Welcome to the May 2024 edition of Tea Infusiast News–a newsletter for tea lovers to connect with and through tea. This is the 17th edition of the newsletter.
In this May 2024 Edition
Teaware Talk: Panda Teacup
This month’s spotlighted teacup is a sentimental one. It’s part of a panda bear teacup and teapot set I gave my daughter when she was in elementary school. We used it a lot when she was younger, although almost never with real tea. She was a huge fan of frothed cinnamon or chai-spiced milk at that time. We also used to have a David’s Tea at our local mall. My daughter particularly loved their Strawberry Kiwi tisane.
Back of the Cupboard
The photo of the panda teacup is from those days. I snapped it as she was about to take the cup after patiently waiting for me to stop photographing the cup.
We haven’t used the set often in the past few years. The matching teapot is adorable, but very inconvenient–it has such a narrow opening at the top that it’s hard to get out the tea leaves you steep in there. And, even tea bags don’t work. Once they are infused, they are too wide to get out without an epic battle. The teapot used to have an ingenious small and long metal mesh filter that fit in there for loose leaf teas. But, we lost it and I haven’t been able to find one the right size since then.
Returning to Regular Use
As I was looking for things to declutter recently, I suggested giving away the set. That was a hard “no” from my daughter. (I’ll be honest. I was relieved!) So, we’ve brought the teacup back into rotation and I’m renewing my search for a food-grade mesh metal filter for the teapot. I am hoping that I can find one narrow and long enough to help us start using the teapot again. Have you ever had teaware out of service due to its inconvenience and been able to resolve that issue? I’d love to hear that story.
What’s Steeping
At home, I have been particularly enjoying…
First Flush Black Tea 2024 from Nepal Tea Collective (NTC). This was gifted to me by NTC. I had no responsibility to post, per my review policy, unless I truly enjoyed it. I’m happy to share my sincere enthusiasm for this tea! It’s a comforting and uplifting combination of brothy, garden greens, and floral notes. I’m also thoroughly enjoying their Nepali Breakfast Organic Chai.
Matcha–Usucha Matcha from Momo Tea. I bought this fresh, creamy matcha with a delightful green bean note at the Toronto Tea Festival. I’ve been whisking it up at home the last month or so.
Mi Lan Xiang Feng Xi (Honey Orchid Fragrance oolong) from Camellia Sinensis is back in heavy rotation lately. I love the floral, fruit, and mineral qualities. My adorable new rabbit tea pet (shown in the photo by the table of contents for this newsletter, above), by the way, is named MiLan. She came in the festival-in-a-box that the Cascadia Tea Festival sold as part of their inclusive experiences this year.
When out and about…
The iced matcha latte with sakura cold foam from the Humble Cafe in Williston Park (on Long Island) is delightful. I am also really fond of their hojicha latte with cinnamon.
May Online Offering, Plus Bonus
My online Spring Rest Kit for Tea Lovers has everything but the tea you need for convenient, restorative, and mindful tea sessions! It is in season and available. I’m excited to be running a special offer right now, too.
I’m offering a bonus online guided tea and rest session to which all Spring Rest Kit friends are warmly invited.
If you purchase your kit by May 8, 2024, you will be invited to join us. The live session will take place on Friday, May 10th, 1:30-2:00pm EDT via Zoom.
No pressure to join the live session if you are only interested in the online rest kit. You can get the Spring Rest Kit for Tea Lovers and skip the bonus live session.
In-the-Works: In-Person Event
I’m working on organizing an in-person guided tea and mindfulness session at a location on Long Island. It’s always lovely to meet Tea Infusiast News subscribers in person, and to meet new tea friends, too.
I’m also mulling whether to organize a summer tea meetup.
If you are local to Long Island and/or NYC OR travel here regularly, I invite you to sign up for notifications about my in-person tea events in the area.
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ICYMI on the Blog
The flavor profiles, beauty, and other factors persuaded me to add of persimmon leaf and magnolia blossom herbal teas into my tisane rotation at home.
Read this blog post from April 2024…
2 replies on “Tea Infusiast News, No. 17”
I love NTC! Current teas in my rotation are Everest, Kanchanjangha Verde, and Kumari Gold.
That’s wonderful to hear! I’ve never tried their Everest or their Kanchanjangha Verde. I’ll put them on my radar! Thanks for sharing, Janet.