Tuesday 1/15/13

Have some down time today so I'll step in

Lunch: I may skip lunch again today, skipped it yesterday as well. Reason being I've been working 6am-2pm lately and don't really have time to stop until it's almost time to go home. I've been making a trail mix to bring with me so I don't go hungry. It consists of un-roasted mixed nuts, raisins, wasabi peas and a small square of dark chocolate. Tasty, sweet, tangy and it keeps me going.

This also leads me to an off topic that is on topic with my lunch. My schedule has also led to increased tea consumption. I don't drink coffee and am working my way to tea snob Lately I've been brewing up a white tea called "silver needles" that has been great. Prior to that I had an Oolong called Eastern Beauty that stands as my favorite. I'm out of the Oolong and have only a couple of servings left of the white so I've switched temporarily to a plain green tea (bags not loose leaf) it gets the job done and while I really enjoy a good loose leaf tea, my lazy go to is plain ol' Tetley black tea.

Anyone else brewing the loose leaf out there? What's your go to tea?


G&L Question: I'm running out of those
With the issues of sustainability I'm glad to see G&L experimenting with other woods
I've noticed Martin, and a couple of other manufacturers, have instead replaced some parts with plastic (fret boards, bridges[acoustic] etc.) I'm all for sustainability but I'd rather have some random plentiful wood fret board than a plastic one. It's not limited to low end either, I've seen Martin's over $1k with said "features". I'm too much of a traditionalist, even if G&L put out a guitar that played well but had plastic subbed in for normally wood parts, I don't think I'd be on board that train.

Plastic in lieu of wood, what's your take on it?

Have a good one!
-Dave

Dave, good to see that you have a bit of down time. There are times I wish I had more. I am my own worst enemy, even as a retired guy. I was totally involved in music production when I should have been in bed early last night. Had to have a pre-op today for a kidney stone procedure tomorrow and I was tired this morning.

I do like tea but am used to coffee and being a creature of habit, I do the same morning after morning, same ole coffee. I like the G&L question today. Taylor seems to have developed a program for sustainable woods and I am fine with that. The amount of wood used for guitar building is almost nothing in the overall picture. Plastics are petroleum dependent and loaded with chemicals in my opinion. The reason that they are being used is "cheaper". I am not a fan of plastics being used for fretboards, necks or probably anything other than pickguards and pickup covers. I will note that a lot of the chrome on my Goldwing is chromed plastic and it does not rust. The building industry is doing a lot to conserve wood and it is needed there as that is where a lot of it used. My Parker has a composite coated maple neck and it is very stable. This should be an interesting discussion today. -- Darwin

Have some down time today so I'll step in

Anyone else brewing the loose leaf out there? What's your go to tea?


Have a good one!
-Dave

Earl Grey, Hot...St. James Teas LTD.


G&L: Good Wood, Quality Bone nut, nothing better. That said I just furnished my office with sustainable bamboo ply-wood furniture. It is really cool! Cruising skateboards made of the stuff. While certainly not a tone wood- it would be funky to make a bamboo ply top in a NENA finish. Surf-caster!

I just grabbed some toast with butter for lunch, but dinner was one of my all time favourites.... Bacon and eggs with the usual beans, mushrooms etc.

I love my teas. Well you'd expect that from a Yorkshireman!
My 'go to' teas are Tetley and Yorkshire Gold, but I get various loose teas from here: http://www.imperialteas.co.uk/. Their Earl Grey and English Breakfast are excellent, but they do some spectacularly specialist teas that I try occasionally.

Bagpipes are typically made from African Blackwood, as are a number of other wind instruments. 30 years or so ago, they realised that there would be a future wood shortage (as prices started to soar due to demand v availability).
They started planting lots of managed plantations.
Perhaps that's a way forward for other tone wood varieties, although for slow growing species it may be a very long term plan.

I think we are limited in our thoughts on tonewoods. Just as there are hundreds of tasty species of fish in the sea, eaten by folk all over the world, yet we only buy the ones we are most familiar with, there are many good tonewoods out there which we don't use because they are not 'traditional' enough for us.
I'd rather see any good wood used rather than plastic. Maybe that shows my 'traditional' attitudes too.

i am big on loose leaf teas. i like green and oolong. my favorite currently is raindrop, a japanese greentea, and i like gyokuro and sencha as well. i really like ti kuan yin and coconut oolong. i can't stand black tea. i leaver that for the englishmen.

