Thursday, November 19, 2009

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

I still can't taste things too well, so I will share some tea news with you and maybe a tea review I have on file. The first piece of news is the good folks at Golden Moon Teas http://www.goldenmoontea.com/ have offered me some samples to review. I am thrilled, as I am beginning to really appreciate Oolongs, after some unpleasant experiences. Also, almost all of the reviews I have read about their teas have been positive. I think black tea will always have a special place in my heart, but the world of tea is so wide!


SerendipiTEA is re-publishing their book SerendipiTEA: the Varieties, Origins and Rituals of Tea , written by the company's co-founder Tomislav Podreka. I remember reading this when it was first published and it is a well-written, worthwhile book. It is being published by the Old English Tea House and will sell for $16. I couldn't find the company on line, but I did find the old edition at Amazon. So it is perhaps not out just yet.

If you are a big fan of teapots, you should check out the blog http://teapotsteapotsteapots.blogspot.com/ . Some of the most unusual ones I have ever seen can be found there. My two biggest questions are: Can they pour? And do they drip? I ask these from the perspective of much sad experience. I recently bought a very pretty teapot I hoped to be my new everyday large pot, but you could only fill it half-way or it would cascade all over everything! I have a number of pots that are lovely, pour well, but alas they drip all over! I do have some drip catchers, but after a while, they look rather disgusting. Why can't manufacturers make dripless pots? It is possible, I have the pots to prove it.

I am hoping for a teapot with violets on it for Christmas. I have managed to acquire 4 different violet cups and saucers and I would like a teapot to go with them. None of them match, so the pot doesn't need to either. My favorite is a handleless one, which in spite of not having a handle, doesn't seem to be that old. I was very fortunate that several years ago a friend was moving and gave me a large portion of her teacup collection. My favorites are ways the ones that feel so extra smooth. I am not sure why, but the china feels like satin against my skin. We are on a kick of “lightening our load” so some of the ones that are not particular favorites will probably go.

2 comments:

Elizabeth said...

I have a lot of teapots too (you can never have too many) but the ones I use everyday are the Beehouse teapots. I have four - three 22-ouncers in yellow, lilac and pumpkin and the one I'm using now, which is textured tan and slightly smaller than the others at 15 ounces. They make either a perfect 3 cups (22 ouncers for those days when you need a lot of tea) or two cups in the 15, which is pretty much the right amount for any other time. The best thing about them? Besides their elegant design that can fit anywhere, they don't drip. Really. They're available at theteatable.com and for the fact you'll use them every day (and they come with a very fine mesh basket for the loose tea), they're a bargain, as far as I'm concerned. I'm not trying to sell anything or promote anyone - they're just great teapots for those of us who love our loose tea.

Marlena said...

Ooooh, a lilac teapot, that sounds like my "cuppa" I will have to check them out.