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Okay just finished my 4lb stash from a trip last year comprising of peabery from both UCC and Greenwell farms. Personally felt that Greenwell had a much superior product vs. UCC. Looking to restock, does anyone have any other roaster recommendations, I'm going to just do mail order instead this time round. Might give the Greenwell Special Reserve a go...

I don't know why it took me so long to discover the wonderful electric kettles that are out there. I use one made by Black & Decker (of all companies!) and it's perfect for the office. The base plugs in but the kettle itself detaches from the base so you're not encumbered. I got mine at Target but I'm sure they're widely available. Before, we had a spare coffeemaker that a couple of us tea drinkers (I drink loose-leaf green tea from MellowMonk) were using to heat water for tea, but it never got the water hot enough. We even have one of those 180-degree spigots that dispenses extra hot water. But that's not hot enough, either. (What people use it for, I have no idea. Instant noodles, maybe?) So this electric kettle is a godsend. Instead of a teapot I use an over-the-cup strainer that's about 2 inches deep, so the tea leaves have room to swirl around during infusion. I just thought I'd share. --Rich

Tea and Chai Topics Your Favorite Teas? Making your own Chai Loose Tea in NYC - a good source? Ahhh... Bubble Tea Bagged Teas Flower Teas

A recent discussion with Fat Guy about ways in which the Coffee & Tea forum might be elevated, promoted and imbued with a unique character of its own has prompted introduction of a forum index. Many topics that have fallen to lower pages have worthwhile information for both eGullet newcomers researching coffee topics and long time forum regulars looking for previous discussions. Additional content will be added in the future, some of it in the form of lockedtopics that will be mini-tutorials, but most of the threads will remain as is for additional replies. Any suggestions for subjects that should be referenced in the index will be appreciated - just PM me with the details or feel free to reply to this thread for open discussion. I'll also add a Tea section to the index in the near future. As always, thanks for your support of eGullet in general and our little caffeinated corner in particular!

Twinings Ceylon Teabags: 'A bright, amber tea that is very refreshing and thirstquenching.' Wrong. 'A bland, weak tea that tastes of very little.' Does anyone have a better experience? Tesco had no Lapsang Souchong, which is one of the only teas for a hangover.

On page 42 of the April 2004 issue of Food Arts magazine there's a photo of a really cool looking "layered espresso" created by some guy named Alan Miguel Kaplan. It's in a tall clear glass, and it appears that the drink has milk on the bottom, espresso in the middle, and foam on the top. All it says about how it's made is "By expertly and delicately adding the steamed milk with certain precision, we created the illusion of three different layers."

It's getting warmer, and in Springtime a young man's fancy turns to iced coffee. Today I almost achieved iced coffee nirvana. Tall Glass Fill 2/3with leftover extra-strong presspot coffee Add plentiful sweetened condensed milk Add a slug of U-Bet chocolate syrup Add ice Stir Enjoy The two things that would improve on this, as I see it, would be frozen coffee cubes instead of ice, and some of that Ghirardelli chocolate syrup Alacarte pointed out. Some people like to use espresso as the coffee base, but at the volume I drink I'd be getting something like 14 shots per serving. So...? How do you do it?

I attended 1 1/2 hour workshop on Korean tea ceremony with 4 other members of yahoo group teamail- I can only speak for myself-I had a good time- Before the workshop I had vegetarian lunch for $9.95 Also before workshop we exchanged some tea samples. The workshop was $20 and after the workshop you receive a gift bag with personal teacup and a sample of their wild green korean tea. Joanne Franchi 12 Park Avenue(35-36 St.) NY,NY www.franchia.com

I have been enjoying some exquisite Flowery Pekoe white tea I purchased in L.A.'s Chinatown a few weeks ago. It has a subtle but persistent flavor which appeals to the wine lover in me. Today, I thought I'd mix things up a bit by throwing in a small pinch of Lapsang Souchong, hoping to marry the pros of each into an irresistible blend. Big mistake, as those of you who have mixed with LS are probably saying to yourselves. LS is just too overwhelming, and if I were ever to attempt it again, a couple of threads would be all I'd throw in. I am just beginning to explore high-end tea, so my blending skills will be on a heckuva learning curve. I will be loathe to adulterate my white tea with anything else after this.

