Any tea lovers out there?Follow

I'm on a big tea kick lately. I've loved tea for years, but I've always been a bit of a cheap Bigelow/Stash kinda girl. However, a few weeks ago when my friend was visiting, we made a trek out to the mall, and while I was there I decided to indulge myself with one of the $12 tins of loose tea sold at Williams-Sonoma (ooooh, that's a store in which I could get myself in serious trouble!) along with a $3 infuser, of course. This made me realize just how BAD the tea I usually drink is...the good quality stuff is just SOOO much better. I never realized how bitter the Bigelow tea was. Anyway, I liked my tin of English Breakfast so well that I went back and got Mr. Ambrya a tin of Earl Grey, which is his favorite kind of tea, and he agrees that it's much smoother and less bitter and we're both pretty much sold on the high-quality tea now.

So today Mr. Ambrya comes home with a present for me. It's a little tea pot that holds enough for about 3 teacups or 2 mugs, and it's essentially a French press for tea. It has a little compartment you put the tea in with a lid and a plunger that, once it's done steeping, you push the leaves down so that it doesn't over-steep. I need to figure out exactly how much tea to use for it, because my first trial came out a bit weak, but I think I'm really going to like it.

Mr. Ambrya and I have also decided to go on a tea-tasting tour. The place where he got my pot, Peet's Coffee and Teas, sells a lot of kinds of tea, and there's a new store down the corridor from Williams-Sonoma called Teavana, which is essentially a Starbucks type of place for tea (hopefully their tea is better than Starbucks coffee, which is so over-roasted and bitter I can't stand it...) So once our Williams-Sonoma tins run low, we're going to go try out a bunch of different types of teas and see if we can't find some that we like that are within our budget.

Tea is teh devil! Vive Le Cocoa Jihad!

[quote]I have also decided to go on a tea-tasting tour, and Mr. Ambrya has no ******************

This thread is starting to remind me of a great SNL skit, called Delicious dish on NPR.

Good Times.

Delicious Dish on NPR

Margaret Jo McCullen.....Ana Gasteyer
Teri Rialto.....Molly Shannon
Pete Schweddy.....Alec Baldwin




Margaret Jo McCullen: Hello. I'm Margaret Jo McCullen.

Teri Rialto: And I'm Teri Rialto.

Margaret Jo McCullen: And you're listening to..

Together: The Delicious Dish, on National Public Radio.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Now, Teri, it's Christmas season again, our favorite time of the year.

Teri Rialto: Actually, Margaret Jo, holiday time is when the most culinary wishes can come true. Now, what's on your list this holiday season, Margaret Jo?

Margeret Jo McCullen: Well, Teri, I got real freaky this year. I'm asking Kris Kringle for a wooden bowl, some oversized index cards, and a funnel.

Teri Rialto: Ooooh, a funnel! That'll be great for funneling!

Margeret Jo McCullen: I know. I feel like a glutton! What's onyour list, Teri?

Teri Rialto: Well, I'm only asking Santa for one thing - a big box of glue traps to help me with my excessive rat problem? Are you, Margaret Jo, gonna leave any treats out for Santa this year?

Margeret Jo McCullen: Oh, absolutely, I always do! I like to leave Santa some tap water and rice. If Santa's anything like me, Christmas foods really reek havoc on the ol' digestive system. What are you going to leave, Teri?

Teri Rialto: Uh, I can't ever leave food out in my apartment, because I have an excessive rat problem.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Makes sense. Neat.

Teri Rialto: Good times.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Good times.

Teri Rialto: Well, Christmas is a time for traditional foods and bite-size treats, and we have a very special guest today.

Margeret Jo McCullen: That's right, Teri. He's the owner of his own holiday bakery, with a very, very cleaver name - Season's Eatings.

Teri Rialto: [ laughs ] That's relaly funny!

Margeret Jo McCullen: I know, it rhymes with Season's Greetings!

Teri Rialto: Please welcome the owner of Season's Eatings - Pete Schweddy.

[ Pete pulls up to his mike ]

Margeret Jo McCullen: Well, Pete, Teri and I have been looking forward to having you on the show, 'cause we know you're the master of all kinds of Christmas goodies. Tell us about them.

Pete Schweddy: Well, there are lots of great treats this time of year - Zucchini Bread, Fruitcake.. but the thing that I most like to bring out this time of year are my Balls.

Teri Rialto: Mmm.. Balls.. Tell us about your Balls, Pete.

Pete Schweddy: Well, over at Season's Eatings, we have Balls for every taste. Popcorn Balls, Cheese Balls, Rum Balls.. you name it.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Wow! My mouth's watering just thinking about those Balls!

Teri Rialto: It's been years since I've seen any Balls.

Pete Schweddy: Would you like to see my Balls now?

Margeret Jo McCullen: Yeah. Whip them out.

[ Pete places a tray of Balls on the control board ]

Teri Rialto: Mmm.. wow.. you have some beautiful Balls..

Margeret Jo McCullen: They're bigger than I expected.

Pete Schweddy: A lot of people tell me that.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Look at that, Teri - the way they glisten.

Pete Schweddy: That's because make sure that each one of my Balls gets plenty of oil.

Margeret Jo McCullen: I can't help but, notice, Pete - your Balls are a little misshapen.

Pete Schweddy: That's because I rested them on a hot stove too long.

Teri Rialto: Can I touch your Balls.

