Taste

Tea, through the palette of colors, textures, and tastes that it opens up, offers multiple discoveries… here are some guidelines for use the neophyte or the enlightened amateur in order to introduce them to the pleasures of tea, and give him some elements to structure his experiences and thus memorize them better.

 

Choosing tea

• Where and how ?

In a good tea shop, a tea counter, saleswomen and sellers are here to guide you in your choices. We must make you see and smell the tea : the leaves must be regular, homogeneous, supple with an odor marked more or less powerful depending on the tea. Some teas being fragile, the harvest period must be mentioned or specified, as well as brewing time, water temperature and the most appropriate time to consume it.

For beginners , the scented teas should not be neglected because they are a good gateway into the universe tea. One flavored tea on a black tea base and one on a tea base green are a wise choice to approach two large families of very different. Regarding “natural” teas without added flavors, blue green or wu long teas are very interesting for beginners because their aromas are powerful, varied and they are generally soft and velvety.

For enlightened amateurs , explore the facets different colors of tea, favoring of course “natural” or pure origin teas . You can start with blue-green, black and white teas, then you continue with green teas from China then Japan, and finally the vast world of dark teas called pu er . You will then have to devote a small budget to discover fine wines from 10 to more than 100 euros per 100g depending on the origins, the quality, the vintage, knowing that with 100g of tea you can make at least 50 cups….

You can find quality teas in supermarkets, choice remains everything similarly restricted except in supermarkets with a delicatessen section developed. Teas in paper bags contain broken tea, their taste will therefore always be less fine and complex than loose leaf tea whole.

As for the prices, reduced to 100g of tea for example, they are not very different those of mid-range teas from a specialized counter.

Among the loose teas we mainly find references “ classics”: English blends, Ceylon, Darjeeling, Earl Gray and tastes Russians. The bagged offer is more diversified, knowing that the majority is flavored. It is important to read the ingredients to verify the content of what you buy.

On the other hand, you will find a nice range in “fair trade” and “organic”, which is still rare in tea counters.

• Throughout the day

For the morning, a tonic or rehydrating tea

For some (2/3 of French people!), tea must be dark in a cup with powerful aromas to awaken the taste buds, this is the case of black teas from China, Kenya or India, for others, tea must be thirst-quenching, clear in a cup, a green tea will then be ideal.

For lunch, a gourmet tea or a digestive tea

This is the ideal time to play with tea and food pairings (see the section add tea). You can also end the meal with tea for digestive virtues.

For the afternoon, a gourmet or warming tea

This is the favorite moment for all flavored teas with notes sweet, fruity, vanilla or floral. As for lunch, you can play on tea and food pairings.

For the evening, a relaxing or digestive tea

This is an opportunity to favor low-theine teas with a light taste. such as blue-green teas, called wu long, certain white teas with soothing virtues, or a jasmine tea or a pu er both renowned for their digestive properties.

• Depending on the color of the tea

What we call tea in the strict sense is a botanical species well determinate: Camellia sinensis . Young shoots of the year are harvested several times a year then processed in a factory which is the equivalent of the cellar for winemaking. According to the way from which we work them, 6 colors can be manufactured, the difference lies in the more or less extensive oxidation of the leaf.

What is oxidation? It is a natural process of aging plants that can be admired in the fall. The leaves, when they are deprived of water, in contact with air, dry out, change color gradually turning from green to brown, but also change in taste! In tea colors, everything is a story of oxidation more or less important carefully orchestrated and controlled by the planter in the manufacturing. So green tea is not oxidized and keeps its color of origin, while black tea (called red in China) is completely oxidized and takes on a brown tint. This oxidation reveals aromas very different depending on its intensity.

