Wedding Cake

Shaunna busted her ass baking a bomb wedding cake for some friends of ours. No, we did not eat this cake with tea. I don't care. It totally qualifies as a "treat" and deserves a mention on this blog!

I helped a little by mixing and rolling out fondant. I also made a David Bowie decoration for the top, though it was removed before the final rendition of the cake.

The cake had two tiers - the top tier was blue and gold to represent alliance in the video game World of Warcraft, and the bottom tier was red and black to represent horde.







The flower decorations on the cake are the same we used for the bouquet (which I put together, for the most part)!



Congratulations to the newlyweds Noxy and Glar!

Vintage Castleton, revisited

So my friend Tyler, with the tea he was going to share with Shaunna and I, finally arrived, so I got to break in my new tea set!

We served it with sugar and milk. Unfortunately, there were a few issues with the tea tasting. First, the cups I have in my set are incredibly small, so a cube of sugar and a splash of milk goes a very long way. Second, this tea seems to have an extremely short "prime time" (I don't know if this is an appropriate term) in that it took forever to become more than just slightly flavored water, but it took only a matter of minutes before it was extremely bitter.

So in the start, I began pouring the tea after about 5 or 6 minutes and it still tasted of sugary milk water more so than tea. By the end, no amount of sugar or milk could rescue the bitter chalkiness of over-steeped tea. The flavor, for the short amount of time that it was perfect, was tasty! But unless I use a removable infuser for this blend in the future, I probably won't be trying it again.

Tyler's tea experience wasn't exactly a good first impression. I really want to take him out and force him to try various teas before he decides tea isn't his thing, though!

On the bright side, we also got to try and read our tea leaves in the bottoms of our cups since we didn't have an infuser. The tea menu from the Chado Tea Room had a tea leaf reading part on the back cover. Unfortunately for me, there was no listing for "seahorse".

Chado Tea Room

Because one tea service in 48 hours clearly isn't enough, Shaunna and I hit up another tea room per the recommendation, and accompanied by, another friend of ours, Charleen. We went to Chado Tea Room in Pasadena, CA.

Being that I am trying my best to review tea rooms, by default I had to get the tea service! This included a pot of tea, four tea sandwiches, a scone (with jam and clotted cream), and desserts.



My sandwiches consisted of:

• punjab (a sort of tea-infused egg sandwich, which was quite delicious)
• smoked salmon (simple and tasty)
• souchong chicken sandwich (chicken with jam spread - it tasted like Thanksgiving! ... but again, I'm not a huge savour + sweet fan so this sandwich wasn't exactly for me)
• mediterranean (goat cheese, greens, and nomaliciousness!)

My friends got the tomato soup. I knew I was already going to be exploding from the amount of food and tea served, so I didn't bother with soup or any sort of appetizer. However, by their silence and glazed over eyes, I think the soup was pretty epic.



This is the first scone I've had in a tea room that didn't come with lemon curd. The cream was so delicious with the jam - the fruit was a great touch! The scone was moist, dense, and really good.

The desserts were good - a cookie sandwich of a hazelnut/chocolate spread and a chocolate cake filled with a sort of custard - but I was much too full by this point to even pretend I could eat them.

We enjoyed our waiter. He was nice and helpful when Charleen wasn't sure exactly what sort of tea she wanted. He was also patient with us as we exchanged some sandwiches with others, ordered appetizers and the like. And yes, I know it's his job to do all this - but to do so graciously and in a friendly manner is just all the better!

I was mildly concerned this tea room would be too contemporary or asian for my tastes. I definitely prefer more classic teas, and tea rooms. However, the quaintness mixed with the restaurant-style seating mixed with the tea bar and massive (almost overwhelming) selection of teas actually came together for a really great atmosphere. I would definitely come back here again.

PS. Thank you Charleen for picking up this tea tab! Next one is on me.

Two A Tea

Shaunna and I went for tea today at Two A Tea in Glendora, CA. We both ordered the "Grand Duchess Tea" which included a pot of tea, a scone, soup or salad, and five tea sandwiches. I definitely left feeling extremely full and satisfied.

