Tea Books

January is National Hot Tea month and January 12th is National Hot Tea day, but we've already missed that one.  But we can celebrate our love of tea the rest of the month of January, perhaps with one of these books.

The Art and Craft of Tea: An Enthusiast's Guide to Selecting, Brewing, and Serving Exquisite Tea by Joseph Uhl - Let Joseph Wesley Uhl be your guide to the entire world of tea; from peeks into tea production around the world to brewing your own blends at home."Water is the mother of tea, a teapot its father, and fire the teacher." -- Chinese ProverbAs one of the most consumed beverages in the world, a cup of tea is a common shared experience across cultures and traditions. Companies and consumers alike are reawakening to the benefits of high-quality, unprocessed, natural beverages, and tea is a perfect obsession for anyone interested in artisan food and healthy eating.In The Art and Craft of Tea, entrepreneur and enthusiast Joseph Wesley Uhl brings to the story of tea its due reverence, making its history, traditions, and possibilities accessible to all. If you want to go beyond reading and enter your kitchen, Joseph offers "recipes" for creating your own tea blends using natural ingredients.

Culinary Tea: More Than 150 Recipes Steeped in Tradition from Around the World by Cynthia Gold - This cutting-edge tome on one of the world's oldest ingredients and most popular beverages will be an invaluable tool for both home and professional cooks. Gold and Stern offer new ways of looking at tea: the leaves with a history stretching thousands of years is now a secret weapon in the culinary arsenal. Tea in its many forms has been around for thousands of years, and is a burgeoning industry in many countries as the demand for specialty leaves grows. Read all about the picking and drying techniques virtually unchanged for centuries, popular growing regions in the world, and the storied past of trading. Culinary Tea has all this, plus more than 100 recipes using everything from garden-variety black teas to exclusive fresh tea leaves and an in-depth treatment of tea cocktails. The book will include classics, such as the centuries-old Chinese Tea-Smoked Duck and Thousand-Year Old Eggs, as well as recipes the authors have developed and collected, such as Smoked Tea-Brined Capon and Assam Shortbread.

Healing Herbal Teas: Learn to Blend 101 Specially Formulated Teas by Sarah Farr - Freshly blended herbal teas offer more healing power than do pre-packaged tea bags. In Healing Herbal Teas, master herbalist and author Sarah Farr serves up 101 original recipes that not only offer health advantages but also taste great. Formulations to benefit each body system and promote well-being include Daily Adrenal Support, Inflammation Reduction, and Digestive Tonic. Additional recipes that address seasonal needs such as allergy relief or immune support will attune you to the cycles of nature, while instruction on the art of tea blending will teach you how to develop your own signature mixtures to give your body exactly what it needs. This book is an enchanting and delectable guide to blending and brewing power-packed herbal teas at home.

A History of Tea: The Life and Times of the World's Favorite Beverage by Laura Martin - As the world's most popular beverage, tea has fascinated us, awakened us, motivated us, and calmed us for well over two thousand years. A History of Tea tells the compelling story of the rise of tea in Asia and its eventual spread to the West and beyond. From the tea houses of China's ancient Tang Dynasty (618-907) to the tea ceremonies developed by Japanese Zen Buddhist monks, to the current social issues faced by tea growers in India and Sri Lanka- this fascinating book explores the complex history of this universal drink. It illuminates the industries and traditions that have developed as tea spread throughout the world and it explains how tea is transformed into the many varieties that people drink each day. It also features a quick reference guide on subjects such as proper tea terminology and brewing. Whatever your cup of tea, green, black, white, oolong, chai, Japanese, Chinese, Sri Lankan, American or British, every tea aficionado will enjoy reading A History of Tea to learn more about their favorite beverage.

