Oriental Teahouse: Strawberry and Cream Tea. Nuffnang Product Talk.

(This review is part of Nuffnang's Product Talk. I did not receive payment for this review. However, I did recieve a box of the Strawberry & Cream tea to review.)

Growing up in country Victoria in the 80's, tea came in one of two forms: the cardboard tasting tea bags which my parents still enjoy to this day, or the mysterious tea caddy of loose fragrant leaves that my grandmother kept high in her kitchen cupboard. To this day I have no idea of the brand my grandmother used, all I knew was that mysterious tin was always full, the Magic Pudding of tea tins perhaps.

Tea time at my grandmother's house was always interesting. I still have clear memories of watching her scooping the leaves into the teapot, a tiny little woman, resplendent in her pearls and lippy. More Sundays than I can count we sat at her kitchen table, complete with rickety legs, multiple doilies and tea china, ready to down a cup or two. It was always pot luck as to how the tea would come, though if there wasn't a centimetre of leaves in the bottom of the tiny china tea cups, it just wasn't tea. From the almost tasteless initial cup where the tea was so diluted you almost had to imagine flavour, right to the last thick cup of burnt umber, tea took on the form of a ritual gastronomic challenge every Sunday afternoon, and was not for the faint of heart. Her lack of tea prowess was somewhat ameliorated by the generous provision of Lamington Fingers, Teddy Bear biscuits, and her feather light sponge cakes, all very important when you're 12. But needless to say, tea was more a means to a sugary end, than a joy.

It was only when I grew older and moved away from home, that I realised tea could actually be a pleasure. Or more importantly, that it came in more than those two uninspiring varieties. As much as I love my coffee, these days I also have a steadily growing collection of tea canisters filled with various fragrant offerings. The only tea bags in residence are for my parents who to this day, wont try any of "that fancy stuff". Tea has now become part of my night time pampering routine, and there's nothing quite like a fragrant cup or two at the end of a long day.

I am always on the look out for new flavours and tea ware (I may need a tea intervention if I'm honest), so I was rather excited to have the opportunity to try Oriental Teahouse's, Strawberry & Cream tea.

Strawberry and Cream is a fragrant mix of strawberry pieces, apple pieces, hibiscus, rose-hip peel, pineapple cubes, elderberry & flavouring. (I didn't find the apple pieces to be a problem, but if your fructose malabsorption is more severe, you may want to keep this in mind).

And the verdict:

It smells divine. I could sit and sniff the dried tea all day, and when brewed the smell fills the house. Or, as my youngest put it, "it smells like jelly", high praise from a 14-year-old. The colour of the brewed tea is quite lovely and even in today's rather overcast light still a beautiful pinky red tone, which turned a lovely plum red the longer it brewed.

In homage to my Nanna, I had to include my one and only doily in the pictures.

 Drinking out of mum's favourite teacup wasn't tooooo embarrassing.

As a hot tea I did enjoy it, but it did need a little sugar syrup to bring out the flavour and longer brewing than the suggest 3-5minutes to really appreciate the full flavour.

Their description of a "dessert treat in a teacup" is very apt and I must admit I much preferred it as a sweet iced tea. The suggested addition of some strawberries and ice cubes to the mix would definitely set it off. Sadly, I was sans strawberries thanks to my ravenous teenagers, but the addition of ice, a little leftover sugar syrup and a little fresh mint did make for a lovely refreshing drink. With Spring finally here, I can see myself sitting out in the garden sipping a big ice cold glass of the tea enjoying the warmer evenings.

Overall, I'd recommend the tea more as a very refreshing sweet iced tea, than a hot tea. Though if hot I would let it steep a little longer to develop the flavour. I do like that the tea is caffeine-free, so a cup of an evening isn't going to add to my ever present insomnia. My son's reaction makes me wonder if it could indeed be used to make a refreshing dessert. Maybe an adult jelly with a drop or two of strawberry liquor? Seems I have a plan for the weekend ahead!

Oriental Teahouse is situated in Melbourne, Australia, and provides not only a huge range of teas (7 categories of tea, with 50+ types in total) but is also a fantastic Yum Cha destination. I do love that they have suggestions for paring teas with dumplings, as a girl can never have enough dumplings in her life. Chilli Wagyu Beef dumplings anyone?

Their extensive range of teas, including Strawberry & Cream, are available for purchase from their online shop which is always a bonus for those of us who have trouble getting out and about. Their frozen dumplings are also available for purchase so you can enjoy them at home with a cup of your favourite tea. Be still my dumpling loving heart.

Oriental Teahouse can be found online at:
Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/OrientalTeahouse.Main,
Twitter @OrientalTHouse,
Instagram @orientalteahouse
Website  http://www.orientalteahouse.com.au/,
Blog http://www.orientalteahouse.com.au/blog/

Time to feed my addiction with yet another tea canister, or tea pot, or cup, or tea, or....dumplings!

Michelle :)

And the winner of a copy of Charlotte Wood's "Animal People" is.........

Prize provided by Nuffnang Product Talk.

Well the day is here for the big draw. Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway, for a chance to win a copy of best-selling Australian author Charlotte Wood's fantastic new novel, Animal People.  As I  mentioned in the earlier post I use the Thor method to draw winners here on the blog. Seems very apt given the title and theme of Charlotte's book. And given the responses both here and on FB, I think most will appreciate the joy of getting your dog involved in prize draws.

