latest tally shows that production for 2012 was 1,111.76 million kg, lower by 3.96 million kg. The country's tea exports have remained stable at around 200 million kg per year for the last couple of years. The rest is consumed in the domestic market. Domestic consumption of tea has been growing by around 20-25 million kg per annum.

ITA is now focusing on to means to increase the consumption of tea in various forms in India and is also planning to target the youth. Bhalla said, "Most of the young people prefer to drink coffee. Moreover traditionally we drink hot tea across the country. We now want people to know various varieties of tea like black tea, cold tea, lemon tea, etc."At present, the per capita consumption of tea in India is about 730 grams per annum, while in states like Gujarat the per capita consumption of tea is over 1 kg.

ITA is organising road shows in India to promote tea consumption in India. Last year the ITA had done road shows in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, while this year it organised shows in Rajkot, Indore, Pune and other smaller cities in India.

Source : Business Standard

Marketing of Teas in India : Saga of Complexities and Expertise

The process of growing and manufacturing tea and its subsequent marketing involves complexities and distinguishing factors not associated with any other commodities. Options are limited in the business of tea at every stage and this in turn brings some of the constraints necessitating careful attention.

Tea is a perennial crop. Newly planted tea bushes require at least three years to attain maturity and start yielding green leaves for manufacture of ‘made tea’. The life of the tea bush is more than 100 years and the economic age of tea bush is also around 100 years although it depends upon the type of tea plant, climatic condition and the care received from the planters during the life time. Therefore tea grower cannot turn to crop rotation when the prices are weak nor can he increase output in a short time to take advantage of higher ruling prices. Tea is also a perishable goods and cannot be stored for indefinite period without affecting the quality. So decision of the tea growers to regulate the marketing of tea within six to eight months from the date of manufacture to fetch maximum price is an important one. Although tea can be stored with proper arrangements for a period of six to eight months, the general intention of tea growers is to market their teas within four to six weeks from the time of its manufacture in order to recoup the liability towards cost involved in the tea field, estate factory or in trading factory. Only financially sound tea producer/manufacturer is perhaps able to take risk of delayed marketing of their produce and can avail any possible opportunity arising out of upward price movement in the tea market.

There are two well defined stages in the marketing of any product including tea. These are Primary and Secondary. In the primary marketing, teas grown in the tea estates reaches to the traders of either domestic or of importing countries. In the secondary stages of marketing teas from the traders reaches to consumers of either domestic or overseas.

Primary marketing

As already mentioned, tea is a commercial crop cultivated on a plantation basis. Unlike cereals, negligible fraction of the tea output is retained for consumption by the planters at garden level. So that almost entire output at the garden level is sold. The tea planter has the following four options to dispose the output through sale.

i) Sales through Indian auction. ii) Sales through overseas auction by sending teas on consignment basis. iii) Sales as ‘direct export’ to the importer of importing countries. iv) ‘Ex-garden’ sales.

While sales (ii) and (iii) earlier mentioned are exclusively for exports, sales through (i) and (iv) are meant for domestic consumption as well as for exports. At present teas from garden level are marketed either in bulk form or in packet form. While earlier mentioned four options are available for markets of tea in bulk form, only options (iii) and (iv) are available for marketing of packet tea by the tea planters from the garden level.

Secondary marketing (with reference to India)

Indian Traders who purchase tea through Indian auctions or directly from the tea planters have the following options:

a) Export in bulk packages in original form and/or export in bulk packages in blended form. b) Export after further processing as tea bags and/or packaging in consumer packs. c) Sale to Wholesaler/Retailer in loose form to reach Indian consumers. d) Sale to Wholesaler/Retailer in packet form after packaging in consumer packs to reach Indian consumers. We at Golden Tips, as leading marketers and retailers of premium quality Darjeeling Tea since 8 decades in India, give utmost importance to the above marketing processes with an endeavor to bring the best teas to tea lovers in India and all over the world at correct prices. Source : Tea Board of India

Now Tea can be a panacea for Alzheimer patients and boost memory

Results of laboratory tests by a team from the University of Newcastle has found that Green and Black tea inhibit the activity of certain enzymes in the brain which are associated with memory.

The findings may lead to the development of a new treatment for a form of dementia which affects an estimated ten million people worldwide, Alzheimer's Disease.For their experiment, the research team, from Newcastle University's Medicinal Plant Research Centre, investigated the properties of Coffee, Green and Black tea in a series of scientific experiments. Black tea – traditional English breakfast tea – is derived from the same plant as Green tea, Camellia Sinensis, but has a different taste and appearance because it is fermented.

They found that both green and black tea inhibited the activity of enzymes associated with the development of Alzheimer's Disease, but coffee had no significant effect. Both teas inhibited the activity of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE), which breaks down the chemical messenger or neurotransmitter, acetylcholine. Alzheimer's is characterised by a drop in acetylcholine. Green tea and Black tea also hinder the activity of the enzyme butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE), which has been discovered in protein deposits which are found on the brain of patients with Alzheimer's.

