Ok, going all in; Need tea equipment

Post by **Sam** » Sun Nov 27, 2011 11:25 am

Told wife to go get me some sort of electric kettle so I can boil water at the office.

I know I need some sort of mug or cup to drink tea out of at work, and I need some sort of strainer to brew the tea in. Worried about the durability of that Intellitea thing referenced on another thread.

So, what would you advise? If I can get it at Adagio, Upton or some site where I can get the Oolong and breakfast and evening tea would be great.

Dont think I want a full on gaiwan or whatever for home, but I can boil water on the stove or heat it up on the microwave. Have several thermos-like carriers that daughter got from Westlaw so I can leave the tea in there and drink it on the way to work also.

brucered · Post by **brucered** » Sun Nov 27, 2011 11:31 am

for travel and work, i use a libretea glass/poly original.....it's mine and my wifes go-to glass

http://retailshop.libretea.com/

double walled, glass inside, poly outside.

they have lots of contests for freebies on FB and twitter...we purcahed one right off the bat (for my wife christmas last year) and have since WON 3-4 others.

Squire · Post by **Squire** » Sun Nov 27, 2011 12:51 pm

Sam my office mug is a double walled insulated number adorned with fishing flies. With a tea ball you can brew directly in the cup.

LouisIII · Post by **LouisIII** » Sun Nov 27, 2011 5:55 pm

Sam wrote:Told wife to go get me some sort of electric kettle so I can boil water at the office.

I know I need some sort of mug or cup to drink tea out of at work, and I need some sort of strainer to brew the tea in. Worried about the durability of that Intellitea thing referenced on another thread.

So, what would you advise? If I can get it at Adagio, Upton or some site where I can get the Oolong and breakfast and evening tea would be great.

Dont think I want a full on gaiwan or whatever for home, but I can boil water on the stove or heat it up on the microwave. Have several thermos-like carriers that daughter got from Westlaw so I can leave the tea in there and drink it on the way to work also.

There's nothing quite so jarring to the travelling Englishman as the dawning of the realisation that there are, in this world, places where kettles and tea aren't ubiquitous

rsp1202 · Post by **rsp1202** » Sun Nov 27, 2011 9:41 pm

http://www.thermos.com/products/vacuum- ... fuser.aspx

Post by **Sam** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 7:55 am

Ron, I like that thermos, but gonna try the Starbucks one that daughter has, for when I make tea at home and wanna take with me to work

Adagio has free shipping today. I think I may get some samples (3 or 4 at $2 each and they make 10 cups each). Feel free to suggest some

They have the intellitea and am thinking of that since it has the infuser.

Any ideas on a boiler? Do I need one that boils it (some sort of small soupmaker like they have at Walmart) or would i better use and need one that heats it to a range of temps (180 for black I have read) and shuts off rather than boils it?

Squire · Post by **Squire** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:11 am

Sam I've used a hot water kettle at the office in the past but now use a small microwave, which has other uses as well.

Post by **Sam** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:13 am

Ok. I misread. Black teas (which I will drink at the office, maybe even flavored) take boiling water. Green and white teas take 180 degrees. Off to Walmart or Target tonight. Can even get a mug there I am guessing

Where can I find a tea ball or infuser? If I can get that locally, I can just order some samples of tea from Adagio and store them in my desk drawer away from sun and heat sources.

rsp1202 · Post by **rsp1202** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:24 am

Sam, I've seen tea balls and infusers at the local supermarket for cheap, or go a bit upscale at Bed, Bath & Beyond. BTW, I ended up with the Nissan after trying the Starbucks, and used it for tea and everything else. Wish I'd kept it after hitting the road, then I could trade it to you for your Saddleback leather wallet.

Post by **Sam** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:27 am

Bed Bath and Beyond? Cool, I have a 20% off coupon. Wife has 20% off at Macy's if I wanted a tea pot there, may go look tomorrow. I figure something to heat water, a glass mug, and the infuser.

paddy · Post by **paddy** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:33 am

to make a cup of tea you will need a kettle, a mug or other recepticle, tea (bags are fine), a teaspoon. milk and sugar optional.

