The Perfect Little Red Teapot

The Perfect Little Red Teapot

By Vinnie Costa

I recently threw away the dusty, grease-incrusted, cat-hair covered, little red porcelain teapot which sat on the shelf above my stove unused for nearly a decade. It was the perfect little red teapot. I bought it for $6.99 at a Marshall’s Homegoods in Seacacus, New Jersey, after my trip to Amsterdam in the summer of 2006.

For the nearly two years leading up to that trip, I worked the least creative job in the incredibly creative comic book industry and would soon turn 35. That vacation was intended to, cliche-like, recharge my creative batteries and jump start another, more fulling chapter of my life. I had very high expectations.

While in Amsterdam, I stayed in a wonderful bed and breakfast, the Golden Bear, where they offered their guests OJ, coffee and a selection of teas the like I’d never seen along with assorted cheeses, meats and hard breads each morning to help start the day.

I found myself with an English Breakfast blend as I planned my first day abroad.

By day two it became routine.

Letting the bag steep a bit longer so I could enjoy a strong cuppa with two sugars and milk. I’d take delicate sips, (not the American coffee gulps I take at home) as I poured over guide books and tour pamphlets. It was 30 minutes at the start of my day where I could slow down and take in what makes that day great.

By week’s end and after planning my visits to places like the Homomonument, The Van Gogh Museum, The Ann Frank house, The Amstel Factory and the flower market over a steaming pot of tea, this born and bred New Yorker found himself slowing down.

I liked it. It would be key to a new way of living. My life would surely change for the better. I’d bring this part of my vacation back home and continue the slowing. But like so many vacation resolutions (no, I never got that scuba certification either) after stocking the supplies and finding the perfect little red teapot, I lost interest and to put it simply, just couldn’t find the time to boil and seep.

Back in New Jersey, I used that perfect little red teapot exactly one time. Well, twice, (I may have used it in a dinner party centerpiece) it went from functional to tchotchke in no time at all.

The day I tossed it, my Keurig made me a steaming, satisfying cup o’joe in under three minutes.

Tea? What was I thinking? How do the English do it every day?

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About the author: Vinnie Costa, an Actor, is forced to work in the service industry by his wish to pay rent, wear clothes and eat human food. He works in NYC’s Times Square. If it weren’t for his blog, www.broadwayadjacent.com, he’d be dressed as Elmo, punching tourists in the neck. You can follow him on the instagrams and twitters @BwayAdjacent.

St. Patrick's Day Cupan Tae

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

In honour of today's holiday I thought I'd share a little Irish tea history. As with England, Ireland only began importing tea in the 1800s and it was prohibitively expensive, thus it was a beverage for the upper classes only. As the century progressed, tea spread to the rural parts of Ireland and everyday people began to enjoy the beverage. However, the quality of tea was so poor that in order to make it palatable Irish tea drinkers would fill their cups almost 1/3 of the way with milk before adding the tea. In addition, the tea was steeped for long periods of time to make it as strong as possible, again due to poor quality. Oftentimes the tea would be steeped on the stove, and would remain there so visitors could join in a "cupan tae" (Gaelic for "cup of tea") whenever they'd pop in. Originally the tea was poured into cups first, then transferred to the fine China teacups so that the delicate cups wouldn't break from the hot liquid. It was later discovered that putting milk into hot tea after it is poured alters the flavor of the tea. Most Irish tea drinkers still prepare their beverage in this manner.

Up until WWII Ireland imported most of its tea from England. After the war, however, Ireland refused to allow Britain to use its western ports and its tea ration was drastically cut. After the war, with the help of new laws, instead of getting its tea from English auction houses, Ireland began importing its own tea right from the source. At first the Assam tea, the primary tea in Irish Breakfast tea, was favored, but teas from India, Sri Lanka, and Kenya soon joined the ranks of high quality teas. Now, Irish breakfast tea favors teas from East Africa.

On this St. Patrick's Day I hope you enjoy a good cupan tae!

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My Sources:
http://www.barrystea.ie/
http://oldfashionedliving.com/irishtea.html
https://dbsirishstudies.wordpress.com/2012/12/11/cupan-tae-the-history-of-irish-tea-drinking/
http://farmersalmanac.com/blog/2015/03/16/irish-take-tea/
http://www.arborteas.com/blog/history-of-irish-tea

Davids Tea Irish Breakfast Tea Review

Karen here and today I am sharing with you my Irish Breakfast Tea Review. Today's Irish Breakfast Tea is one I purchased from Davids Tea. 

