Sunday
Dec162007
Holiday Gift Idea - Under $10 - For Mom or Tea Lover
Sunday, December 16, 2007 at 02:52PM
You know how 'they' always say, give a gift that you would enjoy yourself...
I was out and about this week on errands and stuff and met up with a friend at our Barnes & Noble in the Starbucks Cafe area. I am usually all about my Grande Cafe Mocha, but something surprising I've noticed since I turned 40 (in October) -- and maybe it is a coincidence? -- I can't drink or eat as 'heavily' anymore, especially chocolate or sweets. Believe me, I have never had this 'problem' before, and I guess it is a mixed blessing! I still love a good piece of chocolate, or cake, or Cafe Mocha, but in smaller amounts, with water.
So, anyway, I bellied up to the Starbucks counter and decided on something light: Peppermint Tea. Only they didn't have anymore Peppermint. I'm not a big tea drinker in the first place, and I didn't know what else to get. The barista suggested one of the Holiday Teas, an assortment of blends with cutesy holiday-esque names in nifty holiday tin packaging. By default, I chose HOLIDAY, which is "Black Tea with Holiday Spices" (orange, cinnamon, almond and clove). It smelled heavenly, just the right spicy, but not too much, and the taste, in a word: YUM. I was hooked in an instant.
So much so, in fact, that I looked for more "Holiday Tea" all week long, as I was here and there at different Starbucks in my shopping and errand-running adventures. But I was disappointed: The real, true, stand-alone Starbucks don't have a special "Holiday Tea" by that name; they gave me "Joy," which, trust me, is not joy (to me) and isn't anything like this magical tea I had at the Barnes & Noble. Turns out, it's a special Barnes & Noble Cafe item, not Starbucks. I had to go all the way back to B&N across town to discover this, so I bought two tins (20 Tea Sachets in a really nice red tin box, $7.95 each) -- one for me, and one for...well, maybe ME! This would make a very nice, inexpensive gift item for friends, teachers, hostess gifts, etc.
Holiday Tea is from Harney & Sons Fine Teas, available at Barnes & Noble Cafe and online. Check out www.harney.com for very nice Holiday Tea & Gift Suggestions.
I was out and about this week on errands and stuff and met up with a friend at our Barnes & Noble in the Starbucks Cafe area. I am usually all about my Grande Cafe Mocha, but something surprising I've noticed since I turned 40 (in October) -- and maybe it is a coincidence? -- I can't drink or eat as 'heavily' anymore, especially chocolate or sweets. Believe me, I have never had this 'problem' before, and I guess it is a mixed blessing! I still love a good piece of chocolate, or cake, or Cafe Mocha, but in smaller amounts, with water.
So, anyway, I bellied up to the Starbucks counter and decided on something light: Peppermint Tea. Only they didn't have anymore Peppermint. I'm not a big tea drinker in the first place, and I didn't know what else to get. The barista suggested one of the Holiday Teas, an assortment of blends with cutesy holiday-esque names in nifty holiday tin packaging. By default, I chose HOLIDAY, which is "Black Tea with Holiday Spices" (orange, cinnamon, almond and clove). It smelled heavenly, just the right spicy, but not too much, and the taste, in a word: YUM. I was hooked in an instant.
So much so, in fact, that I looked for more "Holiday Tea" all week long, as I was here and there at different Starbucks in my shopping and errand-running adventures. But I was disappointed: The real, true, stand-alone Starbucks don't have a special "Holiday Tea" by that name; they gave me "Joy," which, trust me, is not joy (to me) and isn't anything like this magical tea I had at the Barnes & Noble. Turns out, it's a special Barnes & Noble Cafe item, not Starbucks. I had to go all the way back to B&N across town to discover this, so I bought two tins (20 Tea Sachets in a really nice red tin box, $7.95 each) -- one for me, and one for...well, maybe ME! This would make a very nice, inexpensive gift item for friends, teachers, hostess gifts, etc.
Holiday Tea is from Harney & Sons Fine Teas, available at Barnes & Noble Cafe and online. Check out www.harney.com for very nice Holiday Tea & Gift Suggestions.
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