Tea Tasting Saturday #22 - Wenshan BaoZhong

Surprisingly, I found myself missing the green teas I said goodbye to last week, but one taste of this week's tea and it was "Hello, Mr. Oolong!"

Category: Oolong Tea

Purveyor: Harney & Sons

When purchased: May 2009

Dry leaf appearance: Long, ultra dark green tea leaves. I noticed when measuring they seemed especially rigid and didn't have any "give" to them.

Wet leaf appearance: Dark olive green tea leaves that struck me as very large (1-1/2 inches or so) compared to those of recent weeks.

Steeping temperature and time: 1 teaspoon of tea, 205 degrees, 3 minutes.

Scent: Dry, this tea definitely made me think of classic black tea as soon as I sniffed it. Once steeped, the leaves took on a slightly woodsy/roasted note. (The Harney book, interestingly, differs with me a great deal on this point, describing the tea's scent as "so fragrant, it is hard to stop smelling its blend of gardenia, jasmine, and butter aromas." That wasn't my experience, but I have no complaints with this tea.)

Color: Pale yellow.

Flavor: Wonderful! I've had oolong teas before, but this one had an especially nice "mouth feel" and just seemed richer, fuller somehow. I resteeped the leaves and ended up having five cups of it before the day was over. I even drank this with dinner!

Additional notes: From "The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea" -- "One of the oldest Taiwanese oolongs, BaoZhong grows just outside bustling Taipei, the island's capital. The gardens lie to the south of the city, in a quiet mountainside spot where the air is clear of urban smog and mist almost always cloaks the gardens."

Next week's tea: Ali Shan

Simply, "Tea"

One day this week, my friend Susan called me at work to say her sister Beth, another longtime tea-lover friend, had found something for me and that I could either A) keep it if I didn't already have one or B) give it away as a gift on the blog if it was a duplicate! Isn't that incredibly generous, and I love that she was thinking not only of me but also of you! (Alas, I did not have one of these, so no giveaway on this. But I'll do another giveaway soon and help "pay it forward," as the saying goes.)

I love that this piece comes with small holes for hanging, and I've been mulling over precisely where it should go. Under or over a tea-themed piece of art? Next to another piece of black ironwork that holds teacups and saucers? But then it would also look great hanging on my tea cabinet, the one where I pile teacups and accoutrements and tins of tea. So ... if someone had given you this lovely item as a gift, what would *you* do with it? Ideas welcome!

Filet Crochet Teapot Potholders

Recently I was crocheting a small blanket as a gift for a family member. The pattern is a simple filet crochet heart design, in which you use open spaces and solid spaces much as you do with cross-stitch or needlepoint to create a design. As I was working on it, I wondered why I have never seen a crocheted afghan with a filet crochet teapot design. "Maybe I'll make one," I thought (like I don't have enough to keep me busy!). The next day, I was trolling Etsy for old tea stuff and found not one but two teapot potholders in filet crochet -- somebody obviously had the idea long before I did -- and best of all, they were just $1 each! This one with a large teapot is my favorite.

But I also like this one with its smaller center teapot and the stylized flowers, at least I think they're flowers, in the corners. (Be sure to double-click if you're a needleworker who wants to see more detail.) Both of them are backed with light blue cotton and have some sort of filling inside, but I won't be using these for anything without a thorough soaking in detergent first! I still think I'd like to chart my own design and crochet a teapot afghan, maybe as a project for this fall or winter. Unless, that is, I find the afghan already made for $1 on Etsy!

Teatime Linzer Cookies

A new "toy" has arrived, and although I haven't quite mastered it yet, I can't wait any longer and simply must share! You see, I always liked the idea of making those cute Linzer cookies with cutouts that let you see the jam, but the tea-themed cookie cutters I have are so large you'd have to make a plate-sized cookie for it to be large enough to contain a regular cookie-sized cutout. Then last week, I discovered some tea and coffee themed Linzer cookie cutters and placed an order. (I got mine here, and they're available from a variety of vendors on the internet.)

Are you interested in the history of Linzer cookies? OK, good! Linzer torte, the famous pastry in which the pretty fruit filling peeks through a lattice crust, hails from Linz, a town in Austria. The Linzer cookie, with its fruit filling peeking through the top cookie with a cutout design, is a variation on that idea.

