Weekend trivia

Romla

Whilst I’m a black tea drinker mostly I too enjoy the occasional  Twinings herbal -spearmint & camomile  and also their lemon&ginger .Madam Flavour teabags seem to allow more flavour because of the fabric and shape of the bags - have had the odd chai tea..Dilmah is not as fresh a taste imo as it was in the 80s before the sons took over and started to experiment .

primek

Totally agree regarding the tea. Inoften feel shoukd just order hot water and add my own bag.

kmakm

I visited a tea plantation outside Dharamsala in 2015. We had a private tour of the factory and then tea on the lawn of the plantation manager's house. The view was stupendous. We were offered black tea and white tea and asked which one we would like to drink, or would we like to try both? Yes please!

Well we waited and waited. It wasn't an arduous wait as we sat in wicker lawn chairs watching the afternoon sun on the snow capped Himalayan mountains across the valley, eagles wheeling high above. However it was taking such a long time that we said, what are they doing, picking the tea?

Actually yes, they were! Two beautiful teapots with freshly picked tea leaves were brought out with matching cups and saucers. The taste was extraordinarily good. Fresh, delicate, complex. They were the best two cups of tea I've ever had.

The memory of this spot was what I used during my Sentinel Node Biopsy. A happy place to go to in my mind.

Zoffiel

I'd like to try growing my own tea, but it gets too hot here and the soil is wrong for camellias. I could try tinkering with it but I'm too lazy to keep that up for years.
I found the best tea pot at a garage sale a few years ago. It's stainless steel, looks like it started life  in some sort of commercial environment--a ship? Hospital? Anyway it holds about four cups and it stays hot. 

Sister

You need a cosy on the ceramic ones.  I had never thought of growing tea.  Camellias do magically, here.  (I even transplanted a huge camellia a few years ago with no care and it thrived.)  And I didn't know that tea didn't have to be dried.
Let me know if you see any of the Madame Flavour rose blend @romla.  It seems to be very hard to find now which is why I've gone to Dilmah.  It's a lovely afternoon tea when you're not looking for something strong.

Romla

Will do @Sister but try Yorkshire gold in the afternoon too. It’s available loose leaf and teabags .

Romla

Oh @kmakm I remember the fresher taste when Dilmah first came to Australia but wow  nothing like this and the views - astounding.

arpie

I used to like Dilmah too - but now find it a  tad bland, @Romla !

I think they only dried it for export etc -  cos the natural leaf would go mouldy.    I think there would even be oils in the fresh leaves, to give much more flavour

Beryl C.

kmakm your photos would make a beautiful calendar, they are also a visual representation of 'mindfulness'. In fact my response to, 'and do your practice mindfulness' is, 'Of course, I drink tea!'

arpie

LOL

kmakm

Thank you @""Beryl C."

kitkatb

Stunning photos @kmakm  It would have been an amazing experience. xo

kmakm

@kitkatb It truly was. We were accompanied by the maharajah of the state too! He has the longest traceable royal lineage of any royal family in the world. It was amazing.