Guest post! (From Tea Fever)

Although I am currently taking a break from critiquing the bubble tea of downtown berkeley, my darling sister still has a lot to say on the subject. Additionally I have been encouraging people to show off their tea knowledge by guest writing and she was the first person to seriously take me up on it. So without an further ado I present the thoughts and art of my charming sister:

Hello, subtlety tea readers! I'd like to start by saying that I am incredibly excited to guest write. As you may remember from previous posts, I really enjoy a going to Tea Fever. When I went there last, I was pleasantly surprised to see a poster with a list of specials awaiting me at the door. There were three or four milk tea drinks on this poster, all with something special about them, like the addition of red beans. Best of all, there was a black tea with both boba and pudding. At first, I must admit I was a tad perplexed. I had never heard of adding pudding to a drink, especially one which already had boba. Since it sounded so interesting, I knew that that was the drink I would be ordering- how could I possibly resist such a splendid opportunity? (It worth mentioning here that I am usually not so adventurous with food. Or at all. But this was pudding, so it was a completely different matter).

Anyway, it goes without saying that this beverage was absolutely delightful. The pudding (which was vanilla, by the way) complemented the black tea in a wonderful way, absorbing its flavor but still keeping its own. The texture combinations worked surprisingly well. One of my many favorite things about tea fever is the perfect consistency of their boba- soft but not too flimsy, chewy but not excessively so. The pudding provided a lovely contrast to this. It was much more liquid, and it seemed to become significantly softer in my mouth. Anything else one could want from this combination could be found in the black milk tea. It saddens me to see some of the newer boba places not being able to do simpler teas like black or green tea. Many of them seem to have too little or too much sugar. Of course, Tea Fever's black tea is simply lovely and has an exquisite flavor.

I would love to encourage you now, gentle reader, to rush to Tea Fever and sample some or all of these exquisite drinks. But, alas, due to a lack of promptness on my part in writing this guest post which I can only ascribe to my busy schedule, I doubt that they still have these specials. So, instead, just go to Tea Fever and try one of their normal drinks. I assure you they will be worth your time. Also, they have really good crepes and waffles.

As you may have guessed, I drew the picture above. I also took pictures at the time but they didn't really show the pudding clearly. I used my previously mentioned "fancy drawing app" which is generally referred to as paper by 53 to create this representation. I highly recommend this app. That is all I have to say. Farewell, gentle readers!

Sad Tea Fact (From Women's Health.Gov)

I was researching anemia partly for class, when I came across a somewhat disheartening tea fact. Apparently drinking tea or coffee with a meal makes it harder for the body to absorb iron. After a brief moment of panic I did more research. Apparently most people get enough Iron that drinking tea with meals isn't a problem, but since I don eat meat it might be. This was an especially unsettling thing for me to learn because as I was doing my research I was eating my lunch and drinking tea. Now as you may know I drink tea quite frequently so it was hard for me to come to terms with this. I've also been drinking extra tea with meals lately due to the fact that the water in my house comes from a lake and tastes a bit like algae.

On a side note I've mildly disliked breaking down food into nutrients ever since I started reading Micheal Pollen. He talks about how when we do that it stops up from enjoying food and make us consume simply to fill a quota. This is very sad to me because I adore food immensely and want to enjoy it as much a possible. However, I have began to drink less tea during meals. Although I suppose a better move would be to find out if I'm actually anemic.

Source:
http://womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/anemia.html

Motto: Sparkling Matcha Tea

I chose to purchase this beverage because I was looking for affordable matcha alternatives. However I found it to be less affordable than the high quality Breakaway Matcha I already own. Additionally it tastes a bit strange. Although the second ingredient listed is matcha, this did not taste very much like the the matcha I am familiar with. This might be due to the addition of lemon juice and apple cider vinegar.

While Motto may not be a good matcha equivalent, its label boasts that it is worth the caffeine of twelve cups of green tea of a third of a cup of coffee. Looking at it in that light I would strongly prefer the Motto drink to other energy drinks. It is surprisingly pleasing if one can resist comparing it to more traditional matcha.

