While I only recently overcome my dislike for coffee, I’d made my peace with tea a long time ago. I never really consumed it in any great amount, but back when I worked at Borders (back when Borders was a thing), any time I had a sore throat, I’d order some tea with honey and lemon to soothe it. I’ve never really enjoyed it as a drink, though, either iced or hot. This chapter, however, would be my real introduction to the world of teas. This chapter has two recipes, though they can only be just classified as that – making tea isn’t exactly difficult.
My journey would begin at a local tea shop I discovered on Yelp. They were close to my work, so I was able to head over that way after work. They had a large assortment of teas available – plenty of black teas, quite a few greens, plenty of herbals, etc. I needed to purchase two teas, one for the hot tea and the other for the iced. I decided a good British Breakfast would be perfect for the hot tea, while I chose a Nilgiri for the iced tea. I also needed to get a French press for the hot tea, and while this shop sold a few, they were incredibly expensive. Like, $40 bucks expensive. I passed that up and picked one up at Target for about $15.
Making the hot tea couldn’t have been simpler – I measure a portion of the tea leaves into the bottom of the French press, and added hot water to the top. I put the lid back on and let it steep for a few minutes. And then, the best bit: plunge. The French press then acts as a sieve keeping the leaves out of the tea itself. The tea was fine – the tea flavor was good, and very pleasing. My complaints were twofold. The first was that the tea at the bottom was overextracted and incredibly strong. It was hardly a problem to solve, though – just add more water and dilute. The second was a little more problematic – for some reason, if I had a cup of tea on an empty stomach, I’d get a horrible wave of nausea. I never figured out why that was. Still, it was enjoyable.
The iced tea was slightly more difficult, but only slightly. An ounce of tea leaves is steeped in hot water, and strained again. This is cooled down and diluted more. I also made a simple syrup infused with lemon and mint. Again, that’s the entirety of the recipe. Somehow, though, I screwed it up. The iced tea was cloudy and incredibly strong. I’m not sure why, but I haven’t gone back to figure out where the mistake was made. As for the syrup, it was less lemony and too minty. I still have plenty of the stuff in my fridge, just sitting there and getting old.
So, how do I feel about tea now? Great stuff. For someone else. Me? I’ll stick with coffee. Unless I have a sore throat. Then all bets are off.
Next: The final episode of Season 4. And it’s a hot one.
Recipes:
September 24, 2015
misroi
goodeatseaten 