12 Teas to pair with 12 Christmas Movies

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I haven’t posted since February. Busy year? A bit. So…

The first question I have about this holiday season is: how did this time go so fast? It seems the span of time between Thanksgiving and Christmas was shorter this year. The second question is: Was your DVR on overdrive trying to catch holiday movies so you didn’t have to buy them on a streaming service? Yep.

Counting today, there are 12 days until Christmas Day and it’s now cram time. If you’re anything like me, binge watching Christmas movies (at least 1 per day) leading up to Christmas is a guilty pleasure. Extra points for an endless supply of tea and Christmas cookies, chocolate (what’s your favorite?), and a slice of pie. Or cake.

Below is a selection of some favorites and a recommendation for a tea to sip to as you watch! Let me know if you agree.

12. The Night Before. A highly underrated Christmas movie that’s pretty darn funny and is loaded with ugly Christmas sweaters.
• Pair with: Chocolate Puerh

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11. Fred Claus. Vince Vaughn as the troublesome brother of Santa Claus? Yes! It’s not one of the more popular picks, but we like it!
• Pair with: Black Vanilla Bean or Rooibos Bourbon Vanilla (Caffeine-Free)

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10. Elf. “I’m singing!! I’m in a store, and I am singing. I AM IN A STORE, AND I’M SINGING!” No other tea blend could be more perfect then our New England Blend which is for all the tea weirdos in the world!
• Pair with: New England Blend

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9. Four Christmases. I think most of us will admit to trying to bypass spending time away from family at least once in their lives. A second shout out to Vince Vaughn as Joseph is everything. And the one-liners? Epic!
• Pair with: Naked Masala Chai

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8. Love, Actually. Everyones favorite with the most heart wrenching stories from love lost to new love and everything in between. And… Hugh Grant actually drinks tea with a chocolate biscuit in the movie. (Bonus!)
• Pair with: Ginger Rose/Healing Heart.

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7. The Shop Around the Corner. If you haven’t seen this Jimmy Stewart original, I highly recommend it. It takes place in Budapest and is just a delight. (Check out Mr. Matuschek who was the Great and Powerful Oz!)
• Pair with: Slava Ukraini! (Formerly Russian Caravan)

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6. The Man Who Invented Christmas. The story behind the story of Dickens and A Christmas Carol. Plus Christopher Plumber? Wonderful! A brisk black tea blend will work perfectly with this movie!
• Pair with: Sir Walter Scottish Blend

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5. The Holiday. Who wouldn’t want a nice little break in a charming English Cottage or a stay in a mansion in Santa Monica at the holidays?
• Pair with: British Black Currant

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4. The Family Man. Nicholas Cage as a mash up between Scrooge and George Bailey is one of the best movies around. Check out the scene with his daughter Annie as she welcomes him to Earth.
• Pair with: 3PM Blend

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For Christmas Eve:
3. A Christmas Carol. This holds a special place in my heart for a number of reasons, but the most poignant being that this is a movie loved by both me and my father. He recently passed away in late October, so this the first Christmas without our yearly discussion about the movie. He loved the Patrick Stewart and George C. Scott adaptations, and I love the Reginald Owen and Alastair Sims versions. To honor my dearly departed dad, and his favorite tea on Christmas Eve:
• Pair with: Earl Grey Creme or Rooibos Earl Grey (Caffeine-Free)

2. It’s A Wonderful Life. It’s just not the holiday season without George Bailey and Clarence the Angel, and the reminder to appreciate one’s life.
• Pair with: Cinnamon Orange Black Tea or Cinnamon Rooibos (Caffeine-Free)

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For Christmas Day:
1. Charlie Brown Christmas. Maybe the best Christmas movie/cartoon every created.
• Pair with: Our Christmas Market Blend (Marche de Noel) or German Gingerbread

Happy Holidays!

-The Chief Leaf

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Christmas Tea at the Mayflower Hotel

Amy, Mysoon, Nicole (owner of Quiet Mind Yoga), Tiffany, Rochel (owner of Joyful Bath Co.)