Earl Grey, Hot...St. James Teas LTD.

saw this the other day....seems about right ~


I'm still into Java, I need to experiment more I guess . I'm sure there are some teas out there that I would
really like.

Elwood

Having been born in Great Britain, I love a cup of black loose leaf tea. My fave is Dilmah, with Madura - an Australian company - in very close second place.

To keep wood supplies from dwindling I'd like to see fewer cheapo crappo guitars on the market, a "quality not quantity" approach. I won't be buying a plastic guitar any time soon.

Twinings Irish Breakfast for me. I go with it because it's the strongest black tea I've found at the grocery store.

If a company is using cheap materials for the sake of their profit margin, I will stay away from them. There are plenty of sustainable alternatives out there, but they aren't going to be as easy to procure and might not have optimal bang-for-the-buck in terms of marketing. Rainsong and Modulus seem to do fine with carbon fiber, and Ovation made some wonderful acoustics with manufactured backs/sides. I've been very impressed with Warwick's commitment to sustainable woods, which they manage despite featuring African hardwoods in most of their current instruments (at least the German models).

Ken

I think I'll have the Earl Grey. Thanks Elwood! - ed

I am a coffee drinker mostly. French press in the morning. Espresso drinks in the evening ( just got a Nespresso machine ). I'm with goat as far as tea goes, another Yorkshire Gold fan here. I remember the first time I bought a tin of loose leaf Yorkshire gold, spilled half of it in a wet sink. Fun ! Back to bags. Darjeeling is good too. Bit of milk no sugar.

I'm all for sustainable wood, but I am not for plastic part substitution. I'm at the point in my life where I will save for the good stuff.

Thanks Dave

Tea is a food group to me. I vote Brooke Bond Taj Mahal.

I don't go for the bags though. I use the electric kettle to boil the water, put two tablespoons of the loose granules in an old coffee pot, and fill the pot full of boiling water. Give the tea about 7 minutes to settle. Way better than common bagged tea.

Thanks for all the recommendations on tea, I'm always looking for new brews to try.

Jag, Fender put out a bamboo tele not long ago, I've never seen one in a store though.
http://www.google.com/search?q=fender+bamboo&rlz=1C1AFAB_enUS451US472&aq=f&oq=fender+bamboo&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#hl=en&tbo=d&rlz=1C1AFAB_enUS451US472&sclient=psy-ab&q=fender+bamboo+tele&oq=fender+bamboo+tele&gs_l=serp.3..0i10i30l2.10229.12320.0.12785.7.6.1.0.0.0.140.677.1j5.6.0.les%3B..0.0...1c.1.lb36rxcE2X0&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&bvm=bv.41018144,d.b2I&fp=53665f6dd9c72138&biw=936&bih=615

Elwood -

Louis- I received an Yixing teapot a few years back and it came with a sample of ti kuan yin, very good stuff

I'm not usually one for the plastic celluloid, etc. type guitars that came out of italy
a while back , this one is so overboard in plastic glitz that it just makes me smile.
Reminds me of the good old family pizza shops with the naugahide booths.

63' Hofner Galaxy

I'm sure it would look good in some old funky sports cars too.


Elwood

Dave,

Thanks for picking up the LR duty for today.

If you want to talk tea, talk to my wife. She has a delightful melange (pun intended) of different teas. Some loose leaf , some not. Almost any taste you can imagine. And once in a while she delights me with a cuppa o' delight.

On your other question: please stay away from plastic as far away as you can. Give me honest to <insert your favorite supreme being here> wood. I would feel offended if they still charge me an arm and a leg if a guitar contains any composites beyond bridge or nut. After all, for the latter 2 categories we have accepted the polymers as a viable option.

- Jos

P.S. Nice guitar Elwood!

Thanks for all the recommendations on tea, I'm always looking for new brews to try.

