Muscat. Muscatel. Smoothness? Musky? Musty? I wonder about this word muscatel, and how it relates to tea. I have the keemun encore, which is a superior tea, with a smoky-ness to it. I appreciate the stronger flavor that this one imparts, and leaves on the back of your tongue.
I do find that it quenches the thirst, if there was any, as I sip on this almost too hot tea. I think the point of steeping is not to allow it to get to full strength, as much as to allow it to cool. I have to wonder about the Chinese discovering tea, and how they must have experimented with tea, boiling it in a pot of water, cooking it, essentially. And then tasting it. Blech!
The keemun is a full bodied black tea, which has a more delicate flavor that say, English Breakfast, but still has the body and depth of a good dark tea. Makes me think I should order more keemun superior from Mighty Leaf to have at home, along with some other stuff. It’s always such a big deal to decide what I’m going to get. I wish it was easier to figure it out!
Monday, August 2, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Tastefully British
Went to the Tastefully British tearoom, just off Siesta Key, Florida. This is the best tearoom I've been to so far.
Before entering, on the border above the doorway is an aphorism about tea:
As we enter, there is a shop, full of English treats, and other English things "from home." It also has some great teaware, beautiful cups and pots, without being too girly.
The place is empty. We go to sit down, and there's no sign or other indication that provides some direction. As we go to sit, the lady there tells us that we may choose our spot. There were about 10 tables total. We chose the one on the wall, which has a lovely rural scene painted on the wall. So it's as if you're looking out the window on a British farm. This is the first charm of the place. The other decorations are nice, too.
The menu had some traditionally British items on it, like scones, but it also had a few very good meals! I had the cream of tomato soup in a "cup" which was more like a small bowl. With the tomato soup we were given soft bread and butter to go with it. My meal was a pasty, a pastry with mince meat and vegetables, which was very good. What really impressed me, though, was the freshness of the salad. It was presented on the same plate as the pasty, which struck me as odd for a second, but then I realized that it made sense: eating the salad first allowed the pasty to cool to an edible temperature, and yet the outside of it wasn't so hot that it would wilt the salad. For dessert we were a bit disappointed that our first two choices weren't available that day, so we had coffee cake (a bit odd, since we're in a tea room, but we didn't argue). The coffee cake was excellent! It had a chocolate covering on the outside (saying that it was frosting isn't right), and a couple of coffee beans on the top. I could barely eat my lunch, and I think I had about two bites of the dessert, but it was wonderful! I later had the coffee cake (when I had more room for it) with some English Breakfast tea at home, and that worked out well. It was a happy moment.
My date had merely a scone with her tea, after having the cream of tomato soup. She shared the scone with me, and it was about the best one I've ever had. Usually scones are crumbly and dry, but this was moist, held together well, and was deliciously sweet. I think it had orange zest in it, though I can't be sure. I was also very happy with that.
The teas we had were Kenya Black, which to me tasted like a Ceylon tea - the traditional, basic tea that seems to be most prevalent in the various places I've been. The other tea that my date had was Cinnamon Tea. She added sugar to it, and it still had a delicate flavor to it, and yet not sweet.
The only issue I have with the teas themselves is that age-old problem of getting the tea leaves out of the pots, because of the over-steeping problem. The pots were great and had wonderful little tea cozies on them, which helped everything stay hot.
The service was wonderful. After we ate, we shopped the little store, and bought a few things, like a cup sized tea strainer...
All in all, this was the best tea room experience that I've had, and any others that I may go to will have a hard time topping this one.
Before entering, on the border above the doorway is an aphorism about tea:
- "If you are cold, tea will warm you. If you are heated, it will cool you. If you are depressed, it will cheer you. If you are excited, it will calm you." ~ William Gladstone
As we enter, there is a shop, full of English treats, and other English things "from home." It also has some great teaware, beautiful cups and pots, without being too girly.
