Monthly Archives: January 2017

With A Little Help From My…

Tea 3 Comments

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Winter can throw many for a loop, depending on where you live.  For those of us in Maryland we’re currently in the heart of those winter doldrums.   It’s been a relatively mild and free from much precipitation.  That part I’m embracing and celebrating.

It’s the end of January so we’re in the heart of it and yet can see the light.  The light is coming.  The days continue to get longer by a few minutes.  And that’s something to be celebrated.   Most of my dear friends haven’t really been hibernating.  They’re more so doing different things, more low key things, and more cost-effective things.  And I’m for all of the above and anything similar.

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Speaking of cost effective, I had the most beautiful and affordable meal at one of my favorite places to sip tea and exist peacefully, Baltimore Coffee and Tea Company.

There is much to embrace about winter and January.  What I should have harped on more was that January is National Hot Tea Month.  Personally, every month for me is hot tea month and tea month in general.  But I digress and I welcome any extra excuse to drink some delicious hot tea.   And to explore teas and flavors I don’t always try.

I have a bit of an adviser.  I refer to this tea guru from time to time.  And when I’m at a personal stalemate or impasse I seek guidance from said guru.  My good pal has never failed me and came through in the clutch once again.

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She mentioned that she’s been enjoying the Pure Peppermint Tea from Twinings.

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I enjoyed it too.  And how I got to try it was serendipitous, organic, and spectacular.

I was all set to buy this package at my local store.  But I felt inspired.  I hadn’t been to my usual Baltimore Coffee and Tea Shop, in Timonium, MD, in quite a while.  I actually have been a couple times recently but don’t always look to blog or take pictures.  Sometimes I just need to grab a cup and a snack, and relax.

My senses told me that this peppermint tea would be available in individual bags for me to drink on site, and to pair with something healthy.

I searched through the goodie basket of singular teas and saw loads of Twinings, but not the Peppermint.

Luckily, the staff here is so great.  They will open a box of teas upon request.  I had asked and without any hesitation the extremely kind person behind the counter was thrilled to open a fresh package of Peppermint Teas, and even mentioned that it’s most of the baristas favorite teas.  That made me feel good, and it was a win-win all around.

That kind of service is so charming, and will make me want to keep coming back. And it was going to make my tea so much better.  It’s not a little thing. This is going above-and-beyond when it wasn’t even necessary.  I’m so appreciative and so grateful.

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My day was already made.  But I just needed a little something extra, and no it’s not the free sample area (I might have more on this later) you see below.

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I’m feeling like myself again, but that doesn’t mean I abandon what got me back to near full strength.  I wanted some chicken noodle soup.  I’ve been craving it everywhere I go. It’s sometimes been a part of my breakfast.  Yes, breakfast!

This was early afternoon so this tea with soup pairing seemed a little more practical.   And what a dynamic duo.

The tea is exactly what I hope for and more.   The ingredient is pure peppermint, all natural, and all awesome.  My friend told me it helped with her bloating.  So this is something I was all about trying, and be a part of my tea rotation, not just during the cold weather months, but throughout the year.  Yes this a tea for all seasons and all temperatures.

My simple soup and tea made this a peaceful, calming, and soothing meal.  And I can’t forget healthy.   I took a few pictures but after that I shut my phone off, and just sat there. I needed this.  I need this zen as much as possible.   For such a simple and satisfying meal, at just a touch over $5, I was there for nearly an hour.

I felt great.  I feel great.  And what made this all the more great was this tea.  When you know you’re drinking something healthy and so natural, your mind and body responds in kind.

I genuinely felt a healing during and after each sip.  My stomach and bloating issues are something I’ve been dealing it for some time.  This alleviated so much of that.

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Why didn’t I drink this sooner?  Maybe I’ve had it in the past and in a previous life, and it didn’t resonate with me like it has now.   Now I’m craving some as we speak.  I will make a cup as soon as this article goes up.

Having a tea like this can make a person feel good, but so can discussing it, and recanting the experience.

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I loved this experience.  Thank you as always Twinings, and thank you Baltimore Coffee and Tea.

For my previous posts on Twinings, which has been an important tea to my family and I for years, click here.   

And here are my previous posts pertaining to Baltimore Coffee and Tea.

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Finally, here is where you can find Twinings Teas at your local store, or for our friends locally, you can get it through Baltimore Coffee & Tea’s website, or in person.  Here’s their entire tea collection.

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Happy Final Day of National Hot Tea Month!  The celebration will continue into February, and for a while.

Ideen

 

Showtime Synergy

Tea 3 Comments

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If you got a chance to read my post from last week, this will be the conclusion from that.   Wow that sounded a bit dramatic didn’t it?  The intent isn’t drama, but more of a story of spiritual and all-encompassing healing.  Come to think of it, the majority of my tea time stories represent that theme.

