Teapot necklace

I purchased this beautiful, handmade, sterling silver teapot from Etsy.  This man made it in China and I adore it.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/YINGMENGHandmade?ref=shop_sugg

This is for the charm only, but $6.12 is a great price for sterling silver.  It is so delicate and beautiful.

It goes great with my Chinese symbol,"tea" necklace that I also purchased from Etsy.

I love it!  I may turn it into a bracelet, but for now I am wearing the charm around my neck.

Ukrainian tea glass holder - Podstakannik

I want to make teas from different counties in 2023.  One of the countries is Russia.  I did some research and found that they drink their tea in these glass glasses that have these beautiful holders.  The holders are called, podstakanniks. 

I went on Etsy and found podstakanniks.  I was excited to support the people of Ukraine and buy from a super nice Ukrainian man. Guldi Muldi from Kyiv, Ukraine

https://www.etsy.com/shop/GuldiMuldi?ref=yr_purchases

Everything came packed really nicely.  These were the glass holders, podstakannik- I got the glasses from Goodwill.  These glass holders range from $4 to $6.  I bought a variety from him.

Podstakannik- metal goblets that are elaborately decorated.  They hold 8.5 oz glasses.  

This style of glass holder dated back to the 18th century.  It is thought they were invited by Sergey Witte- the Russian Empire's Transport Minister in 1892.

In the 18th century, only women could drink from a porcelain cup.  Men had to use glasses.   The glasses were hot and thin, so podstakannik's were developed.   The bases were not very wide.  So, it is thought that Witte redesigned the podstakannik's for the train travel.   

During the 1950's-1970’s  there were 15 factories across Russia that produced podstakannik's.  They were made of tin, aluminum, stainless steel, or the most prestigious were the nickel/silver. 

 

Podstakannik- translates to "thing under the glass".  It would keep the glass steady while drinking and protects the hands from the hot surface.  It was great for drinking tea on a train.

Podstakannik's are still in used in sleeper train carriages.

How beautiful and delicate are these?

I am super excited to have this tea party!  I have a friend who lived in Russia for awhile, so I have been asking her tea questions too.  

I have been having fun reading and researching tea in Russia.

They are all so beautiful.  I can not wait to make some Russian tea, Zavarka.  I bought some Russian Caravan Tea...more about that in a later blog.

Great for hot and cold tea.

The seller sent these old post cards too, which was nice.

These are my goodwill glasses that were .50.  The first two on the left, are actual Russians tea glasses I found on line, but they were too expensive to buy more.  

Russian glasses are called, Stakan.

But, my .50 glasses fit nicely in the cup holder too I think.  The glasses I bought are a little smaller at the bottom, but it doesn't seem to matter.

My sister got me this tea pot for Christmas.  It is a double tea pot like they would use in Russia to make the tea, Samovar.

Smith Black Lavender

This might be my new favorite...if you think about, I have not said that in awhile, lol.

But, I do love this tea!!!

I took this tea to work and made it into a latte.  

 I love that I have the ability to make all sorts of different teas.  And every time you make the tea you can switch it up.  You can do it plain.  You can add sugar.  You could add milk.  You could add milk and syrup.  You could add honey.  You could add agave.  You could mix it with another tea.  You could make it hot.  You could make it cold.  So many options!!!

https://www.smithtea.com/products/black-lavender

Ceylon and Zheng Shan black teas, French lavender, red rose petals, black currant and vanilla natural flavor.

I made the black tea- I heated the water to over 200 degrees. I steeped for 4 minutes.

I then took milk and added lavender syrup and I frothed it.  If you wanted to focus on the vanilla in the tea- you could froth the milk with vanilla.

It smelled so great!  Wafts of lavender and black tea.

I made lattes for people in the office, my manager loved it too. My one friend is not a huge lavender fan, so she thought it was okay, but wasn't a big fan.  But, she did drink it all.

This tea is great.  It is full of flavor and blends so well together! I love the lavender in this tea.  It is not over powering or perfumey, it is just perfect.  Definitely 5 tea cups out of 5 tea cups.

Parmesan cheese lid fits on your Mason jar

Did you know that your Parmesan Cheese Lid fits a Mason jar??

It is true!!! 

I love making cold brew tea, and to have a lid like this really helps to make this kind of tea.  I mean any tea or drink will work...but I love it most for cold brew.

Cold brew is great- have you tried it yet?  

I put in about 1 teaspoons per 8 oz of cold water, within 5-8 minutes I have cold brew tea.  It doesn't get bitter because the water is cold and you are not releasing any tanins. I can add water to the cup at least 2-3 more times throughout the day.  You can add ANY loose leaf tea to water for cold brew. 

There are several ways you can cold brew- you can buy special containers or you can simply add a tea bag to your water! Easy Peasy!