Here are the 6 colors:

  • naturally oxidized white tea , light and clear in cup, it is very thirst-quenching; Main producing countries: China, North India, Nepal and Sri Lanka
  • green tea , unoxidized, clear in cup with notes plant-based, is also thirst-quenching but more “nourishing” than tea white ; Main producing countries: China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka
  • yellow tea , unoxidized, lightly fermented, is close a green tea with a little more body; Main producing country: China
  • black tea (called red in China), totally oxidized, is darker in cup ranging from light amber to dark copper with notes woody and more full-bodied; it is the best known and most consumed in the world ; Main producing countries: China, India, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Indonesia, Turkey, Vietnam, Argentina, Iran, Bangladesh, Malawi, Uganda, Rwanda…
  • blue-green tea , or wu long , semi-oxidized, coats many facets of color and taste because, depending on the way in which it has been worked, it could be closer to a green tea or rather to a black tea with always a lot of roundness; it can be roasted more or less to enhance its aromas or to be able to keep it for several years. Main producing countries: mainland China Taiwan, India, Nepal
  • dark tea (called black in China), post-fermented, whose best known is pu er , is one of the rare teas that can be refine in the cellar for several years like wine or a wheel of cheese ; depending on whether it is cooked or raw, it presents aromatic notes very variable ranging from undergrowth or animal notes to notes oriental such as patchouli or sandalwood. Main producing country : China
  • And theine...
    As for theine, it is present in all colors. It's here richness in buds which determines the theine load and not its color : the richer the tea is in buds, the more theine it is.
    To naturally detheinate your tea, pour in a splash of simmering water on it, let it infuse for 20 seconds and throw away this first water. YOU you will have eliminated 60% of theine. Theine sensitivity depends on everyone, evening tea recommendations therefore depend on the individual.

 

Prepare the tea

According to a ritual: refer to Voir et Voyager for their presentations and “ Teabox: rituals and world music around tea » for preparation protocols in 10 different countries): there are numerous rituals in the preparation of tea. They are full of history, culturally exciting and require the use of crockery and special accessories.

According to a “classic” Western-style preparation: Tea can be prepared hot or cold .

• Water quality

Whatever the preparation temperature, the quality of the water is more than 50% of the success of your tea. You have to heat it in a container which is exclusively dedicated to it and use spring water lightly acid ( Rosée de la Reine), or a natural mineral water slightly acid (Mont Roucous ).

• Prepare hot tea

The temperature of the water : it is important to remember that the more the teas are oxidized, the more they require hot water (90°C) to infuse well, which is the case for blue-green, black and dark teas, the less they are oxidized, the more fragile they are and require temperate water (lower or equal to 80°C). We now find thermostat kettles such as Aquagrad or Riviera & Bar (thermostats from 30°C to 95°C); if necessary, simply add a quarter of water to room temperature in the teapot then add water from the teapot kettle at 100°C so as not to burn the tea.

The dosage of tea: 2 g for 10 cl or a teaspoon shaved for “classic” teas (Ceylon, Assam, English blends, etc.), or a large pinch to take with the 3 fingers (thumb, index and middle finger) for large teas. It is not necessary to add a dose to the teapot ;

The tea filter: the tea while infusing rehydrates and goes to the least triple in volume. The tea filter must have sufficient volume to allow the tea to flourish, its mesh must be fine enough to filter fine leaves and tea dust. Stainless steel or textile baskets are easy to fit on teapots, paper tea filters not treated. To avoid: terracotta or porcelain filters with large holes and ball-shaped filters except at least 5 cm in diameter…

Infusion time : variable between 1 min and more than 10 min following tea; having a timer that goes off allows you to have the optimum expression of your tea, because a forgotten tea = a very bitter tea and astringent. This is a crucial step in tea preparation.

The teapot : we choose it either in porous material, it is the case of terracotta, or a smooth material. If it is in the ground, it is necessary devote it to a single type of tea ( a single type of tea, or a single color of tea?) because the porous walls are imbued with the taste of the tea. Its advantage is that it restores and amplifies the aromas of the tea gradually infusions; the soil is ideal for teas with powerful aromas (teas heavily oxidized blue-green, black teas or red teas except Darjeeling). Concerning smooth materials, the most used are porcelain and cast iron, glass is preferred for the beauty of its transparency...it is also the least conductive material which therefore allows the tea to be kept hot as long as possible. Longer.

For teas requiring preparation with very hot water at 90°C, it is best to heat the teapot first before brewing tea.

• Prepare cold tea

Cold preparation (instead of: hot then cooled) allows you to keep the aromas of the tea intact without developing bitterness and having a tea that does not cloud.

