Monday, September 17, 2007

I may have overdone it...

I've been receiving quarterly catalogues from Upton Tea Imports for almost a year now, but hadn't ordered anything from them. Last week, though, I finally went through and selected some teas that I wanted to try out, and proceeded to order some samples. What do you think, did I overdo it? Their descriptions sounded so interesting, I just couldn't resist.

I have Darjeelings, Assams and Ceylons from India (I do love Indian teas!); Pu-er, lotus and peony teas from China; and rooibos and honeybush from Africa. I have two kinds of Earl Grey, one whose bergamot scent is supposed to be less overpowering, and one with blue flowers mixed in. I have tea flowers from Camelia sinensis, the tea plant. Each sample pack is labelled with the packing date, the type of tea, ideal brewing temperatures and times, and my name, and will make around 6 cups of tea. That's over 120 cups of tea, which I will surely enjoy all the more since it has started becoming rather chilly here!
I even indulged (all right, indulged myself even more) by buying this clever tea thermometer, which is colour-coded so one can easily tell when the water is at the appropriate temperature for green, oolong or black tea. Won't you come an join me for a tea party?

4 comments:

greeeenwithenv said...

*Waves hands wildly* Meeeeee!!! I want to go to your tea party!!!

MooCow said...

Meeee, meee, meee! I love the thermometer!

Lana said...

I guess I know what kind of party to plan for a reunion!

Josh Fialkoff said...

Hi Lana,
I really enjoyed reading your post on tea thermometers. I am an avid green tea drinker (Temple of Heaven Gunpowder is my favorite). I looked for a thermometer that I could set (at 180 degrees) and that had an alarm when it reached the right temp. I couldn't find one... so I am developing one. I'd love to get your feedback (and your readers' feedback). I have a site at teathermometer.com... the site is pretty weak at the moment, but you can see pictures of the thermometer. I'm in the process of finding a company to manufacture the thermometer, so some of the designs and features could be changed... I'd love to hear what you would like to see in such a device...and whether you think this is a good idea.
Thanks!
-Josh