The Art Of Serving Tea
From "Coffee and Tea"
4th Ed © 1988, 1991, 1998, Pages 229-232
Elin McCoy & John Frederick Walker
Once we pass from the realm of tea preparation to tea serving, we are passing from fact to preference, and here only a few passing remarks are in order, primarily on the suitability of teacup styles, addition of milk and other substances to tea, some suggestions on what teas to serve when, and the best way to prepare such classic variants as iced tea and spiced tea.
The palate is far more sensitive to moderately warm tea. If excessively hot, the tea is liable to scald the taste buds. It follows, then, that fine tea is best appreciated somewhat cooler than "piping hot." Chinese teacups are traditionally handleless, which has the advantage that one can tell by touch if the tea is ready to drink: if it's too hot to pick up, it's too hot to appreciate. Of course, tea may be drunk out of any sort of mug, but in the same way fine wine seems enhanced if served in thin crystal goblets, so too fine tea is enhanced by serving in fine china.
The Chinese and Japanese take their tea plain and would never think of adding anything, except perhaps a floating dried flower blossom on the surface. The British invariably add milk and often sugar as well; the Russians add lemon and sugar; people in the West Indies add a slice of lime; Moroccans add mint leaves; Indians may add basil leaves or a slice of orange. A great many Americans prefer their tea plain, as do Continental Europeans. If one is intent on savoring all the subtleties of a particular tea, it makes sense to take it plain. Many Darjeelings, though not all, are on the delicate side and are not improved by the addition of milk. (No one takes milk in oolong or green teas, because the flavor of the combination ranges from odd to repugnant.) On the other hand, the addition of milk to some black teas not only mellows the taste and adds body, but also enhances their fragrance, particularly Keemun. The great strength of Assam teas seems to call for milk, as do the brisk, high-grown teas of Ceylon.
Since milk contains about 3 percent casein, it renders the tannin in tea insoluble and reduces the characteristic bite of a pungent black tea. (It also helps its digestibility.) Few people who use milk add more than enough to render the tea amber-colored-a teaspoon's worth to a cup. More milk than that and the tea loses all its refreshing astringency. The addition of cream is not recommended because true cream contains very little casein and in any case changes the flavor more than milk. Since much American cream is simply thickened milk, it is possible to use it instead of milk. Milk in moderation does not mask the flavor of good black tea, particularly for those palates that are used to the nuance milk adds. (We drink black teas both with and without milk, depending on the occasion and the tea.)
Users of milk in tea have long argued the rather theologically subtle point of whether the milk ought to be added to the tea last, or put in the cup first and tea poured on it. Milk-firsters insist that milk scalds perceptibly if dumped into hot tea, and therefore the milk should be warmed slowly by the addition of tea. Milk-lasters insist that one can measure the proper amount of milk to add only by watching the color of the tea change. Nonusers of milk, of course, regard the whole question as silly.
Some authorities state that a small amount of sugar enhances the flavor of some black teas, with or without milk, and even some oolong teas. We have not found this to be the case, but that may be because we do not care for sweetened tea and find, as many people do, that it disguises the flavor of the brew. For that reason, we rarely add lemon, though the lemony nuance it adds does enhance thin teas. Few people recommend adding anything but lemon to green teas. In short, the addition of milk, sugar, and lemon is as much a matter of taste as custom.
The question of what teas go best with certain times of the day is again a matter of custom and taste. Keemuns were the original English breakfast teas, but now that role is taken by hearty Indian and Ceylon blends as well. We prefer Assam for breakfast, high-grown Ceylon for afternoon tea, Keemun after evening meals, Darjeeling for mid-morning or late evening, greens when in a meditative mood, and oolong anytime. Oolongs go very well with pastries and other light desserts, and though most teas are drunk after meals, a cup of fine green tea makes an unusual and bracing aperitif. In most tea-drinking countries, the only meal with which tea is taken is breakfast, although tea is often accompanied by snacks. Discovering what teas go best with what foods and what occasions is at least as enjoyable a gastronomic exercise as trying various wine and food combinations.