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新浪首页 > 新浪教育 > 《英语学习》2002年10期 > 喝茶时间到了

It's Tea Time!
http://www.sina.com.cn 2003/01/08 11:28  《英语学习》

  夜深人静时,沏上一杯茶。透过蒸腾飘忽的水雾看它,婀娜多姿,清绿可人;而茶香亦随之若隐若现,于不经意间,沁人心脾。所谓“翠影微微杯底漾,芳津汩汩腹中流”,说的正是人生不可或缺的一大乐趣——品茶。

  I used to go to Starbucks<注1> for their coffee, "says someone. "But that's changed since I discovered their soothing<注2>, tasty teas, which are better than coffee any time."

  Goodbye coffee, hello tea. America's favorite morning, noon and night-time beverage has been pushed aside in favor of—yes, that's right—tea.<注3> Drinking tea is all the rage<注4> today.

  Tea is cool even when it's hot. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world. According to survey, 1.9 trillion cups of tea are consumed worldwide each year. And, we're not just taking about the plain old black breakfast brew<注5> anymore.

  Whether it's served hot or cold, bottled or brewed, organic, herbal and flavored teas are trendy versions of a drink that has been consumed for centuries.<注6> Everywhere you look, you'll find exotic teas—in restaurants, grocery stores, television ads and gift shops. Even coffee bars are cashing in on<注7> the explosion. Oddly enough, there are even coffee-like teas out there. Take for instance, chai, an Indian mixture of black tea, exotic spices, steamed milk and honey. Sales of this trendy drink have tripled from million to million a year.

  Tea has become so popular that it's often found as an ingredient in entrees<注8> served in some of the top restaurants throughout the country. For instance, some restaurants put a twist on the classic fried chicken by featuring a tea-soaked rotisserie chicken,<注9> and other restaurants braises strips of flank steak with tea-flavored satay sauce.<注10> And that's not all—teas are also popping up in vitamin-pill forms, lotions and perfumes.<注11> Elizabeth Arden<注12> recently introduced Green Tea perfume. Trendy? Sure it is. Profitable? You bet.

  Okay, so why all the fuss over tea? What's its attraction? Well, there are many possibilities for tea's newfound popularity, beginning with an influx of research touting the benefits of drinking tea, particularly green tea. Studies show that drinking four cups of green tea a day can reduce the risk of developing stomach and lung cancer as well as heart disease. The key to tea's curative effects seems to lie in chemicals called polyphenols, which are antioxidants that may inhibit tumor growth and diminish arterial blockage.<注13> Green tea may also prevent skin cancer, when used both topically and orally. It has also been linked with helping the liver to rid the body of toxins, and green tea is thought to possibly protect against flu and Parkinson's disease.<注14>

  There have even been reports touting the benefits of drinking good old-fashioned black tea. Although many of these studies are still inconclusive, society eats and drinks up the reports. And why not drink tea if there is a possibility it will prevent disease and prolong life? We all want to be healthy and happy—don't we?

  Another explanation for the popularity of drinking tea may be due to the soothing ritual<注15> of just making a cup of tea, according to Ron Rubin, president at the Republic of Tea, a California-based company devoted to taking life "sip by sip, rather than gulp by gulp."

  Rubin claims that the time it takes to steep tea leaves in hot water and savor its gentle flavor, which is kinder than that of coffee, forces drinkers to slow down and relax a while, making it the perfect antidote to a caffeine-charged, cappuccino-crazy world.<注16>

  So, whether you drink tea, eat it in foods, lather<注17> it on in lotions, spray it on in perfumes or swallow it in pills, one thing is certain, the use of tea is more than a trend—it is a ritual of our past and if studies substantiate<注18> the benefit of its use, it will undoubtedly be an important element of our future.

喝茶时间到了

1.星巴克咖啡公司是世界上顶级的特制咖啡零售商、制造商和商业品牌。公司除了在北美、英国、欧洲大陆、中东和太平洋地区设有4100多个销售网点以外,还通过其专门机构销售咖啡和茶叶产品,包括其网上销售商店Starbucks.com。

2. soothing:抚慰的,使人宽心的。

3.这个最受美国人喜爱的早、午、晚间饮料被晾在一边了——是的,出于对茶的偏爱。in favor of:赞同,出于偏爱。

4. all the rage:<口>风靡一时的事物,时尚。

5. the plain old black breakfast brew:平常的、过时的黑色早餐饮料,此处意指“咖啡”。

6.有机茶、药草茶、风味茶,或加热,或冰镇,或瓶装,或冲煮,这些都是这种已被人们喝了数百年的饮品的时尚版本。

7. cash in on:靠……赚钱,从……中获得好处。

8. entree:正餐前的开胃菜。

9. twist:新手法,新花样;rotisserie:电热轮转烤肉器。

10. braise:用文火炖肉;flank steak:后腹肉牛排;satay:(马来西亚、印度尼西亚的)加香烤肉。

11.茶也突然出现在维他命药丸、洗液和香水里。pop up:突然站起(跳起)。

12. Elizabeth Arden:伊丽莎白-雅顿,世界知名化妆品品牌。其香水系列最为有名,包括第五大道(Fifth Avenue)、蓝草(Blue Grass)、红门(Red Door)、向日葵(Sunflowers)等,主要特点为:强调优雅、大方。

13.茶具有医疗功效的关键在于它含有的化学物多酚——一种能够抑制肿瘤恶化和减少动脉阻塞的抗氧化剂。

14.这两句提到的绿茶的几个功能是:防止皮肤癌(局部外用或口服)、有助于肝脏排毒、预防流感和帕金森氏病。Parkinson's disease:帕金森氏病,又称震颤麻痹,是中老年人的一种常见疾病。它的主要症状是震颤、运动缓慢及姿势障碍等。

15. ritual:程序。

16.鲁宾说,把茶叶浸泡在热水中,而后品味其温和的味道,感觉要比冲咖啡更亲切些,这个过程可以使喝茶的人放松一下,休息一会,茶也就成了这个咖啡因充斥、卡布奇诺盛行的世界的一剂上好的解药。antidote:解毒药,<喻>矫正方法;cappuccino:<意>卡布奇诺咖啡,一种加牛奶或奶油用蒸汽加热煮出的浓咖啡。

17. lather:在……涂上皂沫。

18. substantiate:证实,证明……有根据。




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