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 How is it that you enjoy your night time tea? Do you enjoy a cup of herbal in the quiet after the kids go to bed? Do you sip a cup during the nightly news? I take mine out to the front porch and sip my tea while I drink in the night. Listening to the night sounds of suburbia, Killdeers winging through the dark... Sometimes watching a bat fly in and out of the streetlight catchng insects.
 Other times I sit quietly with prayer beads in hand and ask the Universe to help plot my course to contentment, pray for the end of suffering and war... or pray for things closer to home and my heart... or I simply give thanks for the blessings I have.
These are prayer beads I made for a friend fighting breat cancer.
Do you have a night time ritual invovling tea?
Tags: Honeybush, Tisane, Tea Culture, Japanese Tea, Chinese Tea, Chai, Pu-erh Tea, Rooibos Tea, Blooming Tea, Green Tea, White Tea, Black Tea, Oolong Tea, Darjeeling Tea
On the precipice of Halloween, southwest Georgia shows off her changing colors–the pods have fallen from almost every gum tree, and each Japanese oak seems to cling on to its last majestic leaflet, before it inevitably must tumble to the ground. And the cradling action of each leaf that falls is reflected in each cup of Dragonwell.
The young leaves seem to dance in the water as the tea steeps, gracious to unfurl all the flavor to anyone patient enough for the four minutes for this water-dance to conclude.
Four minutes.
A minute amount of time to wait for the benefits gained by brewing such a fine tea. And in this pedal-to-the-metal world, time stops while Dragonwell releases its tranquil aroma into your soul.
As you extract the leaf basket, infuser, or simply drink the brew with the leaves lying on the bottom of the glass, the scent of freshly-cut grass invites you to take the first sip.
All it takes is one sip ... wham! ... you're in paradise. In paradise unitl the last drop of Dragonwell coats your tongue, from the fourth or even fifth infusion!–all without the caffeine launch and plummet of coffee.
This tea from Hangzhou, China (Zhejiang Province) is one of the Top Ten Most Famous Green Teas of China (these can be searched for in any search engine, for those interested on the others). One of Dragonwells distinguishing features is that its young sprouts are roasted by hand–in a wok, over an open flame. And this technique is what ultimately gives the leaves their flat shape and smooth shine. How well the teamasters do their roasting also determines this tea's quality. This is no small feat. It takes over one hour to produce only one pound of tea!
Fanatic you say?
All it takes is one sip ...
The brew's color complements the Georgian landscape with its pale gold-green against the deep purple-red of the Japanese oaks.
The brew's flavor profile would seem to mimic the grassiness of the tea's aroma; however when it hits the palate, nutty, earthy notes with embrace your senses.
The brew's most comfortable at one level teaspoon per eight ounces of filtered water (even in Georgia the water should be free of all contaminants), and steeped with a water temperature of 175 degrees farenheit.
As you observe the colors of fall, something profound strikes the neurons of your mind.
The Dragonwell you're sipping is making you notice the world in sharp relief. You're thinking has become clearer. And it's not an anxious, sped-up sensation, but a tranquil, eased-on experience.
And this will last you the entire day. Again, without the headaches and crash of coffee.
Do yourself a favor and check out Dragonwell. Your mind and spirit will thank you. And you'll be back for more.
All it takes is one sip ...
P.S. CaliforniaTeaHouse offers organic Dragonwell. So you can have an even deeper peace of mind, knowing that the leaves haven't been touched with any nefariious chemicals! Drink On!
M.C. Watts
I love tea... all kinds of tea... but when it comes down to it... black tea is my favorite.
 California Tea House's Golden Monkey Paw black tea is a gorgeous whole leaf tea...
Look at these lovely leaves! Being whole leaf, this tea is full of all those wonderful antioxidents and good things that black tea is known for.
Look at this amazing color when it's steeped. Its taste is just as golden. Golden Monkey Paw is a full bodied tea with a smooth flavor that is robust enough to hold up to milk and sweetener.