Delicious teas to drink cold are of course all flavored teas or flower teas. You can also prepare original teas such as Japanese green teas, Chinese, Sri Lankan or Assam black teas and long wu .

The dosage of tea : 1 large heaped tablespoon in a liter of bulk water directly into the container.

The container : a large teapot, a large saucepan or another carafe without parasitic odors.

The temperature of the water linked to the infusion time : it can vary from 19°C to more than 30°C. The higher the temperature, especially in summer, the faster the tea infuses; you need between 20 and 45 minutes depending on the color of tea (less time for green teas than for white, blue-green or black teas) for an ambient temperature of 25°C.

Then strain the tea and reserve it in the refrigerator : possibly add citrus peels, spices, sugar or Honey. Consume within 24 hours

 

Taste the tea

From the planter in the tea garden to the distributor, the tasters of tea follow one another throughout the chain to evaluate the qualities of the tea and determine its grade and selling price. Usage dictates that this learning to taste is transmitted informally in the tea plantations and traders. In China, there are institutes training but only for Chinese teas. Some tea schools have emerged in recent years in Europe, which aim to train in tasting and taste.

A good tasting method at home is to prepare your tea following a precise protocol identical each time, which will allow limit the exogenous factors of variation in the taste of tea.

This is why professional tasters use the tasting set. But you can just as easily create a “routine”/“ritual” of tea tasting using the same rating systems. It's in this spirit that I created the “ tea taster’s box ”.

• The set to taste

The tasting set is the reference accessory for all professionals whatever the country. It is a neutral white support, made of earthenware or porcelain, consisting of a bowl, and a cup with a serrated rim for filter the leaves, and its lid.

When we carry out a tasting, generally comparative, the sets to be taste are aligned with for each tea, the presentation of the leaf dry in a box or cup and the dose of tea (generally 2 gr ) at the bottom of the cup with its lid which will serve as a container for infuse.

Once the tea leaves are steeped, the cup with lid is turned upside down on the bowl to let the tea liquor pass through and ring the leaves. The wet leaves presented on the inverted cover are called infusion. The liquid resulting from the infusion is liqueur.

• Tea tasting

A pleasure for the eyes, the nose and the taste buds, tasting tea engages the most senses. Besides, I recommend being in a room silent, well lit, without olfactory pollution. Spit out the liquor of tea will allow it to saturate less quickly.

You will take into account the appearance of the dry leaf, the appearance of the infusion, the color of the liquor, the smell of the liquor and its taste. He is important to work with a recognized color scale internationally, or to create a color chart, and to tastes which thus become a standard or referent.

View

The eye allows you to begin to judge the quality of a tea by observing the color of the dry and wet leaf then the color of the liquor, which give a lot of information about the potential of tea even before having tasted it.

The smell

The sense of smell captures the aromas when we inhale, by inhaling the tea vapors, we thus has the bouquet of tea through olfaction. It also captures them internally when we taste tea, it is retro-olfaction or retro-nasal olfaction. The aromas are then perceived in a different way, you confirm or invalidate what has been smelled.

A few words to talk about it: animal notes (tannery, leather, stable, fawn), undergrowth (humus, moss, mold, etc.), coumarinated (straw, tobacco), floral, vegetal, milky, fruity, etc.

Taste

Taste allows you to perceive flavors in the mouth. These flavors have no smell but have a primordial role in the way in which the aromas by retro-olfaction. There are 5 flavors: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami.

Touch

Touch also contributes to judging the quality of the tea. We judge the freshness of the dry leaf when handling it: it must be relatively flexible. The sensation of touch is also perceptible in the mouth, it is the tea texture.

A few words to talk about the leaf: silky, downy, dusty, brittle, etc. A few words to talk about the liquor: astringent, tannic, rough, dense, oily, full, round, robust, velvety, fluid, etc.

The flavor

It is the complex perception obtained by combining the flavors perceived on the tongue (taste), and aromas perceived by the olfactory pathways and retro-nasal (smell), as well as the tactile sensations perceived in mouth. All this sensory information combined makes the magic of tasting.

