Thursday, 8 April 2010

poetry INDONESIAN TEA

INDONESIAN TEA

FOR 200 YEARS A WAY OF LIFE, SITUATED IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN, & SOUTH CHINA SEA

INDONNESIA HAS BUILT AND MAINTAINED A REPUTATION FOR HIGH QUALITY TEA

FORMING A CHAIN FROM JAVA & SUMATRA, TO PAPUA NEW GUINEA AND MALAYSIA

INDONESIA DEFINITELY HAS A UNIQUE COMBINATION OF SPECIALITY TEA’S THE BEST IN ASIA

STARTED IN 1700 BY THE DUTCH, IT WAS CLEAR EARLY ON, THAT INDONESIA OFFERED MUCH

ALONG WITH TEA’S FROM INDIA, AND CEYLON IT HELD THE BLACK MARKET WITHIN ITS CLUTCH

UNTIL WORLD WAR 2 IT HELD ITS OWN, BUT AFTER THE WAR IN A POOR STATE OF REPAIR

THE WRECKED FACTORIES, & TEA BUSHES WERE IN A STATE OF RUIN EVERYWHERE

IN 1984 AFTER INCREASED INVESTMENT AND A LOT OF HARD WORK, INDONESIA WAS BACK IN THE GAME

IMPROVED TEA PRODUCTION, REPLANTING, NEW MACHINERY, MEANT THINGS WOULD NEVER BE THE SAME

SINCE THEN IMPROVED TEA PRODUCTION HAS CONTINUED AND BY 1994 ONE THING WAS CERTAIN FOR SURE

128,000 HECTARES AND EXPORTING 80,000 TONNES OF TEA, 8% OF WORLD TRADE INDONESIA WAS BACK ONCE MORE

LIGHT & FLAVOURSOME WITH MANY SOLD FOR BLENDING PURPOSES, AS THIS PRODUCED THE GREATER REWARD

EXTREMELY REFRESHING, TAKEN WITHOUT MILK, GARNISHED WITH LEMON, BY THE FIGURE CONSCIOUS ADORED

WITH SPECIALITY BLENDS, NAMES TAKEN FROM PLACE OF ORIGIN, PEOPLE, AND TIMES OF THE DAY

INDONESIAS AFTERNOON, ENGLISH, EARL GREY, AND FLAVOURED TEAS SOON LED THE WAY

ENGLISH TEA A PUNGENT BLEND, OF ASSAM & CEYLON, TO HELP DIGEST A FULL ENGLISH BREAKFAST AND START THE DAY

THE ESSENCE OF EARLY MORNING TEA, WHICH MANY INDIANS CALLED “BED” TEA, WAS ITS STIMULATING WAY

AIDING THE METABOLISM, WITH BLENDS FROM AFRICA TOO, WITH A COPPERY COLOUR SO TRUE

A TASTE SENSATION, A MOUTHWATERING JOURNEY FOR TEA CONISSEURS LIKE ME AND YOU

AFTERNOON TEA A DELICATE BLEND OF DARJEELING TEA AND HOME GROWN CEYLON REFRESHING AND LIGHT

THE PERFECT COMPANION TO CUCUMBER SANDWICHES, CREAM PASTIES, AND FRUIT CAKE A REAL DELIGHT

THE ESSENCE OF AFTERNOON TEA BLENDS IS NOT THIER STRENGTH, BUT IN THIER FLAVOUR

ANOTHER MAGICAL BLEND OF TEA CREATED WITH PASSION FOR US AND THE WORLD TO SAVOUR

EARL GREY SAID TO HAVE BEEN BLENDED FOR THE SECOND EARL GREY, BY A MANDARIN

MADE FROM BLACK CHINA TEA, TREATED WITH NATURAL OILS OF CITRUS AND BERGAMOT FRUIT MIXED WITHIN

NOWADAYS THE TEAS USED IN EARL GREY VARY, BUT RENOWNED FOR ITS FLAVOUR AND ITS PERFUMED AROMA

WITH AS MANY PERCEPTIONS AS THEIR ARE EARL GREY DRINKERS, TO GET IT WRONG WOULD BE A MISNOMER

THE BERGAMOT OIL AND DIFFERENT TEAS CREATE A UNIQUE BLEND, BUT HERE IS NOT WHERE THE JOURNEY ENDS

FLAVOURED TEAS, REAL TEAS (CAMELLIA SINENSIS) BLENDED WITH FRUIT, SPICES, AND HERBS, TO DELIGHT

FRUIT ONES SUCH AS APPLE, BLACKCURRANT, ARE REAL TEAS BLENDED WITH PEEL, & NATURAL FRUIT SO LIGHT

JUICE OR OIL KNOWN AS ZEST, SPICED, OR HERB TEAS, CINNAMON, NUTMEG, OR MINT, BUT WHICH ONES THE BEST

WITH TISANES SUCH AS CAMOMILE, PEPPERMINT, OR NETTLE, OR THE MISNAMED “FRUIT TEAS” PUT TO THE TEST

IN SUMMARY YOU WOULD HAVE TO SAY INDONESIA IS WITHOUT DOUBT A TEA DRINKERS DREAM

WHATEVER THE MEAL, COMBINED TOGETHER THEIR MANY BLENDS MAKE A WINNING TEAM

AN EXTRAVAGANZA OF COLOURS AND FLAVOURS, WITH A DESIRE FOR THE FINEST THAT NEVER WAIVERS

INDONESIA IS A TRUE MECCA FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE TRUE TEA CRAVERS.

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