Green is the New Black!

Cast Iron Goods is now selling tetsubin teapots in a beautiful green shade. Interested in expanding your teapot collection? Our new item is now available for purchase HERE.

Thanks so much!

Most Popular Types of Tea

Since tea variations can be confusing to an average consumer, here’s a brief guide to the most popular types of teas:

Camellia Sinensis. Most teas actually come from the camellia sinensis bush. When the leaves of the camellia sinensis are picked, the type of tea to be produced will depend on how it is processed. You’ll get a green tea when the leaves are withered and lightly steamed or pan fried, dark tea when the leaves are fermented until dark, and oolong when leaves are partially fermented.

Earl Grey. This is a widely known type of black tea. You can make your own earl grey by adding fragrant citrus oil to normal black tea. The oil is extracted from the crust of the bergamot orange, a unique citrus fruit grown mainly in Italy and France.

Red Tea. This type of tea comes from either rooibos or honeybush plants. Unlike the camellia sinensis teas, they do not have caffeine. However, they a fruity, roughly sweet flavor and a higher antioxidant level than common green teas.

Herbal Tea. There are thousands of possibilities when it comes to herbal tea. A herbal tea is quite simply any tea produced by steeping plant matter, except camellia sinensis, in water. Common herbs around the world are mint, sage, and lemon balm. Flowers are also often used like the lavender, chamomile, hibiscus or roses. Bark can likewise be used such as the cinnamon. Actually, most herbal teas are a mix of many different items. You can try making your own blend with your favorite herbs.

White Tea. This type of tea is produced on a small-scale mainly in China. White tea plant harvest only takes place in early spring and is subjected to a wilting and drying process. Chinese white teas tend to be enriched with fruit flavors as well.

Green Tea. This is probably the most common type of tea and known to offer great health benefits as well. Japanese types like sencha and gyokuro are popular green teas. Sencha tea has floral fragrance and a stunning yellow greenish color. It can be your everyday green tea as it will help you relax and give you energy as well. Gyokuro on the other habd tea is regarded as the finest Japanese green tea as it is quite rare and expensive. Gyokuro is grown under shade to improve its chlorophyll content. If you want a fine tea with sweeter taste and less caffeine content, Gyokuro is a great choice.

Matcha. In Japanese, matcha means "finely powdered tea." This type of green tea has been completely pulverized. Its fine powder can be mixed with water and consumed without straining. Such tea has about ten times the antioxidant power of regular green teas. It is likewise very easy to incorporate into recipes.

Bancha tea. This kind of tea has a combination of green tea antioxidants and an intense woody taste. Compared to other teas, Bancha is inexpensive and low in caffeine. It has two subtypes: Hojicha, which is a roasted reddish brown tea, and Genmaicha, a delicate mixture of tea leaves and roasted rice grain.

Oolong and Black Teas. These two types of teas are oxidized even longer before being baked. Oolong tea is a cross between green and black tea. Some oolongs give in a flowery taste, while others provide a more woody taste. Black tea is the most consumed type of tea worldwide and is the most oxidized.

How are Japanese Teapots Made?

Interested in learning how cast iron teapots are made? Here are the key steps:

The making of a tetsubin, or Japanese cast iron teapot, starts with the mold. First the molds are created, and then the inner mold is put into position.

Next, the liquid iron is heated and poured into the mold. This pivotal step requires extremely hot iron.

Once the iron cools and hardens, the inner and outer molds are broken to release the teapot.

The next step requires a great deal of artistry. The raw edges are hand smoothed using a sanding machine and an experienced artisan.

Once that process is done, the next step is coating the inner surface with a protective enamel by hand. This enamel creates a barrier that should last a lifetime with proper care. When washing a tetsubin teapot, we recommend using only very hot water, rather than soap or detergent. This ensures that the pots inner enamel surface remains intact.

Next, the external painted surface is hand applied.

Once painted, the extra color on the surface is removed by hand as well. In this step, the teapot is patted (not rubbed) dry to lightly lift the extra color. The first time you clean your teapot, some of the color may bleed slightly, but this does not indicate a defect. The drying process also creates a beautiful finish to the teapots.

After the teapots finish drying, they are complete! The final product is inspected throughouly before being packaged and shipped.

In total, it takes an average of fifteen people, some of whom are very skilled artisans, to make an authentic tetsubin teapot. To check out our teapot selection, please visit Cast Iron Goods!