The recipe printed on the back of the cookie cutter box did not work for me. The cookies had too much butter in them and were swimming on the cookie sheet by the end of baking time. So, I returned to a never-fail sugar cookie recipe I've been using (from the marvelous book "Cookie Craft"). It worked perfectly. I baked bottoms first, then the fun part, the cutouts. The tiny (less than one inch) impressions lock into place on the cookie cutter and pop out with a spring mechanism. There were no instructions, but it was pretty easy to figure out. I used seedless raspberry jam on the bottom cookies, then added the tops which I had dusted with powdered sugar (sifted through a tea strainer!) and yum -- Teatime Linzer Cookies! DH and I both thought they were really good.

Happily, the cookie cutters all cleaned up easily in hot soap and water. I think I need to perfect my technique so as to get a "crisper" design in the middle, but for my first effort I'm pretty pleased!

Teacup organizer

The other morning I was seated at my vanity in the bathroom blowdrying my hair. I didn't have any reading material within arm's reach, so I began to notice all the stray earrings that were scattered here and there on a tole tray. I'd been looking for an earring tree to organize pierced earrings, but suddenly it dawned on me I had the perfect organizational tool right at my fingertips. I removed all the tubes of lipstick, tweezers, etc. it had been holding, and soon my organizer was ready for its new use.

I started lining them up (even the hoops I wear almost every day slide right over the rim), and I was thrilled at this discovery! The "tea" earrings I wear most often are these silver dangling ones with fish hook wires that are perfect for this type of "organizing tool."

And recently I needed gold earrings and wore these rose and teapot ones, even though they're a tad on the gaudy side. I was happy to see that posts with a "disc" style back can prop on the teacup rim as well. Do you have any interesting uses for orphaned teacups? I'd love to hear them!

An easy Memorial Day treat

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY! I hope you are planning to enjoy this year's observance of Memorial Day, and I thought it might be appropriate to share a quick and easy dessert idea I made this weekend.

Almost every year at Christmas, I serve this glorious English Trifle that is made with angel food cake, red currant jelly, and this divinely thick, slightly tricky velvet cream custard that is super rich thanks to the 12 eggs yolks it contains. It is always a huge hit, and I think it is worth all the effort that goes into it. Well, this is *not* that recipe. This is that recipe's low-rent country cousin -- one you can run to the grocery store and assemble in under 5 minutes -- but for a fast and easy warm-weather treat, I was surprisingly satisfied with it!

Easy Fruit Trifle

1 large (20-ounce) can chunk pineapple, drained
1 small (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
1 angel food cake
1 4-pack of ready-to-serve, individual serving size Sugar-Free Jell-O Vanilla Pudding
1 small (8-ounce) container of Sugar-Free Cool Whip

First, slice about a third of the angel food cake into "cake size" slices, and then cut slices into cubes. Distribute cubes among 8 small individual-size trifle bowls. (I used cute plastic footed cups from Dollar Tree, but clear glass teacups could be used as well.)

Next, mix the drained pineapple and oranges, and scoop about two tablespoons of the fruit into the cups on top of the angel food cake cubes. Spoon in half of an individual serving size pudding cup. Top with Cool Whip and refrigerate until time to serve. As DH says, these are great and also guilt-free!

Tea Tasting Saturday #21 - Matcha (Thin Grade)

If I'd paid attention to the tea catalog, I wouldn't have been so surprised that this tea came in a tin.

Anyone here read Japanese? I'm being cautioned about something, but what? On the other side of this little piece of paper is more Japanese text and a graphic of hands carefully opening the pull-tab can. I'll bet the Japanese lawyers made them do that.

So I *cautiously* opened the can so the powdered tea wouldn't spill all over the place. It didn't, because it's still in the bag!

After opening the bag of Matcha, I carefully measured out just under half a teaspoon (the directions said half a teaspoon for 6 ounces of water, and my little tea-tasting glass is 5 ounces).


My first "whisking" didn't result in too much foam, so I decided I'd probably done it wrong and tried again.

Number two looked only slightly foamier, so I decided it was time to drink up and move on. Besides, this may be what "thin" Matcha looks like anyway!