Homemade Chai (Recipe From www.gimmesomeoven.com)

I've been known to complain about coffee shops using Oregon Chai instead of creating their own unique chai blends. To prove that I am serious about this complaint, I decided to make my own chai. While I admit that gathering the ingredients was a bit challenging, once gathered, the process was quite simple and took a mere 30 minutes.

The recipe I choose made a chai concentrate rather than a something one could put in a tea bag. To use this chai concentrate one must only mix one part concentrate with one part water or one part milk. I decided to go in this direction because I tend to be a cantankerous lump of a morning creature and if I'm going to consume anything during those wee hours it had better be simple.

The only alteration I made to the recipe is I added coriander, my favorite spice. Additionally, I might choose to use a bit less cinnamon next time. I found the amount of cinnamon a tad excessive, however my sister was quite pleased with it.

My biggest mistake was making the chai the day before I moved into my new dwelling for this year. Under those circumstances, I only got to taste the chai briefly on my way to the airport. It was quite splendid, regardless of the fact that I lacked the time to savor it. I plan to recreated this recipe in the near future so I can write more in depth about the final product.

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/homemade-chai-tea-recipe/

Tea Fever

I am fully cognizant of the fact that in this picture my sister and I look less than enthused about our tea fever milk teas. I would like it to be known that we are in actuality quite pleased. We are just trying to be goth. Tea Fever is a place of the upmost importance to me, because it was my favorite bubble tea venue throughout high school. That was not saying much at the time considering it were only two bubble tea places in downtown Berkeley. Yet, even now when bubble tea shops have a tendency to  pop up like gophers, Tea Fever continues to produce some of the best bubble tea in Berkeley.

I have never gotten a drink that I was not pleased with at Tea Fever. Even when I go for some more extravagant combinations like Magic Mocha milk tea with coffee jelly and boba I still end up quite content. Additionally their matcha milk tea, while not quite as fantastic as the matcha at Asha Tea House, is superb. Their ice teas are splendid as well. Then there is Tea Fever's wonderful variety of waffles and crepes. My favorite of which is a dessert crepe that includes pieces of strawberries and mangos topped with whipped cream. Overall Tea Fever is a lovely place to fulfill all of ones bubble tea and snack needs.

Asha Tea House

I would like to start by expressing that this is currently my favorite place to be in downtown Berkeley, in part for its quality bubble tea in addition to its harmonious environment.The largest picture is of the matcha Latte with boba that I joyfully consumed upon my most recent visit to Asha Tea House. Ordering matcha is my go to way to ascertain the seriousness of a tea-venue. In my experience only the really good ones have really good matcha. This matcha was delectable. I offered a sample to my mother and upon tasting it she remarked "I didn't know if I like matcha but I like this."

My darling sister is featured on the top left proudly displaying her Moroccan Mint Tea with boba. She was very pleased with the mint flavor, the genuine pieces of mint, as well as the consistency of the boba. Her one complaint was that there was not enough ice. (One should note that she is in the midst of an ice obsession. It is strange.)

The picture on the bottom right is of a cool wooden shingle thing inside Asha Tea House. In addtion to that they have small wooden plaques displaying fun tea facts. For instance I learned that bubble tea is named after the foam that is created when tea shaken vigorously not after the bubble shaped boba. Apparently shaking tea brings out the teas flavors.

On a closing note, I am also considerably impressed with Asha Tea House's fruit tea drinks, which are a truly sensuious experience. The combination of the cool tea with tart puree; then the warm, sweet, boba. Then the texture of puree...I am at a loss for words. I would highly recommend that you, gentle reader, embark on this sumptuous journey if it is at all within your means.

Bobo Drinks

"These are probably the prettiest"

Berry Pom Pom Jar and Pineapple Paradise Jar

"This is an odd breakfast"

Bobo Ice Special

I tend to think of Bobo Drinks as that very cool new kid in town. I'd been lurking at Tea Fever and the late Tapicoa Express for years but all of a sudden Bobo popped up with its hip beverages and I was blown away. My friends and I originally gathered at Bobo Drinks for a farewell breakfast. Being in the mood to celebrate we ordered some of what we deemed the fancy things on the menu. Collectively we acquired a Berry Pom Pom Jar, a Pineapple Paradise Jar, a Bobo's sample and a fanciful concoction that I believe was called a Bobo Ice Special. The Berry Pom Pom Jar featured basil seeds which I like much better than chia seeds. Perhaps because they were smaller than chia seeds and therefore less slimy. Overall we were very impressed with everything we ordered. We decided that this was a place we would want to be taken on promising first dates. My one regret after first visiting Bobo Drinks was that I had not gotten a chace to sample Bobo's boba. 

