Armuda: how to look and how to use them?

Tea ceremony for the eastern nations has always been something special. The ritual is still carried out in compliance with old national traditions. In Turkey and Azerbaijan, the day begins with a cup of tea, and they can drink a drink several times during the day, they complete each meal. Of course, the main role in tea drinking is played glass cups - armours, cultural heritage left over from the Ottoman Empire.

Every tourist visiting the countries of the East will surely taste tea from Azerbaijani crystal glasses. In our article, we will look at what armuds are, describe the legend associated with their appearance, and the rules for conducting the tea ceremony in Turkish.

Armuda is a special container for crystal tea, which is widespread in Turkey, Iran and Azerbaijan. In recent years, with an increase in the flow of tourists to these countries, cups have become popular in Russia. This is quite natural, because their special form contributes to a longer heat retention, and transparency allows you to see the fullness of the glass, therefore even with long conversations you can not worry about the fact that the drink cools down.

From the Azerbaijani language, the word “armud” is translated as “pear”, in Turkish the name of this fruit sounds like “armut”. Many believe that it is precisely because of its pear shape that these glasses got their name. Another option is that the cups for tea are in the shape of a tulip, symbolizing love, devotion and tenderness for the inhabitants of the East. To many, the image of armoude resembles a female figure with a thin waist, rounded hips and beautiful breasts.

Traditional Azerbaijani cups are sold without handles, however, in the stores you can find a model with a holder, designed specifically for tourists - the locals do not use them.

The hot drink in the armuds is poured from a special kettle, you can drink it almost immediately, without the risk of getting burned. The fact is that the form of the device expanding upwards makes it possible to cool the upper part of the liquid faster. Tea is not poured to the edge, it is customary to leave a couple of centimeters in order to make it more convenient for the guest to take a cup and drink a little. Some products have a thin border that indicates the boundary to which the liquid should be poured.

In everyday life, residents of Azerbaijan use simple glass armoudesHowever, there are products for special and holidays, which will be found in every family. They also get when guests come. In the eastern bazaar you can find very beautiful armours made of porcelain or earthenware with hand-painted and gold or silver decor.

For wealthy people are offered luxury models of real gold or silver. A great alternative to glass is crystal with beautiful patterns. The volume of glasses is quite small - 100 ml, this is quite enough to have time to drink a drink during conversations, and then add more. Sometimes, during one tea ceremony, the Turks can drink 15 servings of hot tea.

Despite the lack of arms, holding cups in hand is very convenient. They gently fit between your fingers and do not slip out of them. Heat-resistant glass with a thickened bottom prevents the possibility of burns and the rapid cooling of tea.

Tea sets are sold to two or more people, they include a tray, a kettle for brewing and glasses with saucers.Armlets with handles are a small, narrowed to the center of a traditional glass cup. The handle can be placed anywhere at the top or bottom, and sometimes even in the area of ​​constriction.

In European countries, many began to use these cups for coffee, they turned out to be convenient for a classic espresso due to its miniature character. However, residents of the East consider such actions unacceptable and even offensive.

In Azerbaijan, the handle is replaced with a cup holder for armouts. They are made of nickel silver, bronze or silver. While the cup itself is hot, you can keep it on the cup holder, the main thing is not to accidentally turn it over. The design of these products, as a rule, is minimalistic, however, there are also volumetric instruments with a handle that cover the glass itself.

Many centuries ago, back in the days of the Ottoman Empire, it was customary to drink tea from armouts. The pear shape of the cups made it possible to maintain the optimum temperature of the drink for a long time, it was neither hot nor cold. The empire fell apart, and traditions were preserved. Each of the peoples of the Middle East believes that armudes appeared for the first time in their region, and then spread throughout the territory, however, no one can give an exact answer to this question. Therefore, in different sources, glasses are sometimes called Turkish or Azerbaijani.