* * *
I have to tell you, "Matcha Saturday" almost didn't happen! First, I realized late last Friday I had failed to place a new order with Harney and hurriedly went online to play catch up. Bless 'em, it arrived Wednesday, so I'm good for tea tastings for at least a few more months, Lord willing. Then yesterday, I realized I failed to order a Matcha whisk, and the local tea shop is out of Matcha whisks, but I read on the Internet you could use an ordinary wire whisk instead if you had to. (Later, when I read the book, Michael Harney said the same thing.) So I figured with my mini-wire whisk this Matcha process wouldn't exactly be "authentic," but at least I could give the Matcha a whirl. (So to speak.) I don't know how much of a difference it makes that I bought the cheaper thin grade rather than the more expensive thick grade of Matcha, but hey, I was trying to be economical!

Category: Japanese Green Tea

Purveyor: Harney & Sons

When purchased: May 2009

Appearance: A rather bright apple green powdered tea. I'd like a T-shirt this color.

Steeping temperature and time: Just under 1/2 teaspoon of tea, 175 degrees, 30 seconds (or however long it took to whisk the tea).

Scent: I had to force myself not to think about the powdery appearance, but when steeped I realized that oh, it smelled just like green tea.

Color: Deep olive green.

Flavor: I did not enjoy my first sip at all, as I "felt" the powder swirling around and the tea was too strong and bitter. But after a minute or so, once some of the powder settled in the bottom of the teacup, I sipped again and it tasted just like good green tea. Of course, I am going to *have* to get a Matcha whisk now and see if it makes any difference in the foam level. We won't call it a re-match but a re-Matcha! (Also, I want to try some recipes that use Matcha as an ingredient.)

Additional notes: Michael Harney tells of visiting a factory where Matcha is made and says he had to "don protective clothing as if heading into surgery. I even had to pause in an airlock where machines blew off from the protective clothing any particulate matter that might contaminate the powder."

Next week's tea: First of the oolongs, Wenshan BaoZhong

And if, like me, you would enjoy seeing how someone who knows what they're doing prepares Matcha, check out this brief video on YouTube!

The English Roses: Charlotte's Blend

Do you remember several years ago when, in one of her ever-changing stages of life, Madonna began to try her hand at writing children's books? I never actually bought one of the books, but I did flip through them at the bookstores enough to know they were called "The English Roses" and had various girl characters. I was intrigued by the books, as I am by Madonna herself, and I was equally intrigued by the fact Harney and Sons came out with a line of teas based on the books. I never bought one of the teas, either, but I did receive one as a gift from a friend recently.

"Charlotte's Blend" is a caffeine-free "tea" that is raspberry flavored. When I opened the tin, I couldn't help thinking the sachets look like little packets of birdseed.

Lucky for me, this raspberry blend tastes quite nice. I love raspberry tea but often find it to be so sour it's downright pucker-worthy. This was just a nice, mellow, raspberry flavored tea. Harney doesn't appear to carry this in its catalog anymore, so I'm lucky I got a tin before they've disappeared.

The Tea Bag Teapot

Two weeks ago, when some friends and I went to Atlanta for a special birthday lunch, we also visited two antique stores before heading back home. At one of them, I found this little 4-1/2-inch-tall teapot that is, I can only surmise, a tea bag holder.

Have you ever seen anything like this? I hadn't. It has sort of a sixties vibe to me. A week after I bought it, I saw in another antique mall a mug that had a very similar design dated 1964 (a vintage I share, incidentally), so I'm guessing that's about how old this piece is. It does have a working spout and could actually be used as a teapot, but I think I am going to use it to hold teabags for all that iced tea I will begin drinking soon. I especially liked the lid, with its little teacup design, and the price: $6.

The sticker on the bottom says "Handpainted TILSO JAPAN." Tilso is a company I've never heard of before. It's times like this I wish I was friends with the staff at "Antiques Roadshow" so I could get some answers about the sometimes puzzling world of teawares!

A guest blogger reports from Epcot!

I have said it before and I’ll say it again: What you readers have to say is very often more interesting than anything I have to say, and that was definitely the case when my “Tea With Friends” friend Ginger Cato of North Carolina e-mailed me about her recent trip to Walt Disney World’s Epcot. Her husband was there for a conference, so she and her son “tagged along,” she said, and wait until you see her gorgeous photos! With her kind permission, I’m going to just get out of the way and let her tell you about her trip:

“The Flower and Garden Festival was going on and it's always
nice to look at. I don't know if you are familiar with Epcot or not.
In the UK pavilion Twinings has a tea shop. They sell loose and
boxed teas (some that you can only get in the UK), a few Twinings logo
pieces (tea pots, cups, etc.) and a small amount of china. Behind the
tea shop is a garden. During the Flower and Garden Festival they
always do a special display. This year it was teas in cute tea cup
planters. I thought you might like to see my pictures.”