A week later I returned determined to find out if Bobo could make a simple milk tea with boba as expertly as they had crafted their more elaborate specialties. To test this I odered a Taro Milk Tea while while my sister sipped on a Passion Fruit Milk tea. I found their boba particularly lovely. They had a silky texture while still being appropriately chewy. My sister remarked that sometimes people try to achieve his texture by putting boba in in hot tea but it is remarkable that Bobo managed while keeping the cold milk tea cold. One of the milk tea's more remarkable qualities was that it was rather creamy: a factor I was not entirely enthused about, yet my sister found it quite pleasing.

Purple Kow

When I first heard about Purple Kow I was intrigued. Partly because thinking about purple cows is a pleasant pastime. Additionally I was fascinated by the design of the shop and the very large cups it dispensed. I eventually went to Purple Kow with a large group of my compatriots. They were for the most part rather exited about our destination so I entered with high hopes. I ordered an Oolong milk tea with boba, because oolong is generally quite enjoyable. When I went to order I was ask if I wanted the full amount of sugar. I was a bit confused about what that meant so I answered yes. I later found out that I had made the wrong decision. At  Purple Kow one can get 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% sugar. My 100% was sickeningly sweet. Yet I was still luckier than my friend who ordered the matcha milk tea, which frankly tasted like chalk. That wasn't too surprising considering that it is incredibly difficult to find a matcha that is both cheap and good. However, we were still a bit disappointed. someone else in my group faired much better with one of Purple Kow's fruity teas (I regrettably don't remember which one) with a minimal amount of sugar. It was quite tasty.

It seems like Purple Kow really shines when it comes to toppings rather than tea. There are jellies galore! Yet it seems a bit foolish to settle for a mediocre tea with amber jelly (for the record I dont really know what that is) when there are significantly better boba places less than a block away. I am honestly bamboozled as to why my friends think so highly of this establishment.

The image above is the result of my sister trying to teach me how to use her fancy drawing app. As to its significance that, gentle reader, is up to you're interpretation. 

An Introduction to Bubble Tea (From Ten Ren)

On an average day as I walk through Downtown Berkeley seeing a shop proclaiming the existence of Bubble Tea is not an anomaly. This was not the case approximately thirteen years ago when I tried this tasty libation for the first time. At the time I was a wee youth making my way through elementary school, while my sister was an even wee-er youth. My mother had read about Bubble Tea in the food section of the San Francisco Chronicle and thus decided that we should sample this beverage. While on said journey she forgot the name of the thing we sought yet upon seeing a picture of bubble tea in the window of Ten Ren we knew that we had reached our destination. We then ordered a Honey Dew milk tea with Boba(tapioca balls). My mother and I were very satisfied but my sister was less so do to the fact that she was to small to have the suction nessacary to suck the Boba through the straw. In the months following we return to Ten Ren many a time. So much in fact that they began to recognize us. They even gave my sister a cup of just Boba on her birthday.

Now that Bubble Tea is a more wide spread fade, at least in Berkeley, over the next month or so I will visit at least five of the local bubble tea places as a means of providing better recommendations to people searching for a good Bubble Tea in the area. 

The image shown above is another one of my sister's creations, made to represent both of us at the time we first tried Bubble Tea.

Breakaway Matcha

Some time ago I came to the realization that most of the good matcha costs more than I usually like to spend on tea. Henceforth until very recently I only had a somewhat cheap matcha that I used primarily for baking. However to celebrate the occasion of my birth this year my aunt sent me a tin of Breakaway Matcha. I feel a bit tentative recommending this tea to others because I've realized that I try to recommend teas that are more affordable. As soon as I find a cheaper matcha of similar quality I'll be sure to alert you, gentle reader*, of its existence.

