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Bitter tannins are what you want in black tea, they're smoothed out by milk but a good cup needs to be grippy in the mouth. Black tea made with anything less th
by barrkel 3y ago
Bitter tannins are what you want in black tea, they're smoothed out by milk but a good cup needs to be grippy in the mouth. Black tea made with anything less than boiling water is usually not very nice, in my experience.
- gmac 3y ago100% this. Which is why, as a Brit, my heart still sinks when ordering tea in most European countries: nine times out of ten you get a glass of once-boiling water to add a teabag to.
- psd1 3y agoYep, a proper cuppa needs the water at absolute boiling. 1000m above sea level is high enough that I won't even bother trying to brew a cuppa; it just won't hit the spot. Milk is a factor. Weirdly for a country with a robust approach to pasteurisation, French milk is insipid. In China, I couldn't even get hot enough water for coffee. The places I stayed offered water almost cool enough for a bath. I had thought I was clever, buying ground coffee in Beijing, but I might as well have carried a bag of sand. Hey ho. Travel without privation is merely holiday.
- barrkel 3y agoIME holiday without a moment of privation is less memorable, and if you're travelling with others, the struggle is bonding. If hot drinks are important to you, bring a travel kettle.