Irish Breakfast tea is a black tea from Assam India and Dimbulla Ceylon, but how did it get called Irish Breakfast tea if it is really a blend from India and Sri Lanka?  According to the History of Irish tea on arborteas.com  "The history of tea in Ireland is similar to that of England (another well known tea drinking country).  It was initially introduced to the upper class in the early 1800s and later spread to the rural and lower class in the mid 1800s.  The tea that was available to the average Irish citizen was usually of poor quality and brewed strong, therefore it was consumed with plenty of milk.  This tradition of brewing strong tea and adding milk is still prevalent today.  We at Arbor Teas describe our Irish Breakfast blend as “so strong you could stand your spoon up in it,” and that is no joke. "

Strong tea has long been the preferred  in Ireland and is usually served with milk and sugar. I however prefer what the Irish would likely call "Dishwater Tea" I like my Irish Breakfast tea, black and on the weaker side. Depending on the blend I use I may under steep the tea slightly or use less of the leaves in my pot. I do love the dark caramel color as well as the malty & spicy flavor of Irish Breakfast tea, but I don't like to "stand my spoons up in it". 

The Davids Irish Breakfast Tea is a lovely blend, not as malty as I have enjoyed in other teas but this one does have a hint of honey flavor and a lovely spicy taste that lends its self very well to my raisin scones. 

Davids tea is a loose leaf tea chain here in Canada that is found in almost every mall.  Where I live and easy for me to pop in and try so many of their wonderful blends. You can also find them on line in the USA by clicking here.

Wishing you a very Happy St. Patrick's Day tea on what would have been my parents 42 wedding anniversary. 

Thank you for joining me for this tea review today and if you would like my scone recipe, please click here to visit my blog www.acupofteaandacozymystery.com click the Recipes by Karen Mom of Three tab to see this recipe and many others. 

I would love to hear from you so please leave me a comment here or email me at karenmowen@gmail.com 

A Sip Of Southern Hospitality and Sweet Tea

Today I am so pleased to have my friend as a guest blogger today. I have had the pleasure of getting to know her for the past year and a half through her poetry and tireless work as an Author, Poet, Speaker, and Mississippi Goodwill Ambassador.
Please enjoy a little Southern Hospitality and a few sips of Sweet Tea from my dear friend and tea lover Patricia Neely-Dorsey .

We Southerns love our sweet tea...and the sweeter the better.
Sweet tea is just a part of life .
We are raised it.
Sweet tea is so ingrained in Southern culture that in 2003, as part of an April Fool's joke, the Georgia Legislature introduced a bill that would make it a misdemeanor for restaurants not to offer sweet tea.
In the movie Steel Magnolias, Dolly Parton proclaimed that sweet tea was "the house wine of the South."
In the South when there is tea at  any function,, like at a church gathering , picnic or other event, .it's just assumed that it will be  sweet tea .
To get anything else you usually have to ask for that , and even  then you might get some funny looks . 

I was really caught off guard by the whole matter of how tea is consumed outside of the south, when I went off to school in the North ( Boston University)
When you ask for tea, you most probably will get some type of hot tea or spiced tea !
People look at you crazy when you ask for sweet tea.
They don't even understand the request at all.
They don't even know that it should be iced .
I guess they look so funny because they think that you could just put your own sugar in your HOT tea just like coffee.
The concept is almost close to right because you do add the sugar into the hot tea  to dissolve it well before adding the cold water and ice . 
I just gave up asking for tea altogether at a restaurant , because it was just too much to try to explain every time .
The joke goes...
The Mason-Dixon Line begins where every restaurant serves sweet tea

Here's a very simple/basic sweet tea recipe .

Makes 1 gallon
What You Need
Ingredients
3 family-sized black tea bags (or 12 individual tea bags)
4 cups water, plus more to fill the pitcher
1 cup sugar
lemon slices, optional to serve


Instructions
Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Remove from heat.
Steep the tea for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove the bags and discard.
Add the sugar to the tea.
Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Pour the tea base into the pitcher.
Add another 3 quarts of water to make a gallon of sweet tea.
Refrigerate until very cold. .
Serve over ice.
Once you know the basics you can run with it and make it your own, to your taste .
Every Southern woman has her own unique way of making sweet tea !
You would not believe how much the taste can vary with the amount of sugar and lemon or other additives.
All we know is that sweet tea is delicious ...as is the Southern way of life !   

A huge thank you to Patricia for sharing with us her love of Sweet Tea and Southern Life.

To learn more about Patricia and her work please visit her website by clicking here. 

PATRICIA NEELY-DORSEY
Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia-A Life in Poems   
" a celebration of the south and things southern"
"Meet Mississippi Through Poetry, Prose and The Written Word"
www.patricianeelydorsey.webs.com

Experimenting with Maple Tea...