Squire · Post by **Squire** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 8:48 am

Sam our local discount stores have tea balls for as low as $1.00 (Dollar Tree) so those may be worth a drive by.

Post by **Sam** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 7:06 pm

Well, lo and behold, went home and it dawned on me - when I was trying out the pre-Moss scuttle, I had a Toastmaster hot water heater that would bring water to a boil. Also found a little Proctor Silex hot pot that I would heat soup up in. So one will be for home and one for the office. Bought two new glass mugs at Bed Bath and Beyond and splurged for a infuser basket over the ball (one with the tongs that are attached) as I had read that the more room for the leaves to expand, the better. Am I not overthinking this or what?

rsp1202 · Post by **rsp1202** » Mon Nov 28, 2011 9:03 pm

If it wasn't for guys here overthinking, I wouldn't know squat.

As Hank Stram used to say, "keep matriculating up the field."

Bargepole · Post by **Bargepole** » Tue Nov 29, 2011 10:24 am

Coo-er. Where I come from (Nottingham, originally) we just drank it. I took a friend from the old days, who had remained true to his roots, to a fancy place in London for tea (the meal, not the drink).

"Tea, please," he said.

"What kind of tea, sir?" said the waitress.

"Eh?" he said, after a moment; "Kind? How do you mean, 'kind'? I'm not with you, love."

(It's known in England as "policemen's tea" and should be so strong the spoon stands up on its own. To be drunk on a cold damp foggy day with five sugars and maybe a dash of insulin.)

EDIT: Just remembered. Can't recall whose line it was. A movie?

HER: Sugar?

HIM: Nine, please.

HER: Nine? How can you drink tea with NINE sugars?

HIM: No, no, I don't STIR it...

Sounds like George Formby. But then so does a car scraping along a gatepost.

Post by **Sam** » Wed Nov 30, 2011 6:38 pm

Well, I got the tea ball that was big and it would not really fit in the mug (it sort of is at least the diameter of the mug and about 20 to 30% or so hangs below the rim of the mug. I got the big one as I had read that the more room that the tea leaves have to expand, the better the tea. Then there is a little tea ball that is about 1/2 the cost that would float to the bottom of the mug and is 1/3rd the size, more like the diameter of a half dollar. I figure that is what Squire uses and so, even though the tea leaves are gonna be more bunched up, it will just have to be that until I buy a tea pot and steep the leaves in that somehow.

Does the size of the infuser really matter that much?

brothers · Post by **brothers** » Wed Nov 30, 2011 9:39 pm

My wife has one of those half dollar sized tea balls that works great. I was using it until our daughter took it upstairs in a cup of tea and I guess it'll stay up there until I go find it while she's away.

werdna · Post by **werdna** » Wed Nov 30, 2011 9:54 pm

this may border on off-topic. Sorry if that is the case.

Where I work in "corporate wonderland"

there is a cafeteria where they use Bunn coffee makers plumbed into the building's water supply. They overcharge for the coffee but each of these brewers has an additional orange colored manual tap for hot water and it works perfect for bags or infusers of black tea. I always add a dollop of honey from a "honey bear" just because the bear amuses me.

-Andrew

Ooh! 50 posts.

brothers · Post by **brothers** » Wed Nov 30, 2011 10:23 pm

We've got one of those Bunns where I work too. The hot water tap is super convenient. I like both coffee and tea, so having this thing plumbed in permanently is the best thing ever.

water · Post by **water** » Thu Dec 01, 2011 6:00 pm

Upton Tea is a very good online retailer with a nice selection of Assam. They also offer a nice infuser basket that works infinitely better than those ball and chain things.

SMF

Ok, going all in; Need tea equipment

Ok, going all in; Need tea equipment

Re: Ok, going all in; Need tea equipment