Famous Edinburgh

It's lent again. Last year I gave up desserts, and I lived through it. This year, I gave up afternoon coffee.

I knew better than to give up caffeine altogether; I've been a caffeine junkie for over 20 years. Neither I nor my family would have survived the first three days. Killing my family for lent would have defeated the purpose. Coffee is my drug of choice mostly because I love a good, strong brew. I started on military gut-rot, liberally laced with sugar and chocolate milk. Over time I switched to white milk, then phased out the sugar, and finally gave up the milk. I've been drinking it black, the stronger, the better for a couple of years. If it tries to arm wrestle me when I pour it, it's just about right. (I warn over-night guests that they might want to water it down a little, and if I'm up first I'll put a pot of water on the stove to simmer for that purpose.) I take my coffee seriously, so giving it up in the afternoon might not seem like much of a sacrifice but it is. Trust me.

Of course, I still have the afternoon caffeine crash. Some days it's not so bad. Other days, well, any details would be too many. Since Eric is a tea drinker I have a variety of black and green teas. We were running low on Earl Grey, so I stopped by my favorite local caffeine pusher coffee/tea/spice shop for more. That's where I found Famous Edinburgh. It comes in a square tin that says "Dark and Strong." The owner of the shop said that since it's Scottish, it would pack a punch, so I bought a tin. I had my doubts; tea rarely brews strong enough for my liking without bitterness.

I was wrong. It won't arm wrestle, but it's certainly not wimpy. It's better with a little honey but drinkable straight. It's a no frills, no nonsense, straight black tea with just enough caffeine to be considered liquid attitude adjustment. If it didn't take six minutes to make a cup, I might think about giving up coffee. If coffee went to $30.00 a pound. And it endangered my health. And hell froze over. OK, I'll probably die with a coffee cup in my hand. A girl's gotta have one vice!