American tea is a weird concept for me to digest, but a few tea gardens do exist in the United States. Hawaii, Washington, Oregon and Alabama have them, and so does South Carolina, home of the Charleston Tea Plantation. The South Carolina plantation (currently owned by Bigelow Tea Company) produces several black and green tea varieties including Charleston Breakfast, which I recently tried.
Continue reading “Reviewed: Charleston Breakfast Tea”
Nepal Tea House’s Best Ilam Valley Tea
This black tea came from my cousin Bruce who brought it back from a trip to Nepal. He gave it to my father who passed it on to me. The front of the plain foil package was labeled Nepal Tea House; the back was marked with a Best Ilam-Valley Tea sticker.
Not knowing a great deal about Nepali tea, I did some research to make sure I brewed it at the correct water temperature, which in the end was just short of boiling or about 30 seconds off the boil. The praise I found for this tea during my research piqued my enthusiasm.
Review: Bao Zhong Tea from The Persimmon Tree
Bao Zhong (also referred to as Pouchong) in an oolong tea that undergoes very light oxidation. Of the oolongs I’ve tried so far, this is my favorite.
Continue reading “Review: Bao Zhong Tea from The Persimmon Tree”
Republic of Tea Organic Rooibos Reviewed
I brought home a small packet of Republic of Tea’s Cedarberg Organic Red Full-Leaf recently from Central Market. I’ve come to truly appreciate the taste of rooibos since I first tried it over a year ago. It’s no doubt an acquired taste that holds no appeal to my wife and other family members when served hot.
The good thing about rooibos (aka red bush) is it won’t over steep. Absolutely no bitterness will result — just more flavor. It’s also caffeine free, so you can enjoy it after dinner. Continue reading “Republic of Tea Organic Rooibos Reviewed”
Introvert’s Travelogue, Part Two – The Middle and The End
I woke up Sunday morning in Waco a little later than planned. And I did too much lazing in bed watching TV before going down for the complimentary breakfast.
Tea is an important morning ritual for me, but I’ve learned to be flexible when on the road. I don’t bring my own tea unless my hotel room or suite has a kitchenette with stove. If you can’t control the water temperature, there’s no point in wasting your own tea.
So I grabbed a Bigelow English Teatime packet, plopped in into a paper cup and brewed with hot water from the beverage station dispenser. It served its caffeine delivery purpose well. For breakfast, I had oatmeal with almonds, cranberries and milk. Continue reading “Introvert’s Travelogue, Part Two – The Middle and The End”