Instructions: Boil. Chill.

I'm not rocking out. I'm freaking out.

Yeah, so, things are a little quiet here at present because your faithful t2 blogger is experiencing career meltdown. My full-time gig is at the Chicago Sun-Times, which may or may not exist by year's end. I'm spending my time in union meetings and with much wailing and gnashing of teeth. I may have a lot of free time to sip and blog in the near future, as long as I can afford tea and wifi. Sigh. Back in the '90s, they told me this would be a stable career.

Thank God fellow local tea blogger Lainie Petersen recommended some baby chrysanthemum tea from Ten Ren. Tiny little flower buds, dusty white and green-grey, make a dull, slightly bitter infusion, but she was right: "Very calming. Evens you right out." She and I were the only attendees of a meetup last weekend in Chinatown, and when she pointed that out with that advice, I bought two canisters. I may finish them both by week's end. (Lainie's had a crap week, too, local readers. Send her some well-brewed love.)

I also have a nice bag of German chamomile our travel editor tossed to me the other day — it's a nondescript herbal packaged for Virgin Atlantic Airlines. God knows where it comes from, but it tastes fine. Need the nerve tonic, man.

What do you drink when you need to tame your nerves?

Taken from http://teasquared.blogspot.com/

The Immortal Mountain

That is how one feels at Phoenix Mountain, like an immortal, on a rainy, foggy, soggy day, squishy pathways up the mountain on the red clay soil, everywhere the scent of tree size gardenias, osmanthus flowers, giant bamboo groves and of course, extremely old tea groves full of white lichen. You feel that if you could but absorb some of this heavenly energy, you, too, can purge all the city living out of your lungs, and live to a thousand years alongside the tea. I think I would be perfectly happy having my ashes fed to the roots of the tea groves here. Wonder if my ashes are good enough fertilizer? Probably, have drank enough tea already by now. The trees here are typically 50 to 100 years old, and the best and oldest are well over 300 years. The young ones are about 10 years old and harvested for the first time. Most tea bushes in the world get harvested by the time they are 2-3 years, but not here. They have to be seasoned, sure, but the groves grow so very very slowly, and it takes so long for the roots to reach deep for nutrients. The roots are taller than the trees. Trees that grow on low lying areas never really grow well and usually don't survive, because the soil isn't rich enough. So high mountain it is; generally by 500 meters the fog rolls in, the soil is rich, and the trees thrive. Our Honey Fragrance Phoenix Oolongs are usually harvested at 800 -1000 meters, the Almond and Pommelo Fragrances are at the peak areas of 1300 meters or more. Wudong Mountain, the tea mountain of the Phoenix Mountain Range, is covered with new plantings at the bottom and full of the old trees at the top. The new trees are planted at the base for a couple of years, and if they survive, transplanted up the mountain for continuous growth, sort of like in a dojo, you can work your way up from white belt to black belt, that is if you survive the matches. Any poorer quality groves are grafted with better quality or more in style varietals. For example, this year, our favorites, the Almond and Pommelo, proved to be so wildly popular many younger trees were grafted with those two species.
I believe the energy of these mountains make the teas. I don't care what anyone says about teas grown at improper areas or mountains not meant for tea. There just isn't that heavenly energy. The soil, air, water, and the majestic quality of the mountain makes the tea plants grow to reflect that energy, and you can taste that in your cup of tea.

Taken from http://teapersonality.blogspot.com/

Tea Under the Tuscan Sun

Warmth and joy radiate from this tea set
as shown in a shop window display.
In my imagination,
some of the sun over Tuscany
casts it's glow on the
teapot and tray,
just waiting for someone
to take them home!

Thank you for visiting Gracious Hospitality. Please come back soon!

Taken from http://www.gracioushospitality.blogspot.com/

Comfort Food ~ Creamed Potatoes

Each family has their own version of 'comfort food'. When I married Brent I discovered that their family was no exception. One of his family's favorite comfort foods was something I had never heard of before; creamed potatoes. This really is a good recipe. Simple, savory, and filling; it's a stand-by for those days you want something white and creamy for a meal.

To make:

Dice cold, cooked potatoes. Be sure peelings are removed. Place in a large mixing bowl.

In a saucepan, make a white sauce. Mom's original recipe used milk and wheat flour. I've been able to adapt it successfully to vegan and gluten-free. In blender, whiz together plain soy milk, cornstarch, and a dash of mineral salt. Pour into saucepan containing olive oil. Stir over medium heat until thick. It should be 'pourable' rather than thick like pudding. Add dried leaves of sweet basil to the creamy sauce.

