On tea and teacups

I have a few rules for hot beverages that I adhere to rather strictly if I am in a position to do so.  Here in my kitchen, with my kettle and cups, I'm in a position to set the code.  Which applies only to me and not to my husband who may or may not have his own guidelines for enjoying coffee.  One of which is .. "put up with hand-me-downs from the "Mo's Favorites" collection, but steal ones you like."  As a result of his theivery, the blue and white Chinese cup now sits on a shelf too high for me to reach. The irony is that, when in use, it generally holds coffee.

If cups are for tea, they must be china or porcelain and the interior must be light or white.  Why white?  I'm not sure, but sipping tea from a dark interior is rather like smoking cigarettes in the dark ... sure you get your fix, but the enjoyment just isn't there.

I know many who like their tea strong, but I can't claim presence in that camp.  I'm of the mind that tea should have a passing familiarity with water, enough to engage the nose and tastebuds and to give a light swirl of color.  So cups shouldn't be clear because tea always looks too light, if so.

 Hot chocolate or coffee can be quaffed from mugs with colored interiors and fat rims.

A cup with a rounded bottom on the inside is essential for the proper preparation of hot chocolate .. without interior corners, powdered cocoa does not get a chance to hide between the 90° angle of the cup and curve of the spoon as you mix in cream before adding hot water.  Hidden cocoa becomes floaty lumps, a condition upon which I'm sure we can all agree, is to be avoided at all cost.  My 2010 Vancouver Olympic mug on the top left is perfect for hot chocolate.  When I get a 10 minute break from my twice-weekly raid night,  I head upstairs to make a cup of cocoa.  It's a reward if gaming is going well and if we're bogged down trying to progress, hot chocolate is a cheerful consolation.

The brown mug, top right, is a prize Bruce won in an outrigger race.  Each member of the team got one of the colored cups .. Bruce took the brown.  That's another rule.  If he brings it home and I like it more than he cares that I stole it .. it's mine. And that's not the same as his high-shelf-thievery.  Not at all.