The scone was very moist and light. It was supposedly a mango scone, though it did not taste significantly as such (which I didn't mind - I was worried it wouldn't go well with the lemon curd, jam, or cream). My only complaint about the scone was the sugar baked on top of it. Far too sweet for my taste! The lemon curd was ridiculously sugary as well. The flavor wasn't bad, but... it was too sweet! The cream was good, and the jam was delicious.

Next came the bruschetta, which wasn't the normal sort of salad with large slices of tomato and slices of mozzarella. Instead, it was cherry tomatoes and shredded mozzarella over greens. The dressing was a balsamic vinagarette. The salad was good, but definitely overdone with the greens. But... it's a salad, so I can't really complain about that!



Lastly came out a two tiered tray with sandwiches! There were a total of ten sandwiches (five different flavors):

• turkey sandwich with some sort of fig dressing (I did not try this one)
• an egg salad sandwich (delicious!)
• a cucumber sandwich (SO good. It wasn't a cucumber salad, but rather a sort of dill or chive dressing on cucumber slices)
• roasted vegetable sandwich (tasted a lot like a red pepper hummus with veggies)
• chicken salad with fruit (as much as I hate to say it... it was terrible. All the flavors in it were good, just not together.)

And, last but certainly not least, the tea! I ordered Darjeeling (it was awesome!) and Shaunna got English Breakfast (I'm assuming it was good... she drank it without complaint.) I had my tea with two lumps and a splash of milk.

As a side note, I joined Steepster and realized they were holding a tea exchange! I joined, and got notified of my secret tea recipient. They marked that they particularly favored darjeeling and chai teas, so I got them darjeeling and chai!



Considering the darjeeling was as good as it was, I felt confident buying both the darjeeling leaves and chai leaves.

Tea set

This is my first tea set! It is the brand Bombay (but this means little to nothing to me as of right now.) The cups are a bit small, but I'll figure out what sizes and sets of everything work best for me.



It has three cups and saucers, a pot, creamer, and sugar pot. So cute! I can't wait to break it in.

Quote

Bread and water can so easily be toast and tea.

From http://www.quotegarden.com/tea.html.

Vintage Castleton

I have some of the coolest friends. Tyler, the one who had never tried tea before, stumbled upon a tea shop the other day and was kind enough to contact me to see if I wanted anything! We went back and forth a bit (he asked me what teas I liked, I said black, he texted me the wall menu of black teas, I inquired further about a couple, he told me their detailed descriptions...) before we settled on a blend: Vintage Castleton!



The shop is called Pekoe and it is located in Denver, CO. We will hopefully be breaking in my unused tea set with these leaves as soon as I'm back out in California this upcoming week! I'll let you all know how these leaves brew.

Scones

So my good friend Shaunna made impromptu scones yesterday, and I realized I should do the same since I am visiting my parents (who happen to have a sexy, fully stocked kitchen.) Here are the results!

I got the recipe from JoyofBaking.com (an uber-site of awesome recipes and tips!)

I'll just let the terrible quality phone pictures tell you the story of the process...











I got raspberry jam from the grocery store. I didn't bother with whipped cream or Devonshire cream.

They came out nice and crumbly, extremely moist, and HUGE. I accidentally purchased heavy whipping cream instead of regular heavy cream. Being that I'm not a baking connoisseur, I have no clue what the difference is! A quick search seemed to suggest it's only a difference of fat content.

I can't say I have any tips or tricks to this process. I followed the recipe to a tee, and it came out just as one would expect! Highly recommend it. Being that it's so easy, I will probably try some other more exotic tea-time recipes next. I have my eyes on macarons!

Quote

“Tea, the real afternoon delight.”

From http://twitter.com/#!/chiefteamaker

E-tea-quette

Did you know that raising your pinky when drinking a beverage - albeit tea, or anything else - is actually improper?

The origins of the phenomenon of raising one's pinky is debated, though the most convincing explanation (to me) is as follows: because Asian tea cups or mugs are handle-less, one's fingertips would get quite warm when drinking hot beverages. While people were much more hands on in most professions way back in the day, the pinky finger was more than likely much less calloused and abused than the other fingers, which would then cause the tea imbiber to lift their pinky whilst drinking tea!

