Crash Course in Tea Storage

My favorite tins: Kotobuki origami tins, available for purchase at
http://www.rishi-tea.com/

This might not be the most groundbreaking of blogs, but I think it is important nonetheless, because as my favorite cliché goes, knowledge is power.

Storing your tea correctly is imperative to ensure that it maintains maximum flavor and freshness. We opened a random tin of peach rooibos last week that had a skimming of cobwebs along the interior ceiling of the tin. Barf!

There are several factors that will affect the long-term quality of your teas: light, heat, strong smells, and humidity.

Tea that has constant or even intermittent exposure to light will eventually dry out and lose its flavor. Always store your teas in airtight containers made of stainless steel or non-opaque ceramic. Glass should never be used because, dear genius, it lets in light. And don't forget, the best container is a re-usable one, just like our TeaSpot Loose Leaf tins are.

Heat will have the same effect on your tea, rendering it extra dry and flavorless. That being said, you should always store your tea and tins in a cool, dry place. So, over the stove, microwave, or refrigerator is probably not a good idea seeing as these appliances tend to give off heat. Windowsills are also not a good place. Cool, dark cupboards are usually your best bet.

Strong smells are a pretty obvious thing to avoid. Teas are blotters, which means they pick up the scents of things around them. So your teas should never be stored in the same place as your spices! Nor should they be anywhere near your Cheetos, pickles, mustard, jalapenos, leftover pizza, curries, or dirty socks.

Humidity will also mess up the delightful delicacy of your teas. Teas are dried to begin with, so adding excess moisture unintentionally will cause a mustiness that will probably taste like the underside of an old ice tray. That being said, you should never ever freeze or refrigerate your teas either. Cool and dark does not mean the cold, moist darkness of your frigidaire my friends.

So, there you go. Simple and straightforward. Now go to!

This little guy would royally #$%& up your tea!

What's Cookin' Good Lookin'?

There's always something cooking in the TeaSpot kitchen, so in accompaniment to our blog about tea-riffic cocktails, I thought I would go ahead and add the piece de résistance: a few mouth-watering recipes for cooking with tea. So put on your aprons, collect your spatulas, and get in the kitchen and make me some dinner!

Image courtesy of www.cocktail.uk.com

Tea has long been consumed at all times of the day and with all types of food, and also as an after-dinner digestif. Tea's wide range of subtle and poignant flavors make it perfect for added flavors in food. So it only makes sense that at some point during the human experience, our big-'ole brains would combine the two in the kitchen for some new culinary experiences.

So, without further ado, I give you the following recipes, courtesy of TeaSpot founders Maria Uspenski and Karen Harbour:

Green Tea Chicken Noodle Soup
INGREDIENTS:
8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken, cut into1/2 inch pieces
2 teaspoons GREEN ROASTED MINT leaves steeped in one half-cup (4 oz) water
5 ounces dry bean thread noodles
4 cups chicken stock
2 (1/2 inch thick) slices ginger root, lightly mashed
1/2 cup oyster mushrooms, cubed
3 cups packed spinach leaves, large stems removed
Salt and white pepper, as desired

PREPARATION: Place the chicken in a large bowl and add the green tea. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour to marinate. Cover the bean thread noodles with warm water. Soak until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain. In a big pot bring the stock, ginger and mushrooms to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. Add the chicken, including the GREEN ROASTED MINT marinade, and noodles. Return to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes. Add the spinach and boil for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Red Rocks Roasted Potatoes
INGREDIENTS:
2 lbs Red Potatoes, cubed
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
3 teaspoons agave or honey
3 tablespoons TeaSpot’s Red Rocks tea, finely ground
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon white pepper

PREPARATION: Preheat oven to 425°. In a large roasting pan or baking sheet, spread cubes potatoes evenly. In a bowl, mix oil, vinegar, Red Rocks tea, agave, salt & pepper. Drizzle mixture over potatoes and toss together. Cover with foil and place in oven. Bake for 45 - 50 minutes. Uncover and stir. Broil for an additional 5 - 10 minutes to brown top. Serves 6 – 8.

