Have you ever had a cup of tea and thought “that’s so much better than my regular cup”?
The difference is in how it is made
Seru Erick McDanald, a chief barista at Ketepa Tea House, Nairobi, says that tea is supposed to be specially prepared to achieve a perfect cup.
“Tea is brewed. The brewing process brings out the real taste and aroma of tea,” he says
He summarises the process of making a perfect cup of tea in these simple steps. The art of preparing a perfect cup of tea
- Get the water close to boiling point and then add the best tea leaves
- Le the mixture heat to boiling point
- (Add quantity of milk as per your taste, if desired)
- Remove from re and cover for 3-5 minutes to allow the tea leaves to diffuse. This is called steeping
- Pour and sieve the tea into a ask or kettle
- Finally, add your desired sweetener such as sugar or honey
- Enjoy your perfect cup of tea
Vincent Mwingirwa, KTDA Quality Assurance and New Product Development Manager, who is also a professional tea taster, says a perfect cup of tea must have the right flavor, aroma, and briskness.
“A great cup of tea must produce a stimulating sensation at a single sip.” He adds that the mistake people make is exposing tea leaf to moisture or other flavors when in storage.
“Just like salt, tea leaf absorbs moisture and flavors from the atmosphere and these adulterate it. Tea leaf should be kept in an air-tight container because it is hygroscopic in nature.”
He adds that tea drinkers often do not read the recipe printed on the tea packets, which leads them to brew a poor cup. Mwingirwa recommends a slightly different approach in brewing tea: “Bring fresh water to the boiling temperature and do not repeat boiling as this denatures water. Pour the boiled water into a container that has tea leaves (the amount of the leaf depends on individual taste) and cover the container for five minutes. Remove the cover and serve.”
However you brew your cup, tea is a great beverage that tastes good and is wonderful for your health.