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jonny kane jonny kane is offline
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Default Quality of boiled water on the tea

Below this I've pasted part of an article by my tea supplier about the
importance of using freshly boiled water. My question is... if in a
commercial Tea Room I want to use one of those large Urns that keeps
constantly hot water for pouring on tap... does anyone know the method
they use for keeping the water hot? Are they constantly re-boiling the
water or does it boil then hold it at just below boiling?

If a system like this holds boiled water at a high temperature just
below boiling, is it still losing the all important CO2 qualities
needed (at a slower rate than boiling it off but still decreasing)? I
wonder if there is any research on this, I assume it's fairly simple
science.

If a large hot water urn is not ideal then perhaps a line of variable
temperature kettles set to different temps for Black tea, Oolong,
Green tea etc. Unfortunately I'm struggling to find a commercial
product that fits this description though I've seen these Upton
Variable Temperature Kettles (ordered from a manufacturer and labelled
thier own, not sure who the original manufacturer is) PDF info:
http://uptontea.com/shopcart/informa...AK16_GUIDE.pdf

With the intention of being a busy tea room I am aware of how much
boiling kettles for each order will slow things down, while I'll
nurture the slower nature of the tea experience I am aware of needing
a compromise with the necessity of turnover, but ultimately I won't
compromise on quality at the end of the day. If there is not better
alternative to simply boiling a kettle I'll just do that )

Any knowledge or experience with this anyone??

Look forward to hearing back, Jon

....................................

" Taste, colour and mouth feel depend on the interaction between the
two main components of tea, polyphenols and caffeine. Each component
is astringent on its own, but as a complex the astringent character is
reduced.

Water is known to contain dissolved gases absorbed from the air.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas that is present in water affects the acidity.
Acidity of water plays a critical roll in the ionization of tea
polyphenols and it contributes to the stability of the above complex.

CO2 in water is gradually released during the boiling process. Re-
boiling will in fact further reduce CO2 levels, resulting in a
decrease in the acidity. As mentioned above this will affect the
caffeine and polyphenol complexion, and bring about changes in the
colour as well as the character of the brew.

Twice boiled water will therefore affect the taste of a good tea and
hence our request that only freshly boiled water is used for brewing "