Hot Tea Month

   Did you know that January is Hot Tea Month? Well I just found this out the other day and I love hot tea so I figured it was a great time to talk about this delicious drink.

   Tea has a few different health benefits. It may help protect against cancer, heart disease and loss of memory (source). It can also help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. This is because of antioxidants that are in the tea, each type of tea will have different benefits.

   Since tea is such a big deal in Europe I thought it would be fun to see what they think is the proper way to make tea.This is what I found, directly from YorkshireTea 

1. Get a Proper Pot on
2. Run the tap a little so the water is nicely aerated. Use water that has boiled just once - any more than that and the level of oxygen in the water is reduced and your tea can taste a bit ‘flat’.
3. Warm the teapot first by swilling boiling water around inside it, then warm the cups with the water from the teapot.
4. For a four-cup pot, use two teabags. For loose tea, use one teaspoon per person and one for the pot. (Our tea buyers like it really strong and use three or four.
5. Add freshly boiled water to the pot, stir and leave to brew for 4-5 minutes depending on how strong you like it.
6. If you take milk, we recommend a splash of whole or semi-skimmed milk, with sugar if you take it.

   So there you have the perfect cup of tea in England. I however do not go into so much trouble to make my favorite drink. I simply boil some water in a pot or when I have access to a Kurig there is instant hot water. I place the tea bag in first then whichever sweetener I am using, either sweet n low or honey depending on the type. I use honey when I’m drinking Earl Gray my typical go to and sweet n low with my regular Lipton tea.

   Do you love hot tea? What type is your favorite? Let me know in the comments. If you don’t normally drink hot tea give it a try this month. Happy Hot Tea Month.