tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90910128328729825242024-02-20T03:50:44.417-06:00the universe in a cupTea reviews and tasting notes, interesting tea-ware and rituals, as well as a look into the tea industry itself. Sip slowly and enjoy the tea.theuniverseinacuphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16414453416842690766noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9091012832872982524.post-2005173250423910802011-03-04T16:35:00.001-06:002011-03-04T16:38:49.984-06:00Sometimes we're all in need of an extended tea break, I'll be back<blockquote>"I like my tea to taste like a stable, my scotch to taste like burning dirt, and my woman to taste like trouble."<br />
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~Andy Bothwell, <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Astronautalis">Astronautalis</a> </blockquote>theuniverseinacuphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16414453416842690766noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9091012832872982524.post-9655741134394653052011-01-17T09:55:00.002-06:002011-01-17T10:04:18.002-06:00Morning tea with Frontier Bancha<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJCKyIQ7R2BX3i8LFHVTJCiVocNmA6o_ZlEetNTknt6dWHA4Y5GK-aTQ2X-nD-hJataH562HBNnuQWgUOT4QG1qKBCWjhcAk1SMHuLiMxtGu4n8Bhi-MXAdQ3mmhwGUwRMYtlwiR7QC0s/s1600/IMG_0413.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJCKyIQ7R2BX3i8LFHVTJCiVocNmA6o_ZlEetNTknt6dWHA4Y5GK-aTQ2X-nD-hJataH562HBNnuQWgUOT4QG1qKBCWjhcAk1SMHuLiMxtGu4n8Bhi-MXAdQ3mmhwGUwRMYtlwiR7QC0s/s320/IMG_0413.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
There is nothing like starting the day with a simple cup of tea. The coffee fanatics are missing out. I never could get into coffee, even in my sleep deprived, stressed out college days. Everything about tea is calm and subtle, zen, the essence of nature. Coffee feels like a rock concert; it's there in your face, purely for the caffeine and adrenaline. Not to say that isn't sometimes what is needed, but there is definitely something to say about tea.<br />
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I am drinking <a href="http://www.frontiercoop.com/dspCmnPrd.php?ct=lltgw&p=p&cn=Bancha%20Tea">Bancha</a> this morning by <a href="http://www.frontiercoop.com/">Frontier</a>. Organic loose leaf I got from my local natural market. I find myself moving away from my previous staple green, Miyako's Sononokaori, to this as my go-to everyday drinker. It's cheap, there isn't a whole lot going on with it, not a lot of complexity on the tongue. It is just a very solid, good green tea. Quite obviously of higher quality than the similarly priced Sononokaori. At $1.35 an ounce in-store I think it will be tough to beat in the bang-for-the-buck factor.<br />
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I would really like to get more info about the Frontier tea company, as they seem to be producing an increasing amount of the tea I drink. Perhaps that could be the subject of a future article here.<br />
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I am not going to attempt a rating on this tea quiet yet as I've only gone through maybe 4 ounces of the stuff, I will make a rating in a future post. Though if you need some verdict to take away from here, it would be that this is a good tea at a good value.<br />
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I am at the bottom of the cup now where you'll find my favorite part of tea, the bottom centimeter. With a melange of tea sediment, earth and dirt, where you get all the flavors of the leaf in one go... and with that I am off to begin the day, slightly more prepared and focused.theuniverseinacuphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16414453416842690766noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9091012832872982524.post-5814700225523083072011-01-16T12:19:00.001-06:002011-03-04T16:39:34.854-06:00The Universe in a Cup<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">"We had a kettle; we let it leak:<br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">Our not repairing made it worse.<br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">We haven't had any tea for a week...<br />
</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">The bottom is out of the Universe."</span> </blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">~Rudyard Kipling</span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">I am a tea enthusiast. With this blog, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;"><a href="http://theuniverseinacup.blogspot.com/">the universe in a cup</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;">, I will be posting tea reviews and tasting notes, interesting tea-ware and rituals, as well as a look into the tea industry itself, and maybe the occasional interview.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">I have high hopes for this blog. I am not a professional writer so please forgive any mistakes that I <s>may</s> will make.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #330000; font-family: georgia,'bookman old style','palatino linotype','book antiqua',palatino,'trebuchet ms',helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,'avante garde','century gothic','comic sans ms',times,'times new roman',serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">Stick around, maybe you'll find something interesting.</span></span>theuniverseinacuphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16414453416842690766noreply@blogger.com0