Pete Schweddy: Go ahead. But be careful, they're very delicate.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Wow. I can't wait to get my mouth around his Balls.

Teri Rialto: [ sniffing ] Ooh.. I like the way your Balls smell..

Pete Schweddy: Do whatever you want to, ladies. My Balls are here for your pleasure.

Margeret Jo McCullen: [ chewing ] Wow, Pete.. I have to say - your Balls are so tender..

Pete Schweddy: Well, there's no beating my Balls. They're made from a secret Schweddy Family recipe. No one can resist my Schweddy Balls.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Wow.. Schweddy Balls. Nothing like a Schweddy Ball.

Teri Rialto: Good Balls.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Mmm.. good times.

Teri Rialto: Good times.. Mmm.. our producer is telling us it's time to wrap it up.

Margeret Jo McCullen: That's all the time we have today, Teri. So, join us next week, when our topic will be that other holiday favorite..

Margaret Jo & Teri - ..Fragrant, Flavored Nuts.

Pete Schweddy: A quick plug! If you order from Season's Eatings now, you can still send out a special Schweddy Ball Sack in time.

Margeret Jo McCullen: Great idea. My niece would love a Sack of Schweddy Balls...

Two English friends got me on the tea kick when we worked together years ago. Earl Gray and two sugars. That was my morning "coffee" for years. Then I ran out one day and never purchased anymore. Perhaps I should try it again.

Are there any fancy teas that taste good iced?

I've been making iced tea from the *really* cheap stuff and it tastes fine with enough sugar, but I wonder if I could upgrade and it would be better.

That depends entirely on what pleases your palate. I don't drink tea with any sugar or milk, so Iced Tea made from real tea still taste proper, just cold. You will, however, miss some of the aroma and certain notes in a tea that has been chilled simply due to the temperature change. Still, good quality tea will make infinitely better Iced Tea when compared to commercial brands and it really isn't all that expensive. Another bonus is if you buy it loose leaf from stores that sell a lot of it you can usually buy it by the gram so you can taste different varieties without having to buy an entire box.

The reason commercial bag teas taste like sh*t and are so horribly bitter and grainy is because it's all trash. The surface to mass ratio is way out of whack with the shake they put in the tea bags and the smaller particle actually move right through the filter and you end up drinking them. If you look at a cup of tea brewed from a commercial tea bag that has been sitting around for a while you will see a pile of tea bits on the bottom of the cup. That shouldn't be there and that is a big reason it tastes so bad.

hmmm, needs more comma

Edited, Jul 13th 2006 at 9:50am EDT by Jacobsdeception

Thank you, bookmarked and will definitely be checking it out.



I knew there must be SOMETHING wrong with the commercial teas, but I didn't know what. Makes sense. I convinced myself that I was drinking the "good stuff" because it was more expensive than, say, Lipton or Red Rose, but it was still crap.



My husband would probably be very into this, but my few attempts at drinking green tea left me unimpressed. Probably, again, because it wasn't the good stuff, and I'd probably change my mind if I did try the good stuff, but at this point the bad stuff was bad enough to leave me unwilling to try.




Makes sense. I know the Wild Oats market near us closed, but I think there are still others around somewhere, and I think someone else mentioned Trader Joes. There's also Uwajamaya, the huge Asian market not far from us, so I have some options.

As for iced tea, I'm assuming that anything which makes a good black tea (like English Breakfast blends, or something a little less strong, but still black) will make a good iced tea. It could get pricy, however, considering how much more of it you would need to make a pitcher of iced tea. Luckily, however, for Christmas my Aunt sent me a large infuser ball from Williams-Sonoma intended to be used with their spice mix for making hot cider, and I can probably use that to make a trial run of iced tea. I'm also imagining that if you used one of the iced-tea brewing gadgets (sorta like a drip coffee-maker, only taller because it brews into a pitcher filled with ice) you could use loose leaf tea, only use a coffee filter with it instead of the tea bags you would normally use.

Any tea should taste good iced - the trick is to refrain from overbrewing. The better the tea, the less you should need to sweeten it to hide the bitterness.

We actually have one of those but I would not have thought to use it with loose leaf tea, makes sense though. You need to make a trial run for me and perfect the recipe.

When I can bring myself to part with enough of my precious and expensive tea to try it, I'll let you know.

Mr. Ambrya and I haven't been doing much of the iced tea thing this year because, with the exception of a few days, this summer has been COLD. We just haven't felt the need for iced tea we usually feel when it's scorching.

Incidentally, I used to brew tea quite successfully with a single serve coffee maker from Black & Decker I bought for my desk. It's not one of those ****** pod machines, just a regular drip style. I found I had to use a little extra tea than I would use had I been brewing it in the cup or in a pot, but the easier clean up and superiour control of brew time more than made up for that.

Listen to this woman, she speaks gospel. I swear Samira, if you weren't anonymous, possibly a man, and smarter than me, we would totally hook up.

I'm not sure why people do this but for some reason a lot of them can't make the connection that iced tea is just like hot tea, but cold. I've seen people 'brew' tea overnight in a fridge.

I think the problem is that people think of iced tea as being diluted, because the recipes that come on the Lipton packets or whatever are usually along the lines of "brew a mass of tea in a pan of hot water, then add a bucket of cold water and ice." They think the longer they brew it, the stronger it will be to offset the dilution.