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D'vorahDavida
Yetzirah

Teatime
Fri May 28 2004


I am in a chatty mood today. I am updating at will, and willy nilly choosing random dates to do it. I have had to tell my organized, anal retentive first born self to "get over it already" several times. I'm writing a bunch today, it's keeping me sane.

Now to the topic at hand....

I am on a quest.

For the perfect cup of tea.

For many years now, I have been in love with the IDEA of tea. I even tried having teatime at my house when my middle son was a toddler. I felt I needed a calming half hour in my day at the time. I love the tea cups, the saucers, (I am looking for a really deep one, like a shallow bowl on ebay these days). The things you eat with the tea, the pot, the tray, the whole teatime philosophy.

However.

I have never found a tea that I really enjoyed drinking. And I pretty much had given up on the whole idea until recently. I cannot put my finger on what sparked the change, but change it did, and now I am auditioning teas.

I have a drawer full of assorted teas for guests. Herbal, Lipton, assorted, green, black, you name it. I recently bought a mixed box of Biglow teas and am taste testing them one by one.

I have tried Earl Grey. (nice) English Breakfast. (too strong) Lemon Lift (odd) and the current front runner, Constant Comment. Which is quite nice, but I can't say I crave it.

So I am putting it out there to my tea drinking friends.... What is your favorite tea?
Herbal or regular tea. And if you would please give a brief description of your choice and why you like it.

I stood in front of the teas in the grocery yesterday and was completely overwhelmed by the choices. I have a few weeks worth of ones to try in my drawer at home, but after that would be willing to try some of your recommendations.

Of course being an ice water muncher most of the time, this may be a leap that my body won't tolerate, but I am open to new ways of drinking!

Let the Teaparty begin!

Clean cup! Clean cup! Move down! Move down!

13 Comments
  • From:
    Shellybean (Legacy)
    On:
    Wed May 26 2004
    To really experience a good cup of tea, you need to get away from the bag teas that come out of boxes. I love Republic of Teas, http://www.republicoftea.com/templates/directory.asp?navID=10 as well as http://www.mezzodi.com/white_teas_silver_needle.htm. Republic of teas can be purchased in upscale grocrey stores, like Whole foods or similar. The other one I've only ordered online, and I drank some once at someones house so I started gettting theres. There's larger leaves in loose verus bag, the flavor and the oils are more prevaliant. I love white, and black teas and if approrpriate I always use cream in my teas and of course sugar.

    While on a trip house hunting last week, I tried two Tea houses in the Folsom/Sacremento area--both were really good the place in Sacramento was nicer. Try going to one of those, have some scones with lemon curd and you're on your way to "High Tea."
  • From:
    Monstergue (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    I prefer Irish breakfast tea, but if you find the English strong, this may not be the one for you.

    Darjeeling is nice if you want a smokey tea that goes well with the tiniest dab of cream or milk.

    I also rather like the Hawaiian blends. Hibiscus, rose hip, honey, a back blend of orange pikoe.

    So many teas, so little time........
  • From:
    InStitches (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    Ahh tea time. A personal favorite. If you ever get the chance, go Victoria on Vancouver Island, B.C. and go to High Tea at the Empress Hotel. It is simply marvelous; pretty teapots, cups and saucers, lovely crisp linens and all the appropriate goodies. I could go on and on...:)

    Personally, I stay away from most big brands like Liptons and Bigelow. I find most of them to be rather harsh for some reason.

    As to my personal favorites, I do enjoy a hearty cup of tea such as English Breakfast, but prefer a blend by Numi. It tends to be more mellow. I also drink a great deal of green tea. My favorite there is Envy by Tazo.

    My new favorite is Perfectly Pear White Tea by Celestial Seasonings. It is slightly sweet with a light taste of pear and just the barest hint of vanilla. Very different from most flavored teas which tend to knock you over with the flavor. It is very light and refreshing.

    I tend to make my teas a bit less strong than directed. For a 2 cup pot I use 1 tea bag. Brewed too strong, many teas tend to be bitter. At any rate, it is a good way to aquire a taste for tea.

    Happy tasting.
    Rebecca


  • From:
    Angelnut (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    I have always liked English Breakfast Tea and Constant Comment, but my favorite teas come from Murchie's. Empress Afternoon is my favorite. They are stronger than American teas, but the flavor is smoother and more aromatic--truly superior to what we get here in the states! I always add a little bit of milk (or half and half) to mine, and maybe a pinch of artificial sweetener. Here's the link for Murchie's:

    http://www.murchies.com/frhome.html

    THIS is THE place to go for a sampler of teas!

