Can you believe there is a national tea day?! Neither can I, but what a wonderful day to celebrate one of the most popular drinks in the world. In the UK, tea day is celebrated on the 21st of April and we thought it would be fun to get involved! Here are some of our favourite teas we like to drink on our tea break.
Green Tea
Green tea is one of the five types of tea known as a ‘true tea’. The true teas all come from the same tea plant called Camellia Sinensis. The five types of true teas are white tea, black tea, green tea, oolong tea and pu-erh tea. There are many varieties of green tea but there are two defining categories: those made the Japanese way and those made the Chinese way.
Japanese green teas are identified by their leave which is steamed. The flavour of a Japanese green tea is sweet and vegetal, and when brewed it is a light green shade. Chinese green tea leaves are pan-fried or dried in rotating drums, this method is used to avoid the leaves from oxidising. The leaves can be dried and fired many times depending on the blend and different heat method are used to develop different flavours.
Thai Iced Tea
This iced drink is sweet and delicious, a perfect cold drink for the summer. The actual tea itself can be served hot or cold but my preference is cold, serve over ice. This popular Thai tea is made from Ceylon tea which is strongly brewed with sugar and condensed milk. If you haven’t tried this tea before I recommend visiting a Thai restaurant and grabbing yourself a glass - it’s really delicious!
The taste of Thai tea can be elevated even further by adding spices like star anise and crushed tamarind seeds. It is quite popular to add grass jelly, lychee or young coconut to the tea too. When in Thailand you can buy this tea at a market stall and they usually serve it over ice in a plastic bag!
Mint Tea
Mint tea is so refreshing and relaxing! It tastes even better with fresh mint leaves from the shop or homegrown in the garden. As herbs are used for this tea instead of tea leaves, it is considered a herbal tea and does not have any caffeine. Spearmint and peppermint tea are classic choices but other varieties of mint will work well too.
What I love about mint tea is that it can be customisable and you can easily adjust the taste to suit you. To make it sweeter, try a teaspoon of honey. Add a slice or squeeze of lemon to make it taste less sweet and by blending mint leaves and green tea together, you can make a caffeinated drink which can be a great way to start off your mornings. There are lots of benefits from drinking mint tea from relieving indigestion, easing IBS symptoms, bad breath and providing a natural boost. Read further about the benefits here.
Lemongrass & Galangal Tea
This soothing and relaxing herbal tea is made with fresh lemongrass stalks and galangal with a little honey. It makes a healthy and aromatic noncaffeinated drink, perfect for any time of day, even enjoy before bed without worrying about being kept up all night! Lemongrass has a sophisticated and complex flavour with a citrus aroma, when the lemongrass stalks are chopped and crushed, it releases more lemon flavours which makes the tea taste more refreshing.
The small pieces of fresh galangal add hints of a mild spice flavour. You could add larger pieces of galangal to pack more of a punch and with a little added honey, these flavours will balance out beautifully. Lemongrass galangal tea can be served either hot or cold. To make the cold version, leave the tea to chill in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving over ice.
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