#teatrials

I'm a cup of tea sort of girl. None of that coffee rubbish. (Apologies to all coffee lovers).

Until last month, I just drank tea. You know. The proper stuff. Tea. Milk. Maybe a sugar if it's a bad day. Then everything changed and I got sucked into the world of different teas. That picture up there, I never thought I'd be the sort of person who would frequent that aisle. But, 31 days and 31 teas later I have a secret tea stash in the office (of 5 different types of tea) and I can honestly say I like alternative teas. Although nothing is going to beat a good old builder's brew.

 

I want to share my trials with you, the highlights (and the low points!) and hopefully inspire you to try something new.

Days 1 - 9

Day 1: Peppermint and Everyday Blend 7/10 (This has made it to the regular tea stash)

Day 2: Jasmine 3/10 (One of the absolute worst!)

Day 3: Oolong 4/10 (Tasted like tea that had been left at the back of the cupboard for a few years)

Day 4: Vanilla Chai 8.5/10 (Basically like a pudding)

Day 5: Apple 7/10 (Pretty nice, a bit like hot squash)

Day 6: Lemon Green Tea 5/10 (Meh, average)

Day 7: Earl Grey 9/10 (Haven't had this since I was little. Reminded me of my Grandpa)

Day 8: Garam Assam Chai 6/10 (Not as good as the vanilla chai)

Day 9: Lychee and Mango 9/10 (Vey nice, again just like a tasty hot juice)

 

Days 10 - 18

Day 10: Superior Tea 5/10 (Not superior at all. Bit thin in flavour)

Day 11: China Rose Tea 10/10 (This is my absolute favourite! I loved it so much I bought a whole box of it)

Day 12: Chocolate Tea 6/10 (Not chocolatey enough)

Day 13: Camomile and Honey 4/10 (Not very nice at all, pretty boring)

Day 14: Honey Green Tea 4/10 (Another not very nice one, had to down this one cooled)

Day 15: Gingersnap Peach 5/10 (Didn't really taste much of peach)

Day 16: Asian Tea 8/10 (My friend brought me this in a flask. I wish I knew the recipe!)

Day 17: Vibrant Mandarin Orange 5/10 (Smells lush, not enough orange flavour)

Day 18: Peach 7/10 (Slightly artificial taste)

 

Days 19 - 27

Day 19: English Breakfast 8/10 (Just a nice tea)

Day 20: Cranberry and Raspberry 7/10 (Nicer than I expected because I don't like cranberry)

Day 21: Pear and Caramel 7/10 (Strange, but tasty)

Day 22: Blackberry, Ginseng and Vanilla 6.5/10 (I think it was the ginseng that made it taste a bit funny)

Day 23: Redbush Citrus 6/10 (Has a nice citrus but not brilliant)

Day 24: Spice Imerial 3/10 (Not a lot of flavour and certainly not very spiced)

Day 25: Redbush 2/10 (No. Not for me at all)

Day 26: Ginger and Lemon 3/10 (I acidentally inhaled ginger which might have contributed to the low score)

Day 27: Pure Green Tea 4/10 (Drinkable. Definitely better with lemon in it though)

 

Days 28 - 30

Day 28: Camomile and Spiced Apple 6/10 (If it wasn't for the camomile undertone this would've been nice)

Day 29: Raspberry Leaf 8/10 (Pretty darn tasty)

Day 30: Nettle Tea (Tea 1) 4.5/10 (If I can find evidence it's actually good for you I would drink this)

Day 30: Women's Tea (Tea 2) 6/10 (I had been dreading this one. It sounds ominous, actually quite nice)

Day 30: Afternoon Blend (Tea 3) 5/10 (Disappointed by this. I thought it would be much nicer)

 

Day 30 - 31

Day 30: Licorice (Tea 4) 7/10 (I really thought I'd hate this. I don't like Licorice. This was surprisingly nice though)

Day 31: 1886 Blend 7/10 (Probably the best 'normal-ish' tea I've had but not the best overall)

 

As you can see, I went a bit crazy on day 30. It was a Friday and therefore I was in the office. I decided it was a good idea to try and drink up as many of the teas as possible.

