The key to happiness comes down to a tea

A Different View with Dave O’Connell

There are few of life’s problems that can’t be eased just a little with the help of a nice cup of tea – and no matter how many Flat Whites or Frappuccinos the coffee aficionados dream up for your delectation, the oul’ cuppa is still your only man.

The problem is that tea isn’t as sophisticated as its coffee alternative – and all of the new-fangled machines and potions are pushing it further out of fashion.

Of course, ourselves and our near-neighbours still love nothing more than a cup of tea – although I’m sure it’s actually more popular in, say, India or China – but you still don’t find tea shops on every corner.

Coffee is the sexy drink with a million and one ways to drink it – and those caught up on the Nespresso whirligig are hooked on the fact that they offer more varieties than Heinz.

The trendy coffee shops ask you more questions than US Immigration before you can sit down with your triple venti half-sweet non-fat caramel Macchiato.

Admittedly, you’ll find posh tea shops too with its loose-leaf offerings from the world’s hot spots, not to mention herbal or even root teas made from dandelions or ginger.

But the most sophisticated the average tea drinker gets is loose-leaf English breakfast with a little strainer to keep the bits from choking you.

For the most part, the tea bag does the job – with the biggest decision facing you being whether it’s Barry’s or Lyons.

Tea was in the news for the wrong reasons recently when a ten-year-long study warned those who took their cuppa piping hot that their preference could dramatically increase the risk of cancer.

Dr Farhad Islami of the American Cancer Society studied the drinking habits of 50,045 people in northeast Iran – and his findings were fairly alarming.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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