Ginger continues, “Also take a look at the cute Flower and Garden Festival mug shaped like a flower pot. I love the butterflies on it. I met the artist that painted them and got her to autograph my mug.”


“I also bought myself a tea for one set featuring Alice in Wonderland. I bought some Alice in Wonderland tea in Matter Hatter flavor. It's a loose black tea with flowers and fruit in it.”

(Angela again. I haven't been to Disney in more than a decade, but seeing all these great photos sure makes me want to visit during the Flower and Garden Festival. Thanks so much for sharing, Ginger!)

It's "Hello, Yellow!" Tuesday

When Steph first wrote of the special color-themed Tuesdays she is hosting over at her Steph's Cup of Tea blog, I wondered if I would have anything to contribute. Last week I knew I could come up with a few things in robin's egg blue, but yellow? Well, I started looking around and discovered I have quite a few yellow things related to tea, including a piece from my most-treasured tea set, my Royal Winton Welbeck teapot.

Other yellow goodies: These napkins my mom made for me in a Welbeck print fabric found at Jo-Ann about 10 years ago or so.


A French glass candy jar still bearing a few leftover Easter candy corns.

A tablecloth I found on Etsy a while back (but to be honest, I thought the photos were accurate and expected an *ivory* background. If I'd only read the description more carefully!).

Sandy Lynam Clough hatboxes on a shelf in my bathroom.

And a favorite tole tray, also in the bathroom.

Finally, I love the yellow and orange bits (pineapple chunks and dried orange peel) dotting the landscape of my favorite tea in the world, Emperor's Bride from The Tea Room in Savannah (recently restocked thanks to a generous gift from my friend Kathy).

And please note: Tomorrow "Tea With Friends" will have a special guest blogger you won't want to miss!

My favorite "tea" bracelet

OK. I know. I have probably written about tea-themed jewelry a bit overmuch in recent weeks, so if you'll forgive me just one more jeweled post, I'll cool it, I promise! But with the last of my birthday funds I splurged on what instantly became my most favorite tea bracelet ever, and I just had to share this tea party charm bracelet from the amazing fashion designer Betsey Johnson!


I "met" Betsey years ago thanks to a dear friend who taped a program featuring Betsey that aired on the Style network, I believe. My friend had been in the habit of taping Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic programs, and when she happened across the flower child/passionate collector/Bohemian girly girl Betsey, she thought I might like her too, and I did. It's not the fashions I'm interested in, it's Betsey herself. When I first saw her, she had yellow hair tinged with hot pink, and she was in the habit of collecting tiny shoes and dying old lace hot pink. How can you not love a woman 60-plus who still ends her runway shows by performing a cartwheel? Yet I somehow missed the memo when her "Tea Party" line of jewelry debuted last year, but I ran across this bracelet online and had to have it. A slice of cake with "layers" of pink rhinestones? Love it!

And this pink teacup is plenty cute on its own, but inside ...

... is a sweet little red heart!

This robin's egg blue teapot charm is just adorable, and this bracelet has so much of all the jewelry things I love -- rhinestones, pearls, a sparkling rose, a pink crystal, a dangling heart -- I felt she made it just for me. I can't help wondering what inspired Betsey to design a line of tea-themed jewelry, but I'm certainly delighted she did.

Tea Tasting Saturday #20 - Tencha

Do any of you decorate for Christmas with those mica flakes, the little flakes of iridescent "snow" you sprinkle around a tree or Nativity scene? Well, those are what I thought of when I opened this week's Tencha tea. It looks "flake-y" to me. Or maybe I'm just being flaky!

Category: Japanese Green Tea

Purveyor: Harney & Sons

When purchased: March 2009

Dry leaf appearance: Dark green flakes of tea leaf.

Wet leaf appearance: Bright green pureed spinach. (Yes, I know. These teas very often look like spinach to me. I would shake things up a bit by saying "collards" but I'm afraid my northern friends might not be as familiar with them!)

Steeping temperature and time: 1 teaspoon of tea, 150 degrees, 2 minutes. And let me just say ... only 150 degrees? Do you remember that song "Hand Jive" from "Grease" where it says, "How low can you go? How low can you go?" I'm wondering "how low can you go" with steeping tea!

