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 |
Lucy Jones
HobNob Review |
Firstly, hello very much.
Secondly, I was never really a big biscuit eater. My first memory of biscuits was from when I was 6. We had Abbey Crunches with our milk, at milk and biscuit time; [and these are probably my favourite biscuits.] When milk and biscuit time ceased to exist, however; my interest in biscuits dissappated. Apart from the occasional party ring, I ate none.
I'm quite a healthy eater now and until very recently, biscuits were out of the equation, and so after discovering your website, I became simply a biscuit enthusiast. Rather like a better on racehorses who doesn't actually like horses. Anyway, after time, I decided to eat one with my tea, it happened to be a HobNob. And I haven't looked back since, well, now actually. I have a biscuit with my tea whenever I feel like it now, and encourage those around me to do so also.
As for tea, I like; Lapsang Souchong, Green tea, peppermint [whilst not strictly a tea], and jasmine. Infusions: camomile and spiced apple, cranberry,rasberry & elderflower and lemon. I always add a smidge of honey to my tea-like beverages as it is simply exquisite.
To conclude; thank you very much for your delicious website.
Terah!
Lucy, Merseyside |
Nicey replies: That's good news. Now you just have to start drinking proper tea and everything will be tickty-boo.
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Sarah Lougee |
Dear Nicey and Wifey,
For me, the only drinkable tea under *normal circumstances is Earl Grey. This strand of Beverage Special Needs (BSN) is annoying, as despite the UK being host to a significant minority core of die-hard Greys, all too often, the only tea available in cafes, restaurants, friends' homes etc., is still ordinary (common) tea - PG, Typhoo and the like.
This is not the subject of my missive, however. After extensive testing of Other Brands of Earl Grey, it is my view that none of them comes close to the excellence of taste and aroma that is Twinings, the original and best. Supermarket brands generally err on the side of oppressive over-perfuming with the bergamot oil, while Clipper Fair Trade Earl Grey, I am sorry to say, doesn't even taste like tea. Even if it does have a pretty picture of an earring on the box.
Has anyone found an Earl Grey that acts as a serious contender to Twinings?
Best regards, and many thanks for providing a forum for the things that really matter.
Sarah Lougee
*i.e. any time other than when a crucial cup of tea is made by an unfamiliar third party following emotional trauma, fainting, sudden serious accident or military coup.
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Nicey replies: The long and short of it would seem to be that you need to carry round some Twinings Earl Grey teabags with you, as these appear to the ones you like and that your friends etc don't have. Hope that is helpful.
Oh obviously if you are going on a bit of a big trip you'll need more than usual. |
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Hester
Ginger Nut Review |
Dear Nicey,
Just thought I'd write and ask if you'd tried Tetley's Earl Grey with Vanilla. I only fraternise with the Earl occasionally myself and felt quite nervous about giving this a go but was pleasantly surprised. As usual with flavoured teas the vanilla smell is a lot stronger that the flavour and as I have milk in my Earl this is quite a relief. It also gives an extra something to the dipping biscuit of choice (for the earl has to be a plain digestive, keep it simple). Do let me know what you think, I havn't discovered any other flavours yet-do you know of any?
p.s. I also wanted to ask the biscuit eating world if there were any other ginger people (I am one of that variety myself) who felt that they were comitting a social taboo by opting for a ginger biscuit when offered. I have often noticed sidelong glances when I go for the ginger cake/biscuit as if I were doing something just a little bit brazen.
Hester |
Nicey replies: Hester,
We drink PG.
As for Ginger matters, Tom who edited our book and his wife are both of the Ginger persuasion and for their wedding cake had a huge ginger one with a Gingerbread groom and bride on top. Perhaps you should up the ante and carry around lumps of ginger, and those little jars of it to snack on. |
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James Robinson
Custard Cream Review |
Hello, congratulations, your website has just lost me more man-hours at my work computer than any other biscuit-based website.
I'd like to trace the raspberry cream, feared missing in action. I last saw them in a shop called Finefair which, in a succession of mergers and acquisitions, became Gateway and then Somerfield. I refuse to believe that such a close relative of the custard cream no longer exists on the shelves.
Can you or your readers help me?
Many thanks,
Jim
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Nicey replies: Jim,
You'll probably be best advised heading to the Republic of Ireland, and getting hold of some Bolands Raspberry Creams. I had some back in the summer. They weren't that nice actually a bit like raspberry blancmange flavouring that had gone a little astray. You may just be lucky enough to spot some in a corner shop type establishment which is where I think the pack I had emanated from.
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Keith O'Kane |
Dear Nicey and the Wife,
I notice that there have been a number of comments on your site recently regarding the use of a single tea bag to make two cups of tea.
Although social conditioning prevents me from attempting this myself, I can see the merits of this method and would quite happily drink a "secondary" cup of tea, provided that the tea was of a reasonable strength and I had not been witness to the double dip.
I think that most objections stem from the fear that a single tea bag is simply not strong enough to make two cups of tea with an acceptable level of flavour. This surely depends on the type of tea in question.
I myself am a recent convert to Tesco Fair Trade tea which, in my opinion, is easily up to the task of providing two full strength mugs of tea from a single bag. Tesco have very thoughtfully provided a strength indicator on their own brand tea bags which shows the strength on a scale of 1 to 3 with 3 being the strongest. The bags I use are rated as having a strength level of 2, so with even stronger tea available there should be no reason to stick to the 'one bag per cup' rule (except for the aforementioned social conditioning).
I hope this has been of some benefit to those who may be considering double dipping.
Keith O'Kane |
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