While I know it's a bit of a stretch, it's at least something. So why ISN'T lifting your pinky actually proper?

I'm not entirely sure. I haven't been able to find a real answer to this, other than "it just isn't!"

There are actually many other little etiquette oddities that I would not have thought of without doing a little reading up!

• Hold your saucer underneath your cup, lest you spill any tea whilst sipping!
• Stir your tea quietly - don't let the spoon clank on the sides of the cup.
• Do not ever leave a spoon in your cup. Rest it on the saucer.
• Do not ever drink tea from the spoon, or lick the spoon. Tea is good, but there ought to be enough to not have to resort to this!
• Milk over cream. Cream is far too heavy for tea and overwhelms the lighter flavors of tea.
• Lemon + milk = fail.
• Always serve lemon slices, not wedges.

And that's a little taste of tea etiquette!

Tea cozy or not tea cozy?

I have been doing various online searches in attempt to find all the perfect pieces I would need to a proper tea set, including all the extraneous items, like napkins, spoons, filters, and - a knitted hat for my teapot? Wtf?

Of course, I have heard of tea cozies. I always thought of them to be dated, useless items that act as nothing more than a decoration. A lot of people associate tea with older women. A lot of people also associate knitting with older women. Tea cozies seemed, to me, a perfect marriage of these two activities. Being that I have no desire to knit a tea cozy, I assumed tea cozies weren't for me.

Well, in my recent scouring of the interwebs for tea stuffs, I actually read up on the history of tea cozies (yes, I know - it is absurd that tea cozies have a history). The cliffnotes version is: tea time became a staple activity in or around the 1840s in England for dignified women to mingle, converse, and generally gossip. That being said, and as we all know, women can talk each other's ears off with little enough provocation, so logically with all the gabbing, tea would get cold! And who wants cold tea?

Bring in the tea cozy! A sweater for your hot beverages! Have your hot tea and drink it too!

Nowadays, tea cozies come in all shapes and sizes. They're mostly absurd, and I find them to be tacky. But nevertheless, here are a few samples!

This is known as a dome tea cozy. It sits over a tea pot.



This one is referred to as a snuggie tea cozy. (You can keep your teapot's arms warm and still let it answer the phone!)



They can come in boxy shapes...



Or knitted like a beanie!



I have never had an issue with my tea getting cold - and even when it does, I still finish drinking it! Maybe, one day, I will succumb to my desire to have a complete repertoire of tea accessories... but until then, I will remain shamelessly cozy free.

Everyone has had tea... right?

Tyler: so what ya up to?
Aimée: messing with my tea blog
Tyler: i have never had tea
Aimée: ...
Aimée: how is that possible?
Tyler: i fail at life?
Aimée: even failures at life should have had tea.

Tea Tattoos

I'm a huge advocate of body art - piercings, tattoos, and the like. I was inspired recently do to a Google search of tea-related tattoos and was refreshingly surprised and impressed by what I found!



From TattooNow.com



From kaptenhanna



From weheartit

How do you make tea at home?

I don't remember when I first started getting into tea. Shamefully, I think it all began with Starbucks. I went through a healthy kick in which I drank copious amounts of Starbucks green tea. While it wasn't the best introduction, it still acted as a stepping stone to improved tea habits!

I soon began purchasing generic tea bags from the grocery store. These are still my go-to every-day tea of choice. I drank mugs and mugs and mugs worth in the evening after dinner, with only Splenda to sweeten. No milk. I also often munched on tea biscuits from the store with my tea.

Then my tea world was turned upside down. I studied abroad in England for six months, where I quickly realized tea was a beverage to be consumed at all hours. It was perfect with breakfast, after lunch, in the afternoon, with dinner, after dinner, after clubbing, to cure a hangover... tea was just what you drank. It was England's water. One could often find pubs with little containers of sugar cubes. In some locations you could specify the sort of tea, but it wasn't like in the US where you always had a slew of "tea" options (most of which are herbal and not true teas - but that's a post for another time.) In the UK, tea is tea. The only customization is the amount of sugar and cream you like in yours.

