(This post originally ran on Book Riot)
Oh, ye of little tea! Or something. It rhymes, so I like it. I’m in a weird mood today, so it’s best just to go with it. I’ve been thinking that I need more tea. And that I would dearly love a day off from Day Job to just sit and read with a cuppa and do nothing more taxing than decide which blend I want next. I think most, or at least many, of us agree that books and tea are a perfect pairing. Like Elizabeth and Darcy, like Picard and the Enterprise, like Anthony Bourdain and just about any kind of meat in tube form, books and tea just seem to compliment each other in a strange kind of symbiosis. Indeed, our own Rioters have made several posts to that effect, like here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here! I agree with Dodie Smith when she wrote in I Capture the Castle, “I shouldn’t think even millionaires could eat anything nicer than new bread and real butter and honey for tea.” Reader, I love. My. Tea. And I’m going to brew it and read a book while sipping my tea from a fancy teacup like a fucking lady.
Snuggling up with a book and a cuppa is one of my great pleasures in life. As a single mother, it is a rare treat that I jealously guard. I do not let very much interrupt those times when I do get to have a nice spot of tea in my fancy cup. Usually I end up trying not to spill it all over when I invariably fall asleep on the couch. OMG, you guys, I’ve turned into my mother!
As a huge fan of both books and tea, and preferably both together, I was delighted when one of my best friends introduced me to Adagio teas.* I’m a little bit of a tea snob and prefer loose tea if possible. I’m convinced it tastes better. Adagio has all kinds! But what really frosted my cake on this site was that you can make your own blends just for fun. And holy cow, do people do just that! There are pages and pages of special blends based on various fandoms and books and characters. I could almost hear the angels sing when I clicked that link – I had just found the fanfiction version of tea!!
I have, since my discovery, made many, many custom tea blends. My cupboards runneth over. I do brew tea like normal, with a kettle and pouring the hot water over the tea. But because I live on the surface of the sun (more commonly known as Arizona), I also love to cold brew a lot of my blends. I have fun coming up with blends that would taste good both ways. I wonder if Jane Austen would be horrified at the thought of a cold brewed tea?
Below are links to some of my personal favorite blends that I diabolically concocted. What tea would you create based on your favorite books or characters?
Dragonrider (based on The Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey).
Sorcha (based on Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier).
Ayla (based on the Earth’s Children series by Jean M. Auel).
Gwenhwyfar (based on The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley).
*I am not affiliated in any way with Adagio tea, nor did anyone from Adagio pay me to write about them. I’m just stoked they let their customers geek out with tea, y’all!
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