Melbourne Breakfast

The geniuses at T2 have very smartly designed a range of blended teas for several of the Australia State capitals!

Since I am off to Melbourne next weekend, I thought to get into the spirit, that I would try the Melbourne Breakfast tea.

The bag describes it as full-bodied with a touch of vanilla. I do love vanilla in tea.

I decided to brew it nice and long and add milk. Vanilla tea with milk is almost as good as dessert. Actually…sometimes it’s better.

The aroma is milky and nutty. It is like rice pudding with vanilla. Smooth and tasty and reminds me of being a kid. My Mum used to make rice pudding for dessert sometimes.

It tastes delicious. Very vanilla-ery, full-bodied and comforting. It was not as sweet as some of the vanilla teas you get, which made me like it even more. The finish was almost a little spicy although I couldn’t put my finger on the taste. Maybe a little like nutmeg.

It was make a perfect after dinner tea in place of dessert or on a cloudy morning as a comfort. Or even when you are feeling down and just want to hug a teddy bear. I think I feel like this because the tea really reminded me of the taste of childhood.

I can’t say I think it tasted like Melbourne but I suppose since I went to boarding school in Melbourne maybe it is a bit reminiscent of my childhood in that way. Regardless, it was absolutely delicious and I’m looking forward to regressing back there with my next cup!

Comfy Chai

Last week was its usual mad rush leading up to Christmas.  It just doesn't seem possible that everything will get done before disappearing off for the break.

To help get me through I love the smells and taste of Christmas such as cinnamon, mixed citrus peel, cloves and mixed spices.  So, on Friday I did something I haven’t done for a long time. I bought a chai latte.

Now, as much as I occasionally begrudgingly accept the sugary confection that forms most chai lattes today (which incidentally don’t actually have any tea in them – just sugar and flavours), I infinitely prefer something that has some basis in tea. This one was made with chai tea from T2.

I have, in the distant past, when I was a huge fan of chai, attempted on many occasions (working through about two boxes of chai) to make a good tasty chai latte. Unfortunately this skill continues to evade me to this day. It is always too strong (and bitter) or too weak or too watery or too milky. I just can’t get the right balance. So I decided some things are best left to the professionals.

Downstairs at my local work café I noticed they had the T2 chai available as a latte. I felt like a comforting blast from the past.

It was perfect. Sweet but not sickly like many of today’s chai lattes. Spicy but not too spicy like may of the leaf-based chais. It had the perfect amount of milk so that it was flavoursome but still milky. Yum!

So bravo to anyone out there that has perfected the elusive chai latte! But if, like me, you haven’t, when you can find somewhere that does a good leaf-based chai, don’t let them get away!

Stockholm Syndrome

Ok, so I know that Stockholm Syndrome traditionally relates to a person becoming enamoured of their captor due to lengthy captivity but I don't see why the same thing doesn't relate to the fantastic Stockholm Blend at The Tea Centre.

It was Friday afternoon and after a heavy week, my boss had allowed the team to head off home at 3pm.  My problem:  I had left my keys at home so I had to wait until my fiance arrived home to let me in.

Anyway, I decided to spend the afternoon at The Tea Centre with a pot of Stockholm Blend.  It is a blend of black tea, orange peel, safflower, calendula blossom, rose petals, vanilla pieces and apricot.  It smells spicy and strongly of vanilla and apricots.

It tastes smooth, without a hint of bitterness despite the orange peel.  It is fruity, the same way you might describe in a red wine.

Yes, I did fall for my captor, if you count a divine black tea blend.  Well, it was rather captivating!