Summer of Tea Segment 2

Summer of Tea Segment 2

Intro  + Tasting Notes – Sunday Morning + Tea Classifications

Introduction

I’m about a month into my Summer of Tea adventure and I have to say I’m loving it! It’s become a daily ritual around 2 pm to fire up the kettle, pack some loose leaf tea from Light of Day and steep a delicious and invigorating cup of tea. It definitely provides a boost to my afternoon productivity, but via organic ingredients that provide plenty of other health benefits…unlike a Red Bull or similar energy drinks.

Tasting Notes - Sunday Morning 

OK, I will admit that because of the name, I really feel like I should be drinking this exceptionally smooth tea on a Sunday morning…with the song “Easy Like a Sunday Morning” playing. I don’t know if that’s the exact title, but you get my point. The ingredients sound like they belong in an Autumnal cocktail (more on tea in crafty cocktails in a future episode). Its blend includes Fair Trade Black Tea, Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla and Chrysanthemum flowers. A bit of a tongue twister but seriously, wow! Tea goddess Angela Macke is like a master chef, combining ingredients that together that produce a symphony of understated flavors…perfect for tea!

So needless to say, I’m giving Sunday Morning a big thumbs up. Order tea and accessories here.

Basic Tea Classifications   

This was all super interesting to me as honestly, I thought the different teas came from different plants. In reality all tea starts out as a green leaf on the bush.  It is then made into a variety of types by manipulating the shape and the chemistry of the leaf in different ways.  All teas are dried to a very low moisture content (less than 3%)  at the end of the process.  

• White tea: Unrolled, full withered-dried, essentially this tea is unprocessed.
• Green tea ("China style"): Pan or Oven fired, non-oxidized.
• Green tea ("Japan style"): Steamed, non-oxidized.
• Oolong tea: Partially oxidized.
• Black tea: Fully oxidized.
• Pu-erh tea: Processed, fermented and aged.
• Herbal infusions and fruit tisanes: Terms for botanicals other than tea.

So this is basically my Cliffs Notes version of tea classifications. If you want a deeper dive, and to be educated by Light of Day founder and tea guru Angela Macke, I suggest planning a trip to Traverse City and attending one of her classes on her beautiful farm.  Click here to make that happen.

SEE DAVID'S LICK THE PLATE/ LIGHT OF DAY VIDEO