Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people making tea [video]

Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by Mvandenbergh on Sunday January 06, 2013 @11:23PM (#5019318)

Almost universally electric. Remember that (being essential for tea) they may be used many times a day and be found in offices and other places without other cooking facilities. Unfortunately, you can't make tea correctly with moderately hot water like what you get from some water coolers. The tea won't steep correctly.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by vwoolf on Sunday January 06, 2013 @11:50PM (#5019429)

Depends on the kind of tea. For black tea, near boiling is good, but for whites and oolongs it's not. Though I suppose the British are famous for black tea.

(I got a electric tea kettle with a built in thermometer not too long ago, so this is an interesting issue for me.)

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by rmc on Monday January 07, 2013 @05:39AM (#5020381)

Depends on the kind of tea. For black tea, near boiling is good, but for whites and oolongs it's not. Though I suppose the British are famous for black tea.

In the UK (& Ireland) "tea" means black tea. You can get fancy teas, but "tea" on it's own just means black tea.

We put milk in it aswell.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by debacle on Monday January 07, 2013 @12:27PM (#5022034)

And then you drink that swill?

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by leoc on Monday January 07, 2013 @12:49PM (#5022150)

We tried washing our hands with it instead, but that worked out even more poorly. :P Don't worry, the milk (and quite possibly sugar) kills the taste of the black tea nicely.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by debacle on Monday January 07, 2013 @02:02PM (#5022532)

The milk and sugar is what I'm asking about. Black tea is just fine on its own, maybe with a bit of honey.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by acomjean on Monday January 07, 2013 @03:30PM (#5023058)

milk or cream tend to cut the bitter flavor in coffees and teas.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by eru on Monday January 07, 2013 @08:48PM (#5024461)

I thought the bitter flavour was the reason for drinking them?

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by debacle on Monday January 07, 2013 @03:59PM (#5023224)

I drink my coffee with a fat source sometimes, but never my tea.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by rmc on Monday January 07, 2013 @05:10PM (#5023565)

It's the nectar of the gods.

With it's own ISO standard http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3103

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by jgranby on Monday January 07, 2013 @04:52PM (#5023479)

Here's a sound guide: http://www.booksatoz.com/witsend/tea/orwell.htm

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by debacle on Monday January 07, 2013 @06:16PM (#5023881)

I prefer Adams' guide.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by caf on Monday January 07, 2013 @12:47AM (#5019593)

So much so that you can't make black tea at high altitudes.

(An acquitance of mine has a kettle like yours at 1000m elevation, and with the thermostat set to 100°C it does not stop boiling of its own accord).

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by robotmay on Monday January 07, 2013 @06:43AM (#5020555)

I'm amazed that British adventurers ever managed to climb mountains if they couldn't make a decent cuppa on the way up.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by rom16384 on Monday January 07, 2013 @09:34AM (#5021093)

Well, British Tanks have a tea brewing device [1]:

"Similar to every British tank since the Centurion, and most other British AFVs, Challenger 2 contains a boiling vessel (BV)[citation needed] also known as a kettle or bivvie for water which can be used to brew tea, produce other hot beverages and heat boil-in-the-bag meals contained in ration packs.[9] This BV requirement is general for armoured vehicles of the British Armed Forces, and is unique to the armed forces of the UK."

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Challenger_2#Crew_and_accommoda...

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by robotmay on Monday January 07, 2013 @12:59PM (#5022205)

We've got our priorities straight; tea first, crushing & explosions later.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by finnw on Monday January 07, 2013 @08:02AM (#5020739)

We solve that problem by carrying a pressure cooker.

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Re:Power surges in Britain caused by millions of people maki... by eru on Monday January 07, 2013 @04:49AM (#5020230)

That's why normal electric kettles stop boiling when there's enough steam pressure.

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