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What is High Tea exactly?  Low Tea and High Tea are like small meals, almost like snacks, served with tea.  Low tea, which gets its name from being served on a low table, like a garden table or coffee table, would be served somewhere between noon and 5 PM and hence sometimes goes by the name Afternoon Tea.  High Tea is typically served around 5 - 6 PM and is a heartier snack, with meats, breads and of course tea.  High Tea got it's name from being served on the dining table which was typically the tallest table in the house.

In today's nomenclature 'High Tea', which the name itself strengthens, is considered a fanciful event with fine finger foods, scones and gourmet tea.  Historically, High Tea was drank by both the working class, as they would want a small snack when getting home after a long day, and also by the children of the upper class as a snack before a heavier dinner that they may not have the patience for.  Either way, if you use the term 'High Tea' in today's society, expect to need reservations and a jacket.

Now to the important information; how to host High Tea or throw a High Tea party.  Here are a few things to consider:

1) Sending written invitations always adds an air of sophistication to a party.  If you feel snail mail invitations are a little above the call of duty, try sending an evite from evite.com.  It's free, and you can choose tea related themes which will set the tone for your party.

2) Include the dress code in the invitations.  Dressing up is fun, but only if everyone knows about it.  Large hats for the ladies are great for conversation and photo opportunities.

3) Think of the aesthetics of your menu as much as the taste.  White table cloth and serving on crystal or fancy serving platters will make the simplest of cookies look like the queen's affair.  

- Tea Sandwiches are perfect - think special ingredients like nuts, unique spreads and herbs.

- Anything miniature is good - think Mandarin Oranges, Baby Corn and miniature Artichoke.  These bright colors will help dress up the table as well.

- Small cookies and crackers for adding delicious spreads are a must.  Want to really impress your guests?  Consider finding a scone recipe and make at least one of the menu items homemade.  

- To stick with tradition, serve two or three finger foods that involve meat.  Cold cuts are always easy and go well with just about everything.

4) Now for the tea.  Try serving a multi-course tea menu.  

- Start with a traditional tea with a twist, like Vanilla Creme Earl Grey.  This can be served with the scones to get things started.

- Bring out the veggies and  meats with a kettle of a soft, but well rounded tea like Silver Needle.  

- Finish up with the desserts while serving a unique, decaf dessert tea like Tiramisu Rooibos.

Let us know how it goes.  We'd love to see photos of your High Tea parties.  Post them in our Spill It Forum under Tea Photos.

When it comes to your health, what's in your cup is a very important topic.  The beverages that we take in on a day to day basis really add up and can take from or add to your life in a big way.  If you're drinking 60g of sugar sodas, even if it's one a day, you'd better have a pretty good workout schedule or be blessed with a super high metabolism to keep that off your belt line.  If you're having more than one soda per day, you are raising your risk of diabetes and heart disease.  

On the other hand, enjoying a cup or more of tea a day can extend your life by helping eliminate cancer causing free radicals from your body.  Drinking tea can also help promote healthy gums, skin, hair, weight loss.... the list goes on and on.

This holiday season, and as we approach the new year, I want to focus on a different side of what's in your cup though.  Have you ever considered that if everything is made of energy, then your thoughts are actually energy?  This energy has a larger outreach than you may know.  You may have heard or read, "As a man thinks, so is he."  Well, these thoughts extend beyond affecting only the individual.  More and more studies are being conducted that indicate that collective thought can actually change the outcome of situations.  That's a story for another day, so before I get off the subject too far, I'd like to propose that you do two things between now and New Year's Eve.  Actually, if you're up for it, continue these things throughout the new year.  

One; drink more tea.  Do it for yourself and for those who love you.  Two; each time you enjoy a cup of tea, focus on a new world peace.  Focus on and believe in the possibility of an end to all the bloodshed and violence in the Middle East, Somalia, throughout the world and racial tensions in all societies.  All issues and points of view start with individuals.  The right mind set and focus can make a remarkable difference and bring about real change.  

I lift my tea cup to you as we enter 2012.  Good things are headed our way!