Thanks for reading this post!

What Does "Tetsubin" Mean?

Tetsubin (鉄瓶) is a word for Japanese cast iron teapots.

How to Make Iced Tea with a Cast Iron Teapot

So it's summer, and hot tea doesn't usually sound appealing when it's 96 degrees outside. But don't let the weather keep you from using your teapot though; here is a cool way (no pun intended), to use your cast iron teapot to make iced tea:

Step 1: Boil water and brew loose tea in your cast iron teapot, like normal.
Step 2: Let the tea cool for 2 hours.
Step 3: Pour the tea into a plastic or glass container, and refrigerate it over night.
Step 4: Pour the refrigerated tea over ice.
Step 5: Add sugar or milk if desired.

And there you have it! Enjoy your iced tea!

Article by Kelly from Cast Iron Goods

Website Changes

CIG will be undergoing construction over the next few weeks. If you have any suggestions, please write us at kelly@castirongoods.com

Thanks a bunch!

Cast Iron Goods

A Little Thank You for Checking Out Our Blog!

Thanks for taking the time to check out our blog. As a thank you, we would like to share our discount page with you! Click HERE for 25% off all of our teapot sets!

Enjoy!!

New Inventory!

Today we recieved 6,111 pounds of cast iron teapots! Check out our website to see our cool new styles!

10 Healthy Reasons to Drink Tea

1. Tea contains antioxidants. Like the Rust-Oleum paint that keeps your outdoor furniture from rusting, tea's antioxidants protect your body from the ravages of aging and the effects of pollution.

2. Tea has less caffeine than coffee. Coffee usually has two to three times the caffeine of tea (unless you're a fan of Morning Thunder, which combines caffeine with mate, an herb that acts like caffeine in our body). An eight-ounce cup of coffee contains around 135 mg caffeine; tea contains only 30 to 40 mg per cup. If drinking coffee gives you the jitters, causes indigestion or headaches or interferes with sleep -- switch to tea.

3. Tea may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. Unwanted blood clots formed from cholesterol and blood platelets cause heart attack and stroke. Drinking tea may help keep your arteries smooth and clog-free, the same way a drain keeps your bathroom pipes clear. A 5.6-year study from the Netherlands found a 70 percent lower risk of fatal heart attack in people who drank at least two to three cups of black tea daily compared to non-tea drinkers.

4. Tea protects your bones. It's not just the milk added to tea that builds strong bones. One study that compared tea drinkers with non-drinkers, found that people who drank tea for 10 or more years had the strongest bones, even after adjusting for age, body weight, exercise, smoking and other risk factors. The authors suggest that this may be the work of tea's many beneficial phytochemicals.

5. Tea gives you a sweet smile. One look at the grimy grin of Austin Powers and you may not think drinking tea is good for your teeth, but think again. It's the sugar added to it that's likely to blame for England's bad dental record. Tea itself actually contains fluoride and tannins that may keep plaque at bay. So add unsweetened tea drinking to your daily dental routine of brushing and flossing for healthier teeth and gums.

6. Tea bolsters your immune defenses. Drinking tea may help your body's immune system fight off infection. When 21 volunteers drank either five cups of tea or coffee each day for four weeks, researchers saw higher immune system activity in the blood of the tea drinkers.

7. Tea protects against cancer. Thank the polyphenols, the antioxidants found in tea, once again for their cancer-fighting effects. While the overall research is inconclusive, there are enough studies that show the potential protective effects of drinking tea to make adding tea to your list of daily beverages.

8. Tea helps keep you hydrated. Caffeinated beverages, including tea, used to be on the list of beverages that didn't contribute to our daily fluid needs. Since caffeine is a diuretic and makes us pee more, the thought was that caffeinated beverages couldn't contribute to our overall fluid requirement. However, recent research has shown that the caffeine really doesn't matter -- tea and other caffeinated beverages definitely contribute to our fluid needs. The only time the caffeine becomes a problem as far as fluid is concerned is when you drink more than five or six cups of a caffeinated beverage at one time.

9. Tea is calorie-free. Tea doesn't have any calories, unless you add sweetener or milk. Consuming even 250 fewer calories per day can result in losing one pound per week. If you're looking for a satisfying, calorie-free beverage, tea is a top choice.

10. Tea increases your metabolism. Lots of people complain about a slow metabolic rate and their inability to lose weight. Green tea has been shown to actually increase metabolic rate so that you can burn 70 to 80 additional calories by drinking just five cups of green tea per day. Over a year's time you could lose eight pounds just by drinking green tea. Of course, taking a 15-minute walk every day will also burn calories.

