In a moment of desperation on Monday, between meetings in the West End, we went into Starbucks to get a cup of tea. I ordered a Tazo tea and then noticed a poster behind the till with the calorie content of all the beverages sold at Starbucks. I couldn’t help but notice that tea contains ZERO calories (assuming no milk or sugar is added). Compared with a Cappucino that contains 168 calories or with skimmed milk (skinny cuppa) 76 calories (assuming no sugar or syrups added).

Not only does tea have no calories but it helps burn calories too! It does this as it has a slow releasing form of caffeine that released slowly and over a longer period of time uses up calories…

So drinking tea helps you loose calories, and its cheaper than coffee too (at nearly all the UK high street coffee shops we visited)! Plus it’s packed full of anti-oxidants that as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle can amongst others help to reduce blood pressure, prevent cancer and heart disease.

By no means is it a ‘miracle cure’ (but as part of a healthy balanced lifestyle can definitely add a bounce to your step in the mornings) but at the very least you still in a neutral position but have more money in your pocket – that is assuming tea is cheaper than coffee (or a smoothie!) at your local coffee shop. Not to forget that you can also make more cups of tea than coffee off of the same weight of product i.e. 250g of tea makes many more cups of tea than 250g of coffee!

As I sit here on the train from London to St. Ives, winding my way through the beautiful Dorset countryside memories come flooding back to me of the times I have been aboard the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway from New Jalpaiguri to Darjeeling. This is quite simply the most mesmerising journey I have ever been on . Words can do little justice to the serene beauty on offer during this seven hour weave through the Himalayan Mountains.

Starting at the lower eastern region of the Himalayas in New Jalpaiguri, the train meanders its way up the mountains eventually reaching the lush, rolling hills of Darjeeling. The journey is only just over 50 miles but takes nearly 7 hours to complete. Something that might sound strange from the outset (especially considering in my five hour journey today I will cover nearly 300 miles), but once it is over, you get that feeling that you want to do it all over again as soon as possible.

As the images flow through my thoughts, I find myself transported to this tranquil, yet vivid journey of sensory pleasure. I can recall the imagery with such detail. The intense green of the tea plantations, against a backdrop of pure white from the snow covered Himalayas is unforgettable. So is that of the sun setting over the mountains, as the train pulls into Darjeeling station. It really was something special!

As may be self evident, it is very difficult to describe this incredible journey in words. I am sure I have pictures at home that I will post later (for those impatient I am sure there are numerous ones online of various stages of the journey… the wonders of Google…). However I am not sure photos will do it justice either, as the meditative atmosphere or the feel and fragrance change in the mountain air as the train climbs higher cannot be replicated.

It really is a truly remarkable experience, and one I can not recommend enough. What is more when the journey is over, you have arrived in Darjeeling, which is a relaxing yet fun part of the world. You will also not have to go far to find a great cup of tea! Darjeeling first flush teas, arguably amongst the worlds best!

I came up with my 3 minute rule as think that speciality leaf tea need not be complicated. It is a complicated subject that can soon develop into a science with a myriad of data on water temperatures and infusion times depending on each type of tea. But it’s really very simple, for green tea it only takes 3 minutes.

3 MINUTE RULE:

3 minutes for boiled water to cool, and 3 minutes to infuse

Now it may well be 2 minutes in some cases but NEVER more than 3 minutes. Like any ‘rule’ there are the exceptions and some really delicate teas deserve more, but as a general rule of thumb, stick to the 3 minute rule for green tea and you wont go wrong!

Black tea can take water slightly hotter, in which case leave to cool 1 minute and infuse 2-3 minutes. However again stick with the ‘no more than 3 minutes’ rule and you will never go wrong.

Stick to 3 minutes, and guaranteed you will:

• Get multiple reinfusions of the same tea leaves. Treat them well and they will treat you well!
• Have great tasting tea, for you to enjoy and to share
• Never be tempted to add milk to cool the tea down (a no no!)
• Show off your new tea making expertise
• Save the planet. Rather than boil and wait for the water to cool, why not switch off before it boils (less than 3 minutes). Will save electricity and more oxygen in the water means the tea will definitely taste much better!
• 3 minutes….just enough time to call or text your Mom to tell her you love her. It is Mothers day after all in a few weeks!

It only takes 3 minutes, or 180 seconds…make them count!

Having looked at the now number of rooibos teas available in the market, and having drunk more than my fair share of Rooibos over the last 30 years, I thought it set out what really sets our Rooibos apart. Why all Rooibos was are not made equal…

Rooibos or redbush tea from South Africa is gaining such popularity that it might well rival gold and diamonds as one of South Africa’s biggest exports. So having looked at the market again the last few weeks and the number of new Rooibos tea products available, I thought this a good opportunity to take a look at what makes a good Rooibos a good Rooibos. First and foremost is the quality of the leaf – and yes, not all Rooibos teas is created equal and you do get what you pay for.

