I have been thinking about giving up coffee. Coffee production is unsustainable and damages huge tracts of rain forests. One option is shade grown coffee from sustainable producers. However, I am also having digestive troubles with coffee. I think that I can no longer handle the acid component of coffee. I love the routine of having coffee and caffeine in the morning, so I have been dragging my feet in terms of giving it up.

Switching to tea has always been on my mind. I already drink herb teas in the evenings and as iced-tea in the summer. I know that black and green teas have caffeine but found them somewhat bitter, so I have been uninspired. Then, I discovered Sequim Spice and Tea, a store on the main drag that sells loose tea. They keep an urn of teas outside for passersby to have a sample. I was surprised to find the teas were delicious.

Yesterday I went inside the store and explained everything to the gal on duty. Turns out she is the manager and quite knowledgeable about every kind of tea. She told me that the bitter taste would be the result of two things: using boiling water (too hot) and/or letting the tea steep too long. Yes, I do both, especially because I am used to steeping herb teas for a long time, which is acceptable. Sounds like an easy fix, and I decided to give it a try.

The manager directed me to an Earl Grey Creme. It smelled heavenly so I bought a few ounces and a tea infuser. Yesterday afternoon and this morning I tried it and am most impressed. Using her directions, the flavor was wonderful. I won’t know for a few days about the caffeine levels and if they can resurrect and sustain me like coffee! I like what I have seen and tasted so far and am looking forward to taming my tummy.

Last night I was drinking some herb tea while binge-watching Season One of Veep. It is hilarious but depressing. The hapless VEEP, Julia Louise-Dreyfus, lost her primary bid for president and can’t do anything right in her job as VP. She is surrounded by an ineffective staff who always make things worse for her. I like the storyline but am wondering how it will be after several seasons. I see that it ran for 7 full seasons so the writers/producers must have found enough story angles to keep it alive.

Tonight, I may start on season one of Downton Abbey. Sometimes I think I am the only one in America who has never seen an episode. In the meantime, that is the news from Sequim!