Scent: This tea had a distinct vegetal scent like some of the early Chinese greens I tried, and it deepened into something that reminded me of my south Georgia grandmother's famous butterbeans.

Color: Pale yellow green.

Flavor: Hallelujah, we are out of the woods with those roasty/toasty teas (I hope!), because this one had a smooth flavor I would even describe as "buttery." A great mouth feel, and not one smidgen of astringency did I detect. A very, very nice Japanese green!

Additional notes: According to "The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea," Tencha is rarely drunk in Japan because the leaves are ground into Matcha.

Next week's tea: Matcha

Loving Tea & Chocolate

Sometimes a girl's just got to have some tea and chocolate. I was lucky that for my birthday last week, my friend Deberah's gift included (among other yummy treats) some of each! This Winter White Earl Grey Tea from Harney & Sons pairs beautifully with this dark chocolate from Ghirardelli. I don't remember where I first heard to always drink something hot when eating chocolate because it magnifies the flavor, but it's a tip I firmly believe in.

My friend Ashly, well-known for her excellent baking skills, brought me some great souvenirs from her recent trip to Germany, tucked into a lovely gift box along with some delicious chocolate chunk cookies. The Earl Grey tea was perfect with them, too!

And last but certainly not least, my sister Rhonda's family know that I'm a big fan of all things chocolate, so their birthday gifts included this clever mug and T- (or should I say tea?) shirt. And that's all for today. I have to go find some chocolate!

Inspired by "robin's egg blue"

Over at Steph's Cup of Tea, our friend Steph is inspiring us all to look at the color in our world, and I've decided to play along. Her first color theme is "robin's egg blue," a shade I just love. At first I didn't think I had anything much I could share, but when I started thinking about this color palette in my head, I realized I really do have a fondness for this color. Here's proof:

A tea set with blues that vary from baby blue to robin's egg blue to palest blue.

One of my favorite teaspoons, a 99-cent find from Cracker Barrel.

A robin's egg blue-edged tea trivet I found at an antique mall at the beach last year.

Marie Belle's chocolate rose tea.

My Sereni-tea mug.

And matching teabag holder.

An afghan I made last year to match the new robin's egg blue living room walls.

A vintage Avon tin (from a shelf in my bathroom) that appealed to me because of the color and the roses.

In the craft room, a robin's egg blue crochet hook and some pale robin's egg blue fabric with ... bird eggs!

A favorite block from my in-progress crazy quilt which has robin's egg blue in this underwater scene. (Fellow crafters, I scanned this one high-res so you can double-click for more detail if interested.)

Some of my favorite costume jewelry earrings.

And to wind things up and bring it back around to tea: This teapot pin has a robin's egg blue body. So now I don't think I have a thing left to share until Steph devotes a week to pink!

New book: "Tea Room Recipes"

Are you familiar with Brownlow Gifts? I know the name from buying several of their journals and gift books over the years. On Friday I was visiting the Swan Coach House in Atlanta with my friends Liz and Holly to help celebrate Liz's birthday, and I came across this new release from Brownlow, "Tea Room Recipes." The offerings include a number of teatime "standards" (Pineapple Sandwiches, Cucumber Sandwiches) but also some new recipes I'm interested in trying such as White Chocolate Apricot Scones, Strawberries Filled with Cream, and Almond Tea Cakes.

Two unique features, though, sold me on this sweet little $13.99 book. First, it's made "easel style" so you can stand it up to use while cooking.

And in addition to the 24 recipes, there are 24 blank recipe cards you can use yourself. Wouldn't this make a great gift for a tea-loving friend, perhaps with a recipe of your own written on one of the cards? The recipe cards are all tucked inside plastic sleeves just like those in photo albums. I was quite happy to find such a unique memento of my Swan House visit with two dear friends!

P.S. And here are some photos I just found on Holly's Facebook page:

Birthday Girl Elizabeth


Holly

Holly, Liz, Me

And my lunch choice, the pretty Swan's Favorite (two heart-shaped timbales of chicken salad, frozen fruit salad, cheese straws)

A new tea towel from Etsy

For a while there I was finding tea-themed linens at every turn, and then the well ran dry. Nothing on eBay. Nothing at antique malls. And so a few weeks ago, I turned to Etsy and happened across a thoroughly delightful and whimsical tea towel. The creator and seller, Laura, kindly answered my questions and soon had this adorable design on its way from England to the U.S. When I wrote to tell her how much I love this tea towel, she wrote back to say she's getting some of her designs printed onto "homeware items" such as mugs, cups and shopping bags. I plan to check back often because I'd sure love to have more such items with this design, and they'd make great gifts as well.

