Normally I make just one tea for my Book of the Month, but I’ve been known to make multiple teas for books I’m really excited about. I knew The Lord of the Rings would be one of those books long before I even started planning the menu. For one thing, it’s a trilogy, so it’s only fair to have one tea for each book, right? Plus, there are just too many awesome potential teas to choose just one. I actually made FIVE originally, but that seemed excessive so I narrowed it down to my three favorites: Ent-Draught, Breakfast at Bag End, and Sam’s Garden Tea.
Ent-Draught was the most obvious choice, since it’s arguably the most iconic drink in the story. There are two versions, and I decided to make the refreshing, less savory version. Breakfast at Bad End is a slight variation on a hobbit tea I designed for my cookbook (the one in the book uses English breakfast and chestnut, while this one is Irish breakfast and hazelnut). And Sam’s Garden Tea is a tribute to orchard, herb, and flower bed with a refreshing blend of peach, chamomile, and spearmint.
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Three Teas to Rule Them All
Irish breakfast, hazelnut, and cream teas come together with a marigold-petal accent for a strong, nutty blend. Nothing too elaborate—hobbit’s appreciate life’s simple comforts, after all—but its rich flavor is sure to hit the spot. Perfect for starting the day as you gaze out the window of your cozy hobbit hole!
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This herbal version of the famous ent-draught takes its inspiration from my Serpentine Restorative tea, from the book Neverwhere. I loved the citrus and lemon of the Serpentine tea, so for the refreshing, healthful ent-draught, I decide to combine it with mint and ginger. I used citrus-mint green tea as my base, complimenting it with spearmint and lemon grass. I added a touch of lemon balm, dried orange peels, and dried ginger to amp up the flavor. It makes a wonderful sun tea, great on its own or with a hint of honey…though I can’t promise it will make you any taller!
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This was such a fun blend to make! I drew on the image of Sam’s beloved garden, combining all manner of botanicals to make a mildly fruity, refreshing blend. I started with a new herbal tea I haven’t had a chance to use yet: Peach Bellini. I combined it with chamomile and spearmint and accented it with rose petals to get just the right combo of flavor and color. I highly recommend it as an iced tea. Pour yourself some during a well-deserved break after a day of gardening in the hot sun!
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