Teacoholics

I have always been a coffee drinker. Even in high school I remember having a cup of Folgers instant coffee every morning before leaving the house. In recent years my consumption of the caffeinated nectar has increased significantly to the point that our coffee pot just wasn’t enough to keep me satisfied in the morning and night. Keep in mind that my wife doesn’t drink coffee at all so all the drinking was my doing.

My wife on the other hand likes tea. However, there are few options which she likes to drink so, occasionally, she has gotten board of the herbal options that we have found in the stores. So her consumption varies but still has come nowhere near my partaking of the black bean water.

Things began to shift about a week ago when I gave my wife a little surprise winter gift to try and brighten up a dull day. Actually, it was a few gifts that I had gotten when I previously placed holiday orders for my boss and for my niece and had a little extra credit left. I could tell when she opened them that she didn’t really know how she felt about them and whether she would use them or not. The two infuser mugs and a few bags were her first experience with loose tea.

Admittedly, I had also already stored some tea in the cabinet that was more to my taste. I have occasionally had a cup of tea when the mood struck me but I had not been a regular drinker for over a decade. Seeing her hesitance I knew that the best way to really have her see the difference between fresh loose tea and dried out bags would be to start making it and drinking it myself. The result has led me to drinking more tea in the last week than I had for maybe the rest of the year combined.

The transition in my drinking habits was not lost on my wife and today we decided to head over to Teavana in the King of Prussia Mall after dinner tonight so she could pick out a few flavors of her own (obviously I was a little off in my original selections). While we spent a little bit of money at the store all of it was still less money per ounce than tea bags and completely customizable at home which is perfect for both our budget and our divergent taste preferences.

Within 15 minutes of walking back into the apartment, we each had a cup of tea steeping. My wife has now not just seen the difference but tasted it as well and I have rekindled my appreciation for the variety and flavor that tea has to offer. At this point, it is safe to say that we are both Teacoholics.