Tea?

[cckeiser]

And we got a winner with the English Breakfast Tea....at least for breakfast. I made it in the coffee pot and just let it steep for 5 minuets till golden. It has the body I was looking for and a real tea essence without tasting bitter. I may try blending the Irish tea with the British just so it doesn't get tossed.
But now that I found a good tea my Special Lady has mentioned I have Not as yet tried any of the "upscale" coffee shops in our area....not even a Starbucks. I'm really put off the price and the nomenclature necessary to order it. But there are a few really high end steak houses setting up shop....maybe.....just maybe they will have a 4 star coffee to go with their name!
I am happy to have found the English Breakfast tea....the only problem with it is it is Not a 4 star hotel blend coffee!
Now I  need to drink Something else for awhile....too much frickin tea!

[BikerDude]

And we got a winner with the English Breakfast Tea....at least for breakfast. I made it in the coffee pot and just let it steep for 5 minuets till golden. It has the body I was looking for and a real tea essence without tasting bitter. I may try blending the Irish tea with the British just so it doesn't get tossed.
But now that I found a good tea my Special Lady has mentioned I have Not as yet tried any of the "upscale" coffee shops in our area....not even a Starbucks. I'm really put off the price and the nomenclature necessary to order it. But there are a few really high end steak houses setting up shop....maybe.....just maybe they will have a 4 star coffee to go with their name!
I am happy to have found the English Breakfast tea....the only problem with it is it is Not a 4 star hotel blend coffee!
Now I  need to drink Something else for awhile....too much frickin tea!

It's not always the most expensive places that have the best coffee.
Here in the states in the north east we have Cumberland Farms (Cumbies for short).
They have really great coffee. And I'm a bit of a coffee snob.

Any size for $1. I mean any size.
I have a 64oz coffee container that I bring in and fill for a buck.
Killer!
https://www.cumberlandfarms.com/

[cckeiser]

yeah, I am all about the coffee. I have just been on a real bummer since they stopped making the 4 star hotel blend and we could not find anything as good, we found a second best, but not near the quality of that 4 star blend.
This tea quest is to find out if I can even enjoy a good tea....which then means we have to define what is a good tea. And to that we all the know the answer....it is one that you really like and will probably be different for each of us, but at least on this tea quest I (and maybe one or two others???) may be able to point in a direction and say "Hey! That ain't bad!"
I brewed a cup of the Chinese Green tea last night and put a lemon drop in for support...it was very tasty....sort of kicked the green tea up little.
My special lady surprised me with a package of Bigelow Oolong tea....I have it in the coffee pot brewing now.
I think that will be the last of the teas for awhile...I try different blendings of the different teas we have on hand just to see what can be made from them.
I been hearing some good things about Seattle's best coffee. They have only recently arrived in our area. I need to travel to a Target store to get the beans. I prefer to grind and brew my own so it is as fresh as possible. They have a few different blends of coffee as well....maybe.....just maybe there's a 4 star in there somewhere.
I'll let you know if I find anything worth finding.

[cckeiser]

whoa! Oolong....now that is really a different taste....even for tea.

[cckeiser]

I take that back! I now thing oolong is the essence of teas.

Still sipping at the oolong....very interesting taste....it's cold now, but still tasty, not like any other tea we have. Sort of think the oolong may be more of a eastern flavor compared to the teas we usually get here in the states....do not know about the U.K.?
This will require a few more brewings. I think  it's neat that I found a different taste. Now I'm wondering what (We) can do with it? Can we perfect a "Dude" tea from an Oolong?
We will need a consensus opinion on that one.
Not that  I want to call anything "Dude" and"Un-Dude", but we do not seem to be going anywhere with Dudeism right now.
Not sure what Oliver is up to, but he  doesn't seem to be trying to tackle any media of late.
So I was thinking that maybe a "dude" tea....or a "dude" anything might shake things up a little and get some interest back here in the forum. Some Good Dude type interest that is.
We've been slacking....and it shows.
Anyone else want to throw something into the pot. I'm about done myself for awhile. Not sure how I got started really....posting about teas was not on my mind at all, and now I got a whole shelf full of strange teas....and I'm a coffee drinker!
Maybe it's the caffeine???