Orange-Mango Tango Duck
INGREDIENTS:
2 Boneless duck breast halves
¾ cup chopped shallots
2 ¼ cups chicken broth
1 ½ cups fresh or non-concentrated orange juice
4 teaspoons MANGO TANGO leaves
1 Tablespoon honey
3 Tablespoons diced butter
salt and pepper to taste

PREPARATION: Preheat oven to 450F. Pierce skin of duck all over with fork and sprinkle duck with salt and pepper. Place duck, skin side down, in a heated skillet to brown (about 4 minutes). Turn duck breasts over and continue to cook for another 2 minutes. Remove and place in a roasting pan, then continue to cook in 450F oven to desired doneness, about 20 minutes for medium-rare. Meanwhile, heat the drippings left in the skillet over medium. Add shallots and sauté until golden. Remove discarded drippings. Add broth, orange juice and MANGO TANGO leaves. Bring to boil. Reduce to about 1 cup and strain. Return liquid to same skillet and add honey; simmer 2 minutes. Whisk in butter and add salt and pepper to taste. Slice thin and serve with sauce.

Fragrant Rice

VINTAGE OOLONG will give your ordinary rice a sweet and subtle aroma. Perfect with any mustard sauce or cream-based entree.
INGREDIENTS:
4 cups water
2 teaspoons VINTAGE OOLONG
2 cups rice
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
salt, 1/2 teaspoon, or to taste

PREPARATION: Boil water. Add rice, salt and olive oil and reduce heat to simmer. After 5 minutes add vintage oolong leaves. Cover and simmer for an additional 20 minutes or until water is absorbed and rice is ready. Remove vintage oolong leaves – they will all be at the surface of the rice. Serves: 4 - 6

Earl of Grey Cookies
INGREDIENTS:
2 tsp Earl of Grey (dry leaves, ground)
2 c flour
2 eggs
4 oz. (1/2 c) butter, melted
1/2 c cane sugar
1 TBS decorative sugar crystals
a few loose Earl of Grey tea leaves

PREPARATION: Beat the melted butter with the sugar. Add 1 egg, then flour and powdered tea, until you get a homogeneous dough. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour. Grease a cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 400F. Beat 2nd egg with 1 TBS water in a small bowl. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 in thickness, on a lightly floured surface. Cut out cookies into desired shapes, and place on cookie sheet. Brush with beaten egg mixture. Decorate with loose sugar crystals and tea leaves. Bake about 10 mins or until just golden. Cool on rack and let come to room temperature before serving.

Boulder Blues Fruit Salad
INGREDIENTS:
6 teaspoons TeaSpot’s Boulder Blues steeped in 4 oz hot water
1/4 cup agave or 1/3 cup honey or sugar
Assorted Fruit (Strawberry, blueberry, mango, pineapple, apple, raspberry, melon, grapes)

PREPARATION: Steep Boulder Blues tea in 4 ounces water at 175° for 2 minutes (Note to bring water to 175° - boil and let cool for 3 minutes). Add hot tea to agave and whisk. Mix fruit in a big bowl. Drizzle Boulder Blues syrup over fruit. Mix gently and let sit for 20 - 30 minutes before serving.

Voilá!

Take a Moment

Hello Team!

Today is a day to recognize the importance of slowing down and taking time out to enjoy the little things. According to the American Institute of Stress (how's that for a day job?!), at least half of all Americans are concerned about stress levels in their everyday lives. Considering what a roving pack of cell-phone carrying, laptop toting, errand-running, work-too-much-ing go-getters many of us have been and are becoming, it's no surprise that we inevitably feel that life is going by waaay too fast. For example, can anyone tell me how the hell it is April already? How did this happen?! It's no mystery anymore that stress also has a negative impact on our mental and physical health. Can you say "cardiac infarction?" It is time that we, as a society, place more importance on our personal health over our jobs. This doesn't mean you should go to work tomorrow and quit, but there are many small steps one can take to show a little self-devotion.

