Tea

I’ve just gotten an assortment of teas—
pear and white tea (white tea from China flavored with real pieces of pear);
Darjeeling Silvertips white tea (delicate, sweet, and balanced, “the most wonderful white we’ve found”— something I’ll have to compare with my favorite Snow Leopard);
Kir Royale (a mixture of various red berries and fruits, set apart by the tangy flavor of black currant);
Lady Hannah (no tea, just a mix of whole fruits— blackberries, strawberries, raspberries—and herbs; a “very refined cup with character”);
Rote Grutze, Red Groats (a wild herbal infusion blended with rose hips and dried fruits);
strawberry apple (real strawberry and apple pieces highlight this delicious fruit herbal tea).

All from Tealuxe, the little shop in Boston (where I will soon be), where you can get grilled sandwiches and a pot of fragrant tea, escape from wading through snow on the Commons, warm your fingers, meet with a friend— currently writing her dissertation on medieval mystics, holed up in a vintage farmhouse in upstate New York.

In the meantime I drink Blue Mill sage tea from the Persian market in Mountain View where lamb and vegetables are often grilling, sending a fragrant cloud of smoke into the air.

I’ve often thought I would like nothing more than to start a Tealuxe franchise here, maybe a teashop and gallery in Allied Arts, with terracotta floors and whitewashed walls with matted photographs of favorite places, green French park chairs and tables set out in the courtyard; low ceilings and cushioned reading nooks like The Teahouse on Canyon Road in Santa Fe.

I wish I could embed fragrances and tastes in this blog, not just sounds and videos. Then I could throw a virtual tea party!


image: Christie B. Cochrell, Japanese Teapot