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So it brings me great pleasure to write about GT’S Synergy Drinks.

The recovery process involved all the staples; chicken noodle soup, honey, ginger, all kinds of hot teas, probiotics, echinacea, and The Trilogy.  Wait what?!   Thankfully some good friends reminded me what I needed to feel good, and kombucha was heavily emphasized.

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Yes, The Triology is something I saw a couple of favorite friends drink periodically and I wasn’t sure what they were.  I built it up into one of those things where you had to be in an exclusive club to drink them.  If I didn’t know the password or in the know with the right people, I wouldn’t ever be allowed to come close to sipping the Synergy.

What on earth am I talking about?   There is a slight hint of truth (in my own mind) to what I’m saying.

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Luckily, the password is opening your heart and embracing the love.  And taking a trip to your local grocery store.   Kombucha is now being sold everywhere.  There’s a chance it’ll be your nature or organic section, which will me a forever growing entity.  And food shoppes ha co-opted eating and drinking healthy, and are evolving it into a part of normal culture.  I’m all for it.  Processed food and drink is part of what got me in this mess in the first place.

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Another thing, these bottles aren’t cheap.  They’re upwards of $3.  At my local grocery shoppe they were listed at $2.69, which is on the lower end of where I’ve seen them elsewhere. But I’ll tell you, it was worth every cent and more.

This the right alternative to soda, artificial sweetened juices, and other carbonated and poorly modified beverages.  As the label on the Triology says, one of the ingredients is 100% love.  I love that so much, and I believe it.

It’s a drink to be savored.  I’ve been one to have a bad habit of having a beverage all too quickly and not appreciating its value.  This has  value and the value far surpasses what I paid for it at the register.

Money comes and goes but good health is invaluable, indisputable, and irrefutable.

I’ve sung all the praises I can.  But what’s exactly contained in this here bottle?

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Aside from the aforementioned love, which I love so much, kombucha, raspberry juice, lemon juice, and fresh pressed ginger.  That’s it!  Well all the vitamins and probiotics that come with that too!  And everything is perfection.  Raspberry and lemon is not a combination I was ever accustomed to but now this will be a regular part of my life.  And I’m so thankful for that.

This is a gem that I finished over a couple of days.  I think having this all at once defeats the purpose and defeats the point of living a happy and healthy existence.

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If anything, the Triology and my recent ailments have taught me to slow it down and take a few steps back and appreciate the world around me.  Even if life presents itself loads of challenges, there’s also so much around to love and adore.  That’s my kind of love, in and out of this bottle.

Per all the superlatives, I just wanted to reiterate that this tastes great and is refreshingly awesome.

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Yes, that’s some not-so-homemade chicken soup paired with my kombucha.  It was the winning combination needed to get me in the (hopefully) forever right direction.

This opens up so many more options when it comes to writing about tea.  So as I’ve said before about  certain brands, this is only the beginning.  And I can’t wait to try as many of GT’s products that I can.

For more on GT’s, here is their story. here is our story, their contact information, and most importantly, where you can find their amazing beverages.

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When the right scenario presents itself, I will be writing about them again and again…

It’s all about the love, 100% of it.

Ideen

 

 

Hitting The Reset Button

Tea 10 Comments

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I read other blogs from time to time and catch a glimpse into a person’s life.  As much as the subject matter is most important, we can’t help but talk about ourselves.  There is no right or wrong to that.  It’s our blogs.  Whatever we say is our discretion.  And as long as we’re not hurting anyone, I say do what you do.

I had asked a dear friend for any suggestions on what to write about this week.  I always have a block of ideas for weeks like this, but nothing resonated with me.  Either that or the teas don’t apply to winter or to anything.

The holidays are over and that means the teas will have a more winter theme, but they could be about anything.  But I want it to be just right.

My friend suggested writing about turmeric, and Numi in particular.   I liked the sound of everything I was hearing.

Then I got that ring of familiarity.  As if I had come across it before. Lo and behold, nearly 6 months ago today I wrote this post.  But this was in the Summer. And turmeric is best suited for the colder months, in my opinion.  But don’t listen to me, these teas are meant to be enjoyed the whole year.  If we have health issues that need tending, something that might taste funny on a 80+ degree today might just be what the tea Gods ordered.

That was the Amber Sun.  Fortunately for me, there is another turmeric tea from the good people at Numi, and I jumped all over it.  Today I present to you the unique and gorgeous Three Roots.

I’m under the weather.  I think months (maybe a couple years) of being spread so thin has finally caught up with me.   The holidays not withstanding, this goes back longer.

I just have not been one to sit still much.  It’s in my best interest to do so.  As much as I like to say I stay home more (and there’s been stretches of that), I like the company of my friends and all the activities that come with it.   I love drinking wine, and unfortunately I love eating food that I should have in limited doses.