Every year it’s the same. I send out an email in August to my “TeaPeeps” suggesting a Sunday in December for us to meet for Christmas Tea. A bit early for an RSVP, but this way we are all on the same page and can actually make it happen. It seems to work because this is our 5th year! Amy, Mysoon, Nicole and Tiffany were all past students of mine (when I was teaching design and creative thinking) who obviously transitioned into being dear friends. Rochel was a past vendor of mine, who is now a dear friend. Nicole has recently followed her heart and has started a yoga studio here in DC called Quiet Mind. Rochel has done the same with following her heart and has started her second business called Joyful Bath Co. Amy and Mysoon have followed their hearts and passion and are both working as designers and Tiffany followed her heart into a wonderful job that has her traveling to exotic locations like Vietnam!

A fabulous group of woman,  we met today at 315p at the Mayflower Hotel, in downtown DC. I’m sure many of you have heard of  hotel – think Eliot Spitzer.

The Mayflower Hotel  is elegant and their afternoon tea is well done. I have often met many a client for tea here, but was impressed with their version of Christmas Tea. Decorated with poinsettias on each table and a harpist in the corner of the room, each of us was offered our own 2-tier of savory and sweets.We decided that we likes this rather than a large 3-tier in the center of the table.

It began with a selection of savory tea sandwiches including: smoked salmon, grilled vegetarian sandwich on focaccia bread, smoked duck and a mozerella on pita. Delicious! Rochel enjoyed it so much, she requested a refill! The sweets section was abundant and I don’t think any of us were able to finish what was offered. There was a raspberry fruit tartlet, chocolate eclair, black currant scone, clotted cream and lemon curd, raisin brioche, coconut rocher and hazelnut macaroon and their signature banana bread. We often add on a glass of champagne, but this year we skipped the bubbly and just enjoyed the tea. I enjoyed a pot of Wild Blueberry. And I believe there were some oohs and ahs over their Mountain Spring Jasmine tea. I had a sip – quite good. The tea menu included the following: Breakfast Americana, Darjeeling Choice Estate, Earl Grey, Wild Blackberries, Orchid Oolong, Mountain Spring Jasmine, Sencha, Chamomile Citrus, Ginger Twist and Organic Mint Melange. All I believe from Mighty Leaf. I thought the service was good and the overall experience was pleasant.

The menu

The room was filled with many young woman who were obviously there with family and friends to celebrate season and enjoy each others company. I can say that our Christmas Tea event has become something I look forward to each year. Though we many not see each other for 364 days, we can always count on coming together in early December over tea and treats to catch-up on whats happened over the last year. I truly treasure the time we spend together and look forward to next year!

Here is a little bit of history on the Historic Mayflower Hotel:

The Mayflower Hotel was known as the “Grande Dame of Washington, D.C.,” boasting more gold than any other building in the country except for the Library of Congress. Just four blocks from the White House, this grand, historic hotel remains not only a place to make history but to absorb it; throughout the last 80 years the hotel has hosted events that have changed the course of human affairs. Its opening function, the annual banquet of the Washington Chamber of Commerce, was totally eclipsed by Calvin Coolidge’s Inaugural Charity Ball held two weeks later in the Grand Ballroom. The ball began a long tradition of presidential use of the Mayflower. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ate lunch at the hotel every day for 20 years, and President Harry Truman lived at the Mayflower during the first 90 days of his presidential term. Franklin Roosevelt lived in Suite 776 during his pre-inaugural period and dictated his famous, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself” speech there. In 1942, the hotel staged Washington’s first blackout drill, installed air raid sirens and first aid stations on every floor, turned the roof into an observation post and made plans to convert the barbershop into an emergency hospital. Harry S. Truman announced his intention to run for the presidency in 1948 at a Jackson Day dinner at the Mayflower (“I want to say that during the next four years there will be a Democrat in the White House and you are looking at him.”)

1127 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, District Of Columbia 20036 USA
Phone:  1-202-347-3000
Fax:  1-202-776-9182