Drink tea if you're man enough

The bar was really raised this weekend in my little community of tea bloggers. Not only was @lazy_literatus hard at work on a tea fantasy of epic proportions (The Legend of Lapsang), but @The_Devotea also wrote a very poignant post about the tea people with whom he cavorts virtually (Bridge Over the River Chai). It really was a treat to read them both.

Everyday, it seems more teablogs appear on the scene. Although there's room for all of them, I'm always considering what might make this blog a bit different. These two compadres continue to do exactly that. Since reading the above-mentioned posts, I've been pondering how to add to the discussion. How to make this place just a bit more off-kilter.

The tea community that I've watched grow around me is really astounding. There are certainly tons of others I could talk about, but these gentlemen deserve special mention.

And the whole topic of tea manliess would've never been brought front and centre without the upstarts over at The Tea Blag .

Drink tea if you're man enough.

Masculine tea drinking

Sometimes I search far and wide for something to write about here. If I get on a roll, I'll blog on a theme for a few days. If I get a lot of responses, I might dedicate an entire new post to answering a question or going deeper into an earlier topic.

Then there are sometimes that a topic is simply laid in my lap. This is one of those days. A friend and I were hypothesising why there's such an unmasculine association with tea. Certainly there are exceptions to this, but one doesn't typically think of a group of grisly, dangerous men circling round to share a pot of tea.

Tea fanatics sometimes have a hard time remembering what tea drinking looks like out there in the *real* world, but I assure you tea drinking doesn't always get the best rap.

So I'd like to introduce you to two places that're doing their small part to fight against the stereotype. I think you'll appreciate their attempts. I think the tea world is a better place with them in it.

First of all, I'd like to introduce you to Big Man Tea (Big Man Tea). Where else but Glasgow would a place like this exist? These guys appear to be the real deal. If I ever actually make it to see a home match at Fir Park Stadium to see Motherwell Football Club play, you can be sure I'll go visit Big Man Tea at some point during my visit to the Glasgow area.

Secondly, I want you to know about a teablog that ain't playing around. These guys are called The Tea Blag (The Tea Blag) and this is how they describe what they're all about:

'We drink tea, write about it, and make fun of life while discussing manly endeavours. Come for the trainwreck and stay for the /t/ea. This is not for the faint of heart or the politically correct.'

Tell me what's wrong with that. Nothing, I assure you. Am pretty sure it's run by (a) college student(s), and although it's not a blog for the faint of heart, it's definitely fighting the good fight against a sissified perception of tea and tea drinking. If you take a look over there, I think you'll see exactly what I mean.

Update: Sara mentioned Man Teas in the comments, and I thought it really belonged in the post itself. Here they are: Man Teas

Fine company indeed.