A tiny cheese hut high in the misty mountains of Switzerland.Today seems very hot and humid, even though the weather mavens say it isn't. Luckily I had made some ice tea yesterday for just such an occasion. I call it "tag tea"– the tag ends of samples or boxes. They were all in the Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling range, so I figured I was safe. And I was and it is very refreshing. Since I have not yet found the ice cube trays, I make it on the weak side.
However, earlier today I made a pot of Lemongreen from Tavalon Tea, which I got in a swap. Dry it had such a nice smell, sweet and grassy and fresh. I brewed it at about 180 for 2 minutes. The instant the water hit the tea, the liquid turned a lovely shade of lemon yellow. As it brewed there was a faint whiff of lemon and again, that illusive sweet scent. This is a very nice tea for a summer afternoon. There is the citrus and sweet and the under girding of the green tea, which seems to be of good quality. I would imagine this would be quite good cold or iced, as Tavalon recommends. It is also low in caffeine, which extends the time you can drink it, if that is an issue for you.
The lemon/citrus comes from lemongrass, a tropical plant you can find in Asian markets. It is easy to grow, if you find some with a bit of root attached. Any good soil, lots of sun and good watering will do it. It is frost tender for those of us in the North. I have been trying to grow some for a while, as I like to make Thai food, but Bert the Brat likes it, too and is constantly chewing on it. No tuna breath for him!
If you follow this blog, you'll notice i am not posting as often. I am finding that with the moving and unpacking and getting settled in a new community, life is hectic! So, for a while, I am going to officially drop back to posting about 3 times a week. Thanks for being understanding.
Yesterday I was at one of our great cafes in Owego, NY, the River Rose, and had a peachy green tea slushy. Couldn't taste the tea, but the slushy peaches were very nice. They have other tea drinks that I am looking forward to sampling, but this looked too good to pass up!
2 comments:
I love lemongrass...as well as a number of other lemon-scented herbs. Lemongrass isn't just tasty, it's very good for you. I recently wrote two brief articles relating to lemongrass and health:
Lemongrass and Cancer and Health Benefits of Lemongrass, and more well-cited information is available on RateTea.net's page on lemongrass, for the more skeptical reader.
Have you ever grown lemongrass? It's a bit of a moot point for me, because I live in a climate (Delaware) where a good alternative--Lemon balm--grows almost effortlessly. Once it gets established, it will seed itself all over your yard and garden, and it grows in small clumps that do well in shade and can out-compete most weeds. It's my lemon herb of choice. It has a pretty different flavor profile from lemongrass...less grassy, and I find more mellow.
I am growing a puny pot of it and of course I have lemonbalm - doesn't the whole world? I think it is trying to take over not only the world, but the universe
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