Pour sauce over diced potatoes and stir gently. The sauce will heat the potatoes, but if you would like them piping hot, place in microwave briefly to heat through.

Serve and enjoy!

Thank you for visiting Gracious Hospitality. Please come back soon!

Taken from http://www.gracioushospitality.blogspot.com/

What is shincha? | Review of 2008 Yukata Midori shincha

ichiban sencha; this is a more broad term, as it includes not only shincha but also first flush tea that is cold-stored for processing and sale throughout the year.

For comparison’s sake, shincha could be likened to beaujolais nouveau in that it is a celebration of the new harvest, and that it typically does not last long after production. That’s pretty much where the similarities end, though.

Shincha is not better or worse than ichibancha, so don’t be swayed by sales pitches (not that there really are any). It generally has a slightly more intense flavor, but doesn’t necessarily taste better than regular first flush sencha. In addition, it goes stale much sooner than ichibancha (which is why it is only sold for a short time).

Shincha can be purchased from most, but not quite all, dedicated Japanese tea vendors; O-Cha, Hibiki-an, Den’s, and Zencha (among others) are all popular.

When brewing shincha, one is advised to brew a bit weaker than one normally would for sencha. Lower temperatures and/or less leaf may be needed, and shorter steep times in particular are recommended. Shincha is slightly more intense than ichibancha, so it is easier to overbrew. If I could share one more bit of advice that helped me greatly, I would suggest pouring sencha slowly from your teapot. This pearl of wisdom isn’t specific to shincha; I do it with all Japanese teas, and I find it helps keep bitterness at bay.

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Class: Green
Origin: Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan
Year: 2008
Vendor: O-Cha (Product page)
Price: $24.95 (110g)

Since trying the Yukata Midori last year, I have eagerly awaited its return in 2008, and this year’s crop does not disappoint.



The leaf, as you may or may not be able to see, is fairly broken up, being a deep-steamed (fukamushi) tea. The scent of the dry leaf is sweet and rich. When brewed, this tea really shows its true color: vibrant, deep green. The color of brewed Yukata Midori is something of a legend among us internet shincha geeks.



It’s flavor this year is even better than last year’s, or at least better than I remember last year’s to be. If it had a fault last year, it was that it was a touch too mild; the 2008 version, however, is not. Being a blend, I imagine it’s producers attempt to achieve a consistent product from year to year, and I think they did a good job. It is still very smooth and sweet, without much astringency or any bitterness to speak of, and has a mild grassy flavor I don’t remember from before. Don’t worry if you’re not a fan of grassiness— I’m not either, but this was subtle enough that it’s really not an issue. It does require a light hand (yes, Hobbes, I’m stealing your line), being quite fussy with temperature. I would start low (160ºF or so) and work your way up until you find a temperature that suits your equipment and tastes.

I wholeheartedly recommend this tea, especially if you’re looking for a good introductory shincha. It will always be a favorite of mine!

Taken from http://teanerd.blogspot.com/

Reading Tea Leaves ~ The Symbol Cup

Although many people prefer a simple white cup for tea leaf reading, there are also traditions concerning the positional placement of the leaves in the cup, and some find it easier to work with marked cups. Beginning in the late 19th century and continuing to the present, English and American potteries have produced specially decorated cup and saucer sets for the use of tea-leaf readers. Many of these designs are patented and come with instructions explaining their mode of use. Some of the most common were those that were given away with purchases of bulk tea.

There are dozens of individual designs of fortune tellers' cups, but the three most common types are Playing Card cups, Symbol cups, and Zodiac cups.

Symbol cups - These sets are decorated with between a dozen and fifty of the most common visual cues that can be found in tea leaves, often numbered for easy reference and supplied with an explanatory booklet. The symbols are generally displayed inside the cups, but there are also sets in which they decorate the outside or appear in the cups and on the saucers. (Information courtesy of Wikipedia.)

Taken from http://uniquelytea.blogspot.com/

Seeds of Change

This photo may not look like much, but it is. Each speck that you see above is the seed of an heirloom tomato plant, and each seed will grow into its own plant, which will in turn produce it's own seeds, and so on. As Farmer Al says, "One grain of corn planted in a suitable environment will in turn - someday - feed the world."

Taken from http://teaandfood.blogspot.com/