Wining About Tea

My blogger has been non-functional for several days, but is now working - hooray!!!

I have really got to stop saying I don’t like certain kinds of tea. As soon as I do, up pops a type I do like and then I have to retract and be embarrassed and, well, really, I ought to just not make pronouncements. Sadly, that will probably not happen and I will continue to get in trouble.

I have often said I don’t generally like flavored teas, but then I make exceptions for Earl Grey, Jasmine, Rose-Kissed Jasmine, Lady Londonderry, and oh the sad list goes on and on. And I do like the whole gamut of wine teas. SBS Teas has a list of about 7 and I just got a bunch of them to try. They even have a black one, which is unusual. I am having it today, Assam Cabernet. It smells like the many wineries I have happily whiled away a day in, tasting this wine and that. A very happy association. Being mixed with Assam tea, it is a good bit sturdier than those mixed with the Oolongs, greens and whites. It also has cinnamon and licorice root in it. Hmmm, is that a good thing?

When I smelled these attractive dark leaves, it certainly smelled just fine. I brewed it with “furiously” boiling water for 3.5 minutes. At first I could smell the cinnamon and was put off by it, but by the time I was drinking it, that had disappeared into a very pleasant winey whole that I really like. Personally, I will use larger spoonfuls and a bit longer brew time next time, as this was not quite adequate, but I think the potential is there for a top-notch wine flavored tea. As it cooled, however, the cinnamon came out and I think this would be a better tea without it. Just the wine, please. Now if one could only find no calorie chocolate as good, we’d have a party.

I used a handy little gadget to measure the tea, cunningly called a “Loose Tea Measure” from SBS Teas. It is a sliding measuring spoon and measures out 1-5 cups of tea from weak to strong. It seems to work well and it’s a no-brainer and who among us doesn’t need another tea gadget. It was only $2.50, I believe.  SBS was also kind enough to send some tea candies, some tea samples and some cute little one cup make your own tea bags - thank you!  I really appreciate companies that do that, and sometimes I get the teas I'm sampling this way.  Lupicia Tea send out a short monthly newsletter, with a sample attached.  All very much appreciated.

Ah, mountains.  I've just been reading The Eiger Obsession, about climbing that mountain.  Not for me, I think I will just admire from afar.

In the Pink

I am on an Amalfi kick - much prettier there than it is here again today. Besides, if you are from Philadelphia and South, you need to see palm trees and blue sky. We had lunch just in back of the biggest palm tree, before we climbed the huge staircase up to the cathedral.


Tea Swaps are a great way to sample a bunch of teas without committing large amounts of cash to the project. It is truly astonishing how many different teas there are on the market. I just had one that is both new to me and new on the market. This is Red Leaf Tea's Pink Sonoma, one of their new wine-infused line.


When I brewed this cup in boiling water for about 3 minutes, I had no idea what it was. The dry tea didn't have a lot of scent and it pretty much looked like chopped grass, even though I later discovered it was white tea. As it brewed, it gave off a fruity, flowery, sharp scent I couldn't identify. That was how it tasted at first, also. In spite of its name, the liquor was not pink, but a soft clear yellow. As it cooled, however, it became sweeter and very grapey. It really was good! I let it cool completely , to see how it might be iced and I would definitely go for it, perhaps with some ice cubes made from the tea or brewed extra strong. I think it would make a very nice punch as well and would go nicely with a mild chicken salad with red grapes, or some of the milder sweets, like sugar cookies, angel cake or pound cake. The slight tartness of the tea would be a pleasant counterpoint.