Your ViewsKeep your e-mails pouring in, it's good to know that there are lots of you out there with views and opinions. To help you work out what is what, are now little icons to help you see biscuit related themes. And now you can see at a glance which are the most contested subjects via this graph (requires Flash 6.0 plugin). Please keep your mails coming in to nicey@nicecupofteaandasitdown.com | If you like, you can use this search thingy to find stuff that matches with any of the icons you pick, or use the fantastic free text search, Yay! | Your e-Mails |
Astrid |
Oh dear oh dear oh dear...
I've been following the mug debate here with interest and found that over the colour of the mug something quite decisive about teamug quality has been entirely forgotten: the SHAPE!
It is vitally important for tea mugs to be either slanting inwards towards the top or, at the very least, straight and not too wide. The reason: heat! As we all know, again, from secondary school physics, heat will disperse faster from a large surface than from a small surface. It is therefore vitally important to keep the surface of the tea in the cup is small as possible and therefore mugs that slant outwards towards the top are RIGHT OUT!
Given this basic physical fact, I've come to the conclusion that the perfect compromise between heat storage and bisciuit dipping capability is found in a straight mug just under three inches wide - it allows hobnobs to be dipped without breaking them but keeps in the heat at the same time. It should have a handle that lets in three fingers for better grip on sunday mornings and be made of lightcoloured materials for the reasons already stated by others.
Have you found that perfect mug yet? Cos I have... :-P
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James McCaul
Digestive Review |
Is it a controversial view (maybe even blasphemous) to suggest that digestive biscuits, like a fine wine, improve with age, especially when stored outside a biscuit tin. This allows them to become moist (a kind of a half way house between eating them "neat" and dipping them in "tea"). This is my firm belief, but was wondering what the accepted wisdom on this matter was? |
Nicey replies: The accepted wisdom is that the Digestive has been rendered stale and nasty through neglect. I've not encountered anybody before who enjoys stale digestives, however, the Irish Kimberley biscuit tastes a bit stale and odd like a digestive that has been left out overnight in the garden. It is widely believed by me, that you need a special gene to enjoy Kimberleys which only the Irish or their descendents have. Perhaps this could be the explanation.
James replied "Mccaul is an Irish name and my family were originally Irish! I am thourghly impressed by your deductions and all round biscuit/genealogy knowledge." |
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Tim Basing |
Hi Nicey,
So the Lyons logo is barking mad... I believe that is supposed to symbolise "out of the strength came sweetness" lion, bees, honey etc. Its a biblical reference If I knew, or cared, more I'm sure I could pinpoint the exact location, but life is to short for such exertions! |
Nicey replies: Tim,
Thanks, we know, we always knew read the review. Its still mad to get honey from lion carcasses even if it is in the Old Testment. Your average Winney the Pooh story would have been a lot more grizzly if he had to scoop his honey from within the rib cages of rotting lion corpses instead of hollow trees. |
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Robin Clarke |
Hi Nicey,
Your piece on vending machines reminds me of the line from "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy", about an alien vending machine that dispensed "something almost entirely but not completely unlike tea."
As all vending machines make tea like this, is this proof that extra-terrestrial life is already here? and if so have they brought their own biccies?
Keep up the good work. |
Nicey replies: Excellent, two mails about Vending Machines, the required number to warrant an icon. |
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Paul Wilson |
Dear Nicey,
I've been looking for a container specifically designed for housing biscuits. I remember as a child my Mum had a biscuit tin with a desiccant in the lid which stopped the biscuits going soggy. The desiccant could be removed and dried out in the oven to maintain it's usefulness for many years. I have so far been unable to find such a container in the shops on Manchester only non-specialist containers that simply proclaim themselves to be biscuit tins by having the marking "Biscuits" on the side. Can you help me please, do you know a supplier of specialist biscuit containers?
Regards
Paul |
Nicey replies: We have one of those, (see our Biscuit Tin Awareness Week item) but it was a Christmas selection tin for crackers from Sainburys or maybe M&S. Some people can't cope with the effects of the little drying out thing and I've heard tales of people removing them from the lids of their tins. |
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