Missing tea mojo. Allow me to share a personal problem. Tea is taken seriously and frequently here in Tareem. As do …

Missing tea mojo. Allow me to share a personal problem.

Tea is taken seriously and frequently here in Tareem. As do I.

A few years ago, I was once in a mosque in Tareem, when someone walked past me and my cousin tapped my shoulder and said, ‘you see that guy. He makes really good tea.’ I mean, his part time profession was making tea – for wedding functions and such.

Guys like him, if they are at a casual social gathering, no one is allowed to make other than them. Or that none will do so unless they forego their right for that occasion and the host then appoints another person who makes respectable cup.

In the past, in Malaysia, I’ve written about brewing tea. The double boil method (see Comment box). When I was younger, I remember the same happening. Not everyone was allowed to touch the tea machine (the samowar/samovar – is simpler than using two pots, google it).

Since I moved here, in most cases I can’t brew it as right as I used to back home, nor as tasty as how the locals do it. This I find rather troubling. I have even gone to taking a blend of tea leaves from an uncle’s house to make at my home, and yet I can’t hit the spot with it.

Anyhow here’s what you see in the picture.

Basically when re-brewing with the double boil method, the steam of water from the lower pot as well as the heat from the pot, is meant to heat the second pot above it, containing the tea concentrate. If the tea concentrate is not hot long enough, likely the taste would be disappointing.

It is considered forbidden to place the smaller pot directly on the fire, as it’s too hot for it and will result in burning the tea leaves. However, I figured it’s okay to do it briefly and it was confirmed witness by my wife in someone else’s house. What’s happening is speeding up the heat process but removing it before it goes near boiling temp.

Which also means, you can’t leave it unattended. You can’t go to another room for some chores thinking you’ll be quick and come back to it in time. You should never think you’re that good in tea making or time management, because you’ll come back to your pot, see the leaves floating and later residue sticking to the walls of the pot.

That’s a sign of failure. And a day of sadness.

True story.

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