Tea and Me

It’s a lovely summer's afternoon with blue skies, the odd fluffy white cloud and a gentle breeze rustling through the trees and I am drinking Strawberries and Cream Tea by T2 , the company with the funky orange boxes, (okay, so really it’s 30 odd degrees out there and absolutely bloody baking so I’m hiding indoors, but I can see the blue sky and clouds out of the window). Ingredients: Apple, hibiscus, rosehip, strawberry granules (glucose syrup, strawberries, fructose, modified starch: E1414, thickener: E401), sweet blackberry leaves, yoghurt crispies (skimmed milk* yoghurt, sugar, maltodextrin, modified starch E1412, acidifier: E330), flavouring *contains milk. They describe it thus: “Strawberry fields are forever with this beautiful red brew and sweet aroma.” You may remember a while back when I went to afternoon tea at the Horseguards Hotel that I tried someone else’s Strawberries and Cream Tea and I quite liked it. Therefore, when I saw...

The Draught of Peace is a potion which relieves anxiety and agitation. Its ingredients are powdered moonstone, syrup of hellebore, powdered porcupine quills, Valerian root, and powdered unicorn horn. It should be a turquoise blue when finished and simmered before being drunk. It is ironically a difficult potion to make, requiring that the brewer follow the directions carefully because making a mistake can have drastic consequences. Adding too much of the ingredients, for instance, will put the drinker of the potion into a deep — and possibly irreversible — sleep. Ingredients: black tea, apple pieces, natural apricot flavour, natural creme flavour, marigold flowers, apricots, natural vanilla flavour The teas used to create this blend are: apricot , cream and vanilla , accented with marigold flowers. Draught of Peace is one of the blends in the Magic Potions sampler box by Adagio Teas . It is chock full of apricots and tastes every bit as good as it smells. Bright and bo...

The sweet taste of Butterbeer, which is a mildly alcoholic drink served throughout the wizarding world. Ingredients: black tea, natural caramel flavour, natural creme flavour, natural vanilla flavour The teas used to create this blend are: caramel , cream and vanilla . Butterbeer is one of the blends in the Magic Potions sampler box by Adagio Teas and has, unsurprisingly considering its contents, a creamy flavour even on its own and is relatively sweet although personally, I’m not keen on it without sugar as it’s definitely a classic black tea. I think it’s actually quite a subtle blend so it doesn’t really smell of much, apart from some creaminess, and while I enjoyed drinking it I didn’t really pick up on the butterscotch flavour it’s supposed to impart so to me it bears about as much resemblance to Butterbeer as the one sold at the Harry Potter Studio Tour does to the one sold at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter — i.e. not much — although it is very pl...

Earlier this week, I and some of my work colleagues went to the Royal Horseguards hotel for afternoon tea as a farewell to one of our number who is moving on to pastures new. This was a new venue for me and I think I can safely say that the event was a success and the afternoon was enjoyed by all. Chicken and mayo, Cucumber and Philadelphia cheese, Honey roast ham and mustard, London smoked salmon and dill creme fraiche, Egg mayo and watercress, Crayfish Marie Rose crouton  As there were a few of us the tea took a rather more freeform approach than I’m generally used to with afternoon tea – some went for the sandwiches first, some dived straight into the cakes, and someone made a cream and jam sandwich with the scones. It was a bit chaotic but fun. There was also some champagne drunk, but most importantly for me, of course, there was the tea. Plain and fruit scones with Cornish clotted cream and preserve The teas on offer are mainly provided by Novus...

Well . . . sort of. Yesterday, I was lucky enough to be taken for afternoon tea at the Corinthia Hotel’s Crystal Moon Lounge in London as a late birthday present from my friend Beryl. As it’s tea-related, I thought it would be good to share my afternoon and the lovely sandwiches and cakes they served us. As both a tea lover and a cake lover, I am a big fan of afternoon teas (I am actually considered the Queen of Afternoon Tea in my office because I’ve had so many – my 50 th birthday seemed to consist of nothing but afternoon tea for several months) and to my mind the Corinthia is one of the best venues in London and I have been there several times now. Unlike better-known establishments, the Corinthia is extremely easy-going and they don’t impose a 90-minute time limit that the more touristy places such as the Ritz, the Savoy and the Dorchester do and they always, unfailing, provide excellent service and a good level of knowledge about the products they serve. We spe...