How do you take your tea?

photo credits: flickr/A Girl with Tea Tea is the perfect beverage. It can be bitter and astringent, or creamy and smooth. You can choose a variety with a high caffeine content for a study session, or a tea with less caffeine for bedtime. Make a refreshing iced tea in the summer, or brew it hot and serve it to an upset friend as social convention dictates, according to Dr. Sheldon Cooper. There are many variations on the standard cup of tea, and each has its own place in time, temperature, and culture. Black tea made from the dried and fermented leaves of Camellia simensis is the most accepting of additions. It is strong enough in flavor to not be dominated by milk, sugar, or lemon, and won’t curdle dairy products like some herbal or citrus teas do.