 

I am currently having #teatrials withdrawal. I miss the excitement of trying a new tea, even if some of them were awful. I miss being pleasantly surprised by the ones I thought would be horrid. I miss letting other people at work try them and watching their reactions.

 

Thank goodness I've got a challenge set up for June!

 

Toodle Pip, Charlotte xxx

 

 

Make or Break - The Chocolate Wars

 

Do you ever have those things you just can't quite let go of?

I am currently trapped in an argument with someone who is very dear to me. I love reading his blog and he frequently cheers me up when things aren't going well, and for this I owe him the world. Happiness is everything. But that doesn't mean I won't tell him he's wrong to his face and go out of my way to prove this.

What is this argument? Political? Financial? Religious?

It's about chocolate.

I maintain that Twirls and Flakes are different things. He says a Twirl is just a Flake in a dress.

 

For balance, if you want his argument - here it is.

 

I am happy to admit that they look pretty similar. I can't deny this from his evidence and it would be foolish to pretend that this evidence does not exist. However, I am not basing my argument purely on looks. I am deliving deeper into this than, frankly, a sane person should.

For balance (again) I have recreated his experiment.

Top Left: Flake, Twirl, Ripple. Top Right: Cross Sections (knife)

Bottom Left: Cross Sections (bitten). Bottom Right: Cross Sections (lengthways, Flake then Twirl)

 

The first thing I discovered was that my Ripple had started to melt somewhat. Or maybe that was just the Galaxy-ness of it. You can clearly see that in the TR and BL pictures the Ripple is much thicker in texture than it's Cadbury's counterparts. It also, was not as tasty.

As mentioned before the Flake (on the left of the above pictures) and the Twirl (in the middle in TR and BL and on the right in BR) do look very similar. Especially in the knifed cross sections. I do think though that in the bitten cross sections that the inside of the Twirl looks looser somehow, more free flowing. I also think that the lengthways cross section is very telling. The Flake looks much drier and there are clearly more defined folds in the Twirl.

My next argument though is based on taste and texture. I firmly believe that a Twirl tastes creamier than a Flake. A Flake is designed to crumble and it does this job well. But in order to do so, it has to be quite dry. Add you can taste this when you eat it. It doesn't melt on your tongue the same way and it doesn't have the same mouth feel. (That might be a bit chefy, I don't know). It almost leaves you feeling thirsty. This is presumably why they put Flakes in ice creams. So you can quench the inevitable dry mouth feeling!

 

I feel that this leads nicely into my next point. Nutritional Values!

From a scientific(ish) perspective, they can't be the same because the nutritional values, per 100g are not the same. The Twirl has slightly more calories, fat and sugar. This I think is what leads to the more creamy flavour. If you look at the ingredients overall, they are the same. But clearly in different quantities. And as anyone that has ever cooked before knows, quantise can drastically change the outcome of a recipe, resulting in a different end product.

The Flake was launched in 1920. The Twirl in 1987. And in 2003, this turned up on the scene:

Now why, pray tell, would Cadbury bring this out if they already had such a product under the name of Twirl. They just wouldn't. Therefore, a Twirl can't be a chocolate covered Flake, because that up there, is a chocolate covered Flake.

 

So... What can we conclude from this little foray into chocolate comparisons?

1. The nutritional value of the Twirl and Flake are different.
2. The Twirl and Flake (in my not so humble opinion) taste different.
3. That I can't eat a Flake, a Twirl and a (fun size) Ripple without feeling sick.
4. That I should find something better to do with my time.

I have asked 6 people so far, and all say that they are different. But that isn't good enough for a certain someone. I should let it go... But I just can't.

 

Toodle pip, Charlotte xx