how coffee revolutionized the world

Coffee:  thought-provoking, enjoyed by goats, and it helps keep gout away!

brave brew

One of The Republic of Tea's latest offerings celebrates Brave, Disney/Pixar's upcoming animated venture about a 10th century Scottish lass named Merida caught up in her own quest for identity.  Brave Orange Caramel Red is a roobois paired with the promised citrus and caramel flavors, the orange and roobois combo perhaps complementing Merida's mane of fiery hair.  Click here for The Republic of Tea's Brave link, and to watch a wee bit of the movie....

a twist on lemonade

June is National Iced Tea Month (as opposed to January, which is National Hot Tea Month), and then there's always the warm weather classic:  a tall cool glass of lemonade.  Next time you make a pitcher of lemonade, however, think about substituting one cup of well-steeped, chilled Tazo Cucumber White for a cup of water.  It tones down the lemonade's sweetness with a nice herbal cucumber note, as does adding a garnish of fresh basil or rosemary, or even a slice of cucumber along with a wedge of fresh lemon.

Spring being a tough act to follow, God created June.  -- Al Bernstein

Pictured:  Still Life with Lemons on a Plate -- Vincent van Gogh, 1887 (Van Gogh Museum/Wikimedia Commons)

here is wherever you need to be

Found written on a napkin at the Starbucks by the Randolph Street Metra stop, Chicago, IL:

not happy here, but is it me or here?

It's an underground Starbucks near a train station and I think that leads to deeper thoughts...and of course no one is suggesting that Starbucks itself was causing the unhappiness. More likely it merely provided the beverage to stimulate such reflective thoughts, and the kindly recycled napkin to write out a question that we've probably all asked ourselves at some point in time. 

Pictured:  Woman in a Café (Jean-Louis Forain, circa 1885) from www.the-athenaeum.org

bustelo and the beats

It's hard to resist Café Bustelo, both for the rich flavor and because it comes in that wonderful red and yellow can that always seems to brighten up wherever it goes.  Also, Café Bustelo makes me think of an excerpt from The Portable Beat Reader that describes the creative process behind Brenda Frazer's Troia:  Mexican Memoirs (first published in 1969 under the name Bonnie Bremser).  As Brenda/Bonnie detailed: "...discipline consisted of copying my favorite author, Kerouac, and adapting a ritualistic existence centered around the daily hour or so of actual writing.  I had only my memories, and recalling them was part of the creative atmosphere I set for myself ...I lived on Café Bustelo, beans, and rice."  Café Bustelo has Cuban origins but it also comes in a Mexican-style instant version, which might have been just as appropriate a beverage for the writing of Mexican Memoirs.  And true Beat fans might consider fixing a cup of Bustelo and reading Troia: Mexican Memoirs themselves, because the story is autobiographical and intense and as fascinating as any of the doings of Beat Generation men.

violet spring

We were delighted and confused by a week of summer-like weather here this past March, and it also delighted and confused all the lawn violets into blooming much earlier than usual.  Violets have their beautiful shady purple-indigo color and fragrance, of course, and they can add a unique flavor to tea -- especially tea served in the springtime.  Kusmi Tea offers a violet blend, as does Dammann Freres at Formaggio Kitchen.  And Simpson & Vail infuses black Rose Congou with violet for some impressive flower power. A plate of lemon tartlets topped by either candied or fresh violets would complement the perfumey base of the tea as well as offering a nice bright visual counterpart.


(Pictured:  Violet -- Mary Eaton, 1917, Wikimedia Commons)

Tea Cup Ballet -- Olive Cotton, 1935 

(image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)