Upon my return to the states, I considered myself a proper tea drinker, so I allowed myself to splurge and drink tea... well, properly! I drank loose teas kept in tins. I used minimal supplements, and only when it enhanced the flavor (green tea was plain, black tea with a splash of milk.) This continued until I ran out of loose tea.

Sadly, our grocery stores here do not commonly sell loose tea, and my budget doesn't allow me to purchase loose tea from the pretentious shops in the area. Fortunately, tea bags (yes, generic ones) do the trick quite nicely! Tea bags lasted me for months and months until I became a blasphemer.

My mother bought me a Keurig for my birthday last fall. I have to say... the tea tastes great! I have English Breakfast containers for the machine, and can get two uses out of each one before it loses its strength. It feels a bit like cheating, but for daily use, who cares? My only complaint is the tea containers are pricey, so I will likely switch back to trusty tea bags once my current Keurig supply has waned.

Cordially, Aimée

Elise's Tea Room

On Jan 7th 2011, Shaunna and I took an adventure to Long Beach, CA where she had found a cute tea room for us to try out. All things considered, neither one of us are overwhelmingly picky - we're both food-loving, tea-loving people, so as long as everything tastes good and is served fresh, it's very difficult to go wrong. Elise's Tea Room definitely didn't let us down!

Their menu was a good size. It wasn't overwhelmingly large, which gave me a good feeling that anything we ordered ought to be good. The variety came in the different combinations of lunches or teas we could order. Being that we were visiting for lunch, we both opted for the Luncheon Delight Tea at a reasonable $10.50, which included a pot of tea, three tea sandwiches, and a scone with assorted jams.

I got a small pot of the black currant tea. I was slightly concerned the tea would be too light, but the size of the pot and strength of the leaves was just perfect for the flavor. One lump of sugar and a splash of cream made it just right! (Not to mention that the china in which it was served was adorable.)

The scone was fresh, warm, and absolutely delicious. I could have easily had a lunch of a platter of scones. It was served with a small plate of three toppings - a berry jam (my favorite!), Devonshire cream (also delicious), and a lemon curd (tasty, but too strong for the scone. It tasted much like the filling of a lemon bar.)

After the scone was sadly gone, out came our sandwiches! There were choices of the types of tea sandwiches. I opted for cucumber, black olive, and egg salad. The cucumber was just as I had hoped - light and crisp! The black olive was my least favorite of the three. The flavor was great, but it seemed the sandwich was less "filled" than the olives seemed only to be on the outside of the bread. Last but not least, the egg salad sandwich was simple and good - which can really describe the entire tea room.

Some tea rooms I've visited have been a bit intimidating or overwhelming, either in that the employees seem condescending, the menu is presumptuous, or the environment is bare. Elise's is warm and inviting; I felt at ease for the entire tea service.

In addition to the wonderful food and tea, I also found the tea set I have been searching for at an unbeatable price! But that I will save for another post.

Fondly, Aimée

P.S. As I was just so kindly reminded by my partner in crime, our tea excursion would not have been nearly as entertaining or awesome if it weren't for the old women sitting adjacent to us. They themselves were not particularly notable, but their conversation involving a big (not fat! - this is important) orange cat nicknamed "Lady Marmalade" definitely left us dying of silent laughter for a good portion of our tea service.

Welcome!

This blog is a creation and dedication to all things tea. Being a self proclaimed tea-aholic, I thought to myself, "what better way to keep track of my tea excursions, discoveries, and research than through a blog!" It'll be as much for my own benefit, to be able to reference past experiences, as I hope it will be for newcomers to the party.

I don't want to set myself up for failure, so I make no promises on the frequency of updates. I am aiming for at least once a week - but this is not a guarantee!

The topics covered will range from tea outings I've had, where I'll review the tea and snacks consumed at a tea shop, research I've done, books I've bought/read, and adorable knick knacks I might find on the web.

I have added an "ask" section, which could really just be a suggestion section if you, dedicated and beloved reader, find something tea-riffic that you are dying to tell us about!

Cheers, Aimée