In order to prepare this matcha I first mix approximately a teaspoon with cold water in a mug. Then I mix in the matcha using either my milk frother or a very small whisk. Subsequently I fill the remaining space in the mug with hot water. At this point I occasionally sweeten it but Breakaway Matcha is equally magnificent unsweetened.

*gentle reader is currently my favorite salutation.

Northern Lights Tea (From Metropolitan Tea Company)

On of the best parts of having a tea blog (and talking about it in public at every opportune moment) is occasionally I am the lucky recipient of tea related gifts. This happened recently after a dear friend of mine went on a canadian adventure and returned with what she deemed "the most canadian gift." Whether Northern Lights Tea is really more canadian a gift than maple syrup in the shape of a moose that comes with free healthcare I'll let you, gentle reader, decide. Regardless Northern Lights proved to be a marvelous tea. It offers the solidness of a black tea with just enough embellishment to be simutanioisly caffeinate-ing and fun.

Unidentified Tea-like Substances

In an effort to support my tea related endeavors my mother recently presented me with two different teas. Her intent was that I with my tea related prowess might be able to judge whether the teas were still good and what kind of teas they were. To begin this task I entrusted my senses and smelled the tea. Although I inhaled a bit of dust which then triggered my allergies this making it harder to smell, the teas themselves at least seemed to have a standard tea like aroma. Unimpressed with my sense of smell I proceeded to taste. The tea show in the center seemed that it was indeed past its prime. It was a weak black tea. Any flare it had once possessed mostly gone. The tea shown in the lower most image turned out much better. It was a still potent jasmine with an especially floral flavor. 

AFC Canned Green Tea

I don't usually drink tea out of cans but when I do its probably because I'm really tired and very susceptible to any tea related marketing. I found this particular tea, awaiting my sleep deprived self, perched above the sushi I was in the process of surveying. At first I dismissed the tea, I assumed it was thoroughly sugared and I had already partook in a very sugary lichee juice that day. However upon closer inspection I found that the tea was unsweetened so I purchased it to accompany my sushi. The tea itself was surprising good. It had a complex flavor set off but what I can best describe as nuttiness.

Yet my biggest take away from this experience was: why buy tea in a can when I am fully capable of canning my own tea? I simply need to brew tea in larger batches and then I can keep it in jars until the time comes to drink it. More on that to come....

Chai (Again!) (From Tony's Coffee)

I used to think that coffee shop baristas were on a level that paralleled wizardry. When they went behind their counters they made caffeine magic. However I have gotten to a point where I acknowledge that this is not entirely the case. I've discovered that many coffee shops instead of creating their own chai blends simply invest in large quantities of Oregon Chai, which then then mix with steamed milk: a far cry from magic. After I realized that my campus coffee establishments were some of the culprits that outsource their magic to oregon I stopped buying their chai lattes for a while, and subsisted off london fog alone when I needed milk to accompany my tea. Yet I couldn't stay away for long. As much as it pains me to say Oregon Chai is a splendid beverage. I am still eternally grateful to coffee shops that make their own chai blends but I'll try not to complain too much.

Morning Glory Chai (From Zoka Coffee)

Once again I found myself on my way into a coffee shop. I anticipated ordering another standard chai, but this time was different. I scanned the menu and I was surprised to see that there were three different types of chai latte offered. Could it be that this was a place where chai is able to stand its ground? I feel like a lot of coffee shops offer chai because it is the cool coffee shop thing to do, but they have little regard for the actual tea. Yet on that day I found something different. I feel like Zoka actually presented their own take on chai, it was refreshing in more ways than one. Its flavor was more spicy than sweet and with each sip I continued to explore the rich blend of spices that made up the chai. It was an all together pleasant experience.

I drank this fabulous beverage in part to give me some semblance of energy on my way to a graveyard picnic. It was successful although I was still not awake enough or possibly I was too exited about the graveyard to remember to document it with a photo. Fortunately, I was able to solicit more representative tea art from my talented sister.

My Collection

In a few weeks time I shall be moving and when that time comes all my beautiful teas will have to find new homes, at least until I permanently relocate next fall. I will attempt to bring as much tea as possible with me on my adventures over the next couple months but the sad truth is thus: much of this fine tea that I have had the honor and the privilege to own will soon be lining the bottom of a box in some garage. I just wanted to document it in all its glory before that day comes. In addition I would like to make a commitment to throw more tea parties. I have more tea than I can drink alone and I want to share that bounty with others.