One wonderful way to take a small load off is to sit the hell down for 10 minutes and enjoy a pot of tea. While I wouldn't personally recommend it, you could even get some work done at the same time, but I find that my own mental health is instantly smoothed over when I can sit with my tea and read a magazine or surf the web for completely inane information that requires no significant mental activity. You know, like cruising through best of craigslist.org or reading the latest mindblowing headlines at theonion.com. When I am feeling particularly stressed about anything, I brew up a cup of our Meditative Mind. Perhaps it is the suggestive nature of its name, but the relaxing scent and soothing taste do wonders for my nerves when they are frayed like the open ends of a torn cable wire. Like they were the other day when I caught someone stealing tips from the tip jar.

Whether you drink tea, take a 5-minute walk, meditate, take a lunch break without your cell phone, exercise, read, or throw stones into a lake, it is important to remember that you must take time for yourself to do whatever it is that makes you a happier, healthier person. Just like the glorious line from the 1991 film classic (ha), What About Bob, we must take "baby steps to one o'clock!"

I Know Why You Don't Like Green Tea

One of our major missions at the TeaSpot is education. We want our staff to be well-educated about tea and the process of making it, the different teas we offer, how to describe flavors, and of course the numerous health benefits of consuming premium, loose leaf teas. We also want to be able to share this knowledge with as many people that come through our door as possible. I have noticed that the majority of people ordering tea really aren’t sure what they want or what they like. I can totally relate to this conundrum, because before I was employed by the TeaSpot, my knowledge of tea was limited to the random selection of teabags that was offered at whatever restaurant where I was waiting tables at the time. Green, black, herbal…it was all the same to me.

In my 9-month tenure as the GM of the TeaSpot’s downtown retail location in Boulder, I have come across quite a few customers who, befuddled by the size and content of our tea list whilst trying to make a selection, look at me plaintively and say “I don’t like green tea, but what else can you recommend?”

One of the most important things to know about tea is that the water temperature that you use to steep your tea with is extremely important. Most customers that claim to have a mild or severe distaste for green tea had no idea that if boiling water is used to steep it, chances are it will turn out to be bitter and taste horrible. Considering most folks simply boil water then pour it over tea if they make it at home (which is what I do, albeit much more carefully now), it is not surprising that most people are making it incorrectly, and therefore not enjoying it. Using water that is cooler allows the tea to reach is perfect, peak flavor, as well as release the maximum amount of essential oils, vitamisn, and antioxidants. Using boiling water will scorch your tea; the taste will be bitter, and you will literally burn out those health benefits, which is probably why you’re attempting to drink the stuff in the first place, right?

So, for everyone’s education, here are the temperature guidelines that we use behind the counter to serve the perfect cup of tea:

Black and herbal teas: Boiling water (212˚F)
Green and white teas: 175˚
Mates and oolongs: 195˚

Since we don’t all have thermometers ready at hand to measure the temperature of our water (and if you do, well then use it), there are a few strategies one can use to bring water to an ideal temperature for brewing green tea. If you use an electric kettle like I do, the best thing to do is to plop a few ice cubes into the kettle after it has switched off. I have found that for one 16 ounce mug, one regular sized ice cube will do the trick perfectly; for mate or oolong just let the water sit for a few minutes before you pour it. For boiling water on the stove, simply cut the heat before the water shows signs of “dragon eyes,” when bubbles start to form and rise to the surface of the water. For mate or oolong tea, remove the water from the heat right after the water looks like a string of pearls; water bubbles following one another in a string to the surface of the water.

Making the perfect cup of a tea is a culinary challenge and delight. It’s a bit like yoga, sex, or running on the treadmill…it might not be perfect the first time, but the more you practice, the better it gets. Well, maybe not the treadmill, but you see what I’m saying: get in the kitchen and practice making that tea!