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Turkish tea, called çay (chai) is a variant of black tea which is produced on the Black Sea coast where climate is mild with high
precipitation and fertile soil. Turkish tea is
typically prepared using two stacked kettles called "çaydanlık"
specially designed for tea preparation. Water is brought to a boil in the
larger bottom kettle and then some of the water is used to fill the smaller
kettle on top. Several spoons of loose
tea leaves than added to top kettle and steep, producing a very strong tea.
When served, the remaining water is used to dilute the tea on an individual
basis, giving each person the choice between strong or weak light tea. Tea is
drunk from small thin glasses to enjoy it hot and show its color, with cubes of beet sugar.
Turkey is one of the biggest tea producers in the world and has
the highest per capita tea consumption in the world, at 5.5 lb/2.5 kg per person - followed by UK, at 4.6 lb/2.1 kg per person.
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