Risheehat Estate Organic Darjeeling (Teahouse Kuan Yin)

 
The person behind the counter asks me what I'm looking for. "I'm not really sure," I say as I scan a very impressive list of teas. I've been standing there too long so I make a choice. "Can I get a pot of the Darjeeling?" "We actually have a separate Darjeeling Menu." I think this means I made a good choice. I am informed that the Risheehat Estate Organic Darjeeling is the most popular so I decide to give that a go. I don't know that much about darjeeling thusly I'm willing to put my trust in popular opinion at this point. I chose the cheaper second flush because I just bought expensive socks so first flush feels a bit too extravagant.

The tea is good. It has some almost jasmine like undertones. It took a while to steep so I forgot about it momentarily and let it steep a bit too much. Yet, it is still an all together pleasant darjeeling. I let myself go. I loose myself into the tea, the soothingly friendly environment of Teahouse Kuan Yin, and finally into my homework.

Miscellaneous Tea Photos

Over the past year I have taken a lot of photos of tea and myself with tea with the intention of posting about them. However as time passed I forgot what many of these photos were supposed to commemorate. The only one of the following that I clearly remember is the top left which is me being pleased because one of my friends made fan art for this blog. I am still very pleased about that.

Matcha (From The Spice Tea Exchange)

I know that I've expressed this before but it still astounds me how good matcha is in everything. Seriously everything. Just now I was eating some plain yogurt and I wanted to put something in the yogurt but I was all out of jam. I looked through my cabinets for anything that would make my yogurt better and I realized that I had a new bag of matcha that I yet to utilize. It took several teaspoons of matcha powder before the yogurt was adequately flavored but the result was marvelous. I also added a bit of strawberry enhanced agave which added to the delightfulness.

The matcha I have now is from The Spice Tea Exchange. It is combined with milled cane sugar which is not that noticeable but is generally pleasant. I've been very pleased with all the teas I've gotten from The Spice Tea Exchange so far including a Coconut Oolong and a Pear Carmel Black Tea that are both a constant force for good in my life.

Tea Juice? (Giant Peach From Tazo)

Recently I have become aware of a lot of teas that walk a fine line between tea and juice. There comes a point when a tea is made out of so many fruits that I almost question whether I am still drinking tea. I have been exploring this realm of fruity tea/ tea enhanced juices in ernest of late since I've been going through a bit of a juice faze. Today I found a tea/juice combination that I found particularly pleasing: Tazo's Giant Peach. I was fascinated by it because instead of just adding fruit to tea it adds actually juice. It combines green tea with peach juice, peach flavor, apple juice and ginger juice, all of which seem to harmonize together to create a soothing beverage that satisfies both my tea an juice cravings.

I was planning on taking another library picture with my Giant Peach tea but I found a friend on the way there so I took a picture of her with the tea in a different part of the library.

Hairy Crab Oolong (From Pied Cow Coffeehouse)

This tea was really marvelous. I ordered it because I don't currently own any oolong teas but I would really like to change that in the near future. In addition I had not heard of Hairy Crab Oolong before and the name intrigued me. I was not disappointed. The tea had a subtle springy flavor that tasted fresh like the color green. It was a bit like grass, but even richer and earthier. I am rather partial to the taste of grass so that was a pleasant surprise. Drinking my Hairy Crab Oolong was all the more pleasant because the Pied Cow Coffeehouse is located in a charming victorian house that has been repurposed to serve its current ambitions. For instance a set of stairs that were adjacent my table have been turned into an alter with the aid of many dolls, fabrics and lamps.

Honey Lemon Assam Tea Ice Cream (From Mallard)

Ice cream is actually not one of the foods I am most passionate about. I don't dislike it but I also usually don't make an effort to seek it out. I just tend to favor gelato. However every time someone comes to visit my city of residence they are taken to a lovely ice cream parlor called Mallard. I recently found myself there accompanying my roommate and her family. We arrived earlier in the day so I figured an ice cream that included black tea would be a good choice. I was a bit worried that the lemon would overpower the taste of the tea and I was pleasantly surprised when it did not. It just lurked right behind the Assam and the honey added a spritely hint of freshness.

