Tea tasting with Goodricke Tea

“Thank God for tea! What would the world do without tea! How did it exist? I am glad I was not born before tea.” 

Tea is of utmost importance. It is one of the best creations of Mankind. From the beginning till today, tea has been an indelible part of human existence. I have always been a tea-addict as far as I can remember. So when "The Psychedelic Diaries " was invited for an exclusive tea tasting session from, Goodricke tea with a customized invite, I was excited to say the least.

I have never been invited to a tea tasting session nor I have ever been a part of any kind of bloggers event. It was first of its kind. 

The tea tasting session was conducted by Goodricke tea at Goodricke House which is located in Gurusaday Road, Kolkata.  As far as the company is concerned, Goodricke is a Camellia PLC group company, It is an Indian company with British values. Currently, it owns 31 tea gardens which are spread over Darjeeling, the Dooars and Assam, Goodricke is currently the 2nd largest tea producer in India. 

When we entered the huge tea-tasting room, the strong smell of tea engulfed us. 

We were welcomed by the veteran tea-taster, Mr Binod Gurung who gave us an insight of tea tasting.

It's kind of an art. You don't swallow the tea. All you have to do is sip a little bit and ensure it covers your taste buds before spitting it out. 

Tea can be broadly categorized into two. The CTC and leaf varieties. The CTC varieties are best tasted with milk and the leaf varieties without milk. Mr Gurung focused mainly on the leaf varieties which can be again broadly categorized into two. The first flush and the second flush. 

The first flush is the lighter version which are harvested in the month of March and April. The second version is the stronger version which are harvested in June. The second flush is also best tasted with milk. I, for obvious reasons, loved the second flush. 

Notice the difference between the first and the second flush

As far as CTC or the orthodox variety is concerned, it is prepared with 2.5 gms of tea leaves in 160 ml of boiling water for 5 mins. After the tea is brewed, the liquor is kept separately. Just like the liquor, the tea leaves are also graded before and after brewing. Like the second flush, the CTC variety is also best tasted with milk. Mr Gurung also informed that 600 cups of different varieties of tea are prepared on a daily basis at  the Goodricke House.

So, what's your tea story?

Fangs and Blood

Over the past few centuries, there have been several mentions of the word “Vampire” in the form of legends, literature, films and folklore. For me, the word “Vampire” means bloodlust, magic, mysticism and off course inhuman beauty.  From Dracula to Edward Cullen to Damon Salvatore, I have eternally been in love with them.  The pale-bodied, cold and lanky creatures who feed on human blood have become increasingly popular in the recent times. All thanks to the groundbreaking film series and TV shows which have “Vampires” as their main theme.

If we talk about the fictionalization of the folklore or myths associated with “Vampires”, we have to go back as early as 1819 when a book named “The Vampyre” by John Polidori was published. This book was highly successful and was considered to be the first of its kind. It was the first attempt that diffused “Vampire” elements into mainstream literature. However it was the success of Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula” published in the year 1897 which helped the creation of a distinctive “Vampire” genre in contemporary cinema which is extremely popular till date.

With books, films and television series, “Vampires” have become a household name. But it is not in the recent times where we find so many depictions of “Vampires”.  In 1913, Robert G. Vignola made a film named “The Vampire” but here the protagonist was more of a human.  The first major breakthrough for the “Vampire” genre in the field of Cinema came in 1922 with the silent movie named “Nosferatu”. It was loosely based on Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula”. This movie is cited as the first proper movie with “Vampire” as the main theme. Unfortunately, due to some legal issues, there are hardly any prints of this film available. 

It was the year 1931, when the audience got a chance to see another “Vampire” movie with Bela Lugosi as the lead. “Dracula”, which was again based on Stoker’s novel, was a little more sophisticated and refined than “Nosferatu”. Lugosi did utmost justice to his role. The success of the film“Nosferatu” and “Dracula” as to which had the best portrayal of “Vampires”

spawned two sequels .There is one thing worth mentioning here that there has been constant comparison between the films,“Nosferatu” and “Dracula” as to which had the best portrayal of “Vampires”

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Films with “Vampires” as the main theme have been quite common since the silent era. In fact, it has been the most common subject of films based on any other fictional characters. But does“Vampire” fiction only consist of ”Dracula”? No definitely not. In the past few years, the entire genre has been completely regenerated with  Stephenie Meyer’s series of novels, “Twilight”. This series is all about fantasy and eternal love.It has been written from a human’s point of view,Bella Swan,who is one of the leading protagonists  of the series . The story revolves around her and her love story with Edward Cullen who is a 104 year old “Vampire”. With the first book getting published in 2005,the series has been extremely popular worldwide. It has  also been very successfully adapted to five films,”The Twilight Saga” with Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen.The films too, have formed its own cult following.