It's the perfect morning tea for me! It bet it will be for you as well!
 I'm a travel junkie with few immediate plans to change that. As I yearn for the rush of my next adventure, Spain!, websites focused on travel appease my cravings. As so, The Matador Network has given me the inspiration that I'm adopting here. In the name of tea and travel, I've taken a spin on their weekly "By the Numbers" blog offering and curtailed it for you.
Originally a coffee-addict as well, I came to China with the enticement of teaching English for 10 months at a college in little-known Zhengzhou, a typical Chinese city of six million. After I grew to love tea and my 10 months of teaching, I took off, dragging along two friends, to experience the country's quirks and extremes. Here's my tab.
Days spent traveling: 15
Cities visited: 6
Varieties of Chinese loose leaf tea sampled: 6
Number of tea houses or shops visited: 6
Number of times we drank tea in a park while getting our ears cleaned: 1 very strange time
Number of times we enjoyed massages while drinking tea: 2
Nights spent trying to sleep on a train with a hard seat at an acute 90 degree angle: 2
Price paid for transport in such a "bed": 10 USD
Concrete steps hiked up a mountain: 255
Number of dumplings consumed: 56
Number of dumplings oddly shaped and created by myself during a cooking class: 35 (essentially each one I touched)
Number of fortune cookies spotted: 0
Number of times Obama was mentioned: 3
Number of times Lady Gaga was mentioned: 5
Pandas spotted: 9
Starbucks spotted: 7
Starbucks purchased: 0
Bowls of rice eaten: 29
Cups of tea drank: 17
Number of times we were offered a fork and knife: 2
Times a chicken head appeared in a dish: 3
Times we got sick: 1 (The Sichuanese do like it spicy!)
Number of squat toilets used: Too many to count
Photos taken of one of us by random Chinese tourists: 50+
Hours spent on a bike: 6
Bikes spotted: Too many to ever countBike accidents: 1 small collision and thus 1 swollen ankle
Number of Chinese spotted drinking tea: Look to aforementioned response
Favorite Chinese tea: The famous green tea of Anhui
Favorite place: Chengdu, the Panda Capital of the World, or Beijing. Decision making has never been a strength.
Yes, that is me on a bike in China with a panda hat, where I am surrounded by more pandas. Do not be misled, however, my count refers to pandas that are not made of plush.
3, 2, 1---and the mountain was gone. A ball of mist swirled in a masking envelope. I looked on. This was the power of Huangshan or as English-speakers will better understand, Yellow Mountain.
And moments later, as if my murmurs had been heard, a single ray broke the swirl and the creamy jutting spires of stone dazzled. A natural muse, Hunagshan has served as the source of allure for countless traditional ink paintings and thousands of poems (20,000 to be exact, from the Tang to the Qing, 618-1912). Last counted in 2007, 15 million visited, but for more than just that.
Yes, GREEN TEA.
One of China's premier tea growing regions, Huangshan's mist rolls over the mountain peaks like a fluffy sea. Rendering the environment moist and artfully ideal for tea growing. Tucked deep into Anhui province, tea culture is life here.
Most notably, Mao Feng (meaning first fluffy, then mountain peaks) is the tea of Huangshan. Jade in color with a flowering aroma and taste, its sitrringly delightful as a green tea with an almost-apricot taste. The total effect is a clean, refreshing and slightly sweet taste that seems to linger like that awkward guy at a party, except only one in this comparison is a problem. Noted for the coating layer of fur, the Mao Feng tea leaves are not fermented, but actually dried in the sun and then pan fried and rolled, preserving the natural flavor of the tea leaves when fresh.
If you go to glimpse the infamous Huangshan sunrise, don't forget, there is good tea waiting to wake you up.
As an ancient Chinese proverb goes:
"Better to be deprived of food for three days, than tea for one."
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