I love to travel. Going someplace new always inspires inventiveness and creativity. On a recent family vacation to England, one of the many inspirations I took away from this trip was tea time. Of course England and Tea time are synonymous, it seems very cliché to even mention it, but the English take their tea very seriously, more seriously than I imagined. Tea was EVERYWHERE.
On one occasion we visited a garden center in search of a hostess gift. The shop was very typical of an American shop, plants, flowers, pots, garden tools, etc. except that in the middle of the store was a tea shop. No paper takeaway cups for this country. A good, old fashioned, sit down tea complete with scones and jams.
I love tea and drank my fair share even before my visit to England. But more important than the cup of tea is the ritual and pause that ‘tea time’ affords. Taking time in mid afternoon to sit and relax with a cup of tea, muse about the day or the evening to come has become a new practice that I took away from my trip and reminds me of the beautiful country where tea is part of their culture.
Some of my favorites for Tea time:
1. Earl Grey Black Tea from Stash 30 ct ($3-5) at local Grocery stores, Walmart or online at Stashtea.com Stash makes the best Earl Grey with just the right amount of Bergamot.
2. Tea Infuser stick ($9.95) at Crate and Barrel. It’s a decadent ritual to have a cup of tea made from loose tea. This Tea infuser stick makes it easy and portable. The stainless portion of the stick makes scooping the loose tea easy and spill free, attach the diffuser end and set it into a cup of hot water. Just stir and you have a luxurious cup of tea without the mess.
3. Organic White Honey ($17) from Volcano Island Honey in Hawaii, there aren’t words for how good this honey is, I could eat it right out of the jar with a spoon. You can find it at their website but I’ve also seen it for sale at Whole foods.
4. Electric Tea Pot ($30) from Walmart. I like this version, it heats up fast and the base is wired, not the pot which makes for easy service and cleanup.
5. Mate Chocolate, organic spiced yerba mate by Guayaki. I love coffee and chocolate together but never enjoyed chocolate with tea until I found this brand. It’s spicy and chocolaty without the overpowering licorice or clove flavor that other spiced chai teas have. YUM!
6. Stoneware Japanese mug, Pearl River ($6.50). I have a handle-less stoneware mug that I found in a kitchen shop in Bar Harbor Maine, similar to this one. I like having a special mug for tea, especially one without the handle so you can wrap your hands around it on cold days.
7. Tea Book, ($10) by EliteElishi on etsy.com. America has lots of great coffee shops but not so many tea houses, so I keep a few of my favorite tea bags in this padded envelope in my purse. It’s especially great for travelling, the booklet keeps the tea packets from getting crushed or lost.
