An American on English Breakfast Tea

Teavana announced last week: Free Shipping. No min. amount needed (normally $50.)

It's a new month...so you know what that means...it means I used up my monthly budget for tea in the first 3 days of the month...Note to self, Self's got to make some money DUEing tea at some point.

On that note, I'm actually trying to marry my two personal pursuits, writing and tea...I've come up with...well, not much...except the idea of detective stories and tea. But as much as I've enjoyed Psych, White Collar, Sherlock, Midsomer Murders, (and oh, how could I forget Monk!!!) with my hubby, I'm no mystery writer, or chess player. I think they rather go hand-in-hand.

And, I don't relish the idea of sitting around thinking up ways to murder people. Something about "think on good things" and I have my share of people I'm having trouble loving as it is...I really don't need to focus on clever ways to "off" them. 

In fact, to my way of thinking, Sir Author Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie were likely very pleasant sort of persons, delightful and most agreeable, getting along with everyone they met! Of course, they were brilliant on the dark side of things, so do you really think we'd know if they decided to indulge?

I'm just saying!

~~Either way, good time to segway onto the English side of things before I digress further~~

Did you know English Breakfast tea was actually made by an AMERICAN during colonial times! That thought just tickles me.

Now, in my ever growing life span, I've discovered I do not, on the whole, enjoy English Breakfast teas, or Scottish or Irish~ The difference between the three is in the blending. These breakfast teas announce themselves in a most uncouth manner upon the senses. They are the exact opposite of what the English are known for...They are obnoxious, in my opinion.

Are you getting the irony?

Moving along, Teavana's end of the year sale on their English Breakfast Tea at around $1.50 per 2oz was too great to pass up. I tried it...and I'm hooked. And at $4 for 2oz yielding 25-30 cups of tea, it's a great deal for a quality tea!

It has a smooth, almost gentle taste, a deep ember liquor with an eloquent body, a perfect morning tea to replace my bagged Lipton, which I tried the other day...and just can't go back to. Humph!

This lovely blend ~ likely a high end Keemun, hard to tell by the ingredients listed, which simply says "Black Tea" but I think Keemun because I LOVE Chinese black teas A N D so many English Breakfast teas are made with Assam and Ceylon blends ~ pairs beautifully with my simple morning ritual of tea and toast with whipped butter.

I am glad it's part of my collection once again.