It actually all makes sense! :)
First, the Mikado Gold, blah blah package I ordered from Adagio on Sunday (which really makes it Monday) arrived on Wednesday - even I can't complain about that - it was out their doors Monday afternoon. YAY!
Everything was very well wrapped and packaged - all the glass (teapot and warmer - I couldn't resist, since after all, they may not exist soon; yeah, I know, rationalization works every time) was in perfect condition. Tea carefully wrapped, too.
IngenuiTEA is more fun than I can say. It works! Great! As someone mentioned somewhere it doesn't clean QUITE as easily as the little demo movie on the site shows, but it's pretty easy. Don't see how the lid would come off to allow cleaning in the dishwasher, but I'm not concerned about that. It fills, filters, doesn't drip. I'm happy. :) And considering the pitcher sized one for iced tea - I'll have to think of a reason I deserve a gift.
Tea: with the IngenuiTEA, I ordered the black teas starter set. I had no hopes for this based on the experience Douglas had. I was not only pleasantly surprised, but shocked! The tea is FRESH. Upon opening the little tins (adorable, by the way) the scent is strong and clean. I tried the Earl Grey in the IngenuiTEA. This is my first EG that has blue flowers in it, so I wasn't quite prepared for how "perfumy" it is. But there was nothing weak about it. And watching the leaves unfurl was great fun.
Last night I opened In Pursuit of Tea Earl Grey, and made a cup in the IngenuiTEA. I was surprised to see that the tea is all stems. Very fragrant, but I was expecting leaves. No unfurling, no fluffy leaves, just... stems. Is that unusual for IPOT? It's a 1/4 pound package, and though I didn't empty it out, I did dig through it, and stems... all stems.
This morning, I made Adagio Irish Breakfast in the Mikado. (The sample included with the IngenuiTEA and the big tin that came with the Mikado are identical - again, fresh sample tea. YAY!!) WOW. First, I love this teapot - the handle did, indeed, stay cool. And the tea did, indeed, stay hot enough to drink as much as I wanted. Perfect! And the tea... This is the first IB I've had that wasn't a teabag - WOW. Clean, crisp, and a great reminder of how much I like IB tea. I think this is the tea I'm going to use to persuade people to try loose tea - the difference is amazing.
Adagio is clearly in the plus column, and IPOT, well... I'm surprised, but will wait to hear if this is typical, and stems aren't a big deal. I don't know *why* I think that stems should be absent, or minimal at best, but I do. Yes, no, doesn't matter?
Thanks again for your advice and patience!
Resa