Teaspotting in SoHo, New York

More New York tea stories to come....

Tea made with flowers

Before my 24-hour plane ride to New York, I stopped by My Tea House in Sydney to say goodbye. The owner, Raymond, happened to have some new chrysanthemum tea, perfect for drinking before a long flight.

Chrysanthemum flowers are technically not a tea (it’s a tisane or herbal tea) and therefore have no caffeine. They look beautiful and have a rich aroma and taste (the scent is very pungent, almost like mustard seed but the taste is very smooth and slightly sweet). This particular flower is called blood or snow chrysanthemum and it grows at high-altitudes of more than 3,000 metres north of Tibet. It’s easy to make – brew at least five minutes in boiling water.

But it’s not the taste that makes me think I’m drinking the perfect cup of tea before my long flight. Health benefits of chrysanthemum tea include cooling the body temperature, relaxation, improving sinus congestion and detoxifying the blood. It is especially good for varicose veins, so I can only assume that it’s a good drink before a very long international flight. If only you could get it on board!

Does white tea really prevent ageing?

As loose leaf tea surges in popularity, there’s been much talk of its health benefits. White tea (the least processed of the six different varieties) is supposedly high in antioxidants which attack those nasty free radicals that can cause premature ageing in our skin. So does white tea really make you younger?

In the US, cosmetic companies like Sephora sell cosmetics and fragrances with white tea, including everything from facial cleansers to eye cream to perfume. And there does seem to be some scientific evidence to back up its anti-ageing claims. A recent Kingston University (London) study seems to suggest that white tea does in fact help prevent wrinkles.

So what should you look out for when buying and drinking white tea? White tea is one of my favourites. When drinking, it has a rich, velvety texture with soft, sweet honey notes. Very decadent! And yes, the scent of fresh, white tea leaves is beautifully fragrant (hence its growing popularity as an ingredient in everything from scented candles to perfume). I recently had the privilege of smelling the aroma of a freshly opened bag of Silver Needle white tea, recently picked in China, at My Tea House (pictured above). I could have fallen into a deep sleep, I was that relaxed by it. Leaves with a strong, pungent scent and vibrant colour are always the best indicators of fresh, high-quality tea. And if you store white tea in a tin, it should keep fresh for a few months – just enough time to see if it actually keeps you looking young!

Spring in a teacup

Enjoyed a beautiful cup of Zealong oolong this morning and couldn't believe the size my leaves got to by my third brew!

Is Japanese green tea safe to drink?

I was watching SBS’s Dateline this past Sunday when I suddenly took notice of an update on Japan’s radiation levels. The report stated that green tea grown in the famous Shizuoka prefecture was testing positive for high levels of radiation. Since I had just enjoyed some great Japanese green tea the day before, it got me thinking about alternatives to Japanese green teas grown in Shizuoka, especially its famous Sencha tea.

Although many types of famous Japanese green teas, including Sencha, Matcha and Genmaicha are grown in the Shizuoka region, other Japanese green teas such as Gyokuro, are grown in the Fukuoka and Kyoto prefectures. Gyokuro is very similar in taste to Sencha, with a sweet, grassy flavour. As far as I could tell, radiation hasn’t affected this area, so Gyokuro is a great alternative to Sencha tea. You can find it at most tea shops, especially Taka Tea Garden.

If you’re lucky enough to live in Australia, you can also buy Australian-grown Sencha. This green tea is grown in Victoria and sold at The Tea Centre. The flavour is a bit richer and less grassy than Sencha, but very tasty!

The other alternative of course is to drink Chinese green teas, such as the famous Longjing or Dragonwell tea. Although I personally don’t find Chinese green teas as grassy as Japanese greens, their fuller body and rich, buttery texture make them some of my favourites! You can buy online at My Tea House.

Secret tea cocktails

No, this isn’t a photo of a random restaurant in Chinatown. It’s one of Chinatown, New York’s ‘secret’ bars called Apotheke. Notice that the doors on this storefront are a little too nice to fit in? That’s because it’s the entrance to a dimly lit bar whose vibe and décor makes you feel like you’ve stepped back into the 1930s. And the secret to their success? Mixing herbs (tisanes) like lavender and sage with alcohol to create unique cocktails.

The night I dropped by I tried their Lavender Fields cocktail from the “Stress Reliever” category of their cocktail menu. A mix of Tequila, lime, Kalamanci fruit (a tart fruit from the Philippines) and lavender herbal tea, this drink certainly provides some instant relaxation after a long day! It’s very sour, but goes down easy. If you’re a mojito or margarita lover like me, then you know what I mean. Curious to try this one at home, I asked the bartender how it was made. Instead of infusing the Tequila with lavender like you would do with say tea leaves and vodka, they actually just mix lavender infused herbal tea with all of the ingredients.

Make sure you drop by if you’re planning a trip to NYC – and don’t forget which doors to look out for!

Best teas for winter

It got pretty cold and rainy this week in Sydney and a warm cup of tea became a necessity. Usually I drink tea based on what type of flavour I’m craving that day, but pu-erh is my tea of choice when it gets cold. You can get ten pots out of just one teaspoon of leaves (I’m saving for a beach holiday!), so this tea is a perfect companion to your laptop, sofa or wherever else you hide from the cold! In fact all of the cups of tea in the above photo (courtesy of Raymond at My Tea House) came from just one teaspoon of pu-erh leaves, and many, many teapots after!

So what is pu-erh? It’s probably the least well-known of Chinese teas here in the West, yet it can sell for thousands of dollars in China (many Chinese families have put children through school on it!) Similar to a fine wine, this loose leaf tea is allowed to age – and of course the older it gets, the better it tastes. There are two kinds available at good tea shops here: raw pu-erh and cooked pu-erh, both of which come in the form of compressed tea cakes. Raw pu-erh tends to have more preserved fruit notes like plum while cooked pu-erh has a much richer, sometimes mushroom-soup like flavour quality. Regardless of which one you choose, it will warm up your entire body. And it has great winter helath benefits too – aiding with the digestion of all those fatty winter foods.

Click here for simple brewing instructions you can use anywhere, anytime.