Friday, March 14, 2008

Elegance Redefined

Not long ago, I received, as part of a gift, a lovey tin of green tea. More specifically, I received a tin of Zhena's Gypsy Tea's Gracious Green.



Ah, those folks at Zhena's really know what to offer in a tea. It's organic. It's fair trade. It's a "caravan of consciousness changing the world one sip at a time". Ahhh. And look! In addition to all of that, they present their teas in elegant sachets!



Yes, according to Zhena herself -- as quoted on the back of the tin -- she is "devoted to creating remarkable products that delight and senses while nurturing our Global Tribe".

A delicious and nurturing organic green tea, traded fairly to ensure the dignity and and sustainability of both the people and tea. It's even kosher! And all of it packaged up in elegant sachets for my brewing pleasure! Fantastic!

I take hold of the lovely tin. I've read the Hallmark writing on the back. I've been inspired by the global focus. I've even enjoyed the charmingly embossed surface. I remove the lid, which releases with that pleasantly soft "pop" and the scent of green tea leaves wafts out in a burst of green joy.

I peek inside for the first look at these elegant sachets.

And what do I find?

Tea bags.



That's right. Tea bags, albeit round ones.

Don't get me wrong! The tea's great! It's just that I'm a little hung up on the elegant sachets part.

Let's be honest: I have had much more elegant sachets in my time. Little funny silken sachets like those from Harney & Sons. Cute little pyramids from Tea Forte. But round tea bags? Yeah. I can get those from Tetley (not that there's anything wrong with Tetley, but "elegant"? Not exactly.)

For more information on responsible tea harvesting, visit The Ethical Tea Partnership or the site of your favourite fair trade tea.

Monday, March 03, 2008

Holy SatFat, Batman!

The cup of hot white chocolate beverage which I am currently enjoying contains 20% of my daily recommended saturated fat. 20%. For one mug of hot chocolate. Sweet mother. I think Sarah, who gave me this product, is trying to kill me. Scary stuff.

On the upside, it's delicious.

In other news, I am not maintaining dullgloomy very well these days, as I'm sure is evident. I am of course dutifully writing daily on A Year in Haiku. That's gotta be worth something, right?