Have you ever been in a situation where you're doing a wine tasting and you hear: "I love that hint of cassis" and while you're thinking "what's cassis?" you hear: "fruit forward baking spices" and you're like "huh?" At: "I love the hint of torrefaction," you blankly stare. If asked: "does this lean more toward … Continue reading How to Taste and Describe the Tea You Drink
Making tea should always be easy. Pick a tea, heat the water, steep, and pour. For each particular tea, if you keep brewing parameters the same and use a neutral teapot, such as glass or porcelain, you'll get consistent results. For delicate white and green teas, glass and porcelain teapots are ideal because they are … Continue reading Does Your Clay Teapot Change the Taste of Your Tea?
Why are we sort of gratified when we hear about experts being stymied? Is it because we find certain experts somewhat intimidating, or irritatingly self-assured, and so we enjoy seeing the playing field leveled for once? Is it because sometimes we feel that our own opinions are just as valid as that "expert" one? Watching … Continue reading The Teacup Can Mislead Even a Tea Expert!
Do you have a favorite cup, and if so, what makes it your favorite? My dad has a favorite coffee cup based on its shape and how the lip curves in just the right way. My husband's favorite is simply the one that holds the most liquid! Back in the 700s, during China's Tang Dynasty … Continue reading Do You Need a Green Teacup for Green Tea?
Tea and wine taste nothing alike. Yet are these wine or tea descriptions? lush, buttery floral and vanilla notes floral aromas of jasmine, orange blossom and honeysuckle flavors of spiced plum and dark cherry, notes of cocoa leather, tobacco smoke, and dried cherries velvety mouth feel and subtle and lightly smoky notes of cocoa and leather … Continue reading Tea and Wine Taste Descriptions: Fact or Fiction?
When you reach for a teacup, do you ever have to think about it? If you're a somewhat tea-obsessed individual, yeah, you get this, and you may have joined me in pausing and deliberating. Aesthetics or just functionality? Match teacups to teapot? Or teacup to tea type? Serving guests or no? Drinking mindfully or absentmindedly? … Continue reading Why You Should Choose Your Teacup Carefully
In matters of your teacup, COLOR matters. If color didn't matter, marketers wouldn't be investing research dollars to optimize the color of that kid's cereal box or the upscale restaurant menu. We are easily swayed by our own perceptions, with a 2014 study showing that a cup's color influences how people rate the flavor of coffee … Continue reading Does Your Teacup Matter?
It's More Than Tea 