Am I a morning person?

Alex asked in the comments to my post on what to drink with breakfast whether I was a morning person, in that I don't necessarily need a big caffeine kick to start my day.

I would probably have to say yes, I am a 'morning person'... I would much rather be up early getting things done than staying up late to do them... But that said, I also acknowledge that I *do* rely heavily on tea-sourced caffeine to get me through the day, more than I ever did before my son was born!

(image courtesy of wikipedia)

I used to think that caffeine was evil, back in my hippy-herbal-tea-only days; it supposedly dehydrated you, tanned your insides and kept you awake at night. I have fortunately moved on since then, particular since discovering the many, many wonders of loose-leaf, high-quality C. sinensis. I try not to overdose on caffeine, but it is extremely difficult to determine how much caffeine is in any particular tea; the safest thing to say is that all tea made from Camellia sinensis leaves will contain caffeine regardless of whether it is white, green, black, wulong or pu'erh.

This article by Nigel Melican explains some of the factors that influence caffeine content of tea, and why it is so complicated to quantify; it gets a lot of mentions (I am sure I have linked to it before) but that's just because it is so damn good. You should read it if you haven't already. And then have another cup of tea... that's what I'm going to do!

A Little Chemistry with your Cup?

I'm not a particularly scientifically-minded person, but I was fascinated to read this simple introduction to some of the chemistry that affects the way tea tastes. I came across it thanks to a re-tweet by Nigel Melican (@teacraftecm on Twitter), who is a fount of knowledge of all things tea-related and definitely one of the go-to people for tea-myth-busting and accurate information.

Tea is a complex thing. In fact, given all the variables associated with the manufacture of different kinds of tea, it is actually many, many complex things. One thing I've learned to appreciate, especially where complex things are involved, is that it really DOES make a difference if you know WHY - even the most simplified version of why - a particular action has a given effect. For example: cold-brewing green tea over a longer period is more likely to produce a sweeter cup. Why? Because caffeine is extracted at higher temperatures, and caffeine is a bitter-tasting component of tea. Ah. Now I understand.

But reader beware: a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. According to the 'Gourmet Tea' article, spring-picked (ie. early season) leaf is lower in catechins, the potent antioxidants in tea, than summer leaves. So does this mean that white teas, made from leaves picked in the early spring, are actually not the richest tea source of antioxidants (despite being heavily marketed as such)?? Hmm. Now I'm confused...

Caffeine myths and reality

I read a most illuminating (if at times somewhat technical) article at Cha Dao the other day, concerning the levels of caffeine to be found in different kinds of (Camellia spp.) tea.

It turns out that it is not actually true that black teas are the highest in caffeine and that green and white teas have little or none – in fact white teas may have the highest concentration of all! This is definitely contrary to everything that I’ve ever heard before but it appears to be backed up by good evidence (and certainly makes good common sense – e.g. if the tea is plucked from the same bush at the same time, it will have a similar amount of caffeine no matter how it’s processed).Not that the amount of caffeine in tea bothers me that much, apart from avoiding anything too strong too late in the evening. But I now have some handy facts up my sleeve that I can trot out to debunk myths when I hear people spouting off about them (so to speak).

I wonder if the Cha Dao people have any similarly high quality articles about the health benefits and antioxidant levels of tea. I would be interested to read those as well… I’ll have to have a look.

I am seriously considering taking advantage of the currently favourable exchange rate to purchase a Yixing teapot from the Jing Teashop… but that might have to wait until after I’ve moved house (an unfortunate necessity)…

Today I am drinking a blend called ‘Daintree Sunset’ from The Tea Party (which has a shop at the Vic Market in Melbourne, but also retails products in Canberra, a nice surprise) which is a rather tasty blend of chamomile, spearmint and lemon myrtle (although I think it’s a bit light on the lemon myrtle, personally) – I’ve been going through quite a lot of this over the last couple of weeks. It’s refreshing and non-caffeinated, calming and warm (especially important given some of the airconditioning issues in the building where I work), and – this may sound like the lunatic fringe here – it seems to go well in my work teapot… some other teas (French Earl Grey, for example) just don’t. I can’t explain it, but there it is. Maybe it’s just that my cubicle-ridden work environment isn’t the right place to drink them.