Filter kaapi is of paramount importance in any tambrahm family. Even mentioning the word tea is sacrilege. Until my early teens, my fluid intake was Maltova and on rare occasions the quintessential filter kaapi. The rich aroma of fresh brew would always make me beg my mom for at least 1 sip of the kaapi served in a tumbler and dabara.
And then, a family vacation to Cunnoor happened. And that's where tea happened. What better place to taste tea than a tea estate itself! We'd been to my aunt's friend's house - I still remember her name - Padma. It was a mini bungalow of sorts and she had us seated near the dining table and served tea in cups. Perhaps my first experience with cups as well as tea. I gingerly sipped the tea, for I knew not what tea would taste like, until then. I can still taste that tea after all these years, as if it was a few hours ago. I do not know what brand it was or how she made it. But all I know is I liked tea. And, I have never been able to reproduce that flavor till date.
From then on, it's been a journey to unravel quite a few mysteries of the humble tea. I even attended a workshop on tea tasting a few months ago. I prefer the kadak chai made with milk and I do not like the chai masala.
A few years ago, I discovered green tea and its benefits. And a few weeks ago, I discovered fruit infused tea. I was at a friend's place for lunch and she served mango cinnamon orange flavored tea. I was hooked and smitten. Twinings and Typhoo have such varied flavors but I couldn't find the aforementioned one anywhere here in Chennai.
The last couple of weeks, my mornings and evenings are spent with green tea (with orange infusion) and a cranberry orange infused fruit tea!
Bottomline: I love my tea but my loyalties always lie with the filter kaapi! (in fact my ring tone is the famous leo kaapi tune composed by ARR and the advert starring Arvind Swamy *drool*)