Here in the Northeastern part of the United States, it is maple syrup time!  In my neck of the woods there is a pancake house founded in 1963 that is still going strong with a reputation stretching far outside the immediate area.  Cartwright's Maple Tree Inn is an experience not to be missed if you are within driving distance; however, if you are too far away, perhaps you'd like to try some Maple Tea.

On my first visit this year to the Pancake House or Maple Tree, as the locals call it, I picked up two packets of Four O'clock Maple tea.  This tea is blended and packed in Quebec, Canada by Trans-Herb Inc.  The ingredients are black tea leaves and natural maple flavor.  Upon arriving home, my friend immediately tried it.  She is a sweet tea lover and made it with milk, maple syrup, and honey.  She loved it, and the aroma from across the room was divine.  It reminded me of graham crackers.  She said it reminded her of oatmeal.

This week I made another pancake run and bought a box of the tea (reasonably priced at $6.00/20 bags).  Tonight I tried it three different ways: black, with milk and maple syrup, and with milk and honey.  It was a delightful experience.

I steeped the tea for a bit more than five minutes; the box suggests 4-6 minutes.  My first cup was black.  The maple scent was faint and the taste was a good black tea with a hint of maple flavor...extremely mild.  Understand that I love maple syrup, so my taste buds may be a bit less sensitive to the light touch.  I would prefer a stronger maple flavor, but this tea has a wonderful deep amber color and marvelous taste.  I would drink it again without adornment.

My second cup included milk and a generous teaspoon of maple syrup; this cup was heavenly.  The maple flavor could be tasted and savored.  The third cup was with milk and honey.  It was the least favorite for me.  The honey over powered the maple.  Of the three, I preferred the milk and syrup version with the unadorned as a close second.  Next time I will try adding a bit of maple syrup and no milk.

Given my tasting, and the tasting my friend experienced, I certainly give this tea a 4/5.  It will have a regular space in my collection.

Hoping you have a wonderful week!
Kate Stiffler

Review - Trader Joe's Organic Ginger Pear White Tea

Oftentimes I'll stop at Trader Joe's after visiting my folks. Recently, I saw a tea that intrigued me: Trader Joe's Organic Ginger Pear White Tea. I love ginger and thought pairing it with pear was a neat idea.

This tea is bagged, so I can't tell you what the leaves looked like. Sorry, not going to split the back open and look. In any case, before steeping the bag had a delightful pear aroma.

Iced: When I first saw the tea I immediately thought "Iced!" and that's how I first prepared it.  As an iced tea it was light and refreshing. The taste of pear was forefront and I really couldn't detect the ginger. There was a possible slight bite from the ginger in the aftertaste. Pear was prominent. I can see guzzling this tea down on a hot day after working in the garden.

Hot: I then made it as a regular hot tea. The aroma was quite muddled. It was somewhat spicy. The taste was more of a "tea" taste, then a bit of pear hits. Again, I couldn't really detect the ginger.

I much prefer Trader Joe's Organic Ginger Pear White Tea as an iced tea.

Some of My Most Favorite Tea Mugs

As a tea drinker I find that for my first cups of tea in the morning fine bone china teacups with saucers are the only way to go. Truly I feel tea taste better in fine bone china. I swear by it. I even travel with my own tea cups and saucers now because it truly tastes better this way.

However that being said as the day goes on I do switch to a mug. I have a few favorite mugs, the one above my thoughtful sister in law Janeen gave me and it says "All you need is tea & warm socks" It is one of my favorites, it is large and a good weight, things I look for in a good tea mug.

I also love this tea mug my cousin in law sent, I am very proud of the fact that I am a hockey mom, something I did not think was going to happen and now can not imagine what my life would be like if I wasn't one.

We had a tea fundraiser and sold a lot of tea this year and last to help pay for the hockey tournament with Steeped tea! (Canucks Autism Network) 

My friend Michelle sent me this mug last year and I treasure it! Such a wonderful thing to have a friend who supports your writing and tea habit! She is also a fellow Hockey Mom and another reason why I am so thrilled to have found our hockey program, amazing friendships have been an added bonus.

I have a royal mug collection that my Brother in law and my Sister have added too over the years and this one for the celebration of the queen's diamond jubilee came with a special tea blend my brother in law picked up in London for me as well!

This summer they brought me Princess Charlotte's mug along with a few boxes of walkers shortbread! Lucky me!

I do keep the royal mugs set aside for special occasions but they are still some of my most favorite tea mugs.

There is so much comfort in every cup or mug of tea and I always like finding out what people prefer, so often when I have people over they say oh I will just take a mug, don't trouble yourself with the cup and saucer. Either way, I am thrilled they have joined me for tea. 

So which do you prefer and why? 

I would love to know so please leave us a comment here  below. 

I would love to have you for tea daily so please pop over and say hello at www.acupofteaandacozymystery.com