Tea and Smiles!

We’re tea drinkers in this household. Like, dyed-in-the-wool, drink-it-every-single-day sorta tea drinkers.

When the question of coffee or tea comes up, it’s never even  debate in my head. It could be first thing in the morning, or late at night. It doesn’t matter whether it’s after lunch or dinner, or even just a few minutes before bed. 99 times out of 100, my beverage of choice will be tea. That other time, it still won’t be coffee, but that’s a topic for another post.

Tea shops like this make me feel like a kid in a candy store; I could spend ALL DAY here!!!

So, now that we have established the tea preference, the next question is usually what kind of tea, and how do you take it. Black, white, green, yellow, red, I am an equal opportunity tea drinker.

Hot or cold?  Yes.

Sweetened or unsweetened? OK.

Caffeinated or decaffeinated?  Both are good.

Roasted or toasted?  Sure.

Smoked?  Abso-freakin’-lutely!!!

Herbal? Well, while technically not tea, yep, we drink those too.

Infused with fruit and flowers and such? Oh, I’m getting all giggly and giddy with the millions of possibilities for PLAYING around with fun and delicious variations!!!

Wild Cherry Tea
PLAYING with vibrantly fruity Wild Cherry Tea from a cafe in Tirana, Albania!

All teas come from the plant, Camellia sinensis. The different tea varieties that I mentioned above are all simply different treatments of the same tea leaf. The timing of the picking, drying, and processing of the leaf results in such drastically different colors and flavors and aromas, it’s kind of mind-boggling!

No matter how it’s prepared, sitting down to a cup of tea never fails to bring a smile to my face. The calm that washes over me as I curl my hands around each comforting cup and sip at the skillfully steeped brew is always a precursor to a new level of relaxation. There’s just something about tea that makes my heart smile with satisfaction.

Tea offers so many tantalizing possibilities for interesting and unique preparations. We’re looking forward to PLAYING with some new-to-us types of tea as we get ready to explore our home here in Albania. If you want to be sure to get the first look at where we are and what we’re drinking, as well as cool recipes you can recreate with tea in your own home, join us in our brand new online group, PLAY with Your Food! We’re always sipping on something special over there!! See you inside!!!

This fun and funky spotted bottle is brimming with a beautiful blend of black breakfast tea!

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