For those who don't know, Thor is one of my two Great Dane's.  He had a rough start to life and we are his 4th, but most definitely final, family. He has some 'issues' (so as Mr Grumpy says, he fits right in here) thanks to his previous owners. He's very anxious, not overly bright, and his tail and back legs nolonger work well, but he makes up for that with 90+kgs of smelly furry love.

The Thor Method begins with the creation of the entries. Feathers, glitter and Dorothy Shoes are a must.

Then there is the oh so fun stage of getting Thor interested in the feather entries. Unfortunately, the glittery bird on the side of the plate was far more interesting, so this stage took far longer than anticipated.

 Finally, and with the prodigious use of bread treats, he started to seem a bit more interested.

Unfortunately, at the crucial moment he was distracted by a bright shiny object. Thank God we love him.

 Nineth time, and several pieces of bribery bread later, was apparently the charm.

And the winner is........

One soggy entry, and a quick chase around the living room later to try and get it back. Damn, he's quick for being so big and uncoordinated.

Brahm from, Alfred Lives Here. 

Congratulations Brahm. And if you pop over to Brahm's blog you'll see from his header that he is a very worthy winner.

Brahm if you'll drop me an email with your address (my contact details are up top), Animal People will be winging it's way to your mail box.

Thanks once again to Nuffnang Product Talk for the the opportunity to review Animal People and for the prize copy.

Time to go wash off the dog drool and grab the sticky tape to dehair my clothes.

Cheers
Michelle :)

And because anyone with a furbaby in their life is a winner, I give you, Hot Chocolate's, Everyone's A Winner.

"Animal People" by Charlotte Wood, Product Talk & Give Away.

(This review is part of Nuffnang's Product Talk. I did not receive payment for this review. However, I was lucky enough to receive a copy to read and keep, and another copy to give away to one lucky reader.)

(Very excited to receive my parcel)

I am a book geek. No two ways about it. One quick glance at my dusty bedside table makes this readily apparent. This is not a new phenomenon. I was the weird child reading Tolkien and Bronte in primary school. One of those strange kids who actually volunteers to be a library monitor so they have first access to all the new additions. Yep that's right. I was that girl. I knew how to party back in the day. I can even admit that one of my favourite High School trips to Melbourne was to visit an antiquarian book shop that looked like it was straight out of a movie. A beautiful blue stone building complete with muffled silence, lashings of dark wood panels, and precious first editions secured behind glass. Makes me wistful just thinking about it.

Very little has changed since that time (including my aversion to dusting, and never ending love of hula hoops. Remember those Big M ones that smelt like the drinks? I had a chocolate one that I loved dearly. Well, until my big brother gave it to the dog for a game of tug-a-war. Not that I'm still bitter or anything.) There is still nothing better than the feel of a book in my hands or the smell of the pages as you crack it open for the first time. Or even better the well-loved, dog-eared copies of your favourites, held together with sticky tape and prayer. Battered treasures that you pull out on rainy days or when you need that extra hit of comfort.

(If I make it small, you can't see the dust right?)

And, luckily I have been given the opportunity to feed my addiction, whilst simultaneously reviewing the latest offering from bestselling Australian author, Charlotte Wood. Animal People takes place over one day in the life of Stephen, a despondent, cafeteria worker from the local zoo, intent on dumping his girlfriend.

I came to this book with no expectations. I avoided reading any reviews and decided to dive in armed only with an open mind and a trusty block of chocolate. And I was rewarded with an engaging book that was truly a joy to read. Can I write a book review by simply typing the words "loved it" again and again? Probably not. Does it count that I teared up at the end as Stephen finds clarity in an unexpected moment? Is my emotional connectedness to the story and the characters an adequate reflection of the book? Or that I read it in two sittings as I became so drawn into the story? Emotionally, I'd give it an A+, but I should probably try a more intellectual approach as well.

Charlotte's paints a vivid picture of Australian city living. The familiarity of the scenes and attention to detail draw you in from the beginning. I particularly loved the early picture she painted of Stephen's vision of his mother on the other end of the phone tracing the flowers on her carpet with her toes. A level of detail reflected throughout the novel. The characters, from the main protagonist Stephen to those that pepper his life on the periphery, feel as though they have been plucked from the real world, giving depth and realism to the story. The slowly building tension is well paced. And the ending (without giving anything away) unexpected and cleverly hopeful, where she could easily have left the reader with a feeling hopelessness and perpetual urban disconnect.

The central character Stephen is as fascinating as he is troubled. Charlotte's use of his internal dialogue as he tries to make sense of the world around him, whilst also trying to preserve his self, is truly engaging. The oppressive heat of the day, the perfect mirror to the oppressive weight of Stephen's life.

The question of not only whether you are an animal person, but what exactly that means for how we relate to the world and those around us, is craftily played out throughout. Making the reader constantly review their own position of what it means to be one of the animal people, without it feeling forced or lecturey.

Overall, I found Animal People a really enjoyable read. And I have no doubt that it'll find it's place up there with my other well-loved, dog-eared treasures to be read again and again.

You can read more about Animal People here. There are also a series of great videos of the author discussing the novel.

Competition Time:

I have one copy of Animal People to give away to one lucky reader.

All you have to do is leave a comment here on the blog, twitter, or FB, and let me know if you are or aren't an animal person, and what that means for you. Make sure you let me know if you do tweet or FB.

Entries close: Midnight, Friday the 25th of Novemeber 2011 (Australian time)


Winner will be drawn using the Thor Method and announced on Sunday the 27th November 2011

Cheers
Michelle :)