To contrast that, I also work out a lot, but I do it more than necessary. And worse than that, my sleep patterns have been at the worse they’ve ever been.  However, like with anything, our bodies get used to it.  It’s an adrenaline kick that seems like it has no expiration date.

That’s over for now.   I think it has all finally caught up to me.  That and the weather patterns are there for the cold or for the flu.   I’m quite clueless as to what I might have.  I tend to just live life as if I’m happy and healthy.  Right now I’m not sure I’m either.

Thankfully this is on a holiday and the stresses are lessened.  I hope so at least.  Since it’s been post Christmas, the commotion has died now.  But it’s let me with a sense of needing that next dose of excitement.  It’s time to take it down a couple of notches.

Aside from purchasing the Three Roots tea, I haven’t left my house.  And it feels ok.  But it took being under the weather for this to happen.

I’ve been laying in bed all day.  I’ve been unable to move.  But I understand that the body and mind are just trying to heal themselves.  It’s resetting itself.  I also know that I’m not as young as I once was.  It’s a must to take it easy.   I worry a lot, I am all over the map, and none of this is constructive.

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It took whatever energy I had left to make this tea.  And I’m so grateful I finally did.

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This is not the best tasting tea nor did I expect it to be.  But what it was, is going to lead me into the continued healing process.  My dear pal suggesting this tea and me being as out of it as I am, is no accident.  These things connect.  And this tea connected me to a spiritual place I’ve not encountered in a long time.  Well maybe I have, but I just wasn’t aware of it.

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I made two cups and without realizing it took my sweet time with both.  When you are humbled and have less energy, it’ll force yourself to adjust.  Like an old man, I was starting at a wall, with nothing but my thoughts.  I’m contemplating things.   What those things are, are between me and the universe.  But this tea did something to me.

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And that golden brown color is worth the price of purchase alone.  It tastes bitter but it’s supposed to. The combination of turmeric, ginger, rose, and licorice is my best friend right now.

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The health benefits of turmeric have been widely documented.  I  hope I’m the recipient of some as I pray I get some of the best sleep of my life, and wake up tomorrow resuming the healing process.

Here is a store locator on where you can find all their amazing teas.  You can also shop online at your convenience.  Like I said in June, with Numi, we’re just getting started.

It was just me, my thoughts, and my cat (I love her so much) when sipping this tea.  When you can barely move, you start being thankful for all the things you do have.  It shouldn’t come to this where this is where you show gratitude.  But here I am.

It’s time to take it easy.

Stay Healthy,

Ideen

 

 

 

 

Jasmine Pearls

Tea 5 Comments

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You sometimes don’t know where the best teas will come from.   I could go on some long winded rant about how the best teas could be loose, or in bags, or from other source.  And I might also say the best of the best may find you.   When you aren’t looking it just comes your way.  I’ve gone on and on about the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of tea drinking.  It’s a subconscious and conscious experience all at the same time.

The team I’m going to write about here is from a company I’ve never heard of, and it was sipped at a place I’ve never been to before, and in a place I would least expect.   Actually it wouldn’t be near the last place I’d expect, but it’s fun to say that for dramatic purposes. But it was at a place where it only seems fitting.

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I’m happy to say that the Haiku White Tea from The Jasmine Pearl Tea Company is one of those teas I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

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What makes this even all the more special is this was after appetizers, after wine, and after a fantastic dinner at Vin 909 in gorgeous Annapolis, MD.  And this location is as cozy, charming, and welcoming as it gets.  But more on this awesome restaurant later in the week.

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But this tea oh my goodness.  Maybe it was the setting, maybe it was the ambiance, the location, the meal, the energy, and the everything.  It doesn’t matter.  Good tea is good tea and great tea is even better.  This was on another level.

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I don’t talk about white tea enough.  I’m grateful I got to write about a expertly crafted one here. The white with natural peach, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean flavors makes this a unique medley of flavors that I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure of having altogether before. Throw in orange peel and rose hips (which I couldn’t taste since I was mesmerized by everything else) and this is a tea I strongly recommend, but only wish was available at a store near me.

The good news is you can purchase this tea among so many selections online.

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To me, this tea is a throwback to so many I’ve had in the past.  It felt like a culmination of something.  No, not the culmination, or else that’s even more over-the-top, and I’m just getting warmed up.

The majority of restaurants we go to do have tea. But not like this.  And the tea offerings are usually along the lines of the most standard label, which usually means a black tea, and anything but herbal.  And there’s nothing right or wrong about that.   Higher end (which is what I consider Vin 909 to be) restaurants don’t (and for good reason) consider their after dinner menus as well thought out as I’ve seen Vin 909’s.    And this is part of what I forgot to mention earlier.

