LL-L "Delectables" 2003.09.29 (03) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 29.SEP.2003 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: John Duckworth <jcduckworth2003 at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Delectables

Ron wrote:

"(Note also the British tendency toward considering tea,
despite its caffeine content, a comforting and soothing drink, ..., for
instance when in British plays someone caring offers someone else a cup of
tea after they have just been a through traumatic experience and their
nerves are frayed ...'."

This is actually medically more useful than it seems at first hand; whatever
the properties of the tea the instructions in British First Aid Books, and
the traditional folk wisdom too was to offer a traumatized individual a cup
of lot sweet tea. When the body suffers trauma the temperature drops and the
blood-sugar level drops, something that is helped by hot sweet tea.

I am still pondering on the Frisian question, but I can at least explain
this apparent British eccentricity.

Regards,

John
Preston, UK

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From: nwi at dfds.dk <nwi at dfds.dk>
Subject: LL-L "Delectables"

From: niels winther <nwi at dfds.dk>
Subject: LL-L: "Delectables"

Ron you wrote:
 Is Frisian tea culture a separately developed entity?
 Is it connected with British tea culture?

hello Ron, such a tea culture also exists on Fanø,
the northernmost island in the Wadden Sea.

A large proportion of the male population worked as long
distance seafarers in the Far East trade,
especially on the tea clippers.

In my family we still take tea with our "bakskuld"
(roasted dried, salted and smoked flounder).

regards
Niels

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From: ansgar <ansgar at ece.cmu.edu>
Subject: LL-L "Delectables" 2003.09.28 (06) [E]

Lowlands-L wrote:
>
> Is Frisian tea culture a separately developed

My, at that time girl friend, now wife, conducted a few years ago a
little bit of research as first year anthropology student in amsterdam
on the East Frisian tea culture. It is quite some time ago but as far as
I remember she found the following:

Before people in East Frisia started to drink tea they mainly drank
beer.  It wasn't the kind of beer we drink today, but some light but
nutritious brew. This was because the water quality in East Frisia was
that bad that it was just unhealthy to drink water from a stream or
well. Having a beer soup for breakfast wasn't uncommon.

In the late 1700s the was an anti-alcohol movement that tried to reduce
the consumption of alcohol among common people. One option was to ler
people drink boiled water. But that didn't make it (though I know  some
chinese order warm water in restaurants, rather than cold water).
Another strategy wasbto make people drink tea or coffee. Boiling water
would then have a purpose. Some in the temperance movement didn'tlike
it, since you are just replacing one drug with another. But still the
coffee and tea option made it. Why tea? Because you can use tea several
times, but coffe just once. Using tea was the cheaper alternative. And
the sugar and cream in the tea is meant to make it as nutritious as the
good old beer soup. IIRC, some also added butter to the mix.

Where did the tea come from. Don't know exactly, but Emden was a big
port in that time. And don't forget Bremen. But I know that the
Pruissian King tried to found a prussian tee company, like the Dutch and
English had. He didn't like that others made the money. They founded the
company and orderd a few fine ships. Unfortunately the first ship
already sank in the North Sea, and with it the start-up capital and the
tea company.

We went to the tea museum in Norden to do most of the research. I
recommend it to anybody who happens to be around. They can also tell you
that the tee consumption in East Frisia is at least 10 times higher than
the German average. And don't forget that East Frisians also drink
coffee (eg Pharisaeer). And may I add as Emslaender that we drink a fair
amount of tea, too.

Regards

Ansgar

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From: Ansgar Fehnker <ansgar at ece.cmu.edu>
Subject: LL-L "Delectables" 2003.09.28 (06) [E]

Hi leeglanders

The story about the ship that sank was probably an urban legend. But the
existemnce of the Prussian-Aisan company wasn't. I found two articles
http://mitglied.lycos.de/Graaf/China.html
http://members.lycos.nl/KPAC/KPAC.html
by Dennis de Graaf on the company that went from Emden to China.

Ansgar

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Thanks for your responses above, folks.

Niels:

> hello Ron, such a tea culture also exists on Fanø,
> the northernmost island in the Wadden Sea.

Hi, Niels!  Wasn't Fanø a Frisian settlement once too?  Or was it only the
island of Rømø (just north of Sölj/Sylt south of the border)?

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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