Second to None and Canadian to boot!

Ahh….Second Cup. I wonder why I haven’t blogged about this divine little establishment earlier. Perhaps our relationship wasn’t quite this mature yet, and I didn’t have as much to say. You know how when you make a new friend, you get along and start spending more time together? Then as time passes, you get to know the person better, and if you’re lucky, you’re pleasantly surprised by new discoveries about the person that makes you like her better? Well, I’m not a coffee drinker, so I never quite expected to have a preference for Second Cup or Starbucks. As someone put it, “tea is tea is tea” (As a tea drinker, I should have known better. No two teas are alike! :P) Then, of course, I discovered Second Cup’s White Hot Chocolate. *mhmm* I started visiting more regularly. Then, last semester, I discovered Second Cup’s White Mochaccino. I don’t usually like coffee, but that was quite a treat. I started preferring Second Cup over Starbucks because of these hot drinks. But what cemented this budding relationship was the fortuitous discovery of Second Cup’s Earl Grey tea. Back in 1998, I was on an Earl Grey craze, but that passion had died down somewhat. Now and then I still order it, but usually I go for Darjeeling, English Breakfast, or plain black tea. One afternoon a few weeks ago, I was at Rotman and ordered a medium black tea from Second Cup. As I was covering the cup up, I noticed an unfamiliar aroma but thought nothing of it until I took my first sip. This wasn’t regular black tea! It was way too fragrant! But I didn’t recognize the taste either. I asked the Second Cup staff what tea I’d been served and I found out, it was their Earl Grey. I’d found a new love. And since then, Huixuan and I had embarked on a mini-experiment of sorts, trying out the Earl Grey teas from Starbucks, and from Hart House for comparison. They were all different, but none as gently fragrant as Second Cup’s. And so it is, I’ve reignited my passion for Earl Grey – Second Cup’s Earl Grey that is…especially with a smidgen of honey and a generous portion of Silk Soy Milk. Huixuan bought me a box of the tea a few weeks ago, which I am about to finish. I need to buy more. And, I need a bigger tea cup!

(Click on photo to visit Second Cup’s website)