Reading Tea Leaves

Civilisation,truly,is ending. Yes,I admit that 10 years ago one couldn’t get a decent cup of coffee in our northern cities,a shocking state of affairs that has thankfully come to an end. But why should such development come at the price of the destruction of a way of life that has endured since time immemorial? Why has that simplest and earliest of recipes,the miraculous reaction between the tea leaf and boiling water,been consigned to the dustbin of history?

For tea is more than a drink. Coffee is a break. Tea is a ceremony. Tea is a meal. Tea is a time. The words betray the essential difference between the Dionysian cult of coffee and the Apollonian worship of tea: you “grab” a cup of coffee. But you “take” a cup of tea. Coffee,wild-eyed and sparky,bubbles and “brews”. Tea,calming and invigorating,softly “steeps”.

And we,in this place,are blessed. When wandering lost in the wilds of North America,where apparently sane people drink steaming,over-scented floral brews that they have been misled into calling teas,I would think every morning and afternoon of the green hills of this abundant subcontinent of ours,of the gardens of Nilgiri,Kumaon,Ceylon and Assam,and the shelves of reasonably-priced,fragrant leaves that we have come to take for granted.

And above all,the Darjeelings,the finest drink in the world,with the waters and the sun of each garden bringing to its leaf a slightly different flavour,distinctions more subtle yet more noticeable than anything the rich earth of Aquitaine has ever given to a grape. I am humiliatingly bad at blind tests; but even I can tell a Makaibari from a Goomtee,a fragrant cup of Castleton from a sharper cup of Margaret’s Hope.

And this is how you make tea,oh ye who have forgotten. You boil the water. You place the tea leaves in a teapot,one you’ve warmed already. And you add the boiling water while it still sputters,to the leaves; and allow it to steep for about three minutes. For full Victorian points,use a teacosy to keep the pot warm. If you use old discarded leaves,or teabags that aren’t freshly made-up,your tea tastes stale; if you allow the water to be below 92 degrees Celsius,the crucial chemical reactions that gives tea the kick and flavour you want,just won’t happen.

And tea,of course,doesn’t stop with tea. Anyone will tell you this: tea needs biscuits. Tea needs newspapers. Tea needs an afternoon. And ideally,tea needs tea sandwiches and tea cakes,scones and muffins,cream and preserves. There are places where you can get the whole setup,sometimes even presented on the three silver tiers that are traditional. Flurys Tea Room on Park Street in Kolkata has preserved the ritual in its entirety,and has a wonderful selection of single-garden teas,too. And in Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village,the wonderful new Elma’s Tearoom has freshly-baked scones that melt in your mouth,and sandwiches made on wholesome whole-wheat bread,the crust kindly cut off,but still warm from the oven. They even have a Coronation chicken sandwich,the classic English dish invented by the founder of the Cordon Bleu school of cooking,that delicious combination of chicken,mayo,mango pickle and curry powder that hailed Elizabeth II’s assumption of the throne six decades ago,and which represents the height of Anglo-Indian influence on Britain’s cuisine.

Why,then,am I being presented with the diabolical teabag even at places which should know better? Is it a sign of the approaching Apocalypse,easily readable in the tea-leaves (if there were any)?

I suspect the answer is easier than that. Coffee is for hurried mornings,for delivery to hassled workplaces,for noisy meetings with hyperactive friends,to keep you awake through panicky late-night deadlines,to sip while you watch the slog overs. Tea is for solitary thinking,for lazy,endless afternoons with nothing to plan but dinner,for intense but understated sessions of Test matches. That’s what I realised that day,as I contemplated the lukewarm parody of a glorious cup of tea I was served.

These days,you never have time to boil the water.

mihir.sharma@expressindia.com