Homegrown Tea: An Illustrated Guide to Planting, Harvesting, and Blending Teas and Tisanes by Cassie Liversidge - Homegrown Tea explains how to grow a large variety of plants in your own garden, on a balcony or even on a window sill could become your tea cupboard. It shows you how to grow your tea from seeds, cuttings, or small plants, as well as which parts of the plant are used to make tea. Liversidge lays out when and how to harvest your plants, as well as information on how to prepare the plant, including how to dry it to make tea you can store to last you throughout the year. As a guide to using tea to make you feel better, there are nutritional and medicinal benefits. Finally, there is an illustrated guide to show how to make up fresh and dried teabags and how to serve a delicious homegrown tea. It is sustainable way to look at a beverage, which is steeped in history and tradition. Sample drinks include well-known plants such as rose hips, mint, sage, hibiscus, and lavender, as well as more obscure ones like chicory, angelica, apple geranium, and lemon verbena.

How to Make Tea: The Science Behind the Leaf by Brian Keating - How do you like your tea? In How to Make Tea, tea experts Brian Keating and Kim Long will teach you everything you need to know to make your desired cup. We've been drinking tea for thousands of years, yet few of us realize that all tea types--from elegant lapsang to pungent pu-erh--come from the same plant. But how are there so many different styles? It comes down to science: geography, biology, chemistry, and physics; the application of heat and pressure; and the magic of time and enzymes.
 How to Make Tea breaks down these elements and lays out the techniques, tools, and methods needed to brew at home. With this guide, tea lovers of all stripes will become experts on the art and science of tea. Learn to extract the best from every cup.

Jane Pettigrew's World of Tea by Jane Pettigrew - All around the world, there is a growing interest in specialty teas. Just as wine lovers want to learn more about wine producing regions of the world, so tea lovers are seeking out similar information. Jane Pettigrew's World of Tea explores more than 60 tea-producing countries, explaining their history, terroir, variety of cultivars, manufacturing processes, types, local tea culture, and rituals. Featuring detailed maps and beautiful full color photography on every page, Jane Pettigrew's World of Tea is the only guide to tea you'll ever need.

The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide by Mary Lou Heiss - Whether it's a delicate green tea or a bracing Assam black, a cup of tea is a complex brew of art and industry, tradition and revolution, East and West. In this sweeping tour through the world of tea, veteran tea traders Mary Lou Heiss and Robert J. Heiss chronicle tea's influence across the globe and provide a complete reference for choosing, drinking, and enjoying this beverage. The Story of Tea begins with a journey along the tea trail, from the lush forests of China, where tea cultivation first flourished, to the Buddhist temples of Japan, to the vast tea gardens of India, and beyond. Offering an insider'­s view of all aspects of tea trade, the Heisses examine Camellia sinensis, the tea bush, and show how subtle differences in territory and production contribute to the diversity of color, flavor, and quality in brewed tea. They profile more than thirty essential tea varietals, provide an in depth guide to tasting and brewing, and survey the customs and crafts associated with tea. Sharing the latest research, they discuss tea's health benefits and developments in organic production and fair trade practices. Finally, they present ten sweet and savory recipes.

The Tea Book by Linda Gaylard - The Tea Book helps you explore the blends, tastings, and ceremonies from around the world and create your own delicious tea traditions.
Where does tea come from? In The Tea Book learn where in the world tea is cultivated and how to drink each variety at its best, with steeping notes and step-by-step recipes.
The Tea Book is your world tour of the art of tea. Visit tea plantations from India to Kenya and explore maps of the world's most important growing regions. Learn to recognize tea-leaf varietals and spot the best types from each region. Recreate a Japanese tea ceremony with a guide to storied traditions and practical implements. Discover the health benefits of green tea. Craft the perfect Chai tea. Try a tasting course to cultivate your sense of tea color, aroma, and taste. Explore the spectrum of herbal, plant, and fruit infusions. The Tea Book covers it all, including history, tradition, and 75 classic and contemporary recipes to steep and share.

The Tea Book: All Things Tea by Louise Cheadle - This is your guide to all things tea! From the estates where tea grows to tips for tasting like a pro; from unbreakable rules for brewing the perfect cup to delicious recipes to accompany your cup, this appealing volume is packed with illustrations and fun infographics. Created by the co-creators of the Teapigs brand, it celebrates tea culture and customs around the world.