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Handling and Storing Tea
Tea tastes so much more pleasant if it is stored properly. Here are a few tips!
HANDLING & STORING TEA The Chinese poet Lu Wah described tea as ‘water bewitched’. It is a sentiment we all share. How many of us have been served a cup of tea that should have been delicious and wasn’t? As ‘Tea’ magazine’s tasters have found, consistency of serving is critical in getting the best out of any tea. But what happens before it arrives in the pot? How do we ensure the tea leaves are in ‘tippy top (!)’ condition? Most tea companies purchase their tea in the time honoured manner by using samples sent from either the producing tea factory or the tea broker. Trust is critical in the doing of business at this point, as a 100g sample can be indicative of the quality of several tonnes of tea in a particular ‘lot’. After being tasted, the sample is then retained by the purchaser for a final check when the tea arrives. The tea will then either travel by sea to bonded warehouses in the UK, or if the tea is already landed here, and owned by a broker, it is then delivered to the buyer. At all times that the tea is in transit, it is fully insured so that if a mishap occurs, the tea can be rejected without loss. We have only had one instance in 40 years of rejecting a tea when it finally arrived here. We had ordered some top quality Kenya tea – about 14 tonnes, which we had purchased direct from the growers. If I remember correctly, the estates were Kinoro, Imenti, Kagwe and Kambaa. The box contained a range of pekoe fannings and pekoe dusts from these quality marks. The samples were particularly fresh and my Father & I were looking forward to tasting the tea when it arrived and making some blend recipes from it. The lorry and container duly arrived and I was ready with my bolt croppers to break the customs seal on the container and commence unloading with our warehousemen. Upon opening the container, there was a strong smell of chlorine. So we stopped our unloading activities and removed a small sample from the sacks at the rear of the container. It did not need a trained palate to taste the bleachy flavour on the tea when we brewed it! With the tea still on the container, we telephoned the broker who had arranged the delivery on our behalf. He arranged for a loss adjuster to attend to verify our complaint and officially condemn the tea and arrange for all parties to be paid from the insurance money. The reason for the tainted load was due to bad storage on the ship that brought the tea to the UK. Apparently it was also carrying several containers of bleach, one of which was leaking and had contaminated several other containers, one of which was ours! The reason for this tale is because I want to illustrate how hygroscopic tea is. It will absorb flavours from around it, and if left open to the air will rapidly lose its flavour and pleasing characteristics. We all pay good money for our tea, why ruin it by poor storage? Our warehouses are only used to store tea and green coffee beans. They are always cool, and unless anyone is working in there, the lights are off and the external loading doors are kept shut. We never leave a half-sack. Once a sack of tea is opened, we will empty it and pack it immediately. Our packing rooms are dedicated. NO coffee EVER comes near the tea packing rooms and vice-versa. We use packaging that is made in a hygenic atmosphere, and offers both air AND water-tightness when sealed on our bench-sealers. The steps you can take when you get your packet of tea home from wherever you purchased it are simple… Quite a few people ask me about keeping tea in the fridge. I have a couple of issues with this… So there you have it – from the taster’s mouth! – If you follow these steps then you should avoid spoiling your tea and every cup should taste as good as the last!