Black Tea

Black tea, oolong, green and white teas are all oxidized but black more so that the other three. The four varieties are made from the leaves that are picked and dried from the Camellia Sinensis plant. The black teas, of which there are several varieties, are less oxidized but contain  more caffeine and have a stronger flavor than the others. The Chinese refer to the black tea as crimson tea because they tend to look more red than black.

Black teas are generally blended to give them a specialized taste. Some of the blends are:

• Earl Grey which is tea with a bergamot oil added
• English Breakfast tea is a strong and rich tea blended to be taken with milk and sugar
• English Afternoon Tea is not as strong bodied as the latter a bright and refreshing tea. Kenyan teas are strong. Twinings is a blend of Keemun and Ceylon teas.
• Irish Breakfast tea is a blend of more than one black tea
• Masala Chai is a combination of black tea with spices, milk and either sugar or honey. Masala Chai was originally a traditional drink of India and has been adopted in the West with some changes in how it is prepared.

There is an art to brewing tea. When brewing black tea you should use one teaspoon of tea to six ounces of boiling water. Other teas may turn bitter if they are brewed at high temperatures and Darjeeling, which is a very delicate tea, should be steeped for not more than three to four minutes. Black teas that are whole and those that will be served with milk should steep for about four to five minutes. Longer steeping will make the black tea bitter.

Black tea has always had it day in traditions and rituals. Serving tea required and still requires certain accessories. To serve tea properly you should have a tray that will hold on it a tea pot, a sugar bowl and creamer. If you are serving tea bags you should have a clear Lucite or other type of chest in which you keep your tea displayed, for your guests to choose the one they prefer. Lemon slices are not traditionally served with black tea but in some places it is served with lemon slices.
Black tea is the best tea for ice tea as it lends itself well to the cold of the ice and the taste does not change.

Many years ago when housewives still used crocheted doilies on their furniture and wanted to change the color from the traditional white thread that was used; they would make some extremely strong black tea and soaked the crocheted doilies in the strong black tea. The color would then change the crocheted doilliy to an ecru shade (which is very light beige). 

Black tea was used for many things in the United States besides drinking. Women that had brown or dark blond hair used strong black tea as a rinse for their hair to give it highlights.