Ok, call me crazy. But this is by far the most exciting invention that come across my way in a long time. Granted, it is not for everyone. But this is just the prefect thing for ME. There’s nothing better than this for an avid tea drinker such as myself.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me present to you… the Ocha-presso machine. Works kinda like a regular espresso machine, but for tea. It even grinds the tea for you. This would be the best present. EVER.
So, yes. I WANT ONE!!
Video:
I got a new toy!
Pilot Volex fountain pen produced in 1977. Comes with a soft Fine nib. It writes much better than the last vintage Pilot fountain pen that I posted back in December.
I almost lost hope in getting my hand on this baby. It took about a month for the local post office to release it due to certain restrictions (or lack of efficiency) at the custom office. And they didn’t even send it to my address, instead they sent out a notification for the package to be picked up. Why? So they could charge a large fee for it. A third of the actual price of the pen. This is why I can’t trust the local postal office. They never collected fees for the previous fountain pens sent from Japan, so why this? Why now? Sigh.
Anyways, let bygones be bygones. My baby is with me now. All slick and sexy. It maybe vintage, but it looks very contemporary. And it feels right in my hand. Yay.
update (writing sample):
Mirror mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?…
Do you know your skin type? I do.
I’m no.2.
THIS is why I don’t go to the beach, let alone sun bath.
My sensitive skin prevents me from looking my best. I have always envied guys with tanned skin, as I perceive tan = healthy + masculine, thus I feel I look rather weak and feminine. And, well, Casper-like.
For many years I tried being outdoorsy as much as I could, hoping I could get some tan. Unfortunately, that only got me visiting the doctors. I now realized that I should give in, accept my paleness, and avoid challenging the sun.
I have enough skin problems as it is since youngster years, I don’t want no more skin problems. Period. Guess I just have to get used to my PF50+ protection to enjoy the outdoors. Sigh…
There is a recent awesome development on ‘pen’ for designing by WobbleWorks Inc. that’s been a much talked about topic among the electronic and the writing instrument industries. They have created the world’s first 3D printing pen called 3Doodler.
Video -
On a different topic, a couple of guys dished out an epic rendition of the well known AC/DC song ‘Thunderstruck’ with their… CELLOS. They call themselves 2Cellos. This duo has done awesome covers of other songs as well, with one video dated back as early as 2011 filmed by MTV. Ok, so this group is not new. Yeah, I’m always late when it comes to music.
Video -
Whether it is black/red tea, green tea, white tea, or herbal tea, almost all teas have to be brewed with hot liquid to better release its aroma and flavor out. Well, with the exception of one; Oolong tea that is meant for cold-brewing.
I personally don’t know how many cold-brew tea varieties exist out there in this world, but I have been introduced to only one. It was a few years back when I visited relatives in Taiwan during a summer season that I had a chance to taste cold brewed oolong tea for the very first time. One try and I was hooked.
Taiwanese, in general, drink nothing but tea. Come winter or summer, tea would always be the preferred choice of beverage. So it is only fitting that they have invented tea that can be cold-brewed to quench their thirst during the hot seasons.
In Taiwan, many tea purveyors sell cold brew type of oolong tea. However, it is a type of oolong tea that is lesser in quality, in comparison to their cousins that are meant for hot-brewing only. These cold-brew oolong tea, in their dried state, generally tend to be smaller in size and darker in color, due to the need for a longer drying and fermentation process to give more flavor to the tea.
The hot-brew oolong variety does not need such an extensive process, for their higher quality leaves able to bring out good enough flavor while still in their lightly semi-fermented state.
Either way people choose, each has its own quality and I love them both varieties.
How to cold brew oolong tea:
1. Put in an ample amount of cold brew type oolong tea into a water bottle, filled with room temperature drinking water.
2. Leave it on the counter for about an hour or two to let the dried tealeaves to start soaking in the liquid. You’ll notice the tealeaves would already start opening up. Refrigerate it overnight or at least for 6 hours.
3. Come morning, the tealeaves will be fully bloomed.
4. The liquid should turn deep golden in color, the flavor will be strong, and the fragrant will be equally so. Filter it into another water bottle. If you think the flavor is a bit too strong/bitter, you may add in more water to balance out the flavor to your liking.
5. The now fully bloomed tealeaves that are left in the first bottle can be used for a second cold brewing.
6. Fill in the bottle with more drinking water.
7. Refrigerate it for the whole day, or at least for 6 hours.
8. This second cold brewing will result in a weaker tea than the first cold brewing attempt, but still decent for a cold tea.
Ever since I’ve tried the one made by my uncle when in Taipei, I have always requested him to get me some of that cold-brew type when he is ready to ship off some more oolong tea down my way. I now have a decent supply of these, year in year out. Living here in a tropical climate of South East Asia, sometimes I just need to quench my thirst with some cold beverages, and cold-brewed oolong is the perfect solution.
So now it’s time to kick back and let the tea further chilled in the refrigerator. Once I got back from walking my dog, I’ll pour some of those out and feel the icy oolong satiating my thirst as it glides down my throat and equalizing my heated body temperature. Cheers!
Recent Comments