[cckeiser]

So what the hell would a "Dude" tea be anyway. The essence of The Dude in our Dudeism represents Abiding....taking it easy. Keeping you mojo and not getting all worked up about everyday shit going down.
Can we blend a tea so it has that kind of essence to it?
A mellow tea to help keep us calm in the face of all the shit and human paraquats we face every day?
I think for that mellow almost mystic essence we need to blend in an Eastern Tea...maybe the Oolong or something like the Oolong. I'm still tasting it. I just blended it with the Irish Breakfast tea in the coffee pot 2 cups water and one bag of each tea. I like it.....feeling like I may be on the right line...will try adding the Chinese Green tea to both of these in the next trial.
May need to stay away from the caffeine though...if we want it to be mellow.

Anyone else have any thoughts on this....someone who actually Knows teas? Do you already have a "mellow/mystic" blend for keep calm and for just taking it easy?

Do I have any of the right teas? Any other tea you would like me to try either alone or in a blend.

I think I am going to head out tomorrow to a Target store and pick up a few blends of the Seattle's Best coffee. Target has a nice big tea assortment as well. Let me know if there is a tea you would like me to try and I'll look to see if they carry it.

By the way....What do you dudes think about a White Russian Tea? You know....a tea made to taste like a White Russian?
It was not my idea, but I was asked about maybe putting together a White Russian powder to add to a tea.
So why am I still doing this? Fuck if I  know....guess I just don't have anything else to do?

I think it may be getting a bit old by now though.

[cckeiser]

Wow....bummer... the Target and Walmart stores in my area no longer are selling Seattle's Best coffee.
I'm hearing there is global coffee bean crisis....no one can get a good green bean to roast. Which of course just make me want a really good coffee to drink even more now!

[cckeiser]

Finally made it to Wegman's to pick up coffee. picked up a 100% Colombian Decaf because I think with my blood pressure I really should stay on decaf....but decaf doesn't have the 4 star taste I have been looking for....well may none in the past, but just maybe a new roast is closer.
Picked up two different Starbucks blends the house medium blend and a Spring 20/14 blend which I think they just came out with....also picked up a Peet's Coffee Deep Roast Colombia I never heard of but it looks like it may be on the high end...and finally a Gevalia Colombia...they are all pre ground in the package so I will not have to fool around grinding them.
I will be having a lot of fun getting a caffeine buzz going over the next few weeks.

While i was there I did check out the specialty teas. I decided to stay away from the herbal teas for now, but I found Wegman's has a small tea line of their own. A "Just Tea" caught my eye. All it says is it's a White Tea "Smoothing and Refreshing White Tea" It's good. Not as strong as the green tea on this first brewing, but it's simple and soothing....just what a dude would want to keep his mojo on and stay mellow.
I think it will make an interesting addition to tea shelf I have so far and I'm curious how it is going to blend off with Oolong and Chinese Green tea.

[meekon5]

I have almost exclusively drunk tea since my early twenties because an accountant I worked with then pointed out people who drink coffee all day end up with breath like over boiled coffee pots (his opinion).

I have noticed that friends of mine (particularly the coffee fiends) do tend to look slightly more dessicated than I do, and I tend to put the fact that I don't have bags under my eyes down to my strict tea regime.

But then I'm not a doctor so don't quote me.

[cckeiser]

I have almost exclusively drunk tea since my early twenties because an accountant I worked with then pointed out people who drink coffee all day end up with breath like over boiled coffee pots (his opinion).

I have noticed that friends of mine (particularly the coffee fiends) do tend to look slightly more dessicated than I do, and I tend to put the fact that I don't have bags under my eyes down to my strict tea regime.

But then I'm not a doctor so don't quote me.

Is there a tea you would like me to try....something you think  I may enjoy and maybe go good with my Tea Shelf? I want to try the White tea again, but wondering which of the other teas to blend it with.

Yahoo! I can drink the Starbucks Spring Blend!! My Special Lady does not care for it, but then she never was much of a coffee person....the 4 Star is still the only coffee she liked.
she Has been enjoying my Tea Quest though. I think she will stay with the plain Lipton and the English Breakfast tea though.....not as adventurous as I am.

I'm going to brew the Starbucks Medium House blend up next.....as soon as I am finished with the Spring Roast blend so the taste is fresh in my mind.

[cckeiser]

It tried the Peet's Dark....it wasn't as bitter as I had expected it to be, but it was bitter. Adding sugar and creamer did not really help much.
I left the Starbuck's Medium sit while I  napped....it makes a good cold  coffee. It made even a better coffee Mocha....I may be going over to the Willie Wonka side!
I blended the brewed Peet's with some of the Starbuck's medium...not much help with either....I'm drinking it Mocha as well.
I do not think Starbuck's servers a really good coffee, they serve coffee drinks....mochas, lattes and ice coffees with flavors added to help hide the fact we can no longer get a good raw bean to roast.
Someone somewhere has got to be sitting on some very excellent raw beans, but I think they are all being sold privately....to people who really Know coffee.
I'm not one of them, so it looks as if I will have to content myself with second and third grade beans then turn them into a "Coffee Beverage".
It was fun while it lasted, but I think I have been defeated by the coffee cartels. and will have to stand inline with all the Yuppies at Starbucks and just quietly order a Latte or Mocha and be thankful I can still get one.

