tea – Shanghai Metal Corporation

The Health Benefits of Pine Trees

Tomorrow is Christmas and we’re all excited to celebrate it ! During this time of festivities, pines are one of the most commercially important tree species. We love pines because they bring us joy during Christmas and they also have this delightful, holiday-spirit aroma. Do you know that pine tree can also give you health benefits ? Let’s learn more about them :

1. Pine Needle Tea

Photo from bodyenlightenment

Pine needle tea has been a medicinal favorite of indigenous peoples for centuries. It is said to have helped European settlers survive their first winter in the New World. It is rich of vitamin C, A and has antioxidant properties.
Visit this website to learn how to brew it.

2. Pine Essential Oil

Photo from aromaoilstore

In Japan, there’s an interesting concept called shinrin-yoku, which means “forest bathing”, referring to spending time in the woods for its therapeutic effect. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have access to ancient Japanese pine forests, but we can fake it by going through a local Christmas tree farm or by using pine essential oils, You only need to put a few drops on your pillow or onto a tissue, breath in deeply, slowly and relax.

Photo from mnn

Pine oil can also help to provide relief for colds and congested sinuses. Add 3 drops of pine essential oil into a hot water and inhale the steam through your nose and mouth.

You can also use it to massage away your muscle aches and pains. You just need to add 5 drops of pine oil to 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil,

Check out this website to discover other benefits of pine oil.

Keep in mind that essential pine oil should be used with care, as it is very powerful. If left undiluted, it may irritate skin and mucous membranes. Internal consumption may be dangerous for health.

Shanghai Metal Corporation manufactures and supplies various kind of metal, such as stainless steel, a perfect material to build your thermos and infuser for pine needle tea. Contact us if you need further information and don’t forget to follow us on social media to get the latest news of our product and company.

Sources : globalhealingcenter, medicinalfoodnews, health

Featured image : wikimedia

Ayu P.//SMC editor

How to Have the Full Flavor of Your Tea

Not many people pay attention to this detail, but in order to make your best tea, it is important that the tea leaves flow freely within your glass. Tea leaves expand while brewing and if they’re stuck in a small tea bag , they can’t expand at their maximum and the quality of your tea won’t be at its best potential.

Tea bag before steeping Same tea bag after steeping

Tea leaves before steeping Same tea leaves after steeping

Noticed how much more the tea leaves expand after steeping when they aren’t stuck in a tea bag ? When the tea leaves are stuck in a bag or an infuser, they can’t expand as well as when they flow freely.

When the tea leaves flow freely, the contact between them and the water increases and we can better taste the full flavor of the tea.

However, letting the tea leaves flow freely isn’t very convenient to drink…But do not worry ! There exists plenty of solutions.

A traditional way to this problem is by using the gaiwan. Check out this website to see how to use it.

A more simple way is to use a tea infuser. As for the materials, it is recommended to use the one made from plastic or metal. Plastic is okay if it is good quality, but cheap plastics may affect the flavor of the tea. Stainless steel infuser has a more durable and strong construction.

If you look for a more cool and unique tea infuser, check this website.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a diverse type of metal material. As an industry professional, we take pride in the manufacturing of those products which are used in our customer’s daily life such as stainless steel cutlery, kitchen sinks and a countless variety of materials that can be customized to build your product. Please contact us for any information, our English speaking staff will be very glad to help you. Don’t forget to follow us on social media.

Credits to : wikipedia, worldoftea, teanerd, boredpanda, amazing-green-tea
Photos : google image, worldoftea, boredpanda

Ayu P.//SMC editor

Luxurious Teaware Design Inspired by Ferrari

One of the world’s most complex teaware techniques, Tsuiki craftsmanship (‘tsuikidoki’ in Japanese) has its roots among the famous rice fields of Niigata, in the town of Tsubame. Claimed to be the only ones in the world who know and use these techniques with such a perfection, teaware and sake-ware craftshop Gyokusendo reveals the key behind its copperware success.

Patience is all it requires during the twenty to thirty years learning process to become a tsuikidoki craftsman. Such a profession doesn’t cost only time but also big bucks. Trying to give a more modern look to the two hundred year-old technique of hand-hammering copper sheets, Gyokusendo saw the designer extraordinaire Ken Okuyama, a wristwatches lover, especially those from TAG Heuer, as a great partner.

The 51-year-old made a name for himself as the Pininfarina design director behind the Ferrari Enzo, Maserati Quattroporte, and Maserati Birdcage concept. Since leaving the Italian styling powerhouse in 2006, Okuyama has expanded his design focus to encompass everything from iron tea pots to eyewear, furniture to massage chairs, motorcycles to sports cars, buildings to robots and even the next-generation Shinkansen bullet train.

Now, his drawings had to become reality in the hands of the artisans at Gyokusendo who were met with the challenge of turning copper sheets into three dimensional teapot. Experienced smiths master this fine art and are able to strike the copper sheet just enough, which is crucial since it’s difficult to make the copper contract later on.

Gyokusendo’s copperware of a wide variety of colors and shades is unique. The surface oxidization adds a nice patina to the artwork when tin and potassium sulfide are fused onto the surface of the copper.

You may wonder why copper is so special in this art. Well, copper has antibacterial properties, and it purifies the water, meaning that the copper ions mellow the flavor of the tea and sake. So over the time it becomes even more lustrous, and the flavor becomes more full and rich: copper turns ordinary water into ‘good water’, to mellow tea, and mellow sake.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of metals such as copper, widely used in architectural artifacts such as Gyokusendo’s teaware and sake-ware. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking professionals will be more than pleased to help you. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

Source: gyokusendo.com, designboom.com, motortrend.com

Camilla G.//SMC Editor