I did not get a the chance to take a picture because I got too involved in my ice cream eating to take one. The visually content above is an artistic representation that my sister made of the experience. I would like it to be known that I don't actually own a shirt that says #goth but I would be open to it.

Superstar! (A Tea From Kranky Cafe)

Sometimes when I enter a cafe and I don't know what to purchase I just go for whatever looks the most weird or complicated. This was my logic when I ordered a tea called "Superstar!" It was an herbal tea that consisted of rose petals, jasmine flowers, sunflower petals, raspberries, and papaya. Overall it was a very pleasant floral tea and I thought it very cute how they tied the tea bag in a knot. I especially enjoyed the sunflower. It's flavor had a marvelous lightness and freshness to it, which was nicely filled out by the jasmine flowers. However every time I was beginning to enjoy the taste of the sunflower it was completely overpowered by raspberry. This was rather disheartening since the sunflower and the papaya played off each other in such a charming manner but I kept being distracted by the raspberry. I added a teaspoon of sugar which balanced the raspberry a bit, yet I still think the tea would have been all the more delightful had it just left off the raspberry to begin with.

White Tea

I bought white tea for the first time when I was about twelve. I remember it vividly. I had just participated in a role playing camp (like dungeons and dragons but cooler). In the game my group had been essentially kidnapped by the illustrious White Mage. (Also know as Lord Hypotenuse.) We had been trapped in his castle, which was constructed out of white marble. Everything in this castle was so consistently white that one of the members of my group covered himself in flour to camouflage when sneaking around the castle at night. This adventure really captured my imagination, for weeks my friends and I relived moments of that exploit.

I was still trying to wrap my mind around this idea of a castle where everything was the same color when I in the grocery story with my mother and I was perusing the tea section. (Even before I was as openly enamored with tea as I am today I still made it my busying to check the tea sections in stores.) I came upon a tube of white tea from Republic of Tea and I had this overwhelming urge to get it, seeing as it fit into the imaginary world I have been obsessing over. Since my family had not tried white tea before we bought it and soon discovered that there was a reason we had not already incorporated it into our tea drinking habits. It was very different than the basic green and black tea were were accustomed to. I really liked it but I was the minority so we didn't buy more.

Currently my favorite white tea is from Teatulia. It has a richness and an earthiness that is somewhat unusual in a white tea. The person who sold it to me said that they added lemongrass to fill out the taste, so that might be part of what I'm tasting. It also has "notes of peach",  that is most likely a part of it too. Regardless its a charming and fascinating tea, I'm unhappy that I am about to run out of it. The image above portrays one of the Teatulia white tea tea bags.

Tea Tag Update

I was a bit disappointed with how few tea tags I had in my possession when I originally wrote about them, so I thought I'd post an update. My update is this: the tea tags have multiplied! I would like to thank my roommate well as my other friends wishing to expand their personal tea horizons for getting my collection to grow into the ensemble it is today. Now these tea tags shall travel across the country to fulfill their destiny as the inhabitance of my friend's tea tag zine.

Chocolate Chai Latte (From Starbucks)

The phenomenon of Chai Tea entering the mainstream has interested me for some time. This is partly due to the fact that I no longer drink coffee but I still frequent coffee shops and Chai Tea Lattes are very widely available. This leads me to today when I found myself waiting for a bus and very hungry. I was weighed down with just enough luggage that wandering in search of food seemed like a bit too much effort. Yet with just a turn of my head I noticed that I was already standing in front of a Starbucks. (It's a tad eery how they just pop up like that.) With a sigh I resolved myself to my fate. I picked out their only vegetarian sandwich before scanning the lists of fluffy milky beverages to see what was coffee-free. My gaze landed on a Chai Latte but only yesterday I had drunk Stumptown's version of the that beverage and I was not quite ready to let the memory of yesterday's stunning Chai Latte fade into the mediocrity that I have come to expect from Starbucks. I decided to instead try the Chocolate Chai Latte, because I figured even if it was subpar, it was still chocolate.