At the time I came across her Etsy shop, Glue + Glitter, she was offering this tea towel in gray and blue, a bubblegum pink one having (sadly for me) already been scooped up (and they're all gone at the moment, I see). But this cheerful shade of bright aqua blue was one I really liked, and besides, I think Glue and Glitter's designs are going to become famous in the tea world and I can say I knew her "back when." Doesn't this tea tray design just make you smile? It did me.

And this teacup is adorable as well. Some of her tea-themed designs are currently featured on magnets for sale in her shop, and I can't wait to see what else comes from her lovely imagination!

Heath Bar Cake

Sure hope all of you moms had a Happy Mother's Day yesterday! My sister Rhonda prepared a "Thanksgiving quality" lunch at her house in honor of our mom, Nancy, and I brought a dessert that has become a favorite on our family's table, a pudding-like Heath Bar Cake. I don't mean to insult your intelligence (or cooking sensibilities) if you have been making this for years, but every now and again I find someone who has never had this cake, and it really is quite yummy. So, here's the recipe in case someone needs it!

Heath Bar Cake

1 package Devil's Food or Chocolate Fudge cake mix (prepare it according to package directions for a 9 x 13-inch cake)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar caramel ice cream topping
1 small carton Cool Whip
3/4 package Heath Bits o' Brickle toffee bits OR about 6 Heath Bars chopped in the food processor

Bake cake according to package directions. When cool, punch holes in the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon.

Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk into the holes, followed by the caramel ice cream topping. The cake will be swimming in a sea of toppings at this point. Spread with Cool Whip, spreading with a light touch to keep the cake crumbs from getting mixed in the Cool Whip.

You can add the topping now, but I like to add it just before serving so it retains some crunch. At any rate, you really need to let this cake chill in the refrigerator overnight to absorb all the toppings. This cake is so rich and dense, it will weigh approximately 87 pounds when you take it out of the refrigerator, and you will gain about that same amount if you eat this very often. But for those few-times-a-year special occasions? Enjoy!

And here are all the ladies in our family gathered for Mother's Day 2009: Aunt Jane, Cari, me, mom, Rhonda w/ Amelia, and kneeling, Madison

Tea Tasting Saturday #19 - Gyokuro

Gyokuro is another new tea to me, so I was looking forward to trying this one -- and hoping it wasn't one of the "roasted" Japanese teas.

Category: Japanese Green Tea

Purveyor: Harney & Sons

When purchased: March 2009

Dry leaf appearance: Deep hunter green leaves, very fine, appearing to be very tightly rolled.

Wet leaf appearance: Bright green chopped spinach. Very *neatly* chopped spinach.

Steeping temperature and time: 1 teaspoon of tea, 160 degrees (the first I've steeped at such a low temperature, I believe), 2 minutes.

Scent: I didn't find anything very distinctive about the scent, except that when I sniffed both the dry leaf and the steeped tea, I thought of the scent of Chinese greens.

Color: A very pale green.

Flavor: This was quite a nice Japanese green! Everything about its appearance and scent had seemed so ordinary to me, but there was a richness of flavor to this tea I really enjoyed. It is distinct from the Chinese greens, and although I can't quite categorize what the difference is ("a slight roasty/toasty note" is all I can come up with), I believe I could pick this one out in a taste test with Chinese green teas. I had a teeny bit of that astringency after drinking this tea, but I wasn't bothered by it at all.

Additional notes: According to "The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea," while Sencha is grown in the sun, Gyokuro is grown partially in the shade, which "accounts for a subtly lusher, darker, more mouth-coating tea." And speaking of my beloved tea textbook, did you know it was a finalist for a coveted James Beard Foundation Book Award this year? A wine book won, but I was delighted to see Michael Harney's book honored by being nominated.