Anyone out there ever use this website www.kyelateas.com to order tea? I'm wondering if they are still in business. The website will take an order, but it never gets processed (ie. I don't get charged and I don't recieve any tea) and my emails to them have not generated a response. I found this odd as I heard about the site recently in a copy of The Art of Eating "resources' section and I am under the impression that the guy who runs the site also writes about darjeeling for AoE. Any info would be appreciated. I just want to order some tea!

This was inspired by jgoulds question on another thread. I just drink espresso (or espresso and milk drinks), not brewed coffee. I read about all sorts of beans that get great reviews, but they are not roasted specifically for espresso. Do some of them make great espresso? How does one decide whether a particular bean might make great espresso (other than trial and error)? Is there a style of roasting or land of origin or taste factor described in a review that might lead me to be relatively confident that I would recognize it's great traits in a cup of espresso instead of a cup of brewed coffee?

Hi all, I've been looking for a good source of loose tea in the NYC area, Assam tea in particular. I just don't like tea bags as much. Does anyone have any recommendations? Thanks, Sam.

For the past year or so I've been drinking yerba maté more than coffee and can attest to the differences between caffeine and the mateine in this South American beverage. I still love coffee, but can expect an edgy ride when I drink a few cups of coffeeshop-strength brew. With maté it's different; I feel a lift to the body and the brain without any sleep deprivation or crash -- and I can drink six teapots' worth or more. And if you believe what mate purveyors claim, the stuff is full of antioxidants among other health benefits. A few natural-foods stores sell small portions of maté at a steep price; I've found it's better to order large quantities on eBay. The best deals I've found were for Cruz de Malta. I bought it in large shipments, and it is decent, but I've had better. Can anyone recommend an affordable but high-quality brand? Or does anyone have anything maté-related they want to share? I have been trying to get my small-town coffee shop to stock it to no avail.

Reposted from New Jersey board: There is a new tea room in Denville called Ambrosia's Tea Room. Tea comes in teapots for $3.75. Scones are $4.00 (I think), $5.00 with Devon creme and strawberry jam. Very good scones compared to the Starbucks a block away. I had the house blend which was quite good. Black, green and herbal are available. I haven't had a change to try the tea sandwiches (cucumber, smoked salmon, egg salad). There is a soup of day, salads, and coffees for the non-tea drinkers. I posted an entry on the Restaurants forum in NJ.com and I'm not affiliated with the place in any way. I love tea rooms and this is the first for the area. (The Tea Hive in Newton is nice but a good drive away). It's in an office building (2nd floor) so it doesn't look like a tea room from the outside but the inside is comforting in a modern way. Website: www.ambrosiatea.com Address: 26 Bloomfield Ave., Denville, NJ 07834 Phone: 973-586-0700

a small group of people are planning a tea tasting of korean green teas on march 20 or 27 in nyc at hangawi- if anyone is interested in joining us please e-mail me joanne