Having purchased my Chocolate Chai Latte I took a sip. Milk, sugar, cinnamon and chocolate syrup fought for my attention but where was the chai? I took another sip. Yes, the chai was in there somewhere but only as the subtlest of echoes, lurking behind the cinnamon. I know that cinnamon is an important ingredient to many a Chai Latte but this chai seem to be reduced to only that component. I wondered if, since cinnamon is one of the tastes in chai that's most recognizable to the american palette, Starbucks assumed that the taste of cinnamon in milk would be enough to conjure the feeling of chai for their customers. Even though my hopes were not high I'm still a bit disappointed. At least I got a smidge of chocolate.

Tardis Tea (From Adagio)

Once again I have found myself procrastinating in the library whilst cuddling with a bottle of delicious tea. Today I am accompanied by Tardis tea from adagio. I was ecstatic when I received this tea as a late Hanukkah present, after my positive experience with the Eleven tea of which I have previously written. The Tardis tea offers a fantastical spin off a classic earl grey. The tea is a blend that includes: black tea, white tea, blueberries, orange peels, blue cornflowers, and is embellished with natural bergamot, vanilla, blueberry, caramel and cream flavors. It is something I categorize as a dessert tea, meaning that is is something I drink when I want to eat a dessert but don't have any accessible to me. It is called Tardis tea because like the Tardis in Doctor Who the packaging has more on the inside than expected. Unlike the most recent season of Doctor Who this tea never disappoints. 

This picture features me with my favorite water bottle. It has a glass interior and a bamboo exterior which can be removed so that the interior can be placed in the dishwasher. It is a pinnacle of convenience in my busy tea drinking life. 

Tea Tags

One of my more lovely friends has acquired the habit of collecting tea tags and making zines out of them. Since she does not drink enough non-looseleaf tea on her own to feed this urge to collect, I have gotten into the habit of saving tea tags for her. Just about every time I send her a letter I put the array of tea tags I've collected since my last letter in the bottom of the envelope. Collecting tea tags is a bit of a challenge for both of us, since we both prefer loose leaf teas. Fortunately my roommate has a surplus of bagged tea so she has henceforth aided us in the pursuit of this collection.

The tea package featured above with the tea tags belongs to a Licorice Peppermint herbal tea from Choice Organic Tea (my school's preferred tea brand.) I happened upon said package on the ground as I made my way out of the library on a brisk winter day. Seeing that it was both sealed and a tea I had never encountered I scooped it up. I swiftly returned home to brew it. It turned out to be just what I needed in that moment. The licorice and the peppermint circled around each other an enticing manner, drawing me in to their dance. The licorice added a depth to the peppermint that I hadn't experience before. I've been meaning to try it again ever since, but for some reason the moment has not yet arrived.

London Fog (Made With Choice Organic Teas)

I started today off mostly asleep. I was dreaming about swimming and it was such a lovely dream that  getting up and going to the first day of my beginning martial arts class seemed borderline impossible. To remedy this situation I made myself a cup of Townshend's pear green tea. I had just stared sipping it when I realized the time had come to leave the comfort of my cozy kitchen for my voyage to campus. I poured my tea into a travel mug as I flitted to and fro, gathering my belongings. Unfortunately by the time I reach my class my travel mug was no longer on my person. In my hurry I had abandoned it on my kitchen counter. I was still not awake enough to consider simply going without tea until the conclusion of my classes for the day, so after martial arts I meandered down to one of plethora of coffee shops my school harbors. I gazed lustfully at a brown sugar mocha but I knew what I had come for: a London Fog. 

I had seen London Fogs on menus around campus for about 6 months before I first sipped one. It took me that long to try one because I wasn't sure what they were and at the time I mostly frequented coffee shops for the purposed of purchasing actually coffee. Then towards the end of the school year -after 

I had given up coffee- I had an assignment in my Nutrition class to tell the class about a favorite drink and its nutritional value. I talked about Jasmine Tea and then one of my classmates present a diagram of a London Fog. Its components included earl grey tea, vanilla syrup and steamed milk. I was sold. I immediately started using London Fogs to fill the hole my mochas, lattes and cups of coffee with a lot of sugar had left. 

So here I am: in the library procrastinating a essay, slightly less asleep with a charming, comforting, caffeinating, London Fog.