In which I make excuses and uncover the treachery of repeated teas...
So after saying I was going to post once a day I went to a Welsh cottage with limited enternet and then got a cold that prevented me from tasting the teas.
In which I finally start delivering on the promised painting guides...
I have been sat on a fully constructed Battle of Pelennor Fields box for just about a year after purchasing it as a Christmas present to myself at the tail end of 2021. Having signed up to a few "slay the grey" style challenges in the New Year I thought it was time to start with a nice easy paint job.
In which I modify an old family recipe to be vegan friendly...
After successfully turning my hand to vegan Christmas cake I thought it was high time I adapted my old Christmas pudding recipe to be vegan too.
In which I discuss getting the dominant colour from an image quickly...
I have recently made a Discord bot that searches for online versions of board games to help people find games to play remotely. This link will add it to your server.
Discord embeds have a colour bar down the side that can be manually set. I thought it would be cool to have this display the 'average' (i.e. dominant) colour of the board game box and decided to investigate the best way to do it.
In which I plan my holiday tasks…
So it may just be because it is 2020 or perhaps I'm just a bit lazy but I’ve found that I often start holiday breaks with a list of things I’d like to do and by the end of the trip* I’ve not achieved most of them. Whether it’s odd jobs or relaxing activities I wanted to get through I just accidental sit around and don’t do them. This holiday season I decided I needed a to do list and though I’d try out the new Todoist Boards feature.
*Or, let’s be real this year: sitting on the sofa at home.
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In which I belatedly start on my advent calendar...
Let me spin you a tale, dear Reader, of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and stock control. Don't worry it isn't that boring. I was sadly on a last minute business trip last week which means I missed the opportunity to purchase an advent calendar. I figured that I would be able to get an interesting and different one in the States but alas I was wrong. I also figured that I would be able to pick up a discounted one in a UK supermarket on the 2nd after I landed but alas Tesco's stock control meant they didn't even have an awful one left!
I had basically resigned myself to not finding one this year.
While out in Deansgate the other day I decided to be a little daring in my choice of tea. I went for the interestingly named Rooibos tea which until recently I knew nothing about (except that my friend Aisha was a fan of it).
For those who don't know Rooibos (or Redbush) tea is made from a bush found in Africa and is naturally caffeine free. Since it is not made from true tea leaves it counts as a herbal tea. It is still full of anti-oxidants though!
Brewing
"Use freshly drawn water. Use water at a rolling boil. Steep for 3 to 5 minutes (or to your taste) to release all of the flavour. Delicious with or without milk."
I brewed this tea for about 4 minutes but I didn't keep diligent track of the time since I was enjoying myself in a restaurant. I enjoyed this herbal tea with milk partly because if you can have milk in tea I normally do and partly because I left the waiter standing there for so long while I made my decision that it would have been rude not to.
Colour
A rich red-brown colour that compares to most everyday teas.
Aroma
The aroma is nothing special, smelling very much like an ordinary tea.
Taste
This was the most interesting part as I had absolutely no idea what to expect because herbal teas have such a wide range of flavours. Rooibos tea, it turns out, tastes very similar to normal tea. In fact had I not known it was different I would likely have thought nothing of it and assumed it was simply normal tea.
Since this is clearly marketed as caffeine free alternative and is a lot nicer than many decaf teas I can definitely see the appeal.
Cake & Conversation
I tried this tea with a slice of carrot cake (Café Rouge is yet another place which does a 'cake & coffee' deal) and a delightful conversation.
Conclusion
Very similar to your standard teas but without the caffeine. A pleasant surprise!
Web-link
http://shop.twinings.co.uk/shop/twinings-tea/redbush-teas/redbush-628.html
See you all next week for the second Twinings sample!