Brew your tea in a cast iron teapot, which offers even more health benefits! Find yours at Cast Iron Goods

Source:
http://www.fitfaq.com/2005/07/10-healthy-reasons-to-drink-tea.html

History of Tea

The history of tea is fascinating and offers great insight into the history of our world. Since tea was first discovered in China, it has traveled the world conquering the thirsts of virtually every country on the planet. Tea is the most popular beverage in the world as well as one of the healthiest. If you have ever wondered where tea comes from and how we got to the point where tea is served in virtually every corner of the world, steep a hot cup of tea and explore the history of the simple tea leaf over the centuries!

One legend claims that the discovery of tea occurred in 2737 BC by the Emperor of China.  For several hundred years, people drank tea because of its herbal medicinal qualities.  By the time of the Western Zhou Dynasty, tea was used as a religious offering.  During the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD), tea plants were quite limited and only royalty and the rich drank tea not only for their health but also for the taste.  As more tea plants were discovered during the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), tea drinking became more common among lower classes and the Chinese government supported planting of tea plants and even the building of tea shops so everyone could enjoy tea.

Also during the Tang Dynasty, tea spread to Japan by Japanese priests studying in China.  Similar to the Chinese adoption of tea, tea was first consumed by priests and the rich for its medicinal properties.  Tea is often associated with Zen Buddhism in Japan because priests drank tea to stay awake and meditate.  Soon, the Buddhists developed the Japanese Tea Ceremony for sharing tea in a sacred, spiritual manner.  The Emperor of Japan enjoyed tea very much and imported tea seeds from China to be planted in Japan, making tea available to more people.

Tea finally arrived in England during the 17^th century when King Charles II married a Portuguese princess, Catherine of Braganza.  The Queen made tea the drink of royalty and soon tea became a popular import to Britain via the East India Company.  Afternoon tea or tea parties became a common way for aristocratic society to drink tea.  Though tea was regularly imported to Britain, the taxes were so high that smugglers would get and sell tea illegally for those that could not afford it.  In attempts to turn profits during the tea smuggling period, the East India Company began exporting the tea to America.  The American tea was also taxed heavily and contributed to the cause of the Boston Tea Party.   

Here's Why You Need A Cast Iron Skillet

http://www.theawl.com/2011/02/heres-why-you-need-a-cast-iron-skillet

1. Heat retention
2. Even heat distribution
3. Versatile you can even cook a pie in a cast iron skillet http://www.instructables.com/id/Blueberry-And-Apricot-Pie-In-A-Skillet/

Look for cast iron skillets on cast iron goods in the near future at http://www.castirongoods.com

Cast Iron Kettle: A Wonderful Addition to Your Child's Tea Party

If you are looking for a fun party idea for your child's upcoming birthday, then why not plan a tea party? A children's tea party is usually an inexpensive but fun way to celebrate.

Pick the themes that are according to your child's liking, of course. The foods you serve should also be in accordance to the children's taste. Usually, peanut butter, jelly cutouts, cakes, cookies and chips are a sure hit among the children so make sure to serve those. As for the drinks, why not try a really cool sparkling punch and pink lemonade, perhaps served in a small and elegant cast iron kettle which you can call a magic teapot? The kids will love this too.

The tableware you use is one important element in the party. It would be really nice to have been personable looking teapots and cups that would capture the little girls' imagination. Consider the designs of a typical Asian cast iron kettle as well as teapots made with Russian porcelain. They are lovely, aren't they?

Part of a children's tea party is the objective of teaching them proper table manners; having an attractive set of kettles, cups and other tea ware will surely add to the success of carrying out that objective. These items can be found at www.castirongoods.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lucy_Lindel

Cast Iron Health Benefits

Health benefits of using cast iron for cooking:

“Cooking in cast iron is known to greatly increase the dietary source of iron… Cooking in cast iron can often provide all of this element that a body needs.”

“The body needs iron because it is used in the blood. It is what carries oxygen from the lungs via the bloodstream to the rest of the body. It has been estimated that only 65 - 70% of Americans get enough iron. Low iron means that the blood does not efficiently circulate oxygen, causing a feeling of tiredness and sometimes head-aches.”

http://www.holidaycook.com/cast-iron/health-benefits.shtml