Black Teas, Sometimes Good Guys Wear Black
In traditional Westerns at the movie theater, the good guy wears the white hat. Here, black is definitely ‘the good guy’.
All true tea is the product of the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant. But, ah, what a difference a little oxygen and sunlight makes. Green tea is very lightly oxidized, Oolong moderately so and black tea the most heavily oxidized of all. There’s even a fourth variety, white tea, that rarely makes it to western shores.
The black tea leaves are plucked, washed, rolled and dried. From there they may find themselves partially ground into a tea bag or sold more or less whole. But in whatever form the leaf makes it to market, the flavor is largely the result of the region from which it came and the processing used there.
Much of it originated in China near Mount Wu Yi, in the Fujian Province. One style, the Lap Sang Sou Chong, is dried by holding the leaves over burning pine. The result is a delightfully strong, smoky flavor. From the Yunnan Province hails the tea that adopts the name of its homeland. Here is produced a dark, malty tea that is full of rich flavor.
India, for centuries one of the world’s largest tea producers, offers two with names that are possibly more famous than the tea itself. Assam is full-bodied and with a distinctive astringency that prompts many to dilute it with milk. The Darjeeling from West Bengal is more delicate, but still a very robust tea. Slightly spicy, it makes a perfect breakfast drink.
Initial efforts to grow tea in Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka) in the 18th century were met with utter failure. But the growers persisted and tea drinkers around the world are the beneficiaries. The black Ceylon teas grace many fine table in their home country and throughout the world.
Vietnam has recently made efforts to join the ranks of major producers. The light aroma of a Vietnamese black is deceptive. This dark brew has a wonderful taste that is the real deal.
Even Turkey offers a black tea that any aficionado will want to sample. Hailing from the Rize Province on the eastern coast, this mahogany colored brew is prepared in a samovar and served up ‘koyu’. The best way to translate that word is simply to drink some. Be prepared for a jolt.
Black tea also makes for an excellent partner in traditional or modern blends. For example, the famed Earl Grey (named after its 17th century promoter) is a sweet, perfumey blend that gets its distinctive taste from a small amount of bergamot oil.
Whichever country you favor, whatever flavor you enjoy, sample a wide variety of black tea straight or flavored. Drink up!
Oh Wonderful Beverage, A Brief History of Tea
Like beer and wine, tea is an ancient beverage. Yet in some countries that are strongly associated with it, such as Great Britain, it was introduced only recently on the historical time scale.
No one knows with certainty who first had the odd idea of taking leaves from the Camilla Sinensis plant and adding them to hot water to make a brew. It may have been an accident at first, with leaves from the bush floating into a heated kettle. But almost certainly, the practice began over 5,000 years ago in China.
However it began, the art spread quickly after the taste and health benefits were discovered by those early pioneers. Eventually, in 800 AD, an ex-monk named Lu Yu wrote the Ch’a Ching, containing all that was then known about the ways of preparing tea. The word spread to Japan by way of Buddhist monks, in particular one named Yeisei, where it quickly became a royal favorite.
The Portuguese and other western seamen later made contact with the Orient. They were introduced to a beverage unlike any other they knew in their native countries. From their travels in the early 17th century, they returned with many treasures, including the precious tea leaves. The importation of this then-expensive novelty rapidly made many of them wealthy.
In the mid-17th century, Britain finally got into the act and began to import tea from China and the East Indies. As is obvious now, it became so popular that afternoon tea is now strongly associated with that country.
With the merger of the John Company and the East India Company, both importers of tea with a near monopoly in the western world, tea spread everywhere. By the end of the 17th century tea imports were 40,000 pounds.
A few years later, though, the novelty had become a commodity. Over 240,000 pounds were imported into England in 1708 and the leaves were being sold in common food shops in Holland and France. Most of Europe doesn’t have the right climate to grow its own tea. The drink that had been imported and made popular by royalty was now consumed by nearly everyone.
At the same time, tea was spreading to other nations around the world. The Russian Tsar Alexis received several chests as a gift in the early 17th century. By the end of it the Russians were engaging in regular trade with China across their common border. The need to travel over a year across thousands of miles kept the price high. But eventually the practice spread throughout society and tea could be found in every samovar.
The United States, as some may remember, had a little ‘ceremony’ called the Boston Tea Party. As an act of protest against the heavy-handed British government, several Americans decided to dump large quantities of the good into the Boston harbor. In reaction, the British government closed the port and troops occupied the city. A revolution began. The results that followed changed the world forever.
Be a part of history and enjoy a fine cup of tea today.
Green Tea Weight Loss Pill Info
People have always been known to want to do and achieve things instantly. The same thing can be said in diets and weight loss. Impatience usually leads a dieter to resort to taking supplements or weight loss pills to try to get rid of those fats faster.
But recent controversies on the use of diet and weight loss pills have made several people hesitate at using them. Several weight loss pills are based on certain substances, like ephedra, that may be harmful for the body. This is why researchers are trying to come up with other potential resources to make weight loss pills that are safer to use.
A study conducted at the University of Geneva was recently published and it concerned itself with the weight loss benefits of green tea extract. It said that green tea has certain antioxidants in them like catechin polyphenols and flavonoids that help in increasing metabolic rates of the body. The publication of the study’s results prompted several pharmaceutical companies to incorporate green tea extract into their weight loss pills.
Green Tea, the Plant
Green tea is the common name for the herb Carmellia sinensis. The green tea plant came from China originally where it was cultivated specifically for its various health and medicinal benefits. Today, green tea is known to possess certain substances that can cure several diseases such as cancer, arthritis, and even ulcers. Because of its thermogenic properties, pharmaceutical companies are also using extracts of the green tea plant as one of the main ingredients in weight loss pills.
Green Tea, the Weight Loss Pill
The theory of weight loss pills is based on the fact that losing weight is done in two ways: retard fat intake or expedite its burning. Weight loss pills are known to do both these things.
Ingredients in weight loss pills such as Hoodia Gordonii can suppress hunger and stop food cravings. Another important ingredient in weight loss pills is glucosamine which can delay the effect of insulin, thus directly transforming sugar into energy instead of fat. Other components of a typical weight loss pill include cocoa extract (a diuretic), citrus fiber, vanadium, and glucomannan, all of which have anti-hunger properties.
The addition of green tea extract into weight loss pills has become common practice among pharmaceutical companies. Like cocoa extract, green tea is also an effective natural diuretic. Green tea can help rid the body of extra water that contributes to bloat and puffiness of the body.
But aside from being a diuretic, green tea is also a major contributor to fat-burning. The catechin polyphenols found in green tea effectively increases the metabolic rates of the body and also reduce food intake. Green tea also contains the substance flavanoid that fight free radicals that might be harmful for the body.
Because of these properties, green tea therefore makes for an excellent and healthy component of weight loss pills.
