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. . . or “Cuppa’ Rosie Lee”

There’s nothing quite like a nice cup of tea, but unfortunately the art of making a really great cuppa’ is disappearing before our very eyes. What’s all of this popping a tea bag in a mug nonsense? My Grandmother is probably turning in her grave.

It’s not rocket science, but just like everything else in life worth having, there’s a wrong way and a right way to make a proper cup of tea. Read and learn . . . read and learn.

How To Make The Perfect Cup of Tea

1. The perfect cuppa starts with fresh water, cold water, not stuff that’s already been boiled a couple of times, so fill up your kettle with fresh, cold water and you’re well on your way to making the perfect cup of tea.
2. Warming the pot is another important element of tea making. You can either pour a little boiled water into the teapot for a couple of minutes and swishy it around, or alternatively you can simply pop a little water into your teapot and stick it in the microwave for a minute on full power . . . I know that microwaves haven’t been around as long as cups of tea but us tea drinkers are not afraid to keep up with the times you know.
3. Take your freshly warmed teapot directly to the kettle and put your tea-bags into the pot. Don’t be stingy with your tea-bags, traditionally you need one for each person and one for the pot (don’t forget the one for the pot). Of course, if you’re using tea-leaves you’ll have to experiment with the strength, probably a teaspoon each and . . . you’ve guessed it, that all important one for the pot. Make sure that the water is boiling but don’t worry about smothering the tea-pot in a knitted tea-cosy that your Great Aunt made you for Christmas, it’s got to cool down a bit anyway.
4. Stir your tea, stick the lid on and wait for a few minutes (three or four). Patience is a very important element in tea making.
5. Take your cup (bone china tastes best), but you can use a mug of a polystyrene cup if necessary . . . whatever type of vessel you choose it’s very important that you put a drop of chilled milk into your cup before pouring out the tea, thus making the chilled milk cool the hot tea, and not the other way around. If you take sugar in your tea you can add it now, white sugar mind, that’s the best sugar for tea. Also don’t forget to use a tea-strainer if you’ve used the loose tea leaves . . . a mouthful of leaves is not pleasant by any standards.

Result – A delicious cup of tea with a rich, attractive color and probably something like 65 degrees centigrade. Particularly enjoyable with a cookie or a piece of cake, but perfectly acceptable on its own . . . there’s nothing quite like putting your feet up with a nice cup of tea after a long day . . . marvelous.

 Well we agreed on most things didn’t we? He forgot to put in “one for the pot” but what a posh tea-pot with an infuser . . . got to get me one of those, or on second thoughts maybe I’ll just stick to using tea-bags.