Blooming Tea

I thought I knew everything about drinking tea the Polish way and there was no way I could be taken aback by any novelties. Well, I was wrong.

As there are always plenty of tea worthy situations in my life, I see my friend around a nice cup of tea on a regular basis. This time, she was inviting for a blooming tea...

Never before I have heard about or tried blooming tea plus I got to know that its popularity in Poland is growing incredibly quick - I had to investigate the subject thoroughly lol. So, as I found out, the flowering tea is actually a Chinese invention. Somebody's skillful hands wrapped tea leaves around freshly dried flower to make a little tea ball like this:

There is nothing rather interesting about the tea ball itself, but the brewing process is truly spectacular! It all unfurls when hot water is added showing the wonderful flowering process. 

How to brew:

• Place a tea bloom in a transparent glass so you can properly see how it's blossoming
• add boiling water and brew for 3-5 minutes depending on how strong you want it to be. See what I got!

As this post is more about watching than reading I am going to be brief. I agree with blooming tea fans: having this tea is not only a real spectacle for your eyeballs but a treat to the taste buds too. It is fresh, fragrant, delicate in flavour, healthy and calms the mind. Each hand tied tea bloom is individually wrapped so stays fresh and storing is not an issue.

It is easily accessible on the internet (ebay sells them too). Tea balls can be mixed and matched and there are so many different types to choose from. Each combination of tea leaves and flowers has different benefits ranging from detoxification, whitening skin, invigorating circulation of blood, helping to digest to eliminating the tension and many more. I have got spare 2 tea balls. If anyone would like to try it out for yourself, drop me a quick email. I am happy to post!

To read more about the legend and art of blooming tea, visit http://www.teavana.com/tea-info/the-art-of-blooming-tea.