The place is empty. We go to sit down, and there's no sign or other indication that provides some direction. As we go to sit, the lady there tells us that we may choose our spot. There were about 10 tables total. We chose the one on the wall, which has a lovely rural scene painted on the wall. So it's as if you're looking out the window on a British farm. This is the first charm of the place. The other decorations are nice, too.
The menu had some traditionally British items on it, like scones, but it also had a few very good meals! I had the cream of tomato soup in a "cup" which was more like a small bowl. With the tomato soup we were given soft bread and butter to go with it. My meal was a pasty, a pastry with mince meat and vegetables, which was very good. What really impressed me, though, was the freshness of the salad. It was presented on the same plate as the pasty, which struck me as odd for a second, but then I realized that it made sense: eating the salad first allowed the pasty to cool to an edible temperature, and yet the outside of it wasn't so hot that it would wilt the salad. For dessert we were a bit disappointed that our first two choices weren't available that day, so we had coffee cake (a bit odd, since we're in a tea room, but we didn't argue). The coffee cake was excellent! It had a chocolate covering on the outside (saying that it was frosting isn't right), and a couple of coffee beans on the top. I could barely eat my lunch, and I think I had about two bites of the dessert, but it was wonderful! I later had the coffee cake (when I had more room for it) with some English Breakfast tea at home, and that worked out well. It was a happy moment.
My date had merely a scone with her tea, after having the cream of tomato soup. She shared the scone with me, and it was about the best one I've ever had. Usually scones are crumbly and dry, but this was moist, held together well, and was deliciously sweet. I think it had orange zest in it, though I can't be sure. I was also very happy with that.
The teas we had were Kenya Black, which to me tasted like a Ceylon tea - the traditional, basic tea that seems to be most prevalent in the various places I've been. The other tea that my date had was Cinnamon Tea. She added sugar to it, and it still had a delicate flavor to it, and yet not sweet.
The only issue I have with the teas themselves is that age-old problem of getting the tea leaves out of the pots, because of the over-steeping problem. The pots were great and had wonderful little tea cozies on them, which helped everything stay hot.
The service was wonderful. After we ate, we shopped the little store, and bought a few things, like a cup sized tea strainer...
All in all, this was the best tea room experience that I've had, and any others that I may go to will have a hard time topping this one.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Rainy Days
Rainy days are the best days to enjoy tea, I think. Something about wet, soggy, cool days, rain falling all around, makes for extra enjoyment of the mood of the tea. This is probably what was so wonderful about tea in England. Often rainy, often soggy, days would be brought by back to life by a great cup of tea. It warms you, but isn't too thick, isn't too bitter. It's lively on your tongue, and makes its way down...warming you from the inside, out. It has sophistication, even when it's the lowest grade of tea.
So today, on this rainy day, I'm having Keemun Superior, from Mighty Leaf Tea. Today, though, I made it unusually strong, so I'm regretting it a little bit right now. It's still good, and isn't as cleansing as it is thicker than I would normally like. I need to order more of this particular tea from them, since it's one of my favorites.
Tea can be a relaxing ritual. I'm learning about Zen, and Buddhism, and I'm seeing how tea rituals and such may have been at the very least influenced by it. And how tea in itself can be Zen, since it is a separate thing, but you drink it, and it becomes you. And you cease the desiring of it.
For example, part of the Japanese tea ritual (which I admit I saw only on the Karate Kid II movie) is that you make the tea, but then you drink when you're ready. Buddhism is like that. You can be anxious as long as you want, as long as you think it's 'fun', but when you're ready, you can change what you're doing, and drink the tea. And it's nice to see that wikipedia agrees with my assessment: "Zen Buddhism was a primary influence in the development of the tea ceremony."
So today, on this rainy day, I'm having Keemun Superior, from Mighty Leaf Tea. Today, though, I made it unusually strong, so I'm regretting it a little bit right now. It's still good, and isn't as cleansing as it is thicker than I would normally like. I need to order more of this particular tea from them, since it's one of my favorites.
Tea can be a relaxing ritual. I'm learning about Zen, and Buddhism, and I'm seeing how tea rituals and such may have been at the very least influenced by it. And how tea in itself can be Zen, since it is a separate thing, but you drink it, and it becomes you. And you cease the desiring of it.