"Msk" posed a good question in another thread and I believe it deserves some space of its own for discussion.... Wow. This is wide open and there are so many. Plenty more are sure to be forthcoming but here's what I look for and want to know.... ==================================================== What To Look For: 1) Is the portafilter being left in the grouphead of the espresso machine when it's not in use? The thermal mass of the brass portafilter asembly is crucial in retaining heat so the brewing temp does not drop off as the water is forced through the grounds. If you walk into a cafe and see the portafilters sitting on the counter separately from the machine, waiting to be filled and used... fuggedaboudit - chances of getting really good espresso are nil. 2) Do they make a practice of grinding large amounts and leaving the doser filled with already ground coffee? Not good. Grounds sitting in the doser will literally, within an hour or so, start getting flat and losing the potential for creating good crema and superior shots. If they grind to fill the doser every ten to fifteen minutes or so during the morning rush, it's fine but if you walk in at a slow time during mid afternoon or evening and they don't grind the coffee right then for your shot - chances are you just won't get a good shot. Some of the very best cafes use timer assemblies that grind the right amount of reach shot and the beans for every shot are ground when you order the drink - this is the best. 3) Does it appear that they're tamping and doing it well? Usually the mark of a place that cares enough to try for good results. In some places you may see a LaMarzocco Swift grinder - this is the one where the barista actually locks the portafilter onto the grinder and hits a button. In this case the barista does not tamp. The grinder automatically grinds the right amount and tamps. Some purists believe that hand tamping is the best but a Swift can actually do a better and more consistent job than all but the best baristas. A relatively inexperienced barista with a well maintained and tweaked espresso machine and a Swift can produce very good results indeed. 4) Is the steam wand nice and clean and does it get wiped down and purged after each pitcher of milk is steamed? If you see a milk crud encrusted steam wand it's safe to assume that, at the very least, they don't do a good job of steaming milk. More important - it speaks to the big picture. Lack of attention to a crucial process detail like this generally indicates that the owner/manager/staff either doesn't know or doesn't care enough about milk preparation to do it correctly and more likely than not.... that attitude extends to espresso preparation. 5) Is the barista continually adding milk to pitchers that have sat around for extended periods of time on the counter or re-steaming milk that has sat around for awhile? During a busy morning or evening rush it's a resonable practice to steam in the same pitcher for awhile and keep adding more cold milk but the use old milk/warm milk/re-steamed milk means the same thign as the previous comment - lack of attention to process control. What To Ask: 1) Do you roast your own beans, how often is this done and how fresh are the beans you use? They should not be using beans more than ten days past roasting date. 2) If you don't roast them yourselves, where do they come from? In some areas you may find cafes using five pound bags of the popular Italian bar blends like LaVazza. Beans like this can make very good espresso but they have to be coming from a trusted source that monitors dates and has good turnover. Good microroaster beans will still be better in nearly all cases. Other cafes will buy from reputable microroasters. I know of a place in Brooklyn that buys from Caffe Vivace in Seattle. One of Vancouver BC's better local cafes actually has their beans shipped in from Chicago IL in the US! (Intelligentsia Roasters) 3) How many ounces in your double shot? If they say 1.5 to 2 ounces and they really deliver this amount - chances are good that they're trying to do it right. Perhaps they won't be hitting it on every shot - nobody does - but it likely means they understand what's needed. ==================================================== These are only a few but in my experience if any of the above don't meet the right criteria.... chances are slim that you'll get really good espresso.

