Richard Chappell wrote:
Nigel Melican is a long-time and much-appreciated contributor to this
group and I respectfully suggest that RuF, as an apparent newcomer,
hesitate before insulting him and, having done so, apologize.

A bit of research (e.g., http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tannin) will show
you that tea contains members of the more general class of tannins (e.g.,
EGCG [I just couldn't resist that phrase - so melodious]) but not tannic
acid: 'Tea "tannins" are chemically distinct from other types of plant
tannins such as tannic acid[5] and tea extracts have been reported to
contain no tannic acid [ibid.].' Now that just took me about three
minutes using the web's most obvious reference.

On this subject, he makes some of the best white tea I have ever tasted.
It's from Malawi, available from http://www.nbtea.co.uk/acatalog/shop.html
(search for "Malawi" when you get there - I find this web site hard to
browse, and most useful when I know what I'm looking for). I like the
Mulanje needles in particular though he recommends the "Antlers d'Amour",
which I have not yet tasted (worth a risk for the name alone).

Conflict of interest: he once sent me small samples of these teas (and
Nigel, though you said you wouldn't mind some green pu erh in return,
you never e-mailed me your postal address).

Rick.

(As a medical researcher, I definitely _am_ in the business of selling
poisons. I have gotten quite a bit of summer salary and grad. student
support from U. Wisconsin's profit off of Warfarin, which was first
proposed as a rat poison then made the lucrative jump to humans.)


In article ,RuF wrote:
Tea has NO tannic acid. Tea, not even the strong black Irish
Breakfast blend so beloved of trotting mice, will NOT tan leather,

Nigel at Teacraft

Since you are in the business, I question your statement.

Strichnyne is not poison because I sell it. :-)

Then that story about the tannic acid in tea must
have been either a
communist plot or the British Dairy Industry was
trying to sell more milk ;-)

Whether it is spelled Strichnine or strychnine, it
tastes the same and is just as
effective.

Haf a great weekend :-)