Friday, September 28, 2018

A Pu'er As A First Brew

As disappointed and resentful I was with tea, I didn't smash all my teapots and teaware in 2014. It would have been a bit of waste. They're beautifully made and have been thoroughly seasoned. I didn't throw out my favorite packs of teas either. The entire spectrum is all there, from white to green, yellow, oolongs (light and dark) and pu'er. Thought about it for months, sighed and in the end, I decided to move them to the new flat and give them new home on a shelf.

That afternoon I had the insurance dude over, well, to discuss about home insurance. He doesn't take coffee and surprisingly takes Chinese tea. He opted for a pu'er and mentioned that he used to drink it with his father. I brewed him an imperial pu'er. As he sipped the tea, there was this shift of emotions totally visible on his face. Then I remembered, his father had passed on some months ago. I said nothing, and later on, brewed him a second cup that was much thicker.

When my tea ware tumbled out of their stored bags, there wasn't any sort of alienation felt. I didn't feel happy either. I felt mildly annoyed that the fingers and brain instinctively knew what to do. I could still gauge the temperature of a kettle by touch. I don't seem to have lost the skills of pulling the subtle light to medium to heavy-bodied brews. It's still about science- the temperature of the water, and the ratio of that to tea leaves, etc. Woah... has it really been four years since I stopped brewing tea or even avoided drinking tea? I was so scarred from the experience that I rejected everything to do with tea. Now, I'm less sullen about it, but the annoyance level hasn't decreased much. 😂 I'm okay with brewing tea for friends, BUT I no longer have a passion for it anymore. Not inclined to drink tea daily either, and I most certainly will not seek out conversations about tea with strangers or acquaintances.

My poor guests will simply have to drink oolong or green tea if they visit and want a cup of tea. Dainty teapots for English teas won't appear in my home. I won't stock any sort of blended/floral infusions or tisanes. I don't like flowers very much. :P If I stock a non-caffeinated tea, it might very well expire by the time it's actually needed. Neither am I interested to serve you any sort of builder's tea. I will so judge you if you seriously dig teh-c siew dai. Just tapau that over lah! Basically, I'll never offer anyone tea if I don't know what they drink. HAHAHAH.

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