Next week's tea: Tencha

Tea with yellow roses

Yesterday I was packing up my bags to leave the office for the afternoon when our receptionist called up to ask, somewhat mysteriously, if I could come downstairs. I told her I just happened to be packing up to leave for the day and would be there in a minute. I always wonder if such a request means a) an old friend has dropped by for a visit or b) some review copy of a book I've ordered has arrived. Yesterday, it was neither of those scenarios. Instead, a large box marked "Fragile" was sitting on the counter, and it had a card and a gift for me, this lovely tea-for-one set I'd been admiring at Barnes and Noble!

This sunny set comes in a matching hatbox, both featuring gorgeous, full-blown yellow roses. Since yellow roses symbolize friendship, I have always thought they make very appropriate gifts to one's friends. But who is this friend? The card simply wished me a belated "Happy Birthday" and was signed "All your fans of Tea Time." I do have a sneaky suspicion I know who is behind this gift, so IF this sweet lady happens to be reading today, THANK YOU! I had a cup of Harney's Winter White Earl Grey tea out of this set last night (the tea was one of my birthday gifts from my friend Deberah), and I must say I greatly enjoyed having "Tea With Friends," quite literally!

An empty refrigerator

The good news is, I have learned our refrigerator has been kept pretty clean in the 2-1/2 years since my husband and I bought it. The bad news is, I discovered this when we had to empty it after DH came home on Tuesday to find a stream of water in the kitchen, a result of melted ice dripping out the front of the fridge since the thing had suddenly stopped cooling and freezing. The store where we bought it couldn't service it until today, so ... we cleaned out a refrigerator after we got home from work last night. (Full disclosure: He had pretty much emptied it by himself by the time I got home. That's a good thing, because I would have mentally cha-chinged the cost of every jar, jug, bottle, box and bag we were junking.)

To make it easier on the repair guy who is going to come precisely at "some time between 8 and 5" today, I removed all the refrigerator magnets and thought, "Hey, I've never blogged about teapot and teacup magnets before!" I'll bet some of you have that same magnet from The Tea Room in Savannah, and perhaps some of these ...

... or these. One day, I'll actually put a photo in that tiny little teapot frame magnet! I'd love to hear about (or see, fellow tea bloggers) your own tea magnets sometime!

World Tea Expo field reports

If the World Tea Expo ever returns to Atlanta I'll be there with bells on, but in the meanwhile I'm enjoying searching blogs for various reports from the 2009 Expo which just wound up in Las Vegas. Here are some of my favorite reports so far.

1. Matcha was apparently the thing at this year's Expo and was featured in lots of booths, according to this piece in the Las Vegas Sun. (Love the photo of the tea hearts.)

2. I love that this blogger actually Tweeted about his/her tea tasting experience at the Expo!

3. This blogger shared some interesting notes from an "Ask the Experts" panel discussion.

4. This blog's photo of the mouse-shaped petits fours was certainly interesting, but I really, really detest mice and would hate to see these on my tea table. Maybe some nice teapot-shaped petits fours instead?

5. And last but not least, here are some new product previews from the World Tea Expo website. Enjoy!

Birthday treats!

Thank you so much to those of you who sent the thoughtful birthday wishes yesterday! Although my b'day was yesterday, I've been officially celebrating since Friday, when I got to work and two sweet friends had presents waiting for me at the office. Among the goodies: A great book about vintage jewelry (how did she know I'm into that?), some rhinestone earrings in a rose porcelain box, a lovely lace picture frame, and the rosy pink tea mug above. This is actually going to be my new "office mug," but I brought it home to use over the birthday weekend. My dad made the coconut cake, and it was delicious as always! (I also got some chocolate and chocolate-themed gifts I'll save to share another day.)

My parents gave me money for my birthday (a gift that's always welcome), so yesterday I took the day off work and headed to the Auburn/Opelika area to hit the antique malls. Everything I bought was between $1 and $3.50, including several rhinestone brooches, so I had a great and thrifty day of shopping with funds left over for eBay. I thought you might enjoy seeing the single panel curtain I got ...

... and what I guess is maybe an appliance cover, perhaps for something vertical like an electric can opener. It's not quilted, so it's not a cozy, but after I soak the stains out with linen wash, I think it'll be right cute, whatever it is!

And this 1932 book I bought simply for the fabric cover, which is quite loose and I believe wants to be repurposed into something else.

My favorite tea-themed gift, this silver teapot charm holder, was one of my birthday gifts from my sweet husband. It came with the heart charm, so I added a couple of others from my jewelry box and I was good to go. Gifts, sweet treats, a day of antiquing, new tea jewelry ... not a bad way to celebrate turning 45!

