Episode 40 Making Tea UK Customs and Etiquette

Today's episode is really for people who are working in office environments or perhaps you're planning on having visitors over and you might have to make drinks for them. If you drink tea, or coffee, then I'm guessing all of today's episode will seem really obvious. However, you can still listen in to enjoy how hilariously bad I am at this, and pay attention, at the end I'll tell you a funny story about cutlery collections in the office. There is a video to accompany this podcast where I make tea for my family, just so you can see the variety of ways people like their tea in the UK. Check that out on the YouTube channel at: https://youtu.be/xQ4tC67e6RU I'd love to hear whether you struggled with tea etiquette at work or if you know anyone who has very particular taste in their tea or their cup. Now on to the podcast episode! You can ask: 'I'm going to get some tea, does anyone want anything?' If people say 'yes please' or 'I'd love a tea' then you need to find out how they like their tea and check if they have their own cup. Cups It's very normal in British offices for everyone to have their own cup. However, it's also common to have a cupboard full of generic cups that people can help themselves to. It's a good idea to check with each person, the first time you get tea, if they have their own cup. Tea Cups Usually if you're having afternoon tea in a restaurant or having tea at an older person's house you will use the delicate tea cups. However, in the office these break easily and aren't very appropriate so the cups usually look more like coffee mugs. Tea Strength Weak (6-9) - the tea bag isn't in the cup for long and the colour is quite light Strong (1-3) - the tea is quite strong, the colour is quite dark Builder's tea (4/5) - some people will say they just like 'builder's tea' which is considered very strong tea Sugar - How Many? One lump or two (when there are cubes of sugar) How many spoonful's? - usually tea spoons of white sugar. Kinds of milk: Skimmed - 0% - no fat/non fat Semi-skimmed - 5% - low fat Whole milk - Full fat Cream USA - Creamer - liquid or powder milk substitute, such as Coffee Mate UHT milk - long lasting milk, usually comes in little pots A dash of milk - just a little bit of milk Additional Vocabulary back-to-back - when two people are sitting with their backs facing 'I kid you not' - idiom - it means 'I'm not joking', in this context 'to kid' means 'to joke'. Remember we have two other meanings for the word 'kid', it's a baby goat, and it's also another, more casual word for 'child'. prolific - producing lots and lots of things (Agatha Christie was a prolific writer), in this case stealing lots and lots of things! brownie points - idiom - Brownies are the youngest members of the Girl Guides. If you get 'brownie points' for something it means that the thing is socially acceptable or makes you look really good. People are often impressed you've done something that many other people don't do (like washing the tea cups at the office!) so you 'get brownie points', however it really just means people think better of you. makes you a doormat - idiom - we can explain being 'a doormat' with another idiom 'people walk all over you'. You shouldn't let people walk all over you and 'don't be a doormat' both mean you shouldn't let people take advantage of you. 'it's a bit of a minefield' - idiom - we use this idiom when things are very confusing and potentially people will get upset if we make a mistake. 'to argue until you're blue in the face' - idiom - people argue and argue but never win or progress the argument. Usually used to describe arguments that have been going on for a long time, even years.