I think my Tea Quest just may continue though....there are Sooo many teas out there!

[cckeiser]

Brewed a cup with the mixed Peet's Dark and Starbucks medium roast....it came out really bad. Added some chocolate syrup and made Ice Mocha with it. I could at least drink that. It's Not the good cup of coffee I really want though.
Doesn't look like we will ever be able to get a good raw bean around here anymore, and I do not have the pockets or the contacts to seek out that special coffee bean all on my own.
Unless I can find a restaurant that serves a quality coffee made from quality beans...I guess I am just shit out of luck in the good old cup of Joe department. I think it's beginning to hit me I may Never have another cup of real high quality coffee and may have to settle for coffee flavored drinks.

THEN IT HIT ME!!
I Already DO! It's called Kahlua!
I make my own Coffee Liqueur...a home made type of  Kahlua I actually like better than the store bought.
WE Already have our Dude Coffee! A White Russian Coffee we brewed up back a while ago. I can brew up all these nasty coffees to mix up a new batch of Kahlua. Then when I wish a cup of hot coffee I will just mix in the Kahlua and make a White Russian coffee!
Dude Coffee anyone?!

[cckeiser]

Started thinking about teas again. After my coffee mocha I think I am ready for a nice tea tonight....maybe the Japanese Green Tea....as is. May try a blend later.
I was thinking about it then decided maybe it is time I checked the internet just to see what kind specialty teas are out there. Did not take long to find this web site.

http://www.enjoyingtea.com/

I guess there are just about every type and blend of tea you could ever want!
This may take me awhile....don't wait up!

[cckeiser]

This May be my last post on teas....at least for awhile.
I tried brewing the Oolong and the Japanese Green together. 1 cup of water with one tea bag of each tea. I now have a better understanding of Not drinking the first steep. I drank it and it was interesting and complex. That Oolong requires a different type "acceptance" is they only word that comes to mind right now. The second and third steep of the same two bags made a more pleasant tea....both the second and third steep were longer to extract more essence. The third steep was actually very good and did not have that wild Oolong taste that comes with the that first steep.
The Harney & Sons Japanese Sencha Green Tea is a High Quality Tea and I will looking to buy more the next time we run low. I am also going to stick with the Basic Black and White  teas, but will try and find a higher Quality than the supermarket blend I got now.
As I am tasting these teas I am beginning to pick up on quality over the lower grades of tea. That and the Lipon and Irish Breakfast tea are what will be on my self to make and mix as the moods move me.
For some of the other teas, the "very special" blends of High quality tea, my special lady pointed out we have a Tea House 20 mile form us. We can stop in there and try any type and brew of tea we wish.
I will try their teas and see if the have a "Master Tea Blender" to recommend.
So far I like Harney & Sons and Bigelows. Enen their packages feel a better quality.

Not real sure, but I think my Tea quest is pretty much over and you all can now go about your normal business!

I hope you enjoyed it even just a little as much as I did....it got me through a rough period.
Abide Dudes.....Abide.

[cckeiser]

I am having a White Russian right now....forgot just how good a White Russian is with my homemade.
Which just provided the solution to what to  do about that Peet's Deep Dark roast ground bean coffee I have. It's too bitter for me to drink as a coffee, but it is going to make an excellent base for my next batch of Kahlua. I'll need a bit more dark molasses to help with the rum taste this time though. Brew 8 cups of the Peets' triple strong like 6 tablespoons per cup of water, add 1 lb of brown sugar....dark brown sugar is even better. 1/8 cup high quality vanilla extract, 1/4 cup chocolate syrup and then add rum/vodka to taste. We do not usually have any rum about so I had vodka and that is why I need to add the dark molasses to help with the rum flavor.
You do Not need the chocolate syrup, but I think it really kicks the Kahlua up to another whole dimension of flavor.
And...as a bonus...if you want a good coffee "drink" you can mix this coffee liqueur with either Hot or Cold coffee. Add a little more chocolate syrup to make an ice coffee mocha if you wish.
Abide dudes.....Abide!