If I had a restaurant..

[HTRN]

Wegman's at one time sold pound cans of Tea, for reasonable prices(around 40 bucks or so), but since I had stopped drinking tea at that point, I was disinclined to find out if it was any good. Some of you might want to try it.

Personally, If I wanted good tea, I'd go visit Bellocq in Greenpoint.

[308Mike]

My wife wants to know: "What are your thoughts on the 'tiny little tea leaves of Tetley tea' or Salada tea?"

[308Mike]

My wife wants to know: "What are your thoughts on the 'tiny little tea leaves of Tetley tea' or Salada tea?"

Same as everyone else. Dust and fannings. It really is all american mass market teas... even much of the "premium" tea market like twinnings etc...

THANK YOU!!! She appreciates it VERY much!! Now she has to go find some quality tea somewhere around town (which might be a GOOD THING - other than buying the multi-packs of Lipton - 3-100 packs - from Costco).

Hopefully, if she finds a good tea, she'll not drink so much of it all the time (then stay up all night like she's been drinking coffee all day).

[Lokidude]

Got a recommendation on a good Chinese green tea that can be purchased online?

[Weetabix]

Got a recommendation on a good Chinese green tea that can be purchased online?

This guy has plantations in China and a shop in Kansas City. I'm not a big green tea guy, but I visit his shop every time I'm in KC. I really like his Jasmine White. I've liked everything I've tried or bought there, but the Jasmine White is the one that sticks out for me. They'll brew samples for you to try if you're in the shop.

Edited to add link.

[Weetabix]

I've had good luck with Twinings loose leaf teas in the can - Earl Grey and Darjeeling. I kind of like PG Tips and Yorkshire Gold, though HTRN would eschew them because they're in bags. Some of the Twinings in bags is good. A few of the Stash Teas I like, though it's been so long since I've been able to find them, I can't remember which ones. My daughter brought back some Jasmine from China that's really quite good. I had some loose leaf tea in a can that someone brought me from England that I really liked, but I can't remember where it came from. It had one of the larger retailer's names on it, but I can't remember which.

I'm blessed with a wide range of "bearability." I can take cheap tea so long as I remember it is what it is, but I like good tea better.

And +1 on Chris's comments. Make sure you start with cold, well-aerated water and don't over boil it. This infuser is great for a cup because it lets lots of water move around the leaves.

[Weetabix]

Of course that doesn't guarantee you still won't like tea when you have a real cup of the stuff, properly prepared... but you owe it to yourself to at least try it some time.

If you don't like it, try adding a bit of sugar and either whole milk or half-and-half. I learned that from an Indian guy I went to school with. The whole milk is best to my way of thinking - it cuts the ... what? astringency a bit without covering up the flavor of the tea. 2% is too watery and cream covers the flavor. Half-and-half covers a bit but not as much.

[McClarkus]

If you have an Asian food store nearby....... I can't read the labels but I can recognize a whole aisle of just tea when I see one.

[Greg]

I am a major dairy addict.

I had some idea what clotted cream was, but now after I double-checked... I want some. Scones with clotted cream and jam sounds *heavenly*. (Crustry bread, or toast, with butter and either jelly, jam or honey is one of my favorite treats/snacks.) If I manage to find some, I'll pass on the info.

While looking it up, I saw described it such that you could make a clotted cream substitute by taking mascarpone cheese (that stuff is amazing in its own right) adding some whipped cream, and a little bit of sugar and vanilla extract. That is a remarkably good description of the filling of one of my favorite pastries *ever*, a lobster tail from Mike's Pastry (of Boston's North End and soon to be Harvard Square).

[Rumpshot]

Not "clotted cream", but something I enjoyed as a youth with my Grandmother, was "blanket" cream on white bread with sugar. The "blanket" was the very heaviest, thickest cream that floated on the top of whole milk. It had a thick, homogeneous character. On real white bread, spread with sugar, made a great breakfast.