London: An American scientist has sparked a trans-Atlantic tempest in a teapot by providing Britain recommendation on its favorite scorching beverage.
Bryn Mawr Faculty chemistry professor Michelle Francl says one of many keys to an ideal cup of tea is a pinch of salt. The tip is included in Francl’s ebook Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea, revealed on Wednesday by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
Tea is best salted, says a US researcher. Credit score: Liudmila Chernetska
The salt suggestion drew howls of shock from tea-lovers in Britain, the place widespread stereotype sees Individuals as coffee-swilling boors who make tea, if in any respect, within the microwave.
“Don’t even say the phrase ‘salt’ to us…” the etiquette information Debrett’s wrote on X, previously often known as Twitter.
The US Embassy in London intervened within the brewing storm with a social media submit reassuring “the nice folks of the UK that the unthinkable notion of including salt to Britain’s nationwide drink will not be official United States coverage.”
“Allow us to unite in our steeped solidarity and present the world that on the subject of tea, we stand as one,” stated the tongue-in-cheek submit. “The US Embassy will proceed to make tea within the correct method – by microwaving it.”
The embassy later clarified that its assertion was “a lighthearted play on our shared cultural connections” fairly than an official press launch.
Steeped, in distinction, isn’t any joke. The product of three years’ analysis and experimentation, the ebook explores the greater than 100 chemical compounds present in tea and “places the chemistry to make use of with recommendation on the best way to brew a greater cup,” its writer says.
