Cool liquids -

The best iced tea ever!

Jeanne's elixir ~ a wonderful herbal blend of lemon myrtle, 

chamomile, lavender, rose, spearmint and peppermint.

I brewed enough to keep in the refrigerator during this ongoing 

heatwave . . . . . . . . . .

When visiting Jeanne's beautiful farm in New Hampshire

last month, we sipped this same tea in her sun room looking out 

across the stunning landscape toward the mountains . . . . . and she 

kindly gifted me with this jar of the blend to bring home.

You can follow Jeanne here at her fabulous blog ~  COLLAGE OF LIFE.

*********************

Iced tea, the northern name, is usually called sweet tea here in the south

and brewed from black or green tea leaves. A form of tea that is brewed

 cold to begin with, and then mixed with ice, it’s almost always

heavily sweetened, especially if you order it away from home.

Though I've lived in the south over forty years where sweet tea is a

 legendary drink on hot or cold days, I have to admit I am not a lover of it, 

perhaps imbibing only a few times. Iced coffee, yes, yes, yes, love it, 

especially on a hot day like today and all the past days recently when

 temperatures hovering around 100F continue to be the norm.

Hot tea I enjoy anytime, black, green and herbal.

Recently I tried Kombucha for the first time. This brand

is made by a local company

It was quite refreshing but after reading that it may

not be a healthy alternative I doubt I will drink it often.

If tea is not your choice of beverage but you want a refreshing fizzy drink,

I tried this one. Nothing outstanding regarding flavor, very subtle, but

 Pellegrino by name alone makes one feel Italian, and the tall skinny can

 is very attractive if you're a visual person, lol!!!!

Hey friends, these days anything different that might make one

 feel special is good!

Stay cool!

Teatime on a rainy afternoon -

On the way to Sligo, Ireland on a rainy afternoon - June 2019.

Photo from the bus window.

Beautiful music for teatime from the piano of  Brian Cain 

It was raining here in Raleigh on a recent afternoon - not a drenching rain
 such as often experienced in Ireland last year - but wet enough to
 stay indoors, bring out a favorite mug (Emma Bridgewater's "Happiness is a 
Cup of Tea & A New Magazine & A Bar of Chocolate"), and enjoy a nice
 calming herbal infusion of camomile tea. 

I didn't have a bar of chocolate but I enjoyed small, but perfect for dipping, 
Italian Crunchy Figs & Almonds biscotti - Fatti a Mano (meaning handmade). 
I found a pretty bag of these in that always interesting imported foods section 
of my local HomeGoods store at Christmas - a favorite place to search for
 delicious items not carried in regular grocery stores.
Do you ever check there for food items?
TJMaxx has a similar but smaller section.

I've baked 'handmade' biscotti, but not recently. A bit time
consuming but always fun and I must make some again soon.

Some of my more interesting tea bags I have to admit I've picked up from

mostly European hotels and airport lounges. . . . . and many when on

 board ships!  

Those overseas locations, always have such an interesting array of 

teabags - which makes me think they still love their tea more than coffee,

 which usually seems first choice for a hot drink here in the USA.

Not certain where this particular teabag traveled home from - but

it was really good and so alluring when I opened the "Hand-Stitched

Silken Tea Pillow"  which expanded when the hot water was poured

and the camomile buds opened.

Where do you purchase your tea bags or loose tea?

I buy a lot when visiting home in England - two of my favorites being the

 Empress Grey and Pure Origin Ceylon available from Marks & Spencer.  

Quite honestly, despite being English, my knowledge of tea is minute!

I never liked or drank tea growing up. It was basically strong loose black

 tea brewed in my mother's teapot, and I really only started enjoying

different teas, black, green and herbal, perhaps 25 years ago. 

I'm dedicating this 'tea post' to my fabulous Portland, Oregon friend

Marilyn at Delights of the Heart

We met many years ago through our blogs, and some years back

 (in 2013 - wow how time flies!) Bob and I were able to meet Marilyn and

 her charming husband Jim in Portland. 

Being an extremely knowledgeable tea expert Marilyn introduced me to

 exciting new teas . . . . I just know you will love her relaxing teatime posts, 

both indoors, outside in her garden and greenhouse, in the countryside, 

 at the beach, and especially at the stunning Lan Su Chinese Garden in

Portland where she took us one afternoon.

  Marilyn's beautifully written words, and the thought-provoking poetry she

shares, make for perfect reading with your own cup of tea, so do stop by

 her great blog if you haven't done so before.

Tea time in Harrods . . . . . .

After the many enjoyments of the lovely city of Bath, 

including meeting up with dear friends 

Ruth and Mike from Wiltshire . . . we headed to London.

As discussions on tea, teatime, teapots, tea towels etc. 

are being addressed this week, today I just have to share the 

Mariage Frères (French: Mariage Brothers) tea department 

in the hallowed food halls of Harrods.

This French gourmet tea company, based in Paris, was founded 

in 1854 by Henri and Edouard Mariage.

Personally I've never tasted any of these teas but, after 

seeing how beautifully packaged they are, and the fact 

their labels seem to celebrate the countries of the 

world . . . I may consider taking out a bank loan so 

I can afford one or two to sample in case I'm missing

something spectacular!

Tea aficionados perhaps you can help me here - have you 

tasted them, are they worth their weight in gold?

If I could just get my hands on a single teabag I'd 

be happy, especially if it was sporting a pic of 

lovely elephants or camels . . . having ridden joyfully on 

the backs of both. 

I doubt they even put tea leaves this expensive in little 

bags though - I think it's all loose tea, sealed safely in 
glass apothecary jars or elegant tins - but that's OK, 

I have teapots, tea strainers, even tea cozies, and my 

kettle is always plugged in ready for a boil.

What do you like to nibble with your cup of tea?

Nearby the tea offerings were Harrods Patisserie and 

Boulangerie departments. There, in ribbon-tied celluloid 
boxes, beautifully decorated fancy cakes beckoned. 

How could one ever bite down and destroy these lovelies?

Imagine giving a toddler a $5.00 cupcake to mutilate when 

the double-decker bus, or the Queen's guards, have been so 

carefully iced on top!

This would be my heaven - a fresh, light sweet croissant, 

a scone or fruited bun, or perhaps an almond shortbread.

Ah, tea time. All around the world people enjoy a hot cuppa 

at different times of the day. 

Mine is the traditional 4 o'clock in the afternoon. 

Other times I enjoy a nice cup of strong, plain black coffee.

How about you? When do you most enjoy drinking tea?