Green tea went one step further in that it obstructed the activity of beta-secretase, which plays a role in the production of protein deposits in the brain which are associated with Alzheimer's disease. Scientists also found that it continued to have its inhibitive effect for a week, whereas black tea's enzyme-inhibiting properties lasted for only one day.

There is no cure for Alzheimer's but it is possible to slow the development of the disease. Drugs currently on the market hinder the activity of AChE, and others are being developed which scientists hope will inhibit the activity of BuChE and beta-secretase.However, many of the drugs currently available, such as donepezil, have unpleasant side effects and the medical profession is keen to find alternatives like tea.

The Newcastle University researchers are now seeking funding to carry out further tests on Green tea, which they hope will include clinical trials. Their aim is to work towards the development of a medicinal tea which is specifically aimed at Alzheimer's sufferers.

Lead researcher, Dr Ed Okello, who is also a lecturer with Newcastle University's School of Biology, said: "Although there is no cure for Alzheimer's, tea could potentially be another weapon in the armoury which is used to treat this disease and slow down its development. It would be wonderful if our work could help improve the quality of life for millions of sufferers

These findings are particularly exciting for Indians as tea is already a very popular drink in India, it is inexpensive, and there do not seem to be any adverse side effects when it is consumed.

Shower cheer for planters and tea lovers in Assam

Upper Assam’s long dry spell of almost four months has finally come to an end with heavy showers some days back bringing cheer to everyone, especially the tea planters.The Met department has predicted more rain in the next few days. Upper Assam has received good rainfall in the last few days .

“The rains have come as a saviour for the tea planters. We can now expect new leaves in the tea bushes in the next few days. The rains have saved the lives of a number of tea bushes which were on the verge of drying up permanently,”  a planter said.

The tea industry has lost almost a month of the production season because of no rainfall in Assam. The dry spell robbed the tea bushes of new leaves. There were also reports of large patches of tea bushes drying up in several gardens. The situation was so bad in most parts of the state that some planters offered prayers to appease the rain god.A planter said the industry would be able to make up for the delay as only about 15 per cent of the total production takes place during the first flush season of March to April.

A tea scientist, however, said the tea bushes have undergone severe moisture stress this season because of the prolonged dry spell.Rain from November to March is crucial for tea bushes. Ideally, tea plantations should receive about 210mm of rainfall between November and March. But, in the current season, rainfall was very low and the deficit resulted in high moisture stress, adversely affecting the growth of tea bushes. While there was 6.5mm rainfall in December, it rained only 0.5mm in January and 9.3mm in February.

It was not only the tea industry that suffered because of the dry spell. There were also reports of shortage of potable water in many parts of the state.The forest department in Assam had taken up the task of constructing two ponds inside the Gibbon wildlife sanctuary, as there was shortage of drinking water for the animals.“The shower, we hope has refilled the water sources inside the sanctuary,” a forest department official said.

Source : Telegraph

Tea : Take a sip for a robust future

Tea comes from the dried leaves of Camellia Sinensis, the tea plant that was first cultivated in China and later found growing in India. This plant has many healing properties which are beneficial for the human body.

Due to much publicity and hype, a major segment in our country, specially youngsters are attracted to carbonated drinks and beverages that are hardly healthy or beneficial to the human body. The need of the hour is therefore- promotion of tea, as a health promotion beverage, with trendy flavors and in attractive brand packages. Golden Tips has succeeded in developing new blends and flavors which are popular among a large section of the society in India and abroad.

Some of the important health benefits of tea include:

·  Tea can boost exercise endurance. Scientists have found that the catechins (antioxidants) in green tea extract increase the body’s ability to burn fat as fuel, which accounts for improved muscle endurance.

·  Drinking tea could help reduce the risk of heart attack and diabetes.

·  The antioxidants in tea might help protect against various types of cancers too.  

·  Tea is hydrating to the body even despite the caffeine.

·  Drinking tea is linked with a lower risk of Parkinson’s disease too in older people. When considered with other factors like smoking, physical activity, age and body mass index, regular tea drinking was associated with a lowered risk of Parkinson’s disease in both men and women.

·  Tea might provide protection from ultraviolet rays. We know it’s important to limit exposure to UV rays, and we all know what it’s like to feel the burn. The good news is that green tea may act as a back-up sunscreen.

·  Tea could keep waist circumference in check. In one study, participants who regularly consumed hot tea had lower waist circumference and lower BMI than non-consuming participants.

·  Tea can help the body recover from radiation. One study found that tea helped protect against cellular degeneration upon exposure to radiation, while another found that tea can help skin bounce back post exposure.

·  Green tea has been found to improve bone mineral density and strength.

· Tea might be an effective agent in the prevention and treatment of neurological diseases, especially degenerative diseases (think Alzheimer’s). While many factors influence brain health, polyphenols in green tea may help maintain the parts of the brain that regulate learning and memory.