Match the tea

Tea is tasted like wine and has aromatic variations too. rich and complex than the latter. This is why pairing it with food is completely legitimate and natural...

About the tea and food pairings, As with wine, two factors must be taken into consideration:

  • the aromatic bouquet of tea
  • the balance of each tea between 4 poles – tannic, bitter, acid and sweet – like wine which presents a balance between 3 poles – tannic, acidic and mellow.

We will look for complementarity in the textures, the balance of the poles and, of course, the aromatic bouquet. In all cases, teas and dishes must reveal each other and not compete.

Thus, a rather tannic tea with a powerful aromatic bouquet will go well with with dishes with fatty notes and strong aromas such as game, red meats in sauce or grilled, while a tea with acidity and the marked bitterness will go well with very sweet dishes with aromatic notes sweet vanilla.

Contrary to what is customary with wine, there is no food to prohibit, each dish can find its favorite tea. Thus, a vinaigrette or raw fruit are no longer obstacles to pairing with a gourmet drink such as tea.

You can choose to offer a menu accompanied by a single tea throughout the meal or to serve a different tea with each recipe: aperitif, starter dish dessert. Certain dishes could be accompanied by 2 teas different depending on individual preferences.

From one tea to another or from one dish to another

If you want to vary the pleasures and use several teas during the course of a meal, here are some rules to respect

  1. It is best to serve from least oxidized to most oxidized , generally corresponding to teas from the least tannic to the most tannic, and from the aromatic with volatile top notes to the aromatic with notes of heart or background heavier and more persistent in the mouth. We will therefore propose first white, green or yellow teas, then blue-green teas, less semi-oxidized to more semi-oxidized, then red or black teas.
  2. Taste the year's teas before the vintage teas. Among the teas vintage, it is better to consume pu'er before wu long . Indeed, the latter develop pyrogenic notes, strong caramelized with a developed tannic pole which risks damaging the velvety and more subtle notes of old pu'er .
  3. If you like certain teas with sugar, it is better to enjoy those sugar-free before sweet ones.

 

As with wine, we can make two types of pairing:

  • the fusion accord , where dishes and teas present notes common aromatics. These are not always the best agreements harmonious. Certain Japanese green teas with pronounced marine notes will not necessarily go with raw fish. It will be better to grant these last with cooked fish reducing their iodized side or the poultry with sweet notes;
  • the complementary agreement , where teas and dishes are on different and complementary aromatic registers. Thus, green teas tangy and marine Japanese can go well with dairy desserts vanilla.

It is interesting for certain dishes to play on the hot-cold contrast and serving cold or lukewarm tea instead of hot.

  • Teas and savory dishes
    Among the classic agreements... we will favor:
    • on vegetables: green and yellow teas from China,
    • on fish and seafood: green teas from Japan and roasted blue-green teas,
    • on white meats: green and yellow teas from China, teas lightly oxidized blue-green and Ceylon black teas,
    • on red meats: heavily oxidized blue-green teas or heavily roasted teas from China or Taiwan, black teas from Assam, Kenya or Yunnan and dark pu'er teas
  • Teas and sweet dishes
    • on fruits: Darjeeling or Earl Gray tea on citrus fruits, white teas or jasmine teas with autumn fruits (apple, pear, fig), dark pu'er teas or black teas on stewed or candied fruits,
    • on chocolate: dark pu'er teas, black teas from China (Qimen or Yunnan) on dark chocolate, blue-green teas heavily semi-oxidized from Taiwan on milk chocolate.

 

Cooking tea

Tea can also be used as an ingredient in cooking. Used thus for centuries in China and Japan, it was in the 80s in France that it is starting to enter our kitchens and many chefs have joined in tried since with the creation of tasty recipes.

Tea, beyond its aromatic bouquet, is characterized, whatever its raw, by a more or less pronounced bitterness and astringency, while the art will therefore be to use them without overusing them.

Depending on the medium, it can be infused, sprayed, sprinkled or cooked as such. a vegetable.

