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Tea-drinking habits around the world
For the curious, here are some information about the type of tea, tea-drinking habits and traditional ceremonies in different countries in the world.
China
Green tea is their national everyday beverage and it is offered to all guests upon arrival in the home. The traditional "gongfu" ceremony is performed using a set of delicate tea bowls, straight-sided smelling cups. The traditional method consists in making several infusions from the same measure of leaves, each with its own individual aroma and flavor. Chinese social life centers on the tea house. People of all types and ages mingle, drink tea, and catch up with the latest gossip. The different teas are brewed in glasses, "guywans" or teapots, with additional water often poured onto the same leaves to give several infusions. A waiter moves around the room, dispensing more water from a kettle with a long spout.
Mongolia
"Brick tea" is crushed and brewed with water and yak buttermilk, the liquor is then strained and mixed with milk, salt, butter and roasted grain.
Tibet
"Brick tea" is crushed and soaked in water overnight and the infusion is then churned with salt, goat′s milk and yak butter to produce a thick buttery drink. Sometimes a handful or two of grain is added to make a nourishing, soup-like food known as "tsampa". Both Mongolian and Tibetan teas are drunk from a bowl rather than a cup.
Russia
They have always traditionally brewed their tea with a "samovar" (an urn that developed from the Mongolian cooking stove). A little pot of black tea is brewed very strong and then placed, to keep warm, on the top of the samovar. When tea is served, a cup is half filled with the strong tea, watered down with hot water drawn from the tap in the side of the samovar, and drunk with sugar or jam.
Turkey
A strong black brew is prepared and strained into tulip-shaped glasses and served with little sweetmeats. In some parts of the country (like the eastern ones), a cube of sugar is placed under the tongue before the tea is sipped from the glass. Some Turks drink so much tea that they carry a "semover", like a Russian samovar, in the back of their car. In domestic life, tea has great importance and mothers always ensure their daughters know how to brew tea correctly.
Iran and Afghanistan
Tea is also their national beverage. Both green and black are used (green as a refreshing thirst quencher and black as a warming, comforting brew). Both types are taken with sugar. At home and in the popular tea houses, drinkers sit cross-legged on floor mats and sip their tea from glasses or elegant porcelain bowls.
Morocco
At Moroccan tea-drinking ceremony all those taking part wash their hands in orange blossom water and watch while the host prepares the tea. Green tea, fresh mint and sugar are measured into a tall silver pot and hot water is then poured in. Little glasses are set ready on a tray and when the tea has brewed, the golden liquor is poured from a height so that it froths into the glasses and settles with a layer of tiny bubbles on the surface. Accompanying nibbles include dried apricots, figs and nuts.
Egypt
Tea drink is made by boiling tea leaves and sweetening the infusion with plenty of sugar. Tea is also flavored with dried mint leaves and served with sugar in glasses.
Japan
The traditional Green Tea Ceremony is still an important social ritual and the ability to perform is an essential skill for well-educated young ladies. The most popular tea is still green, but many Japanese today also enjoy black tea drunk in the British way with milk. In some metropolitan areas, there are also some very stylish green tea "cafes" that serve unusual flavored and blended green teas.
India
Black tea is drunk with milk and sugar. Young boys brew tea on street corners using kettles and brass pots and mix it with buffalo milk and sugar. They sell it to passers-by who drink it from little earthenware cups that are thrown away after use. Spiced tea, known as "chai" or "marsala chai" and made with pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and sugar, is also very popular. The "afternoon tea", with savory and sweet snacks, is served in the tea-rooms of India′s smart hotels throughout the afternoon.
Sri Lanka
Lunchtime tea with "hoppers" (a type of pancake made with rice flour, coconut milk, sugar, salt and yeast and cooked in a special pan to give a bowl shape) is a traditional institution. They are served with a variety of curries and spicy sauces. In hotels, as in India, "afternoon tea" is offered through the afternoon.
Malaysia
Tea is brewed very strong and then mixed with condensed milk and plenty of sugar. Sometimes the tea and condensed milk are mixed together and then poured several times between two jugs so that the liquid becomes deliciously frothy. The Malaysians also like iced tea, made by pouring strong hot tea and condensed milk over crushed ice.
[Author]
Alexandra Popa