My write up about “Vampires” would be incomplete without the mention of “The Vampire Diaries”, a popular U.S. TV series which started in 2009. This show like “Twilight” is also based on a series of novels of the same name. But the popularity of the TV series has surpassed the novel.  It revolves around Elena Gilbert, a young high school girl who gets caught up in a love triangle with Vampire brothers, Damon and Stefan Salvatore. With Nina Dobrev as Elena Gilbert, Paul Wesley as Stefan Salvatore and Ian Somerhalder as Damon Salvatore, “TVD”, now going into its seventh season has made its place in the hearts of viewers all over the world.

There have inevitably been comparisons between “TVD” and “The Twilight Saga”. Here I would like to reiterate that  both of them are very different from one another as far as the plot is concerned. The plot of “TVD” is way more complicated with more characters and other supernatural beings coming into the forefront.  Also the “Vampires” in “TVD” are more human and relatable than the ones in the “The Twilight Saga”. They do not sparkle!

But as much as they are different from one another,  “The Twilight Saga” and “TVD”, have certain facts in common too. The “Vampire” protagonists fall in love with a human being who becomes a “Vampire” as the story progresses. Their eternal youth and lust for blood are the other two common characteristics.

If we see the development of  “Vampire” in the hands of fiction with a cult following ,one can easily  understand that  “Dracula” and its kind focused mainly on blood and gore. On the other hand, the later versions of “Vampire” fiction bring out other facets of them which are not monstrous at all.

Some say “Vampires”  are nothing but a figment of one’s imagination while others believe, they exist for real. But for me, “Vampires” mean a picturesque world where there is no existence of my mortal being.

P.S- The pictures above are sourced from the Internet, the copyright is with the owners.There are also some data that have been googled.

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Being Woman!

I am back from a long break, rather a sabbatical. The reason behind it, is still unknown to me, so I can't tell you either 

So many occasions went by. Diwali, Christmas and New Year. In fact, winter in Kolkata is itself a celebration. But I just could not write something. This reason is also unknown to me. People around me insisted that I should not stop this creative pursuit of mine. People asked me why I stopped posting on "The Psychedelic Diaries". 

So here I am taking out my blog like an old book which has gathered dust in one corner of my room. That dusty book is still love, right?

I convinced myself that I will write something or the other, very soon. I have wasted enough time already. I just wanted to write about something apart from recipes and reviews. Then came "International Women's Day".

Although I am proud to be a woman but you can't label me as a feminist. I believe that neither feminism nor sexism can run this world. If you are hungry,  you have to make your own sandwich, if you are broke, you need to look for a job, no one else is going to provide for you. So you see, in today's world, neither feminism nor sexism can fix much of a problem. So, to do hell with feminism and sexism. 

Everyday is our day because womanhood itself is a celebration! 

On the other hand, I also believe that celebrating "International Women's Day" on March 8th doesn't make much of a sense. I ask, do we really need one day to let each other know that how special are we? Don't we know this from the bottom from of your hearts, since time immemorial? 

Celebrating "International Women's Day" on March 8th doesn't solve much of our problems either. Living in a regressive society adds fuel to the fire. We have so many burning issues like rape, dowry deaths, domestic violence, sexual harassment, female infanticide and foeticide that require a solution right away.  We just cannot have one day to focus and think about these.

I believe that in the wake of the 21st century, women are unstoppable now. They are challenging their own barriers each day. Strength has become her middle name. 

I believe women should be tough and tender both at the same time. They should laugh as much as possible and live long lives. The struggle for equality will continue till eternity.but the woman who is armed with wit and courage will be among the first to celebrate victory.

Happy Women's Day!