Steeping your tea for the proper amount of time is part of the art and one of the most important steps in enjoying a great tasting cup of tea.  Everyone is different and will enjoy their tea with slight differences, but these differences are counted in seconds, not minutes.  There are guidelines as to how long each type of tea should be steeped, which will really help you head in the right direction.  To find out the recommended steeping time for each of our teas here at California Tea House check out the label on the bag as well as more detailed information at the bottom of each tea product page on our website.

If you are like me, you're on the computer a lot.  A lot of times I will get a kettle of tea started, sit down to start some work on the computer, thinking that I will hop right back up in time to stop my tea steep using the ever-so-accurate clock in my head (yeah right!).  Needless to say, many times I end up with an astringent and bitter cup of tea due to over steeping.  Due to this reoccurring issue, I have found a few fun and helpful tea steeping alarm clocks that operate right on your computer which is perfect for a laptop junky like me.  Below are the top 5 tea timers that I have come across.  All free, but donations are appreciated:

1) http://tea-clock.com/  (This tea timer is my favorite due to it's simplicity, customizable features as well as the desktop alert feature without any downloads required.  Steve Jobs would be impressed!)

2) http://steep.it/  (This tea steeping alarm is at the tope of my list too due to the ease of use and fun graphics.  I also prefer not to download software to my computer if I don't have to which makes this one a plus.)

3) http://widgets.yahoo.com/widgets/tea-timer (Here is a simple, nice design for a tea steeping alarm that you have to download to your computer.)

4) http://www.joshjacob.com/mac-development/teatimer.php (This is a downloadable, programmable tea alarm made for Mac)

5) https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tea-timer/ (Another tea steeping alarm that you download.  It's a little basic in design, but does the trick.)

We wanted to offer gift wrapping for awhile, and now it's available just in time for the holidays!

Tea has always made a great gift!  Our custom tea blends look as wonderful as they taste which pairs perfectly with our colorful packaging.  Gourmet tea is a must around the house during the cold weather holidays to brighten up the party and warm up the guests.  California Tea House now offers the option of having your order wrapped beautifully in wicker baskets with colorful stuffing and an elegant, velvet bow to make your tea gifts even more enticing.

For a limited time we are offering free gift wrapping on all orders of $75 or more.  Simply add gift wrapping to your cart and enter the coupon code during the first page of checkout.

Free gift wrapping code: GIFTED75

Try some of our famous holiday teas:

Chocolate Chai herbal blend

Gingerbread Chai Rooibos

Lemon Meringue Pie

Tiramisu

The Japanese swear by it and it has one of the most unique flavors in the world, Ginger.  For centuries, the benefits of ginger have been utilized in natural medicine.

Ginger is taken from the root or rhizome of a plant called Zingiber officinale and has a long history as a natural healer.  Once you realize that Ginger is also delicious and adds a special 'bite' of flavor, Ginger quickly becomes one of your favorite ingredients!  At California Tea House, we like to use Ginger in some of our custom tea blends for the added spicy, Chai like flavor and because we are always trying to formulate the absolute best healthy, organic tea blends.  Here are some health benefits of Ginger Tea:

1) Ginger kills bacteria including Salmonella.  Ever wonder why Sushi is served with a slice of Ginger?  Ginger helps kill food-born bacteria and can help prevent food poison when eating risky foods, such as uncooked fish.  Drinking some Sake doesn't hurt either!

2) Ginger helps prevent nausea.  According to the Mayo Clinic, Ginger is sometimes used to help prevent and treat nausea symptoms brought on by chemotherapy.

3) Ginger helps control chronic pain including arthritis according to the Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.

4) Ginger helps the body's natural digestion process according to the Bastyr Center for Natural Health.  

5) Ginger helps fight Ovarian and Colon Cancer according to studies conducted by the Universities of Minnesota and Michigan.

6) Ginger helps prevent motion sickness according to the University of Maryland Medical Center.

So drink up your delicious ginger tea and enjoy your health the natural way!  If you would like to enjoy the natural health benefits of Ginger Tea, try these two ginger based teas:

Gingerbread Chai

Apricot Chai