COOKIES & CREAM

What do you think of when you think about cookies? Bake sales? Christmas? Girl guides? Ancient history? Well, cookies have been around in one form or another since the 7th Century AD so depending on where you're from, they might make you think of a lot of different things. Culinary historians believe that the earliest cookies were baked in ancient Persia, now Iran. This is probably due to the fact that Persia was one of the first places in the world to cultivate and refine sugar. Early Middle Eastern cookie recipes made their way to Europe during the Crusades. It was in Europe from about the 14^th century on, that cookie making really took off in a big way. Now in the 21^st century, thanks to this blend, when you think about cookies you've got something new to think about - tea! This wonderful tea blends the flavors of maple, honey, and chocolate in a wonderful bakey, cookie-like way with a touch of fresh cream to round out the cup. Brew yourself a steaming pot today, pair with your favorite biscuits, and wile away an afternoon.

What type of tea do we use, how do we flavor the tea and why do we use natural flavors?

Firstly... we only use high grown teas from the top 3 tea growing regions of Sri Lanka - Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula and Uva. These three high-grown districts produce flavorful teas that have classic Ceylon tea character which is noted by floral bouquet and flavor notes, touches of mild astringency, bright coppery color and, most importantly - perfect for use as the base tea of our flavored teas. (We have tested teas from various other origins around the world as base stock for our flavored teas, but none of these teas made the grade.) Dimbula and the western estates of Nuwara Eliya have a major quality peak during Jan/Feb, whereas Uva and the eastern estates of Nuwara Eliya have their peak in July/Aug. This dual peak period allow us to buy the best for our flavored tea blends several times during the year, ensuring top quality and freshness.

Secondly... we use flavoring oils not crystals to give the tea drinker an olfactory holiday before indulging in a liquid tea treat.

Thirdly... we specify natural flavors. High quality tea tastes good and natural flavors do not mask the natural taste of the high grown Ceylon tea. (The norm for many making flavored tea is to use overpowering artificial flavors, which can be used to hide lower quality tea). Natural flavors do not leave an aftertaste giving the tea a clean and true character. It should be noted that natural flavors tend to be somewhat soft and the flavors slightly muted, but for many this is a refreshing change and one of the desired attributes of our naturally flavored teas.