Thé De Chine (Tea Glass with Filter)

My lovely wife was at the shops one day when she stumbled upon this curious looking tea implement. First person she thought of was yours truly, of course. She purchased it and gave it to me just because… There was no special occasion but I certainly felt special.

My love of tea has caused me to “unintentionally” accumulate all sorts of apparatus to enhance my enjoyment of it. This latest addition would have to be the most exquisite and delicate of the bunch.

When given the option I’d rather have “loose leaf” rather than “tea bags”. But using loose leaf can be a messy affair if not done right or if you lack the right gadget. It is especially tricky if you’re only making it for one.

My new Thé De Chine is intended to be a personal infuser set. It makes brewing tea for one a lot less complicated. Simply add your loose leaf tea, pour in hot water, and let the tea steep to your taste. The lid acts as a trivet when you are done brewing.

So thanks once again sweetheart! I love you too!

Not quite my birthday

It was actually Cherry’s (my wife) birthday yesterday and not mine. But along with a package she received from the UK were gifts for me from my mother-in-law (Inay Carmen).

I love coffee but I also love tea. This is evidenced by the fact that in my tiny cupboard in the office you’ll find at least half a dozen varieties of tea.

When Cherry came back from London she brought with her a couple of cans of Ceylon tea from Harrods. I’m not really that fussed with brands but I expressed how good the tea was. She must have mentioned it to my “mabait na biyenan” (*sip sip*). Inay must have thought it inappropriate not to have something for her favourite “manugang” (naks! *sip sip* na naman!). So, together with Cherry’s gift she sent over a couple of varieties of tea from Harrods, of course. There was also a very English apron that came with it.

I just would like to say Thank you Inay!

Australian Customs have got one of the strictest quarantine policies in the world. A “reality” TV series was created to show this (Border Security). Inay’s package did not escape the close scrutiny of this government department. You'd think x-ray and sniffer dogs would have been enough. Nope! One of the tea packages was actually opened to satisfy themselves that there was nothing prohibited.

Apple Tea (as inspired by Marketman)

I have been reading Marketman’s blog for quite some time now. I know the author has got a love hate relationship with the Philippine Daily Inquirer but it was actually through this newspaper that I found out about his site. Anyway, this post is about a Marketmanila post about Apple Tea.

I love coffee but I also love tea. And for the past few months or so I have only been drinking tea, jasmine green tea, in particular. I’m not tired of it yet but I felt quite inspired to try Marketman’s recipe. The recipe seems simple enough. It doesn’t require to fly to Turkey (or anywhere else just to source ingredients). Everything I need can be found in the (office) kitchen.



Here’s the recipe from Marketmanila:

“Pour some boiling water into a tea pot or glass with about 1/2 of a nice sweet apple (I used a royal gala, peeled and sliced thinly) and a black tea bag and let this steep for a few minutes and remove the tea bag. Add some sugar if desired and voila!, homemade apple tea!”




I don’t know how the Turkish one tasted but mine came out nice enough. The apple flavour was quite subtle. Should I have used a different variety of apple? I used Royal Gala. I didn’t peel it though. I thought the peel would make the apple flavour more intense. Maybe I should have. I also did not add sugar to mine. Maybe sugar will bring out more of the apple taste. Maybe next time.