Flaming Tea For Hanukkah

It’s the fourth night of Hanukkah. We are half way through the 8 nights of Hanukkah, have you integrated any new creative ideas into your traditions?  Why not bring back an Old Russian Hanukkah tradition to your evening celebration? Hanukkah being the Festival of Lights, symbols embodying the use of light for the festivities are prominent, and none more so than Flaming Tea among old world Russian Jews. There was a great deal of pomp and preparation involved well before the ceremony and here is how it went:

“Well in advance of serving the Flaming Tea, great cones of sugar were broken into pieces. These were piled high on a dish. Then tall glasses of tea, poured from a samovar, were passed around, each with a pony of brandy and a generous lump of sugar. Each person would dip his sugar into the brandy, then place it on a teaspoon held over the glass. Lights were then turned out as a lighted taper was passed among the guests to light the brandy-dipped sugar. As the glow spread from one to another, songs were sung and then all together the flaming cubes were dropped into the waiting glasses.”

I think that a Flaming Tea Ceremony is a beautiful channel for embracing the symbolism of light by fire on Hanukkah. This year pull out your china tea cups and incorporate it into your own Hanukkah celebrations one night. The grace of the ceremony is ever so inspirational.

Hanukah Hostess Gift

Give the gift of the Flaming Tea Ceremony to someone else as well by creating beautiful hostess gifts of the Flaming Tea Ceremony kits. It is very easy to put together with simple items. Here is what you will need:

Flaming Tea Ceremony Gift Set

Ingredients

Quality Tea (loose tea tin is preferred, but you could do tea bags as well)

Small Bottle of Brandy

Sugar Cubes in a Jar

One Tapper Candle

Pretty lighter (optional)

A Gift Bag or Basket

Method

Put all the items in a gift bag or basket and include a thoughtful card or note (explain the tea ceremony). It is as easy as that!