Elora Tea
Scottish Breakfast - Highland Sunrise
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High in anti-oxidants, the Irish like to brew this tea so strong, that you can stand a spoon up in it. A stout robust blend of Kenyan Grade 1 Broken Pekoe and Second Flush Assam. Superb bright orange colour and very full bodied. Consumed by farmers and fishermen to ward off the morning chill, this ain't no sippin' tea. Manufactured using the crush/tear/curl method of tea production which increases the surface area of the tea to produce a stronger infusion.
HEALTH PROPERTIES: High in anti-oxidants
CAFFEINE LEVELS: Medium
TEA SOURCING: Blended from black teas from Assam and Kenya.
ETHICS: Ethical tea partnership, GMO free
THE STORY OF IRISH BREAKFAST TEA
The people of Ireland, at about 6 cups a day, drink more tea per capita than any other population on Earth. What's more, the cups they drink are so strong that you could almost stand a spoon upright in them. The Irish prefer a sturdy cup of tea.
In order to provide the Irish with blends this strong, tea blenders supplying the market buy up top quality seasonal output from Assam and Kenya. The Assam teas are picked from the top production of the Second Flush, a period of high growth in the month of June. The Kenyans selected are usually those produced in either February or August when the most flavorful seasonal quality leaf is grown. The Assam component of this Irish blend gives the cup a strong, deep malty character with heavy layers of astringency that dry the mouth, feeling almost as if you could chew the tea. (This is similar to the way a very dry wine can make you pucker.) The Kenyan teas provide a bright coppery color with profound floral notes that add a complex depth to the cup.
As with most teas, the longer you brew this tea the stronger it becomes. If you're Irish, you'll let this tea brew a good long time and then add a wee splash of milk. Milk, in the case of a tea this strong cancels out the tannins and diminishes the bitterness that can characterize some strong teas. Debate rages from Dublin to Tipperary as to when milk should be added - before the tea or after? The milk-first camp argues that milk added after the hot tea will scald and should therefore be added first so it can warm as the tea is poured. Milk-last devotees argue that the only way to properly measure the amount to add is to pour it last. (Non-users of milk regard the whole issue as quite silly.)
Either way, t'is a strong blend. Enjoy in the morning with toast, or a traditional Irish "fry-up!"
BREWING INSTRUCTIONS
BREWING INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOT TEA: Infuse one slightly heaping teaspoon for each 8 ounce cup with boiling water for 3-7 minutes.
Infuse 6 slightly heaping teaspoons of tea with 1 1/4 cups of boiling water for 5 minutes. Quarter fill a serving pitcher with cold water, and add the infused tea, straining the leaves, to the pitcher. Add ice and top-up the pitcher with cold water. Add lemon and sweeten to taste. A rule of thumb when preparing fresh brewed iced tea is to increase the strength of hot tea since it will be poured over ice and diluted with cold water.
Infuse 1 slightly heaping teaspoon of loose tea with 6 ounces of boiling water for 5 minutes. Add the tea to a 12 ounce glass, filled with ice, straining the leaves. Add hot tea to a 12oz/375ml acrylic glass filled with ice, straining the tea or removing the bags. Add lemon and sweeten to taste.
NUMBER OF CUPS: 15-20 cups from each 50 grams of tea, with a single use of the leaves. Loose leaf tea is traditionally infused 3 times, with a different flavor profile following each infusion. Accordingly, each 50 gram bag can make up to 60 cups of tea.
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