Angela Webster McRae's Blog, page 175

Coming soon to a (tea) bookshelf near you …

I've said it before, but if I'm not editing a book or writing a book, I'm reading a book, and most days, I do a bit of all three activities. Occasionally, I go snooping on Amazon to see what new tea books are coming out in the months ahead so I can go ahead and add them to my Wish List! Among the ones I’m eager to read this fall is “Tea Sets and Tyranny: The Politics of Politeness in Early America” by Steven C. Bullock. “Politics” and “politeness” aren’t two words I would put in the same sentence today, so I’m very interested in a book that examines the role of social interactions that contributed to the coming of the American Revolution.

“A Catered Tea Party” by Isis Crawford is coming this August, and it looks like just the sort of cozy mystery I’d like. I haven’t read any of this author’s othered “Catered” mysteries, so if you have, please let me know what you think.
Now I’ve been a Cath Kidston fan for years, so when I saw she’s coming out with a teatime cookbook, I immediately placed it on my Amazon Wish List. This one comes out in September, and the preview on Amazon looks delightful!

Coming in October is "Prêt-à-Portea: High Fashion Cakes and Cookies" by The Berkeley. The cover alone makes me want this! Tea friend Nancy Reppert personally enjoyed this unique hotel tea in London last year, and you can read about it here. (I imagine this book will be on her Wish List if it isn’t already.)
Also coming in October is “World Atlas of Tea” by Krisi Smith, which “follows tea from the plantation to harvesting and processing to how to make the perfect cup. The book is illustrated throughout with beautiful color photographs taken in the field." I love the idea of a "World Atlas" of tea and can't wait to read this one.
So what's on your teatime reading list these days?

May giveaway: "Time for Tea" wall stickers!

I'm always searching for some interesting new tea item for each month's giveaway, but it's rare that I come across something I've never seen before. Recently, however, I found these self-adhesive and removable wall stickers at T.J. Maxx, and I decided they would be great for a giveaway! You could use them for a temporary decor for a tea party for yourself or little girls, or you could use them in your kitchen anytime, or if you've got a daughter or granddaughter with a tea-themed bedroom, these might be fun in there as well. I'd say you're limited only by your imagination!

I didn't want to open the package, but the back does give you some ideas for different ways you can use these. The stickers are from a company in the UK (next.co.uk), which is not really surprising considering the theme!

And here's a closeup to show a little more detail. If you'd like to win these wall stickers, just leave an "Enter me" to this post by 7 a.m. next Monday, May 23, and you'll be entered to win. (US and Canada residents only, please.) Good luck!

My Country, 'Tis of Tea — Maine

The rain in Spain falls Mainely … oh, wait. That's the wrong use of "Maine," isn't it? At any rate, this week I'm continuing my alphabetical exploration of tea in every state, and a number of notable items related to Maine caught my attention …

• Georgia peaches, Florida oranges, Idaho potatoes, and Maine … blueberries, right? I cannot even begin to think of Maine without thinking of blueberries and of my dear friend Ruth here in Newnan, who hails from Maine and is the first person I ever knew of in Georgia who had successfully grown blueberries. (The second was my dad, in whose garden I photographed the Georgia blueberries above.) Ruth says her Georgia blueberries are good, but she just looks wistful and sighs when she recalls the blueberries "on the island" where she grew up in Maine. Is it any wonder that blueberry is a perennial favorite flavor of tea lovers? Some of the blueberry teas I've enjoyed are, from top, Mrs. Patmore's Blueberry Scone Tea from Republic of Tea, Cape Shore Blueberry Tea, Inko's White Blueberry Tea, and Bar Harbor Tea Company's Blueberry Tea. (If you know of another blueberry tea I should try, please let me know!)

• Kennebunkport, Maine. I always think of that as the summer home of President George H. W. Bush, but in tearoom history, it was also once the home of the Old Grist Mill Tearoom. The restaurant opened in the forties and was owned by two generations of the Lombard Family, and it was an actual working grist mill that had been converted to a restaurant. The restaurant is no longer there because it burned down in 1994 "under suspicious circumstances." I'm thinking that would be an interesting plotline to explore in a mystery, don't you?

• Finally, I have to mention a fact that I did not know until a few years ago, which is that the Boston Tea Party was actually just one of a number of early "tea party" protests in our country. Ten of them are featured in Joseph Cummins's intriguing "Ten Tea Parties" (which I noted was on sale for just $5.98 in the discount section of Barnes and Noble recently), and one of them was in York, Maine. If you're interested in all the juicy details, as I always am, you can also read about the "York, Maine Tea Party of 1774" in this article.

An early bloomer

One evening this week, I was walking to the mailbox in the evening when a spot of peachy color in the front yard caught my eye. What is that? It was my 'Tea Clipper' rose from David Austin English Roses, which doesn't usually bloom until around Memorial Day! I absolutely adore this beautiful, fragrant rose, a birthday gift from my friend Deberah years ago.

She also gave me a pale pink David Austin 'Wedgwood' rose, which will be blooming soon.

And this hosta obviously isn't a David Austin rose, but I'm still so happy my 'Tea and Crumpets' hosta has come back to life. The deer munched it to the ground last year, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to enjoy some of these garden treasures for a bit longer this year!

Bourbon Black Tea from Elmwood Inn Fine Teas

When I arrived home from a Kentucky Derby party Saturday night, I had the most wonderful and timely gift awaiting from my tea friend Linda in Kentucky, and it was …

This tin of Bourbon Black Tea from Elmwood Inn Fine Teas in Danville, Kentucky! I had been wanting to try this tea, even though I've never had a sip of bourbon that I'm aware of (unless chocolate-covered bourbon balls count). You'd think a boring, middle-aged teetotaler (or teatotaler?) wouldn't be interested in bourbon-flavored tea, but I was, and since the bourbon in mint juleps is synonymous with the Kentucky Derby, this tea is the perfect tea lover's tea to enjoy on race day!

I'm happy to report that I really, really like this tea and have been drinking it all week. (There's no alcohol, so don't worry that I'm turning into a lush!) It has a smoky edge and an almost sweet quality that I greatly enjoy, almost as if somebody finally got the recipe exactly right for that Lapsang Souchong tea I find so offensive. So I'm enjoying my new bourbon tea very much, and now I don't have to wait a whole 'nuther year to get in Kentucky Derby mode again!

Note: If I'm about to review a new tea, I try not to read about a tea's ingredients until I've tried it so that I won't be influenced by the description. Here's what I just learned about this tea from the Elmwood Inn Fine Teas website: "The immediate notes are caramel and vanilla. Lingering in the background is a subtle hint of char delivered by a tiny bit of Lapsang Souchong." So apparently I do like "a tiny bit" of Lapsang Souchong!

The most amazing teacup card ever. Seriously.

I am always grateful whenever anyone takes the time to send me a birthday card, especially since I am not the best about sending them myself! And when I received a birthday card in the mail from tea friend Mary Jane last week, I certainly had no idea of the cleverness contained within that envelope. It was something called a "Swing Card" from the Santoro Company in the UK!
And when I read her thoughtful greeting on the back and folded the card into position, these lovely teacups started sweetly swinging!
I can't even begin to imagine the paper engineering that it took to a) make such a card possible and b) make it so foolproof that the recipients couldn't manage to bungle it when setting up the card.
They even designed the perfect background images …
And the clever teaspoon "suspension" for the teacups …
And I wondered if it wasn't easier to make a teacup than to make a teacup card! Bravo, Santoro (a link to their Swing Cards is here), and thank you again, Mary Jane!