It's true. Heated frothed milk can be simply that or it can be an entirely different substance with not only a different viscosity, mouthfeel and sweetness but the capability for blending with espresso in a manner that yields a drink quite unlike the run-of-the-mill capuccino or latte most folks have ever experienced. I'll quote myself (from the Latte Art Video section of my own web site) as a place to start the discussion: Schomer has a good article on these techniques at his Espresso Vivace website Milk Texturing Basics I have also found the free pdf tutorial offered by Gimme! Coffee to be concise and very helpful Milk Preparation Tutorial I'm no expert.... heck... I can't even pour decent "latte art" despite having a really good machine and plenty of resources to study. What I do know is this: using manual frothers with heated milk is a worthy substitute if you're in a pinch but true microfoamed milk is a thing of beauty and the drinks one can prepare with it really are superior. There is no substitute but few cafes actually produce it. Visit a really good cafe.... JJ Bean or cafe Artigiano in Vancouver BC, Vivace, Vita or Hines in Seattle, Intelligentsia in Chicago, Gimme Coffee in NYC or Ithaca.... you'll find that the difference between a latte and cappuccino is the espresso to milk ratio - lattes get more milk. There's none of this Starbucks style "scoop the extra foam on top and call it a cappuccino". Uh uh.... no sir.... all the milk they serve is microfoamed - it's been prepared so that the milk itself has been transformed in its entirety rather than having a separate layer of foam and milk. I'll welcome and respond to dissenting views but I've had enough first hand experience to feel strongly about this. Here are what I consider to be really "basic basics": Start with cold milk - the colder the better - the longer the frothing time the better developed the foam (within reason) Use an appropriately sized pitcher. Smaller machines in the sub $500 range generally steam no more than 5 - 6 oz of milk at a time properly. $500- $1200 units generally do well with up to 10 or 12 ounces. Best results are obtained when the milk is at least 2" or 3" deep - thus we need a 10 oz pitcher for small amounts and a 20 oz pitcher for larger amounts. Higher milk fat produces more velvety and longer lasting microfoam. I can get passable results with 1% but 2% or whole milk works better. I even know people who juice up their whole milk by adding half 'n half or condensed whole milk. Skim milk creates lots of dry, fluffy and light foam that separates from the milk - exactly what we DON'T want! Purge the steam wand and then start steaming with the tip fully submerged. Immediately lower the pitcher so the the tip stays just under the surface of the milk - feel free to move it around a bit as the milk is "stretching". It will begin increasing in volume from the air being introduced but we're only looking to expand volume by 15% to 25% at most - what we're after is better texture. At about 100 degrees, tip the pitcher or tilt the wand (or both)so that the tip is still just slightly submerged but the wand against the side of the pitcher, more or less parallel to it and get a swirling motion going. This is the process where the larger bubbles initially created are broken into the smaller bubbles of microfoam. At about 130 degrees keep the same swirling motion going but raise the pitcher to fully immerse the tip so it's close to the bottom of the milk. Stop frothing at about 145 degrees. That's pretty close tro the sweet spot - literally. It's the point at which the sugars in the milk have been converted to produce extra sweetness from the milk but well below the level where scorching can occur. Many people forego the use of a thermometer and work by the level of warmth on the outside of the pitcher and the sound that the foaming creates. Maybe I'll be at that level someday but for now I find that having the thermometer really simplifies things and helps me control the process Yes... I know... it seems like a lot of hoo-hah and monkeying around for a coffee drink but if it wasn't worth I wouldn't be here

Recently, I've taken a liking to Korean "Jelly" teas, in particular "Citron" tea, or Yujacha as it is called in Korean. This is stuff that has the consistency of and looks just like very runny marmalade, with thin slices of citrus peel in it. You add a spoonfull of it to about 12oz of hot water and stir. Very sweet. It also works really well as a sweetener for regular black or herbal tea. You can buy it in Korean supermarkets. http://store.yahoo.com/enjoyingtea/cihotea5.html http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=538 They also have other types of jellified teas as well: Omija (1) http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=409 Omija (2) http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=410 Jujube http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=537 Ume http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=539 Ginger http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=542 Plum Honey http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=543 Red Ginseng Honey http://www.kgrocer.com/index.asp?PageActio...PROD&ProdID=544 Information about Korean Teas: http://english.tour2korea.com/food/about/b...ddt/ddt_tea.asp

Normally I work at home, but one day a week I go to one of my client's office to do some in-house work. Rather than have my own coffee before I go, I have theirs when I get there. Yes, I could buy some on the way, but I'm a cheap bastard. Anyway, they've got one of those newfangled Flavia machines, which if you haven't seen one is supposed to be an 'improvement' over ordinary institutional office coffee by making individual cups of coffee from little packets of instant coffee. Or at least I assume it's instant--it brews too fast for real coffee. It is, as a former boss used to say, not good. One of the worst things (of many) that's bad is that the coffee is very, very weak. But the packets come in all sorts of blends, including tea, 'choco' (hot chocolate, I guess), espresso and even cappucino. So I get a bit bored and think, what the hell, I'll try the espresso. You take the 'espresso blend' packet, put it in the machine, and select 'espresso shot' from the menu. A few selects later you have a cup of dark liquid that tastes, well, dark. Sort of vaguely reminiscent of espresso. It's probably about 3 ounces. No crema or actual coffee taste. Not even bitter, really, just dark. It's not really fair to compare it to real espresso, even not very good but still real espresso. Is it fair to compare it to instant espresso from a jar, such as Medaglia D'oro? Actually, no. It does not even compare to that. I am disappointed, but of course not surprised. I haven't tried the cappucino. The cappucino is made in a two-step process that involves first making a packet of 'creamy topping.' I am afraid of the creamy topping. However, this morning I have my brilliant flash. Will it work to use one of the regular blend packets with the espresso shot setting? Yes! it does! Making the coffee with half the water brings it up almost to the strength of coffee-cart coffee. I can use two packets to make one cup of coffee. Yay! I realize that this does nothing, really, to advance the state of the art in coffee-brewing, but I wanted to share my little victory over office-coffee technology.

