Welcome!

Hi tea and coffee lovers! At least I hope you are.

This is my blog on teas and coffees. Both are part of my life. I know some people are tea-lovers and others coffee-lovers but I just enjoy both, each in their place. It's kind of like cats and dogs, some people love cats and others love dogs, and some of us just love both and enjoy their differences. That's part of what makes the world great! (Now, of course, if we could just enjoy the diversity of people like that too ... )

I read a saying "Better to go three days without food than one day without tea." Couldn't agree more! Tea is what makes life enjoyable, bearable even. In fact, it's the first thing I need in the morning - don't speak to me until I have my cup of tea (or at least the water boiling to make it)! But usually I move on to coffee for "elevenses" (did I say I'm a Brit) and then back to tea for "afternoon tea" which officially should be around 4 o'clock, but I'm not that fussy. And then if I'm eating at home (which in these tough economic times is definitely the norm) we drink iced "mugicha" (roasted barley tea). Or if we're eating Chinese style food, we drink oolong tea. But if I eat out, or with guests, I'll have a cup of coffee with, or more often instead of, dessert.

So, let's start with teas. A nice "cuppa" is what I need to relax, revive, and just breathe. I'm happy to drink regular Liptons black tea with milk any time of the day. I love different types of tea too. But the other types I only drink 1 cup in a day, more than that just doesn't work for me. I love a cup of green tea around lunch time, seems to help with the digestion. I'll go for a good fruity (peach, blackberry, orange, lemon, whatever) flavored tea when I need something different. Of course the "lemon zinger" types are great with honey when I have a cold. And then there's ginseng tea which is just a great overall pick-me-up, love it as is or with a touch of honey. And then there's other types of black tea too, Lapsang souchong for a smoky experience, Earl Grey for that amazing "perfumed" taste, wonderful chais with spices, it's really quite endless. And let's not forget all the iced tea possibilities! So, hopefully blogs on all these different types will follow as I feel inspired.

And then there's coffee. My husband and I joke that this is our "essential thing" for getting anything done. We drink it with Half-and-half, a small luxury but I can't stand filling the mug with 2% milk or even whole milk and having the coffee go cold by the time it's changed to the color I like. I love the creamy taste of the half-and-half to balance the strong coffee taste. We buy whole bean coffee and grind it, usually not the expensive stuff but just grinding it and brewing it makes it seem more special. We also add some flavored beans, usually hazelnut but vanilla is good too, to the regular beans to get a hint of flavor without being overpowered by it. Mm, think I need to go brew some coffee now!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Lady Grey Tea - my new favorite!


I just had a delicious cup of Lady Grey tea, and it's now my new favorite special tea! My friend came over and brought a variety box of tea bags that included Lady Grey. Now, of course, loose leaf tea is better, but for trying out a new flavor of tea a tea bag is perfect!

She agreed with me that Lady Grey would be delightful for our afternoon together, and we really enjoyed it. Like Earl Grey tea it has that special flavor of bergamot, a strange citrus fruit that tastes like perfume, but more subtle, lighter, less imposing.

It made me think of how an Earl can be very strong, masculine, and dominating while his wife can be of equally high quality but gentler. Earl Grey and Lady Grey teas are kind of like that. (Of course, sometimes it's the lady that's more imposing, but that's another story!)

Anyway, I highly recommend Lady Grey tea. And I'm certainly going to buy my own stash next time I go shopping!
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