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 |
Andrew Sherriff |
Nicey & The Wife,
Have those Taylors of Harrogate chaps been changing the contents of their tea bags ? The wife and I share one bag per cup and, as she's the tea drinking professional, she gets the first 'sip' of the teabag. Until about 6 months ago I 'd get a fairly decent cup of tea from the second 'sip' bit now it is almost undrinkable (and I'm not too fussy !) Have the made the contents weaker or smaller - to encourage folk to use more bags - without letting us know or dropping the price ? Such calumny !
Awn & Jo
(PS Love the site & book) |
Nicey replies: Well despite my many hours spent expounding my theory of tea bag usage which you clearly support, Yorkshire tea in its defense does say on the pack one bag to a mug. So what you say may well be right and maybe they have decided that they have the leeway to fiddle with their bag contents. Also it might work in favour of those who unlike me leave their bag in their mug to brew for a considerable while. However, I completely see why this situation is a personal set back to yourself. |
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Marge |
Hi Nicey
In this state of tropical weather we are having in Yorkshire (can’t stand it myself, bring back the rain!), do you recommend trying iced tea? I once had this drink in Paris and it was vile and bitter. It is too hot for me to drink a normal cuppa, but I am missing it also. What can I do?
Yours thirstily
Marge |
Nicey replies: Marge,
We would never ever recommend drinking iced tea, its muck. You just need to gather yourself and have a proper cuppa, you'll be fine. Maybe get a few scones and some jam and cream and pretend you're on holiday. I have to say I'm getting quite skilled at scone making, and we have pretended to be on our holidays about 3 times in the last month. |
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Sue Northcott |
Good Morning Nicey,
Just though I'd pass on a tea related episode from this weekend.
My daughter has just reached the grand old age of 12 and has decided that she's old enough to go to town with just her friends. However, she's still quite keen to have a parent within easy reach. This led to me being stuck in Swansea this Saturday wandering around like a real Johnny no mates. I'm not great shopper and after a very short while I'd had more that enough. In the end I bought myself an Ordnance Survey map of this year's holiday destination and sneaked off to the new TTotal tea shop up stairs in Waterstones (the old Carlton cinema).
The shop takes up the window side of the second floor. You can chose from high barstools in the window, which allow you to watch the comings an goings at Woolworths across the way, chunky wooden tables and chairs, or squidgy leather sofas. There were a few people about, but still plenty of room, despite it being just after lunchtime. Being a fresh air fiend I plumped for one of the bar stools by an open window. (This my not have been the best move to preserve my elegance(??) as being only 5 foot one and a bit, getting on and off the thing involved a fair bit of clambering.)
Then it was off to the counter to survey the wares available. There were at least 8 different teas, coffee for those who like that sort of thing, and enough juices and soft drinks to keep the youngsters happy too. The cakes, biscuits and gingerbread men looked lovely, and for those in need of a bit more sustenance there was soup and toasted sandwiches. I plumped for a small pot of Assam and a slice of carrot cake, which came to a little over £3. You also get a loyalty card which is stamped for every pot of tea you buy. Every 6th pot is free, Hooray! The staff were really pleasant, but the girl was a little embarrassed at having to explain the timer that came with my pot of tea. They have worked out the optimum brewing time for each type of tea. The tea is put inside the pot in a sort of cylindrical strainer, and the moment that the hot water is applied they start the timer. When the alarm goes off you whip out the strainer thingy and put it in the little beaker that's provided and your perfectly brewed tea will never stew. Now, I was a bit sceptical about this, after all I've been making tea for myself for quite a while now. But I must confess that aside from a mild feeling of embarrassment when my tea alarm started bleeping, the system does seem to produce a very good cuppa. I managed to get 3 reasonably sized cups out of the small pot, which washed down the very nice carrot cake in a thoroughly acceptable manner. I also became pretty familiar with the topological features of the Perranporth area before I receive the call to retrieve my shopped out offspring.
If it wasn't for the fact that it would fill the place up and there wouldn't be a seat for me, I would toughly recommend TTotal to any tea lover looking for an oasis of calm in the centre of Swansea.
Sue Northcott |
Nicey replies: Thanks Sue for that in depth review of the tea making at Swansea Waterstones, it sounds all very nice, but I think the timers may be a bit intimidating. Waterstones have been doing great work selling our book and are going to be running a special offer on it when it comes out as a paperback in September.
Hope you have some nice Cornish Cream Teas on holiday in Perranporth.
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Amber Grace |
Hello Nicey,
Just thought I'd tell you about the tea and sit down facilities at the Glastonbury festival (which I was lucky enough to attend this year). There are many more opportunities at Glastonbury to find a decent cup of tea than at any other festival that I've been to. The best one is the 'Tiny Tea Tent'. For £1.10 & 50p mug deposit you get the choice of 'normal' tea, Earl Grey, Lapsang Souchong etc, with a tea bag each and real milk out of a jug. This is a very busy place, probably due to the high caliber of tea making, but somehow a seat is always available, thus completing the tea break experience. Also, they have a varied collection of mugs - I was lucky enough to get one with a picture of a Volkswagen Beetle on it (my favourite car - spooky).
There's nothing quite like a cup of tea and a sit down in the Green Fields of Glastonbury whilst watching a vampire with dreadlocks on stilts chasing a child dressed as a fairy.
Wishing you good tea and festival health
Amber |
Nicey replies: On Saturday we met the former Tory Defense Minister John Nott, whilst we were guests on Radio 4's Loose Ends. He had just got back from Glastonbury the day before where he had managed to blag his way in. The Portacabin which held his press ticket had been washed away in the flooding, and given that he is 71 the chap on the gate believed his story.
It also turns out he had a hand in the introduction of VAT and remembers the classification of the Jaffa Cake as one of the thorny issues they grappled with over thirty years ago. |
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Brian Barrett |
Esteemed Mr Nicey,
A very small dash of cinnamon sugar can add zest to a good black Italian coffee. Being genetically multigustatory, I've been awaiting the arrival of the tea equivalent on the supermarket shelves of the leafy eastern suburbs of beloved Melbourne.
It's here! We're now able to sample, enjoy, nay, relish Twinings Chai, in luxuriously impressive black boxes of 50 teabags. The list of ingredients tells the full, glorious story:
Tea, Ginger Root (10%), Cinnamon Bark (10%), Natural Spice Flavourings including Star Anise and Clove (5%), Natural Flavour (Cinnamon).
You can add milk, if you really feel the need, 'cos that's how it's served in India.
All we need now is the Dilmah version, and, verily our cup runneth over.
I ever remain, kind Sir, and Mrs Wifey, and Smallpersons,
Blissful but ever 'umble,
Brian Barratt |
Nicey replies: Well I'm not sure about that, but I do fancy a chicken curry now.
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