    I love the idea of "Having Tea"--I have a fantasy of opening up a "Tea Room" in a large, refurbished Victorian home, where the downstairs is my tearoom, I live in the rooms above, and a professional landscaping company tends to my English Garden out back. Someday...someday...
  • From:
    Bogomils (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    Thank you for stopping by my diary. I hope you enjoyed my story. Seeing your entries and that you write as well, I will have to get myself a new cup of TEA, and take a quiet rest within the pages of your tales.

    My favorite cup of tea is Darjeeling. Don't purchase cheap brands but instead splurge on a real treat and get the good stuff. Let it steep for 3 to 4 minutes and allow the aroma tickle your nose. (Such luxury on this tiny blue planet.)

    Hope you enjoy my favorite, Bogomils
  • From:
    Dustbunny3 (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    I like to keep it simple and Just make Lipton sun iced tea. It is better on a warm day than beer .
    But when the sun goes down and I want to kick back
    Vodka tonic thank you.
    Cheap and smooth to a old tired body.
  • From:
    Yarngirl (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    I have made that hat so many times I don't use a pattern any longer. I think this is the pattern I learned from - second one down on the page, the double crochet pattern:

    http://www.angelfire.com/ct/barnart/index5.html

    The yarn is Bernat Frenzy, and I think most Walmarts are carrying it now. I used a J hook for the Frenzy. I trimmed it in a lime green baby yarn, three single crochets to each stitch around the hat, H hook so it would be smaller stitches. The pattern for the flower is here:

    http://www.marloscrochetcorner.com/Shell%20Stitch%20Dish%20Towel.html

    I needed a small flower as it is a small hat.

    Hope it helps!
    Julie
  • From:
    Bookworm (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    Okay, you asked for it. In my humble opinion tea should only ever be drunk black. The milk ruins the delicate flavours in the tea. I will drink any kind, they're all lovely in their own ways, but am fine with green tea or a simple Tetleys, Liptons or Billy Tea (yes, it's a brand name).

    In summer there's nothing better than drinking iced tea. Don't add sugar, yuck, yuck, yuck. Just boil up a batch and leave to cool. Add mint leaves, tons of ice cubes and dilute with chilled water, if desired. Particularly yummy are the flavoured teas, such as orange, raspberry and lemon.

    Those are my suggestions. Hope you find something you enjoy. ;-)
  • From:
    Salamander (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    I've never developed a tolerance for Earl Grey tea ... it's too much like drinking perfume to my taste. And I'm quite fond of English Breakfast, so I fear that my tastes will not suit what you are looking for. Still ...

    What tea I have is determined by what (if anything) I'm having with it. But for just plain drinking, it would be Darjeeling every time. It will steep strong without getting bitter, and it tends to stay clearer than other teas. It's possible to get very good loose leaf Darjeeling from local Indian grocery stores, which is a plus. Not that there's anything wrong with bag tea in a pinch (even bag tea beats coffee, so far as I'm concerned), but bag tea tends to have been handled harshly, and will leave a lot more sediment.

    Let me know when you get settled with your tea, and we can plan an on-line tea party. I've organized those before, and they're a lot of fun.
  • From:
    (Unauthenticated) (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    Looks like the favorite is Darjeeling with which I cannot disagree however, my favorite is still Chamomile. I will bring some over for you to try.
  • From:
    Tawny (Unauthenticated) (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    My favorite tea is Twinings of London. Irish Breakfast. It's a nice amber color and not too bitter, and smells great. I always add a little sugar (honey doesn't work well with it) and maybe some milk. But if you want to curl up on a cold night, the best is Celestial Seasonings Peppermint or Honey Vanilla Chamomile. Yum...
    "Twinkle twinkle little ants, you look strange without your pants!"
  • From:
    BattleAxe (Unauthenticated) (Legacy)
    On:
    Thu May 27 2004
    Did I lose a day?
  • From:
    AeolianSolo (Legacy)
    On:
    Fri May 28 2004
    Black tea: Bigelow Earl Grey or Twinings Darjeeling, with a little skim milk (I'm watching my cholesterol).

    Herb tea: Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice (indescribable; spicy aroma and smooth flavor), and Roastaroma for a more full-bodied tea; the roasted chicory and spices make it fabulous straight or, as R likes it, with milk and sugar.

    As for the previous entry: If I send you my address will you mail me some of that blackberry cobbler? Yum!!!

    --Solo