What are the benefits of cold brew tea?  Cold brew tea is infused slowly over time to extract more goodness, producing a deliciously mild but flavorful taste with no hint of bitterness. And you can add water multiple times- you get a lot of bang for your buck.

Numi countdown to Christmas

If you are wondering what I am doing this month...see below.

My friend got me this fun gift.  I can not wait to try these teas!!

https://shop.numitea.com/

It’s December 1st- that means the advent calendars start!!! I’ve got mine out! I’ve got 2- that means twice a day I get to have a fun tea surprise!!! This morning was Numi organic tea #agedearlgrey is great!! I can’t believe I held off waiting on these calendars! The wait was worth it.

Day one was Aged Earl Grey.  I thought it was great!  The flavors were really good, not overly strong on the Bergamont, as some Earl Grey teas can be. 

I am having a lot of fun trying these teas..

Tea party for my office

This is my 4th tea party...my office asked me to a "Happy Hour" for my teammates.  I was pretty pumped to share my passion with my work friends.  They have been super supportive of this love of mine.

This is the menu....

I am ready!!  Bring on the people and I will serve the tea.

I made a Vanilla Mint Chai tea.  This one might have been a favorite of most people. This is a black tea from Ohio Tea Company Tea.

https://www.ohioteaco.com/Vanilla-Mint-Chai_p_748.html

 I picked up these chocolate spoons at the Dollar Store.  These were great in any of the three black teas.

I also had this fun tea, Peppermint Sticks.

A black tea from Ohio Tea Company.

https://www.ohioteaco.com/Peppermint-Sticks_p_1941.html

I made this Mint Verbena Tea from Harney & Sons.

This is an herbal tea.

https://www.harney.com/products/mint-verbena?variant=29491389190

I also made this wonderful, Soho tea from Harney & Sons.  It is rich black tea.

I love the chocolate and coconut in this tea.

https://www.harney.com/products/soho-tea-blend-chocolate-and-coconut?variant=35000656646

I had tasting cups so people could try each of the teas. Then when they found one they liked, I made them a cup of that tea to go.

I had sugar, agave, and honey for people to add to their teas, but I asked them to try the tea first before adding anything to it.  I think that they all did that.

They guys were not sure about the Mint Verbena tea- but they liked it more when they added sugar to that tea. 

I also had the tasting sheets that I created.  They could write down what teas they tried and what they liked or didn't like about each tea.

I also did give aways.  I pulled 4 names from a hat and gave some items away.

 

I served 15 people.

Tea prep is the most time consuming part.  I have Alexa on my phone keeping the timer on one pot of tea so that I don't over steep the tea. I have Siri on my watch doing a timer for another pot of tea.

Because three of the teas were black, I tried to steep them all together- for 4 minutes.

The herbal tea steeped for 5 minutes.

I had these tea with Christmas sleeves for them to take away tea.

I made my signature Butterfly Pea Tea- this is a favorite with a lot of the people in the office.  One of my co-workers even pays me to make this tea for her.

This is made with a Moringa mint tea, lavender, and butterfly pea blossoms.

When I squeeze lemons into this tea it turns it purple.

When you have butterfly pea blossoms in a tea and then you add citrus to the tea it turns it purple. 

I used to make this with half iced tea and half lemonade - but it was too sweet for me.  I have decided I like it with just fresh squeezed lemons instead of lemonade.

My office paid extra for me to bring bubble tea. I made mango bubble tea with bursting blueberry boba.  This was a new thing for a lot of the guys.  They really enjoyed the boba.

The bubble tea gets thumbs up for my friends.

The tasting cups are a great way for people to try the tea.  Tasting cups hold 1/2 C or 4 oz of tea. 

 

I did a little tea lesson about tea- but mainly they just tested all the teas.

But, I do love giving tea facts too.

The one fact I always share that tends to surprise people is that Black tea, Oolong Tea, Purple Tea, White Tea, Yellow Tea, Green Tea, and Pu-erh tea all come from the same plant- the Camellia Sinensis plant.  It just all depends on oxidation, harvesting, and the way it is grown- elevation, climate, sunlight, etc.

Even some of the guys who don't really drink tea, came down and supported me....which I really appreciated.

Pinkie up!

Even a little one came in and tried some tea.

Melanie went rouge and made her own "special" drink.

I frothed milk, with some vanilla syrup, to add to the Vanilla Mint Chai or the Peppermint Sticks Tea.  I used oat milk because a few of my co-workers, like me, don't really like dairy.  Also, oat milk froths really well.

I teased my friend, that I would bring her a to go carrier.  So, I brought it and she used it!

I had some left over tea that I brought to my desk and drank the rest of the day.

What a fun morning to share my passion and side hustle with my office.  I was touched that they asked me to share this with them...and they paid me, lol!!

Let me know if you wan me to host a tea party for you or your group.  I would love to come and share tea with you!  I have rates for big groups as well.