Look, I’m not a writer. I don’t even know why I started this blog, although I find myself impassioned by tea and I guess I felt the need to disseminate information about it.
I’m not an expert or tea master, either. But for some reason, when someone mentions tea my ears prick up and I feel the need to contribute to the conversation or answer a question about it.
Take yesterday, for example. My daughter and I were on the train leaving Montreal to come back home to Dundas, and I decided to settle into the trip by ordering a tea (Jasmine Green)*. The woman sitting across from us also ordered a green tea, and exclaimed out loud, “Jasmine is green tea?” So I jumped at the occasion to explain that jasmine was the scent added to the tea – the process involves piling the sweet-scented flowers onto the green or black tea so that the perfume infuses into the tea leaves. The woman nodded her head and politely said “Oh.” The conversation about tea ended there (I do know when to shut up), and we continued to talk about other things, and all in all we had a lovely time together.
So I realize that writing this blog is something I want to do. If you want to follow along with me, welcome! We’ll see where this goes. If not, go drink your Pepsi or whatever it is you drink and have a good day!
To get this conversation started, I thought I’d ask you: How do you take your tea? Are you a purist, in the sense that you believe you should not add anything to your brew? Or do you prefer to pour in a little milk and sugar? What about lemon or honey? Do you ever add spices to your tea? Also, do you use tea bags, or do you think the leaves ought to be loose? Let me know what you think, and over time I’ll let you know my preferences too.
Ciao for now.
* I thought I’d give it a try – I was reluctant to order tea on the train, as I’d done it once before and the “brew” was so disgusting that I had to throw it out. But, VIA Rail seems to have improved their refreshment options, and it turns out I wasn’t disappointed this time ’round. I was happy to see that it was fair trade, and the jasmine flavour was decent, allowing me to relax and enjoy the start of my trip.
Great start! I take my black tea with milk, but all others pure
My fave right now, which is not pure, is called Cherry Blossom Festival (flavoured) green (a Chinese green). It’s loose leaf and smells and tastes wonderful!
Thank you, Jenn! I’ll be interested in learning more about your adventures in tea, also. I’m a fan of flavoured teas, as long as they’re not too overpowering. I think scent can add a terrific dimension to the experience. I hope you enjoy the blog
Yay for tea! Well your questions are toughies! I like chai tea to have a little milk in it. And otherwise I like teas all on their own. However, I recently had lemon in my breakfast tea and it was amazing! I may be changing my mind!
Oooo I love the idea of a tea blog. And I’ve been ramping up my tea consumption lately! Perfect timing! Will you show pics of pretty teas (or find them online at places like flickr)?
Hi April! I hope you enjoy this blog – I’m all in favor of ramping up tea consumption!! I’ve heard that adding lemon to your tea will help you absorb the wonderful healthful benefits that tea has to offer. Milk however inhibits the absorption. So enjoy lemon in your tea to your heart’s content (literally). I like the idea very much that tea is enhanced by lemon, but I’m always quite careful not to put too much in because it can mask the taste of the tea (why not just put lemon in hot water if you’re going to do that?)
I’m going to try to take photos of my own, but that might prove a little difficult, as I don’t have a decent digital SLR, so flickr or other sites might be the answer – if you know of any good ones, could you please let me know?
Great start to a great blog! Last month, we discovered Apple Tea in Istanbul & became instant devotees (devoteas?). These days it comes in a powdered form & is served all over the place (e.g. when you’re in a store trying to decide whether to buy ceramics or a rug, but not really intending to buy either).
Thanks, Dad! I recently read a “heart-warming” story about apple tea in Turkey, where a couple of tourists were stranded for a few hours as their tour taxi had broken down and they spent the afternoon playing cards and drinking apple tea with some kind people. I’m curious about how that tastes – is it like cider at all? Is it apple blended with tea leaves, or a type of tisane?
Not unlike hot apple cider. I imagine that in the “old” days it must have been apples steeped in tea but I’d love to know.
Hurray! Welcome to the blogosphere! Looking forward to learning lots and perhaps expanding my tastes beyond Red Rose…
Ciao (or should I say “chai”?) for now…
Thanks, Dave! I hope you enjoy learning about the tea world too. I won’t look down my nose at your Red Rose (too much), but if I can convince you to branch out I’ll be happy.
Chai for now! I like it! I might have to use it.
You are totally a tea-totaller! My favourite of all time is gold-tipped black tea from Nepal. Or is all gold-tipped tea black? At least I’m pretty sure it’s not green!
I don’t think all gold-tipped tea is black – rather it describes the quality of the tea leaf that has been picked. If you ever see the category SFTGFOP (Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe), get it! (if it isn’t too expensive). I believe that is the highest quality of pekoe you can find. I’ve never had the opportunity to try it myself (I don’t think), but I’ll jump at the chance if anyone offers it to me!!
Great idea! This might be the first blog I follow
. I add milk to orange pekoe and honey to lemon tea but otherwise it’s pure for me.
In the morning when I’m half asleep I’ll throw a tea bag in a mug but when I want to relax with a good cuppa’ I’ll use loose. My favourite right now isn’t actually a tea *blush*. It’s a tisane called Blue Eyes with dried fruit and spices. It’s caffeine free and very flavourful.
Looking forward to more tea blogs
Very nice! No need to blush – tisane has a wonderful place in the warm beverage world.
I also use bags if I’m pressed for time, of if I’ve found a flavour I enjoy. Bagged teas are getting better at any rate, so I think it’s a good marriage of taste and practicality. Nice to see you here, Jen – I hope you enjoy my ramblings!
Voted for coffee but have discovered that the loose rooibos at bridgehead is quite good…
Aha! What flavour Rooibos? And where is this bridgehead that you speak of? Do they carry teas also?