Tourists are told a beautiful story associated with the appearance of narrowed products. In ancient times, tea was drunk from ordinary glass cups. Once, during the next feast, the padishah was whispered in his ear that his wife was unfaithful to His Majesty. Furious Sultan ordered the execution of his wife, but first decided to look into her shameless eyes. Seeing the cheater, the man squeezed the cup in his hand so angry that she narrowed in the middle and began to resemble a female figure with a thin waist. However, the padishah’s anger did not last long: seeing the beautiful eyes of his beloved, he forgave her and released her in peace. But his emotions were reflected in the glass.

Later he presented it to his wife along with a bouquet of tulips - a symbol of love. Thus, the Sultan wanted his spouse to always remember how strong his feelings were for her. Tourists visiting Iran and Turkey will certainly try a hot drink from armouts, often trying to fully reproduce the traditional ceremony. Having tried tea from glass narrowed glasses once, you no longer want to return to ordinary ones.

It is the numerous advantages of products that made them popular in many western countries. The main feature of armodes is, of course, their shape and thickened bottom, which does not allow tea to cool, while the upper extended portion cools it quickly. Both temperatures are combined in the middle and form an ideal drink for consumption.

If you are an avid tea drink and start every day with this noble drink, then you should definitely get a traditional Azerbaijani set, which will make drinking hot tea a real pleasure. The big advantage of cups is convenience: they do not slip out of the hands, and heat-resistant glass allows you to keep the temperature inside and not burn your hands, even when steam rises from the liquid.

Tea sets have incredible beauty. Even the most common products made of glass or crystal look unusual and pleasing to the eye, what can we say about the luxury painted or models made of precious metals.

Turkish tea can be a wonderful tradition of the whole family.This is an unforgettable time when children and adults gather around the table and pamper themselves with a fragrant drink with something sugary, they can afford long conversations, because the drink will not cool down. Another important advantage of Turkish cups is the hygienic material of manufacture. It is not only 100% environmentally friendly, but does not react with the liquid, completely conveying the taste of tea without changes.

If you find yourself in one of the eastern countries, you can without hesitation buy as a gift to friends and relatives beautiful tea sets that will delight them not only on holidays, but also every day, creating for a while a cozy atmosphere with oriental notes. Particularly happy with this gift will be lovers of this noble drink, who prepare their own brew and not buy tea bags. Be sure to purchase products for yourself.

To conduct this Turkish tea ceremony, you must follow certain rules. As a rule, for the preparation of the drink using long leaf tea, in very rare cases, green.

They drink tea slowly, sip by sip, the whole procedure can take more than forty minutes. Brewing leaves taken in several stages. To begin with, the kettle is doused with hot water so that it warms up, then leaf tea is put inside in the right amount and poured with boiling water to the middle. Then the kettle should be covered with a lid and wrapped in a special towel so that heat does not go out. Let the tea stand for 4 minutes, then pour in more water by filling the appliance. Wait another 5 minutes and serve the guests.

Tea is bottled starting with the most respected person at the table, as a rule, this is the oldest. And then honored and all the rest. The drink is usually served on saucers, sometimes, if the guest came from the West, in coasters with a handle for convenience.

Sugar cubes are served in an open dish and each takes the amount he needs. In the East, the sweet is eaten with a bit of sugar: first, a piece is dipped into a drink, then bit off, and then washed down. In this case, it is desirable to hold the saucers in their hands. Surely in separate bowls they serve honey, jam, dried fruits and traditional Turkish delicacy - Turkish Delight.

Many do not know why sugar in Turkey is eaten when it is consumed; another historical fact is connected with this tradition. Previously, padishahs were surrounded by conspirators who wanted to kill him. Some tried to give him poison in food or drink. Particularly clever dripped poison on the sugar, so the cubes began to dip into the drink to watch the reaction. If the grains began to hiss, change the shade or settled at the bottom, it means they worked on them. For tea leaves sometimes use double kettles, which are placed on the stove to heat up.

In the process of tea drinking, some points should also be observed. Firstly it must be remembered that in the East people respect their elders very much, so the first word at the table is either at the master of the house or at the oldest. All are seated on sofas or on a carpet with soft pillows. Transparent dishes allow the owner to understand that it is time to top up the drink. Guests decided to add tea until they themselves refuse.

In the next video you will find a tea ceremony in Azerbaijani.