What you get with Chateau Rouge Rooibos is:

A truly single estate Rooibos. Our Wiedouw Rooibos is grown only on the Wiedouw farm in the Cape South Africa. It is not blended or mixed with any other farms Rooibos

The Chateau Rouge long-cut Rooibos leaves are cut to an extra long length. With the leaf being more than double the size of any ordinary Rooibos, like with whole leaf teas, you get a fuller flavour cup, and you can easily get multiple infusions off of the same leaves. A smaller cut leaf means the tea will infuse quicker, but it also means you get less from the leaf and will not stay as fresh as long and also means that the manufacturer can get away with other smaller pieces, notably twigs, also being cut up and included in the tea

Not only is Wiedouw long-cut Rooibos singles estate but is also 100% organic, certified organic since 1997. The farm was created at inception to be organic, and not just converted to organic at a later stage. This means that the tea is as pure as you can get

Chateau Rouge works with the from directly and imports direct from South Africa. This not only ensures that your Rooibos is super fresh but is the best grade and quality available for the season. Being a single estate Rooibos, the estate and Chateau Rouge put their names to the products and have an interest to make sure that they are the best quality possible!

Wiedouw Rooibos is now also Rain Forest Alliance as well as fair-trade from 2013. Which means that Chateau Rouge Wiedouw long-cut Rooibos may well be the greenest Rooibos you can get!

Anybody who has tried our Rooibos vs. teabags all conclude that the loose leaf tea tastes much better. No matter how hard you try you can’t avoid the taste of the teabags coming through when making a cup of Rooibos

That’s it, Chateau Rouge Wiedouw Rooibos may still prove more valuable than gold and diamonds, well maybe not but at least you can get alott more enjoyment from it and at a price that you can enjoy it everyday – remember you can re-infuse the whole leaf tea multiple times. Its an investment that pays for itself over and over again.

During the early days of Afternoon Tea, when the lady of the house would ask for ‘tea for two’ it would sometimes refer to the usual sandwiches, cakes and a pot of tea, for herself and her guest. While the expression ‘tea for two’ slowly returned as a physical reference the drink alone, a whole new culture had been born under the phrase. The idea of ‘tea for two’ now represented a whole lot more than a pot tea. It was now a social event for women and the chance for them to socialise without the pressure of male influence. It is therefore no great surprise that some historians link the appearance of afternoon tea (and with it the saying ‘tea for two’) as a contributing factor to the origins of the women’s suffrage movement.

End PART 2

Absolutely love this photo! Transport yourself back to Paris 1800's... (ParisInPhotos.com)

Tea for two…

Last week I found myself sat in the glorious Plaza Athenee Hotel in Paris (on Avenue Montaigne, near the Champs Elysees) catching up with an old friend – and missing London of course… When the waitress came over (a young, elegant looking French woman), we both ordered a cup of tea – a fine loose-leaf tea from Darjeeling India.

Without thought, I then interjected, ‘Tea for two then please’. It was only when she replied in her best English ‘Ahh, tea for two, certainement Monsieur’, that I stopped and pondered on what had just happened. Her acceptance and familiarity with what I had previously thought was a thoroughly English saying, struck me as strange and led me to investigate further into why these few simple English words have such widespread international recognition.

Firstly there is the undeniable fact that the words “tea for two” roll off the tongue with considerable ease, however this alone could not warrant breaking the language barrier or widespread understanding that you are in fact after a pot of brewed tea, rather than simply two cups of tea…

Indeed, the roots run much deeper. The words “tea for two” have been used in England and throughout its colonial empire for centuries, literally meaning what it means today. However in the 1840s the expression took on a new meaning, something we refer to today as ‘high tea’ or ‘afternoon tea.’

End PART 1

This year we deciding to start our January Detox early, with a ‘herbal tea challenge’. Instead of caffeine fuelled drinks, for the next 2 weeks over Christmas we decided to drink only caffeine free herbal ’tisanes’: Honeybush, Rooibos and Peppermint (although Seán still loves his Darjeeling and swears by his green tea after every meal).Tisanes (herbal teas) area fantastic way to keep warm all day long as they don’t contain any caffeine and most have their own health benefits which not only can help with digestion and that all to common bloated feeling, but are packed full of antioxidants that will help to ward off the horrible winter cold. All in all it makes sense to overindulge on tisane in December, why wait to January to detox when you can have all the fun now!

We all know about food and wine pairing…but food a tea…The choice of tea can easily add to a dish, be it cakes, or even breakfast or best tea after dinner. For a traditional Christmas cake we suggest a more ‘traditional tea’. A tea that not only compliments the sweet rich taste of a Christmas cakes with all the fruit, butter and sugar but helps to wash it down so you can still have room for that second slice. For that we recommend an Indian ‘Darjeeling styled tea’, either: Sikkim Temi or Nepal Fikkal Ilam. A tea with classic Himalayan astringency, smooth, yet layered and with lingering fruity tones to savour every mouthful of cake.

A Picture moment...Earl Grey and cake for afternoon tea today with all the ladies

Lorraine was not feeling well this afternoon and had to entertain two of her lady friends who came over for afternoon tea. Being the ‘house of Chateau Rouge’ they asked for the best teas possible, which lead into a discussion of all the options available…and guess what…they chose Earl Grey. Not such a masculine tea after all, must be the flowers!