Sunday, March 1, 2009

Misremembrance of Things Past



I used to work the night shift in the word processing center of a global investment bank with a lovely Pakistani Englishwoman. She would start every evening with a cup of Twinings Prince of Wales tea, taking her own tea bag to the cafeteria and filling a styrofoam cup with hot water, sugar, and milk. She made it for me, too, and it was the most delicious thing I'd ever drunk. I tried to duplicate this beverage at home today, even going so far as to brew it in a Spode china cup, but it ended up tasting like sweet dirt. Is there a trick to this, or am I misremembering how ambrosial it was?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mmmm, well, I'm not a fan of tea bags. I think they make the tea taste like dirt, with the exception of the English brands PG Tips and Typhoo. I also think warming the milk makes tea taste better.

My guess? You're used to loose tea and now you're tasting the bag. Twinings is a pretty good brand, 1000 times better than Lipton, but I can still taste bag when I drink it.

Pentimento said...

But Rizwana used tea bags, and her milk was right from the spout of the cafeteria urn. Tea is always hit or miss with me somehow. Half the time I'm disappointed and end up pouring it down the sink (though not with the tea you gave me - I suppose because it's loose leaf?).

Have you tried Barry's tea yet? That's the one bag I've found to be foolproof. Very strong and bracing. If you get up to my old neighborhood, buy a box for yourself and one for me . . .