托福阅读背景之“Earl Grey Tea”

 托福频道为各位考生整理了托福阅读背景之“Earl Grey Tea”，希望对大家的托福阅读提高有所帮助。

　　Earl Grey is a blend of Indian and Sri Lankan teas. Although considered a specific type or variety of tea, today, any black tea with bergamot flavor added is considered an Earl Grey tea.

　　The Earl Grey blend is named after Charles Grey, the second Earl Grey of Howick (1764-1845), who was one of the leading British statesmen of the late 18th Century and early 19th Century. Charles Grey was once in charge of the British Navy and went on to become Foreign Secretary. In 1830, he became Prime Minister and presided over the introduction of the Great Reform Act of 1832. The following year, his government abolished slavery throughout the British Empire. But despite these historic achievements, Earl Grey’s name is best known today because of the delicious, delicate, fragrant² beverage³ named in his honour.

　　There are differing accounts of the origin of Earl Grey tea, but the most popular goes as follows. During his reign¹ as Prime Minister, Earl Grey sent a diplomatic mission to China, where one of the envoys⁴ Grey sent saved the life of a Chinese. In gratitude⁵, the Chinese sent the Earl a specially-scented⁶ tea. Earl Charles Grey was then reputed to have demanded his tea supplier in London to recreate the tea for him, and the taste became fashionable, eventually spreading worldwide.

　　The Ingredients of Earl Grey Tea

　　Despite its reputed Chinese origins, Earl Grey tea doesn’t contain China tea. It is a blend of Indian and Sri Lankan black teas, flavoured with oil of bergamot. The oil is extracted from the peel of the bergamot orange, which is grown mainly in the Calabria region of Italy. Bergamot oil is also commonly used inaromatherapy. Unlike green teas, black teas undergo a full fermentation process, which causes the leaves to turn black and gives them their flavour.

　　Lady Grey Tea

　　Lady Grey tea was named after Mary Elizabeth Grey, the wife of Charles Grey. Lady Grey tea is a variation on the more famous Earl Grey blend. It consists of green China tea scented with oil of bergamot, lemon peel and orange peel.

　　How to Serve Earl Grey Tea

　　Many people prefer to enjoy Earl Grey without milk and with a slice of lemon. They find that the tang ofcitrus that comes from the oil of bergamot makes Earl Grey tea particularly suited to being served with lemon.

　　Some others prefer their Earl Grey on its own, with nothing added. It’s all a matter of personal taste. But one thing that most Earl Grey enthusiasts⁸ can probably agree upon is that the tea should be left to stand for at least two or three minutes after the boiling water has been added, in order for its full flavour to emerge.

　　Resist that tempting⁹ aroma⁷ for a couple of minutes, and let your Earl Grey tea brew¹⁰. It’s well worth the wait.

　　格雷伯爵茶是一种印度和斯里兰卡茶叶为基质的调味茶。尽管伯爵茶被认为是一种特殊种类的茶品，今天，任何添加了佛手柑油的红茶都可以通称为伯爵茶。

　　格雷伯爵茶是以查尔斯?格雷，即格雷二世伯爵(1764-1845)命名的。查尔斯?格雷是英国18世纪末和19世纪初最重要的政治家之一，曾执掌英国海军，随后又担任了英国的外交部长。1830年，他成为了英国首相，并主持了1832年《改革法案》的推行。1833年，他的政府在整个大英帝国范围内废除了奴隶制，尽管有如此多的历史功绩，今天，格雷伯爵的名字还是因了这种美味清香的茶饮而广为人知。

　　关于格雷伯爵茶的起源有着多种解释，最广为流传的一种解释如下：在担任首相期间，格雷伯爵曾派外交使团去往中国，在中国期间，他手下的一名使节救了一个中国人的命。出于感激，那位北京人送给伯爵一种有着独特香味的茶饮。后来，格雷伯爵命伦敦的茶叶商重新为他配制这种茶饮，这种口味的茶饮开始流行起来，最终风行了世界各地。

　　格雷伯爵茶的成分

　　尽管风传格雷茶起源于中国，其茶叶却并不是中国茶。其成分是印度和斯里兰卡红茶，以佛手柑油调味。这种油是从柑橘类水果佛手柑的外皮中提取的，这种植物主要生长在意大利的卡拉布里亚地区。佛手柑油还常常应用于芳香疗法中。与绿茶不同，红茶经历了完全的发酵过程，这使得茶叶呈黑色，同时赋予了其独特的味道。

　　格雷夫人茶

　　格雷夫人茶是以查尔斯?格雷的夫人玛丽?伊丽莎白?格雷命名的。格雷夫人茶是更为闻名的格雷伯爵茶的衍生品。它是一种以中国绿茶为基质，加入佛手柑油以及柠檬和柑橘皮提取油的调味茶。

　　怎样饮茶

　　饮用伯爵茶时，许多人喜欢不加牛奶，配上一小片柠檬。他们觉得由佛手柑油散发出的强烈的柑橘类味道使得伯爵茶特别适于搭配柠檬饮用。

　　还有些人喜欢单独饮用伯爵茶，什么调味品也不加，这完全取决于个人口味。但可能大多数伯爵茶爱好者都同意的一点是冲入沸水后，应该等上两三分钟再饮用，以使其香味充分地散发出来。

　　忍住怡人茶香的诱惑，等待几分钟，让你的伯爵茶得以充分的冲泡，随后你会发现等待是值得的。

　　Vocabulary:

　　aromatherapy 芳香疗法，指用天然物质萃取出的油脂、香料等治疗皮肤病的方法

　　tang 强烈的味道

　　citrus 柑橘属植物

1 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

2 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

3 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

4 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

5 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

6 scented   

adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词)

参考例句：

• I let my lungs fill with the scented air. 我呼吸着芬芳的空气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police dog scented about till he found the trail. 警犬嗅来嗅去，终于找到了踪迹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

8 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

9 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

10 brew   

v.酿造，调制

参考例句：

• Let's brew up some more tea.咱们沏些茶吧。
• The policeman dispelled the crowd lest they should brew trouble.警察驱散人群，因恐他们酿祸。