Tea Time - kinda

I must admit, I know little of the art of "Tea".  But, hey, that's perfectly fine with me. I was initially intimidated with Christie's writings for a tea blog.  So, after pondering the situation I felt it was necessary to have a little chat with myself about my ignorance.  "Self", I say, "you don't have to be an English sorta tea gal.  You just need to enjoy the tea."  Self totally agreed!

I tend to drink hot tea in the cooler months and iced tea in the warmer.  Not the same for coffee - I drink it hot and cold all year 'round.  But in my enthusiasm for experimenting with tea and trying new flavors, I found I had a plethora of teas in varying flavors, colors and caffeine choices.  So, what to do with all this tea?  What to do?   Upon occasion I carried it with me to gatherings of ladies that drink tea, and sometimes conveniently left it behind.  But most of the time it just sat in my pantry, unattended.  I felt guilty.  Very guilty.

Then, one day it hit me!  *insert light bulb here* I like ice tea, but sometimes the flavor is just plain boring.  Sooo, why not make ice tea using the flavored tea bags I have on hand?  Why on earth not?  I know this idea is NOT original, but for some unearthly reason the thought had not penetrated this head of mine  - um, no comments here, please.

So, off I went - to the pantry, gathered the participants - the sugar and tea bags, and started trying my hand at flavored iced teas.  I must say, it was a novel thought on my part.  Since flavored teas are a little more pricey than the "bulk" black or orange pekoe tea bags, I decided to mix the two in hopes that they would become best friends.  I used half black tea and half flavored tea.  Sugar to taste.  Viola.  Flavored ice tea!


I can tell you the ones I like, the ones - well, not so much, and which tea bags flubbed entirely for me.
I love the Vanilla tea.  I like the Raspberry, Blueberry and Almond blend teas.  I did not care for the Peach Mango tea.  I guess I'm not a peachy sorta gal.  I considered it a flub.  I found it is not wise to mix black and white or green teas.  And. . . . don't, I repeat, don't, use Earl Grey as a tea base.  I love, love, love hot Earl Grey, but iced - let's just say - it's a hard pill to swallow. 

I enjoy these kinds of "experiments".  They cater to my slightly off kilter side.  They make me happy - and sometimes they taste good!

Oh - I almost forgot!  I can't put my concoctions in just any ole pitcher!  No-sir-ree- bob!  I use the pitcher I picked up from an old favorite antique store - Cheryl's (the girls called it "the blue store").   Looking pretty is half of tasting pretty!  Yes indeedy!