The average Russian drinks at least three cups of tea every day, basically with every meal they take. Tonic agents contained in natural tea help to wake you up, re-energise during the day and refresh after work.
Numerous tea breaks during the day are a real problem every Russian manager faces. Five tea breaks, plus a cup in the morning and another in the evening? Easy!
Russians’ obsession with tea has an impressive history. It started in 17th century and since then, tea-drinking culture has been an integral part of Russian life. A small fact to illustrate this:Russian Wikipedia has an article entitled Russian tea culture, and this summary has nearly 10,000 words. The love is just too big.
Getting a cup of an authentic Russian tea like in the old times is not difficult at all, though in Thailand some ingredients are sometimes hard to find. First you need a good ceramic or porcelain tea pot and, obviously, some black tea. Nowadays people widely use tea bags, but for a real experience you need loose tea. Ideally it should be from Ceylon but any Earl Grey or English Breakfast will do.
First splash the teapot with hot water to warm it up. Then add tea leaves (roughly one teaspoon per cup of water) and pour in water approximately 2/3 of the volume. Cover with the lid and leave for some 3-5 minutes to brew. Then add the rest of the water and basically your tea is ready. Sounds simple and so it is. That’s mostly the serving that makes up Russian tea.
The most historically authentic way to drink tea a la russe is from a sauce pan, blowing on it slightly before taking a sip. The ritual brooks no hurry, so take your time. Most Russians love their tea sweet, but sugar can be either dissolved or eaten with tiny bites from the cube, what is known as vprikusku. Lemon is also highly welcome, while milk is not. Leave it to the British.
Last but by no means least are various candies, jams, pies, tarts and other types of confectionery and pasty, served with tea. No surprise that some of the tea sessions last for hours.