A few tips :

  • hot :
    • in the fat, the tea infuses less well, it will need to be added infuse for a few minutes and lightly squeeze the leaves once times passed through a sieve to extract a little more juice without too much exaggerate otherwise bitterness and astringency will predominate;
    • in water, you must respect the infusion time recommended by the tea merchant; on the other hand, if we wish to incorporate it into a sauce, it will be necessary to prepare it in overdose, we can then concentrate further more of its aromas by reducing the liquid to a gentle simmer.
  • cold : it can be left to infuse at temperature ambient for 1 to 2 hours in water, or several days in oil, it will then develop less astringency and bitterness while retaining good aromatic fidelity.
  • in flour , it can be passed through a pepper mill and incorporated into flour; a tea is particularly easy to use in in this case, maccha , Japanese ceremonial tea, which is a tea green in very fine powder. It is found in tea shops or Japanese grocery stores. There is a quality for cooking much less expensive than that of the ceremony.
  • eaten : certain teas having bitterness and slightly pronounced astringency can be eaten and therefore incorporated into foods broths or stir-fries to enhance the flavor of certain vegetables.

 

Perfume the tea

• Flavored teas

We have always talked about the scent of tea, more than its aroma or taste. It is one of the rare mouth products that man has had the idea of ​​associating with world of flowers evocative of perfume: the Chinese very early on perfumed tea leaves with flower petals to enhance your bouquet aromatic. Jasmine, osmanthus, chrysanthemum, rose are among the most common flowers. most famous combined with different colors of tea. Citrus fruits also have the noble part in the world of flavored tea with recipes such as famous Earl Gray developed by the English Lord Earl Gray combining a vintage Chinese black tea with bergamot, or the big family of Tastes Russians playing on the flavors of numerous citrus fruits to match them to black or green teas. Certain teas also combine wonderfully with spices. The blends between tea colors and various plants and varied are infinite and the object of permanent research like a nose for perfume…

• Tea flavors

The entry of tea into the world of perfume is recent. It dates back years 1990. Tea first attracted people through green tea, synonymous with purity, with herbaceous, vegetal, “fresh” notes, which have been very successful at that time. Then there are flavored teas such as Earl Grey, Russian taste or jasmine tea which inspired great creations, as well than the smoked tea note. With an increasingly detailed knowledge of the olfactory world of tea, the quest for new inspirations among perfumers find themselves enriched in particular with the entire fragrant palette of unflavored original teas.

Testimonial from Mathilde Laurent, perfumer

“Tea allows me to drink the smells that fascinate me and with which I create perfumes. Tea is actually a perfume that is drink, I was able to have this experience of drinking flowers! and sublime flowers fresher than nature such as peony, lily of the valley, lilac, but I was also able to drink wood, leather, earth. There is no difference between tea and perfume. These are two odorous liquids. One is a perfect harmony constructed by nature, the other is a quest for perfect harmony sought by Man. But both contain the same diversity, a very wide range olfactory. Tea and perfume are fragrant liquids, one is drunk, the other perfumes, but, after all, if tea is a perfume that is drunk, why wouldn't we perfume ourselves with a drop of tea infusion? For carry the woody notes of a Qimen, the leathery and smoky notes of a Lapsang Souchong or the very beautiful lilac or peony notes of a Bao Zhong. Tea is a constant source of inspiration, but also of emulation, I seeks to match the finesse of these aromatic notes. I have it a lot worked as the leading role in my compositions, not from a ingredient, since the essence or absolute of tea leaves, when finds, absolutely does not reproduce the note of tea leaves infused [1] . It is therefore a source of inspiration to try to recreate these notes beautiful to give the impression of smelling a cup of tea in the final fragrance. There is no difference between tea and perfume, moreover certain scented teas live up to their name, and could suggest that they have been mixed with perfume. What is tea citrus scented? A tea with cologne!, We could really say that tea is perfume. »

Creation by Mathilde Laurent on an evocation of smoked tea and black tea China Qimen:

The Thirteenth Hour , Cartier, 2009

A unisex composition with notes of smoke and leather with accents of black tea full-bodied with subtle touches of bergamot and narcissus bringing lightness, and a touch of vanilla softening the whole. (leather notes, mate, birch, narcissus, bergamot, patchouli, vanilla)

[1] What we call the note “ tea” in perfumery is mate absolute which has tobacco notes, herbaceous, hay