Good news for all you hair pullers, nail biters, teeth grinders and xanax poppers! You can now hydrate yourself, anti-oxidise yourself and help keep yourself more relaxed all with just one simple, sugar and crap free beverage. Ain’t life grand.
It’s been reported for a very long time (would you believe over 3.000 years) that tea [...]
In a new study on September 30 in the journal Psychopharmacology, Steptoe and his colleagues at University College in London have shown that drinking the equivalent of four cups of strong black tea for six weeks increases the rate of relaxation after a stressfull event. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study showed that levels of cortisol, [...]
In the confusion after the Tang dynasty collapsed, no fewer than fifteen emperors came and went before a functioning central government was finally restored with the advent of the Songdy nasty in 960. The post-Tang Chinese knew little about the rest of the world, which they perceived as populated by barbaric races who ought, if the [...]
Steptoe and colleagues have just published an article (epub in advance) in the journal Atherosclerosis showing that drinking the equivalent of 4 strong cups of black tea for just 6 weeks decreases two major conditions leading to stroke and heart attack. C-reactive protein (CRP), a blood marker of inflammation associated with these cardiovascular diseases, [...]
On my recent trip to China, I visited many different tea houses. Most were small, local establishments that weren't particularly unique or special. Not unlike a neighborhood bar around the U.S., each one was only slightly different. Some were a little shabbier, some a little hipper; a few were busy and others appeared to be [...]
I write this post in hopes of stimulating some dialogue on the subject of fair trade certified teas.
I would like to preface this post by saying that I am NOT an expert on the technical details or the official position taken by Transfair or other Fair Trade organizations. If I misquoted something, or if my [...]
Confusion and discrepancies abound as to what constitutes white tea. You will find white teas can vary greatly in size, shape and color from different parts of the tea producing world. This is because technically speaking white tea, as defined by the way it is harvested and processed, can result from picking the leaves in [...]
After a long day of hunting and gathering birthday presents for my boyfriend in the Union Square area of NYC, I decided I needed a little pick-me-up before heading home. I pass the usual fast food and drink establishments. A frosty from Wendy’s? Nah. Starbucks? Not again. Then, as if by magic, I came across [...]
“Goodness is a decision for the mouth to make”
Lu Yu, author Cha Ching, 8th Century China
The good news is that more and more premium loose-leaf teas are becoming available in an increasing number of teahouses as well as on the internet. Tea merchants may carry anywhere from [...]
“ The pots emerge as the creation of the ”˜combat between the clay and the fire' within the kiln.” (Cort, Shigaraki, p. 297, quoting Kobayashi Hideo)
While these pictures may look like two different pots, they are actually pictures of two sides of one of my teapots, with no applied glaze. It was wood-fired for six [...]
