Lydia Gautier’s “Tea: Exotic Flavors and Aromas” is the National Geographic of all tea books! It is suitable for any coffee (TEA) table in the world, whether in the breakfast nook of a cottage on Martha’s Vineyard or resting on a foyer table in a manor home in England’s Hertfordshire.
The black and white photographs interspersed with the vividly colored pictures are breathtakingly beautiful – thanks to photographer Jean-Francois Mallet’s good eye for subject matter. Paired with Ms. Gautier’s informative text, tea aficionados will find the visual impact and written word riveting. Non-tea drinkers will find the historical and cultural details seductively interesting as well.
The book is quite large, which does the author and photographer justice. Mr. Mallet’s close-ups are exquisite – real works of art. You won’t need a looking glass to examine the details of the pictures, as the publisher generously gave full two-page spreads to the photographs that could not be contained on a single leaf. Who knew the curled and rolled buds of the Camellia sinensis bush could make such a captivating still life?
Go ahead. Splurge. This book is a must-have for your collection. You will enjoy many cups of tea looking over this masterful volume.
5 stars.
books, review
books, reviews
This tea book
is pretty, but not that exciting. Despite its attractive photos the volume falls short – not so much because there is anything innately “wrong” with it, but rather because it pales in comparison to its competitors in the tea book niche.
It’s not a comprehensive almanac of tea trivia and it’s not a tea table book with breathtaking photos. Because of its title, “Having Tea: Recipes and Table Settings,” you might expect a book that flaunts its tablescapes – real innovative table displays or traditional settings done right with exquisite pottery, linens, utensils and themes. But instead, you are left feeling rather ho-hum, disappointed that there is very little inspiration for new décor ideas for the up-and-coming tea society season.
It’s almost like “Having Tea” went to press before it was finished. Did the deadline arrive and the publisher say, “That’s good enough”? With just a little more research, Ms. Foley could have seen what her fellow tea book authors were up to and tried to address the deficits. The recipes were run-of-the-mill for the most part. In this day of global accessibility and a plethora of communication devices, surely Ms. Foley could have tapped her resources and gotten some recipes to pique the interest of her tea savvy readers. It was not a bad book, just uninspiring.
3 Stars
books, review
books, review
“The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea” by master tea blender Michael Harney is suitable for the hard-core tea merchant, as a reference book for a culinary professor, or for the tea connoisseur whose hobby borders on a fetish.
The book does not bother itself with pretty pictures of lovely Victorian tea sets, but instead focuses on the analytical facets of tea: the best environment for growing Camellia sinensis, the ideal time and temperature for brewing a particular type of tea, what the dry leaves or tea buds look like, how the liquor appears when it is made properly, and what to expect from the tea’s aroma. For example, Mr. Harney describes one of China’s most famous black teas, Keemum Mao Fengke, as having hints of “light notes of chocolate or cocoa with the suggestion of ripe apricots.”
Such a book would be helpful if you ever participate in a tea tasting or food pairing or are trying to train your palate to detect the nuances of different teas. The volume dispenses trivia as well that would be of interest to tea buffs and Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy game show addicts. On the back cover, Mr. Harney writes:
“You can’t judge a tea by its name: Consider Orange Pekoe. “Orange’ stands for the Dutch Royal House of Orange and once indicated tea of a quality suitable for its monarchs. ‘Pekoe’ is a mispronunciation of the Chinese words ‘bai hao’ – bai meaning white and hao meaning tippy or downy. ‘Pekoe’ may have once meant tippy tea, but the ancient word has long since lost its original meaning.”
The book is probably not for the general population, but is ideal for those have raised the bar on their relationship with tea.
4½ stars.
books, review
book review, books, review
Found some interesting info today. The author of the Harry Potter books, JK Rowling, is hosting a tea party with city school children to promote her latest book – The Tales of Beedle the Bard
.
The reading is being held in the National Library of Scotland and plenty of tea shall be on hand!
Read more at The Scotsman…
art, books, facts, news
authors, books
The tea and biscuit lovers bible is now available in papaerback form. It provides a raft of information on tea, drinking, biscuits and even suggests a formula for making tea.
T3MW
Do you know what this means?
Immature tea drinker!!
I posted about the original hardback edition in Febuary – which I have a signed copy of!
You can grab your paperback copy from Amazon: Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down
books, news
books
Japanese Tea Ceremony
Now the Japanese are even more fanatical about tea than the Chinese. They have an incredibly intricate Tea Ceromony developed around the practice of tea drinking. This ceremony is often performed to guests and lasts upto 4 hours. It’s influenced by Zen Buddhism and in Japanese is known as Cha No Yu. Traditionally a practitioner would dedicate their entire lives to the perfecting the tea ceromony and although this is still the case in modern Japan it is often performed at night classes for the busy workers of Japans industrial cities.
This reminds me of a book which went into some detail about the Japanese tea ceremony called Shogun. Its fiction but is EPIC fiction at its finest. An incredible historical saga which includes everything you could possibly want from a story. Including the descriptions of the Cha No Yu!!
What also sets this book apart from the rest is the fact that although fiction it accurately portrays many of the broad historical events and even some details. Too such an extent that Toranaga (one of the main characters) is based on a feudal lord known as Tokugawa. The similarities in their stories is uncanny although areas of romance and personal relationships are clearly artistic license its an incredible opening into a world that is so foreign to our own. Shogun is well worth a look.
Futher Information: Japanese Tea Ceremony
history, methods
books, ceremony, japan, ritual, tea ceremony
I recently bought this book from the local Ottakers store and I can safely say it is THE definitive book on the subject of sitting down, having a nice cup of tea and possibly a biscuit. The authors; Nicey and Wifey have managed to fill the book with pages upon pages of facts and information on the subject we all love. The biscuit section provides classifications reviews and history of some of the best known and even little known biscuits of the world. Want a history of the Bourbon? Its right there. How about some information on the Wagon Wheel? That’s there too.
Not only biscuits are discussed but subjects as diverse as “Tea in Public”, “Work Tea Making” and the science of dunking!
I recommend this book to not just people of tea but to EVERYONE in society today for it offers truth and honest discourse that will improve your life.
The authors website is available here: Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down
books, life, review
books, review
