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

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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