For example, part of the Japanese tea ritual (which I admit I saw only on the Karate Kid II movie) is that you make the tea, but then you drink when you're ready. Buddhism is like that. You can be anxious as long as you want, as long as you think it's 'fun', but when you're ready, you can change what you're doing, and drink the tea. And it's nice to see that wikipedia agrees with my assessment: "Zen Buddhism was a primary influence in the development of the tea ceremony."
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Ordered tea!
Ordered a bunch of tea from Adagio today. I'm so excited! More tea! Lately all that I've been drinking is the tea from teabags by Bigelow. And even then my variety has been low: earl grey, constant comment, English Tea Time (which I believe is grown on American soil) and a few others. I've been missing the loose tea, though. It's hard to drink the blueberry muffin smelling tea, because it makes me want the muffins!
I do need to get another loose leaf infuser that simply fits into a single cup, though. I've got the tea balls, but it's still not the same.
I do need to get another loose leaf infuser that simply fits into a single cup, though. I've got the tea balls, but it's still not the same.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tea Novice
OK - So Guest Blogger Here
Let me start by saying that I am not the tea connoisseur that Rusty is. When it comes to hot drinks I've always been more of a hot chocolate with Amaretto type of girl. I'm not a fan of coffee (the smell alone makes me wrinkle my nose in disgust) and my experience with tea has been more Lipton than anything else. I'm not sure I had even tried loose tea until last Christmas.
That said, I am learning to enjoy a good tea. Besides the wide variety of flavors, it also won't get me fired (unlike the Amaretto) if I want a caffeine a pick me up at work without the yucky aftertaste of diet coke.
Today I am trying the fujian baroque black tea (a birthday present from a Rusty). I usually have a glass of the Accidental Awesome (which he also gave me) in the afternoon, but decided to shake things up a little today.
So here goes....
The smell is familiar. It's a mixture of chocolate and something that I can't place. Definitely some kind of spice. The tea itself is smooth and feels thicker on my tongue than what I am used too. Very pleasant.
I tend to like my teas medium sweet, but this one needs nothing added. It doesn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth that some teas do, but I also wouldn't call it "sweet". It's quite tasty (much like the man who gave it to me - but we'll save that for a different blog).
I like the flavor, but must admit, my favorite part of this tea is the smell. I found myself inhaling deeply prior to each sip - taking in as much of the aroma as possible.
So - in conclusion - very good tea. Flavorful with no bite and a great aroma.
(Thank you for allowing me to step in - Russ will be back for the next posting).
Let me start by saying that I am not the tea connoisseur that Rusty is. When it comes to hot drinks I've always been more of a hot chocolate with Amaretto type of girl. I'm not a fan of coffee (the smell alone makes me wrinkle my nose in disgust) and my experience with tea has been more Lipton than anything else. I'm not sure I had even tried loose tea until last Christmas.
That said, I am learning to enjoy a good tea. Besides the wide variety of flavors, it also won't get me fired (unlike the Amaretto) if I want a caffeine a pick me up at work without the yucky aftertaste of diet coke.
Today I am trying the fujian baroque black tea (a birthday present from a Rusty). I usually have a glass of the Accidental Awesome (which he also gave me) in the afternoon, but decided to shake things up a little today.
So here goes....
The smell is familiar. It's a mixture of chocolate and something that I can't place. Definitely some kind of spice. The tea itself is smooth and feels thicker on my tongue than what I am used too. Very pleasant.
I tend to like my teas medium sweet, but this one needs nothing added. It doesn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth that some teas do, but I also wouldn't call it "sweet". It's quite tasty (much like the man who gave it to me - but we'll save that for a different blog).
I like the flavor, but must admit, my favorite part of this tea is the smell. I found myself inhaling deeply prior to each sip - taking in as much of the aroma as possible.
So - in conclusion - very good tea. Flavorful with no bite and a great aroma.
(Thank you for allowing me to step in - Russ will be back for the next posting).
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