The tea table in jewelry

Today I know how Cinderella felt. I don't really care about what's going on at any society ball, but I do care about what I'm missing at the World Tea Expo in Las Vegas, which winds up today. I'm dying to know what new teas and tea products and tea books are coming out, and I suppose I'll have to be patient and wait for that info to appear over time. So, to distract us (myself, rather), I thought I'd share some more tea-themed jewelry, including a few pieces focused on the tea table. This 1990 pewter tea table pin is from Danforth Pewter and is marked "Tea Party" on the back.

I also like this whimsical tea table where the sparkly teapot and teacup are not exactly sized to scale, are they!

These teawares aren't on a table but on a shelf. I had worn this brooch with the dangling teacups several times before I realized it has tiny gold rhinestones in the curlicues near the corners. And if I'd thought about it before now, this would have been a nice background prop for Emma and Matilda Peep at Easter!

Tea Tasting Saturday #18 - Hojicha

Hojicha is a tea I'd never heard of before I read the Harney book, so I was particularly interested in learning more about this one.

Category: Japanese Green Tea

Purveyor: Harney & Sons

When purchased: March 2009

Dry leaf appearance: This tea looked like a lot of tiny stalks, and the color reminded me of pieces of broken wicker.

Wet leaf appearance: Like miniature bits of floating bamboo.

Steeping temperature and time: 1 teaspoon of tea, 190 degrees, 2 minutes.

Scent: Two very different observations here. First, when I opened the sample packet I thought I smelled something sweet like chocolate or cocoa powder. Once it was steeped, I detected a very toasty/roasty scent. It was a dramatic shift from the scent of the dry tea leaf.

Color: A nice shade of amber, what I think of as "tea" colored, which really threw me since this is a *green* tea!

Flavor: Based on that toasty/roasty scent I was getting, I wasn't at all sure I would like this tea, but I did. It had a uniquely rich flavor that I just haven't gotten in another tea. I would definitely try this one again.

Additional notes: In "The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea," Michael Harney says, "Another creative use of tea by-products, Hojicha is made almost entirely of the leafless stalks that come off with the leaves when tea plants are harvested mechanically." I like knowing that someone is being thrifty with the manufacture of this tea! Harney also describes this tea as "gently reminiscent of roasted coffee." In retrospect, I think I just might agree with that assessment. He also says "it might be the ideal cup to wean a coffee lover off that cruder rival brew." Spoken like a true tea lover!

Next week's tea: Gyokuro

Dickering with the departed

I've encountered plenty of strange incidents in my years of hitting the antique malls, but yesterday's was one of the oddest ever! I was about an hour from home at a magazine event and got there early, so I used the time to visit a nearby antique mall. Lots of things were on sale, including a small case displaying costume jewelry, various pieces of silver and, I noted, what appeared to be a silverplate tea infuser. I'd just seen a sterling one for $40 (it was beat up or I might have bought it, since that seems to be a very good price for sterling), but the silverplate one didn't appear to have a tag or sticker. The case was marked 50 percent off, so I headed to the front counter with the case/vendor number so I could make an inquiry.


Plenty polite, the fellow followed me over to the case, opened it, and handed me the infuser. I was pleased to find it in great shape, and it clasped all nice and tight. "It's half off," he said. "Yes, I know, but there's no price on it." He took it from me and scowled, so I said, "Could you just call the owner and ask her how much it is?" (I just assumed the owner was a "she.") He scowled again and walked over to the sterling infuser. "The sterling one's $40, so what if I let you have this one for $30?" At half price that would have been just $15, but I thought that was too much. "Well, no, I wouldn't be interested then. I'm used to paying $5 to $10 for these. If you don't think the owner would take that ..."

"Ma'am, well, you see, the problem is, the owner is dead." Silence. I mean, what does one say? "Oh! I'm so sorry!" I said. (But I'm simultaneously thinking, "But ... did you rob her or what? You are SELLING this piece in a store!") Then he said, "I don't really know what to do. Her son just brought all her stuff in here and told us to get what we could for it. You wanna make me an offer?" "How about $10?" "I'll take it." Whew. I've never had to work so hard for a deal. Dickering with the living is hard enough without having to worry about offending a seller who's crossed over!