Wednesday, May 18, 2016

A Tea Trivia Quiz

One of my favorite restaurants to sip tea with family and friends is the Abbey Garden Tea Room in the Fairhaven area in Bellingham, Washington. Established in 1998, it is a contemporary, British-styled tea room with interior décor similar to The British Pantry in Seattle and the James Bay Tea Room in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Over 40 kinds of loose leaf teas are served alone or with savory and sweet menu items, so everyone may discover the tea they like best.

Abbey Garden Tea Room
Until I visited Murchie’s Tea & Coffee in Victoria, I had no idea so many varieties of tea existed. Nor did I know that all teas come from the same plant, only the processing is different. Black teas undergo the most fermentation and oxygenation, green teas endure the least, and white teas are made from unprocessed leaves. Additional flavoring is added to scented teas. Beside the familiar teas like English Breakfast sold by all tea makers, several companies blend their own teas for their customers. Click here to visit Murchie’s website and read descriptions of the teas they sell. My personal favorite is their No. 10 Blend, named after London’s famous No. 10 Downing Street.


Curious about tea? Take the Tea Trivia Quiz!
Answers follow the list of questions.

1.     Tea contains about _____ the amount of caffeine as coffee.
A.    twice         B. the same     C. one third     D. half

2.     The term “orange pekoe” refers to…
A.    Herbal teas flavored with citrus
B.    A premium black tea with unbroken leaves
C.    The color of the leaf on a tea bush
D.    A type of white tea

3.     “Women are like tea bags. They do not know how strong they are until they get into hot water.” Who said this?
A.  Marie Curie
B. Eleanor Roosevelt
C. Elizabeth II
D. Jackie Kennedy

4.     A tea bush takes three to five years to grow before it is ready for harvesting.
True or False

5.     Using a samovar is the traditional way to boil water for tea in which country?
A.    India          B. Russia         C. Germany    D. Spain

6.     Which country is the world’s largest producer of tea?
A.    Ireland       B. China          C. India           D. Brazil

7.     Assam tea is named after…
A.    the city where it found its popularity.
B.    the surname of its discoverer.
C.    the Hindi word for its malty flavor.
D.    the region it is grown in.

8.     Darjeeling is often referred to as the _____ of teas.
A.    Mother      B. Champagne            C. Chardonnay            D. King

9.     For every 400 tons of Darjeeling tea sold, only 100 tons are genuinely from the Darjeeling district of India.
True or False

10.  Which region is the world’s largest consumer of tea?
A.    Ireland       B. Japan          C. United States          D. England

11.  How many different varieties of tea does the world offer?
A.    Over 3,000  B. Around 500  C. Less than 100  D. Approximately 1,500

12.  In which city was the tea bag invented?
A.    Beijing      B. London       C. New York   D. Mumbai

13.  Which country was enjoying iced tea as early as the 1840s?
A.    Russia       B. South Africa           C. Wales         D. Japan

14.  Americans drink over fifty billion cups of tea per year.
True or False

ANSWERS: 1.D  2.B  3.B  4.T  5.B  6.C  7.D  8.B  9.T  10.A  11.D  12.C  13.A  14.T

Tony, my favorite Brit, sipping tea at the Abbey Garden Tea Room
A Bonus Question

15.  The best teas come from Asia. Match the teas with their nations of origin.
1.     China
2.     India
3.     Sri Lanka
4.     Japan
5.     Taiwan

Choose from:

A. Ceylon  B. Keemun  C. Darjeeling  D. Oolong  E. Assam   F. Gen Mai Cha  G. Sencha

ANSWERS: 1.B  2.C/E  3.A  4.F/G  5.D

I hope you enjoyed taking the Tea Trivia Quiz. Did any of the answers surprise you? Did you learn something new? If you'd like, share the name of your favorite tea and/or tea room! Leave a comment to be entered in our Stitches Thru Time Writers’ weekly giveaway, Dawn of Liberty, by Amber Schamel.

Cheers!

Deb

Deb Garland is an author, sailor & pastor's wife. She writes Christian historical romance novels steeped in Scripture & anchored in true stories of the Pacific Northwest, Canada, & Alaska. Winner of ACFW's First Impressions contest twice for historical romance, she lives on an island in Washington State with her husband of 35 years.







4 comments:

  1. Hi Deb! I am a huge tea drinker. I got most of the answers right, and it was very fun to take the quiz. We had a tea room in our little town for a while, but it didn't last - not enough business. :-( Not sure if there is one near you, but check out www.spiceandtea.com to find locations of The Spice and Tea Exchange shops)

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    1. Linda, that's great you aced the quiz! I learned a few new facts taking it myself. We've not been able to keep too many tea rooms in our area either, which is why I am grateful the Abbey Tea Garden does so well. They actually have as part of their business Creativitea upstairs where customers can paint ceramics while enjoying a cup of tea and a scone. It's also in a university town, so some of the students stop in with their visiting relatives. It helps to be close to the Canadian border with British Columbia. Thanks for sharing the link with me!

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  2. What fun thank you. No tea rooms around here but a lot of coffee shops.

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