Making Tea
It’s Monday morning, so I’m at New Morning Café. The woman at the counter whose name I can never remember says, tea? and I say, yes please. Decaf English Breakfast. I like that she remembers me. She doesn’t remember my name either, but she seems to enjoy her job which makes her one of my favorites.
When a person orders tea here, the barista hands them a tea bag then sends them off to another counter to fetch a mug and make their own tea with water from a hot water carafe. But that water is often tepid by the time I get here, so every Monday morning, I ask whoever’s at the register if they wouldn’t mind using the very-hot water tap that’s right behind them to make my tea for me. I’m very polite. I say would you mind and all that. Then I say something dorky like I’m a tea geek, sorry about that. Always apologizing for myself especially when I’m asking for something I want. It’s a girl thing and I’m working on it, alas, I fall short. Sorry.
Anyway, having asked for the very hot water and having handed the counter person the empty mug I’ve already retrieved from the shelf where they’re kept, she or he fills my mug with boiling water, then puts a metal spoon in the mug which, being a tea geek, makes me nuts. That spoon is stealing precious heat from that water! But a simultaneous tea crime has already taken place: the tea bag is still in my hand. It is not in the mug with 210-degree water being poured over it. So let me be clear: I’m a tea snob.
Sorry.
This morning, because my favorite barista was taking my order, I plucked up the courage to ask for the precise cup of tea I wanted. She handed me the bag of tea and I handed her the cup, then I said, wait, can I put the bag in there first? She smiled. Sure. As I was ripping open the tea packet, I said, ya know, I just learned that there’s plastic in these tea bags. And she said, I know! I read that too! Then we both said, goddamnit at the same time and laughed like that was funny. You know that kind of laugh. Then she said, I guess the best thing we can do is use loose tea and a strainer. And I said, right, I do that at home. I figure anything that slows me down a little is a good thing. She laughed again like she understood. As I walked away with my very hot tea, I realized our conversation had achieved the same thing.



Whoa, if you're a tea snob, I must be a tea elitist. I take this so much farther, one would probably think I'm English, which I'm not. Commercially filled tea bags don't touch my hands unless it's an emergency. Oh and I've read the history of tea - fascinating! One of my fav books are "For All the Tea in China" by Sarah Rose which tells the story of tea espionage in the 1840's.
Currently, my fav teas are from Canada (two tea shops I visited in 2024) and one from Tuscon (Seven Cups Fine Chinese Teas, which I have visited a time or two. https://sevencups.com). I now order them online - loose leaf tea.
The rules are this: for black tea, bring water to a boil and pour into the teapot at between 200°F and 212°F to ensure the robust flavors are fully extracted, then put in your loose leaf tea. Some delicate black teas, such as certain Darjeeling varieties, benefit from a slightly cooler temperature, around 185°F to 195°F. Green tea must have a cooler temp of between 160°F and 180°F, so keep your thermometer handy.
To achieve the correct temperature without a thermometer, bring water to a full boil and let it cool for about 30 seconds before pouring it into the tea pot. Never pour the water directly over the tea leaves! Let steep 5 minutes for black tea, less for green tea. I have special biodegradable tea bags made with abaca pulp, cellulose and a sealing fiber with no plastic that I fill in the morning (or sometimes the night before) that I use or sometimes I use a loose tea leaf strainer.
Never, never, not ever squeeze your tea bag.😊 It releases more tannins in the tea which increases bitterness. That is a British rule, but I do violate it from time to time because I read that tannins are actually good for you. Just don't do it in England.
Don't get me started on my entire set-up ha ha!🫖
What do I do when I'm at a cafe? Skip the tea and order the best coffee they have!
Bar, not a snob, you just have a highly sophisticated Tea Sense. Let’s see, take the thermal conductivity of low grade stainless steel, the heat capacity of 8 ounces of 212-degree water, divide, carry the 2 and take the integral – back of the envelope says 30 seconds in your mug reduced the temperature approximately 3 degrees. Proof of a very highly refined Bar tea sense which of course requires appropriate service from the barista!
I like my morning coffee very hot, so it goes from the drip maker to the microwave to my reading chair. Then it is Sip – Ouch! Sip – Ouch! Back to the microwave, repeat. Definitely a guy thing demonstrating a very plebeian sense by comparison.
Your routine, slowing the morning down, is also very Zen like!