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You usually get this presentation at tea shops and cafes, so this gave me that warm and happy feeling.  Anytime I see a teapot with infuser, I’m super excited.  Yet, I try to keep that enthusiasm to myself or I may be asked to leave the premises.

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The tea paired with a heavily rich Chocolate pot de creme.  It was comfort food for a time of comfort.  It’s January, we’re still in a bit of the holiday hangover.  This is the time to be practicing healthy eating and drinking habits.  Apparently this was the last thing on my mind.

For more on the wine pictured below, click here.

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The dessert was an interesting counterbalance to the tea.  I split it with company, and still could barely eat any.  But the joyous tea was one I was thrilled to split 50/50.

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I’m craving a pot all to myself right about now.    But I would be a fool to say that everything else leading up to this was tremendous, that it made the after dinner experience that much better.

Where is this going?  I go to a farm-to-table restaurant/wine bar and all I write about is the tea?   I keep my universes separate, but this will all make sense as the week progresses.

In all honesty, depending on where the next posts go, the tea one might have been the easiest or most difficult to right.  How about that for a bold prediction?

If you are in or around the Annapolis area, I cannot recommend Vin 909 enough.

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Here is their menu, their wines (more on this this later this week), and a little more about them.

I was happy to learn that owner and general manager, Alex Manfredonia is a big supporter of my dear friend’s organization, Anne Arundel County CASA.

It makes me happy to support a great restaurant that supports a greater cause.

This will all be elaborated on later.

For more on the incredible and incomparable Jasmine Pearl Tea Company, click here, more about them, their story, and of course where to buy.

It’s a Vin 909 kind of week.

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To be continued…

Ideen

Have A Holly & A Jolly

Tea 1 Comment

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I know I know, Christmas is officially over.  It’s 2017.  It’s time to move forward. But what better way to move forward then talking about a new that could be beneficial to all the folks who enjoyed themselves a little too much over the holidays.  I would fall into that category as well.

The Holly Jolly Ginger Aid Tea from Traditional Medicinals might have been what you were looking for.  Unfortunately it may be hard to find right now.  As I was lucky to find this as a clearance item at my local Wegmans.

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You might be able to tell by the photo that I literally snagged the last one.  I thought that it might have been waiting for me to be sampled and reviewed.  In hindsight, I wish I got around to this within the last couple of weeks.

But I remember the first time I tried it that it didn’t stick out to me in any way. The flavors of lemon, ginger, and blackberry really didn’t wow me whatsoever. This is part of why I waited a bit to right about it.

It had a nice aroma of lemon and ginger.  It didn’t overpower me which didn’t feel like a red flag on first sniff but made sense a few minutes later when I began sipping.

As like all teas, I really wanted to like this product.  Just look at that adorable packaging. And look at how pretty at the design of the bags before being opened.

Sadly, the tea was just kind of there.  And I’m a huge fan of Traditional Medicinals so I consider this an aberration more than anything. It has the tint and shine of another solid tea but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find it again.  But I do have a near full package so I will do my best to enjoy it over time.

On a personal note I’ve pretty much had a full stomach and lethargic way about me going back a while.  This goes back way before Thanksgiving.   Without getting into too many details, this tea hasn’t been as beneficial in that regard as I hoped. Maybe it worked differently for you if you did get some yourself.

I can’t speak for you or anyone else, but I can only imagine that over the last month or so, eating healthy and seeking out health with digestion was not at the top of everyone’s list. That’s completely understandable.

We have this short time on earth and want to enjoy ourselves not only during the holidays but with all the celebrations we attend.  In that way we should feel blessed that we get the opportunity to be invited to such gatherings.  I’m grateful to have been a part of a few myself this holiday season.  I hope you got to enjoy yourself as well.

But as with New Years and all the resolutions that come with it means a bit of a reality check.  Many of us try to eat healthy, exercise, and practice healthy lifestyle choices.  The decisions we make on a daily basis can lead us to that happy and healthy place.  I’m saying this to you as much as I’m saying this to myself.  And not as a sermon but as a friendly blogger who happens to love good tea.

I truly wish I could say this tea was awesome.  I can’t though.  But I can suggest plenty of other great teas from their vast collection.  It’s been a while since I wrote about them, but here are my previous reviews of their fun and beneficial teas.

I’ve been having this tea myself to much more positive results.  I will get to this one in time as I have a lot of positive things to say about it.

For where you can find their teas click here.  And you can order online as well.

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It’s been a great holiday and my decorations are still up  When I will take them down is when I’m ready to let go and move on to the next thing.  But this is likely the end of the Christmas-themed posts unless I magically come across something inspiring in the next few days.

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There’s still this day by the way.

I hope you all had a stellar holiday and look forward to sharing more great tea experiences in 2017.

Stay healthy,

Ideen