i just placed an order for a selection of their new winter oolongs- http://www.shanshuiteas.com/ the samples i ordered were recommended by yahoo group teamailers- i will share my experiiences with these teas here- does any one else enjoy oolongs? ITEMS: 1 Premium Winter 2003 Boluomi 15g 1 Premium Winter 2003 Baozhong 15g 1 Premium Winter 2003 Lanyun 15g 1 Premium Winter 2003 Tie Guanyin 15g 1 Premium Winter 2003 Wulong 15g 1 Premium Spring 2003 Gaoshan Jinxuan 15g

Tried out the Holiday Chai from the Stash Tea catalog, and it became addictive. Looks like it had a rather hesitant introduction... only sold in bags inside boxes of 20, in retail and the catalog. This stuff is really strong and of a good quality, with rum and gingerbread flavors, and really goes well with traditional milk & honey (& some ginger biscotti!) I highly recommend picking up some from the catalog (it sold out in stores well before Xmas, which is something that Stash Xmas eve and Xmas day blends cannot boast.) There's a lot of terrible chai out there, either powdered or boxed, and I really think this one's a great one to have around during the winter...

All of my friends, colleagues and others I know quickly become aware that I'm a coffee fanatic and espresso hound once they get to know me. I can barely count the number of times that someone has said "Oooh... I have an espreso machine I got as a ________ (insert occasion here) gift. I've never used it. Do you want it? After all.... you're into espresso, right?". We've all seen these - they run anywhere from $30 - $70, utilize simple steam pressure to produce a facsimile of espresso and are way too labor intensive for the average non-coffee fanatic to get involved with using. I'm not referring to the low end espresso machines that have a pump along with a switch for espresso or steam. Machines of that type, usually in the $80 to $100 range, are not great but if used properly they can make a passable cappuccino. Instead, I refer to the devices where one must add water, screw down a pressure cap, wait for steam pressure to build and be very careful about not opening the cap before pressure has gone down. Sooo... how about it.... is this quite possibly the world's most unused gift? I have been offered at least a dozen or so of these in the past few years (slight exaggeration but many) and not one of them had ever been used. I will cross post this in General Food topics due to the chance that there is some non-coffee item which might qualify for this dubious distinction.

So back when we got engaged -- this is like 11 years ago now -- we registered for an espresso maker. I remember reading various consumer ratings and choosing the Delonghi Caffe Espresso for some reason, though I'm not sure what that reason was. When we got it as a wedding gift, I made about six shots with it, they all totally sucked, and up it went onto a high shelf for a decade. A week or so ago, the machine resurfaced during spring (well, winter) cleaning and we decided to give it another go. This time, armed with much greater espresso knowledge and access to live expert assistance, we got very good results from this little machine. It appears to have a legitimate pump, and two separate settings for water and steam. This is good, yes? The shots we pulled had nice crema (though this isn't a great challenge to achieve with freshly roasted and ground beans) and was better than what you get at most restaurants, though not as good as a good espresso shot. We also had decent luck with steaming milk, thought he placement/height/configuration of the nozzle means you have to let part of the machine hang off the edge of the counter in order to get a decent sized vessel under it. Next project: getting the grind exactly right for this machine. First batch was probably too coarse. Second was probably too fine. Hoping to get something right in the middle for next time.

has anyone been to MMAee exhibit of teapots? does anyone collect teapots? joanne

I have several favorites. I'll start with Camomile. I buy a bouquet at the farmers market and leave it on the dining table while I sip. Chamomile is very relaxi ng.