On preparing your tea

July 28, 2003

Hi Ratan,

I don't know if this will be your cup of tea, but here's my opinion: I believe the more you heat or boil, the more you extract, and the more you destroy. So, you have to settle for a middle ground.

I would say #1 is best, followed by #2, then #3, which would take the longest to extract "completely" destroying more of the heat-sensitive components.

If you are such a perfectionist, you may want to weigh up identical portions of your particular tea, and make the extractions (infusions) at differing boiling times, cool, and dilute to the same final volume. If you can place each infusion in the same tall narrow tube and look through its length, you should see differences in colour intensity to indicate which is the minimal time needed to get your extraction. You would have to find a biochemist to ask if a simple bioflavonoid test is feasible.

Ronald (long-retired pharmaceutical chemist)

----- Mensaje original ----- De: DR. Ratan Singh Enviado: Domingo, 27 de Julio de 2003 03:20 a.m.Asunto: On preparing your tea

Hi Listees, friends and tea experts:

Kindly help me decide which of the three methods of preparing tea mentioned below is technically better on these two criteria, namely, #1. preservation of bioflavonoids against heat/boiling, and #2. extraction of nutrients by boiling?

Method #1. Don't boil tea. Boil the water, then add tea and the pre-boiled milk and (if you want) sugar and leave it covered for three to five minutes.

Method #2. Heat up the water. Add tea to it and now bring it to a boil. Then add milk and (if you want) sugar and continue to boil. Leave the mixture covered for three to five minutes.

Method #3. Mix all that you want in your tea first and then boil the mixture. Leave the mixture covered for three to five minutes.

Thanks. Ratan--the obsessive perfectionist. Homepage: www.JaipurMart.com/trade/meditationandhealth