Sometimes, Bert and I don’t speak the same language. Usually, I can attribute this to gender, but once in awhile the ol’ Mason-Dixon rears its culture-dividing head and I am reminded that yes, I married a Georgia boy. :) Case in point: when I asked him to put the water on last night, he had no idea what I was talking about.
Once we had that misunderstanding cleared up, he proceeded to tell me that my family drinks more tea than anyone else he knows. (“We only drank sweet tea at home.” Too presh. Almost makes me feel bad for refusing to buy it.) Mama and Papa V. are self-confessed “coffee snobs” (Sorry, guys. Secret’s out.), so I thought this was a funny observation, but hey! I’ll go with it. I can appreciate all forms of cuppas.
My favorite kind of tea is Rooibos, which, in the tradition of all proper trophy wife/hipster-wannabe preferences, is both unpopular and obscure. It’s pronounced ‘ROY-bos’ – though I prefer the French/more fun to say “rooey-boo” – and originally comes from Africa, which is where I was first introduced to it myself. When I was in Uganda, we were served a SWEET, reddish tea pretty much everywhere we went. While it was a bit too Southern-style for my taste buds, I could tell that minus a few cups of sugar, it would actually be pretty awesome. Turns out it’s supposedly amazing for you too. What a random happy circumstance. (Usually my culinary favorites have the nutritional content of a peanut butter M&M. I was so proud when I found out I picked out a wonder food all on my own.)
My second favorite kind of tea – because, as wonderful as Rooibos is, it scores a big, fat zero in the caffeine department – is Irish Breakfast. (Not to be confused with its cousin from across the sea, English Breakfast, which for some reason always tastes like wet sawdust to me.) Like Rooibos, I don’t drink it native style (Tea+Milk=No Thank You), but I think it comes off better for it. If I want milk, I'll drink milk. I don't need it cooling off or diluting my wake-up drink.
What about you? What's your favorite kind of tea?
My favorite kind of tea is coffee.
ReplyDeletemmm...my husband agrees with you. tough crowd.
ReplyDeleteI love Rooibos! My college roomie Eleanor, who grew up in S. Africa, got me addicted. I have some loose-leaf Rishi Brand that also has hibiscus and lemongrass in it and it is pretty much the best stuff on earth. It is really good iced as well.
ReplyDeleteooo...where did you buy it?
ReplyDeleteSome of the coffee shops here have "red espresso" that is a Rooibos product. I am not a fan of Rooibos in any form, but I hear the espresso is quite good. I do like good British black tea (Tetley is my go-to here) *with* milk and sugar. Or decaf coffee. Cold press this time of year. Mmmm!
ReplyDelete