Tea or not
 

Now that I'm leaving, I decided it was time to do the Celestial Seasonings tour. During the tour, our guide said that 80% of their teas are actually herbal infusions but they call them tea because you pour hot water on them so that's what Americans think they are. :thumbup:

Re: Tea of not
 

That's good to know. I have been wary of using those, as real tea upsets my stomach and didn't know if there was any tea hidden in the ingredients.

Re: Tea of not
 

Yes, this has always puzzled me. Before the "herbal tea" concept exploded in popularity, when we lived in Europe I remembered these hot herbal drinks being called tisanes or infusions to distinguish them from caffienated "teas". Now everything is randomly called "tea" if you pour not water on to activate it.

And I find these new combinations of what I call "tea" plus added herbs/spices/flavours/whatever very confusing. :thumbdown: If I want a soothing herbal concoction, I don't want to see black, orange, white, or green "tea leaves" anywhere in it. And if I'm looking for my usual black "breakfast tea", I don't want THAT jazzed up with silly extra ingredients either!

Re: Tea of not
 

Tea is..

1) Hot
2) Black
3) Indian

Everything else is not tea. :frown:

Re: Tea of not
 

:goodpost:

Re: Tea of not
 

I think you'd be completely safe with Celestial Seasonings. They are very proud of the purity of their 'teas'. Their real tea leaves are kept in a room all by themselves as they are extremely absorbent and would take up the fragrances from the other herbs if they were in the same storage area. So I think it's safe to say that they never get mixed.

Re: Tea of not
 

You forgot strong and unsweetened :nod:

Re: Tea of not
 

I also forgot "accompanied by Rich Tea Biscuits". :)

Re: Tea of not
 

I would also have accepted Bourbon Creams or Fox's Classics.

Re: Tea of not
 

:nod: You are wise in the ways of biscuits.

Re: Tea of not
 

I like to think I am, yes.

Re: Tea of not
 

I am quite the bore in pointing out, that what I have been offered as tea, is in fact not. "Please purloin some for my future visits" I state as I stomp out of their home. Offering an infusion to a Brit is quite the insult.

It is kind of funny looking at some pantries of "tea" drinkers, boxes and boxes of the stuff, but no actual tea.

Re: Tea of not
 

Agreed...you couldn't get me to drink it any other way...not for all the tea in China:lol:

Re: Tea of not
 

:lol:

I find it easier to ask for water, when offered a drink at someone's house. That eliminates the chance of being given an infusion or being forced to drink coffee.

Re: Tea of not
 

Granny Nutek would have been outraged! Nothing but carefully brewed indian tea went into her seemingly bottomless teapot with it's hand-knitted cosy.

(Granny Nutek rocked btw). :)

Re: Tea of not
 

Can I just clarify that by black, you mean the tea leaves and that milk (albeit a small amount) is, in fact, allowed?

Re: Tea of not
 

Absolutely. :)

Provided it is applied after the tea is poured, obviously.

Re: Tea of not
 

That goes without saying.

Re: Tea of not
 

I've said it now. :(

Re: Tea of not
 

Merely a reminder - not to worry :D

Re: Tea of not
 

:amen:

And now we have Celestial Seasoning's permission to say so :lol:

(Although she did say that green tea and white tea start out as black tea)

Re: Tea of not
 

Phew. I was afraid for a moment that I had flunked Tea 101

Re: Tea of not
 

Something didn't compute there.... I see the word "tea" but some kind of interference seemed to occur imediately before it. :p

Re: Tea of not
 

I try and be polite but I end up telling people I'm really particular about my tea. I do tend to get excited when I'm invited over for 'some' tea (never is it called a cuppa or even a cup of tea), but then there's always that sinking feeling when I remember that we are talking about two different things.

Re: Tea of not
 

:rofl:

Re: Tea of not
 

Aren't you Master of the Tea Ceremony?

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Re: Tea of not
 

I tried to find an illustration, but Google showed me only images that would have got me banned! :o

Re: Tea of not
 

Did you try adding the word Granny?

[Edit] Ok.. Don't do that. it's not good!

Re: Tea of not
 

You lot forgot to mention heating the pot first with the boiling water before putting the tea in at all.

My grandparents went a step further. They would also heat the cup and the teaspoon used to stir.

Re: Tea of not
 

Did they also warm their mouths before drinking it? :confused:

Re: Tea of not
 

I heat the cup but haven't gone so far as heating the spoon. Tea doesn't seem to stay hot here as long as in the UK so warming the cup helps. Something to do with altitude, I've been told.

Re: Tea of not
 

I don't know about not staying as hot, but water is boiling at a significantly lower temperature at higher altitudes. At 5,000ft it is only boiling at 95°C, and the BP drops by approximately 1°C for every additional 1,000ft.

Re: Tea of not
 

You need to knit it a little hat. :nod:

Re: Tea of not
 

There is a significant lack of tea cozy ownership.

edit: Yes Nutek (above) a little hat is needed.

Re: Tea of not
 

Wish I'd thought of that 22 years ago. Instead, I've just been drinking it quicker.

Re: Tea of not
 

This slightly above-average-educated American, in possession of an herbal medicine degree (misspent youth), understands that you call something an herbal infusion only if you intend to doctor someone with it. As a drink, it is a tisane.

Re: Tea of not
 

Just so long as we are clear that it isn't tea. ;)

Re: Tea of not
 

Need to clarify how tisane is being pronounced, or abbreviated first....:sneaky:

Re: Tea of not
 

:nod: Best to be absolutely clear before we move on to the Fondant Fancies.