Jag, Fender put out a bamboo tele not long ago, I've never seen one in a store though.
http://www.google.com/search?q=fender+bamboo&rlz=1C1AFAB_enUS451US472&aq=f&oq=fender+bamboo&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#hl=en&tbo=d&rlz=1C1AFAB_enUS451US472&sclient=psy-ab&q=fender+bamboo+tele&oq=fender+bamboo+tele&gs_l=serp.3..0i10i30l2.10229.12320.0.12785.7.6.1.0.0.0.140.677.1j5.6.0.les%3B..0.0...1c.1.lb36rxcE2X0&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&bvm=bv.41018144,d.b2I&fp=53665f6dd9c72138&biw=936&bih=615

Elwood -

Louis- I received an Yixing teapot a few years back and it came with a sample of ti kuan yin, very good stuff

remeber, ti kuan yin is best flash brewed, poor the water on it, drain it immediately, and do 195 degree brew for 2 minutes after for best results. some of the green teas only require a 45 second brew. 3 minutes is tops. i have at leas 20 tins of different loose leaf teas lined up, mostly green, some oolong. also some nice fruit teas, like mango madness, or berry blast. mostly dried fruit with some flower petals.

The Fender Lamboo looks interesting, don't think I'd step up to buy one though. Green teas are good, usually switch to them in the summer, need to try some ti kuan yin. Sounds good!

That Hofner Galaxy is awesome - all that pearl, makes me feel about 11 years old! Mixed emotions, but love it. I know that sort of thing makes Louis reach for a bucket, but I find it fascinating...

No tea for me. Espresso and French press all the way. I picked up a Delonghi pump espresso machine at Value Village a few months back for ten bucks and I enjoy espresso on a daily basis. As for tea. I have tried but I cannot make it a habit out of it. It's something I go through in phases and I haven't been on a tea kick in years.

I love tea of all kinds, but mainly green tea these days its purported health benefits. Over the last few years I've figured out I like my tea brewed at a lower temperature. I read somewhere that 85-90C water is best to reduce leaching of the bitter tannins. These days I generally wait 2-3 minutes after boiling to pour the water over the leaves. And, as Louis points out, over brewing gives bad results too.

I hadn't thought much about wood supply until I went on a tour of the Maton guitar factory last month. The amount of paperwork to (legally) use Brazilian rosewood is outrageous but entirely necessary. The paperwork must be duplicated and included with every guitar containing Brazilian rosewood to show traceability back to a legal source. The process for using Australian Blackwood is just as difficult. The trees must be hand felled in the presence of an environmental officer from the Forestry Dept. Trees are selected to have a minimum impact on the surrounding forest when they are felled. Then the felled trees have to be divided and hand carried from the forest as vehicle acces is limited. Maton are allowed 1-2 trees per year but this is enough to meet their annual output. I would personally pay more for a guitar that I knew to be made of wood harvested in an environmentally responsible manner. But I suspect a lot of cheaper instruments have not been good for the environment.

I don't think I'd buy a guitar where wood has been substituted with plastic, but substitution of wood types doesn't bother me as long as the instrument still sounds good and plays well. I have a Gibson LP with the infamous baked maple fretboard and it is perfectly fine, even though many traditionalists screamed blue murder. I also have some Japanese instruments made with sen, a plantation ash species, and these are great as well. The custom shop guy at Maton, Andy, insisted that Australian Blackwood sounds better than mahogany and rosewood yet most overseas custom orders specify mahogany and rosewood because that is what Martin, Gibson etc. traditionally used.

I love tea of all kinds, but mainly green tea these days its purported health benefits. Over the last few years I've figured out I like my tea brewed at a lower temperature. I read somewhere that 85-90C water is best to reduce leaching of the bitter tannins. These days I generally wait 2-3 minutes after boiling to pour the water over the leaves. And, as Louis points out, over brewing gives bad results too.

I hadn't thought much about wood supply until I went on a tour of the Maton guitar factory last month. The amount of paperwork to (legally) use Brazilian rosewood is outrageous but entirely necessary. The paperwork must be duplicated and included with every guitar containing Brazilian rosewood to show traceability back to a legal source. The process for using Australian Blackwood is just as difficult. The trees must be hand felled in the presence of an environmental officer from the Forestry Dept. Trees are selected to have a minimum impact on the surrounding forest when they are felled. Then the felled trees have to be divided and hand carried from the forest as vehicle acces is limited. Maton are allowed 1-2 trees per year but this is enough to meet their annual output. I would personally pay more for a guitar that I knew to be made of wood harvested in an environmentally responsible manner. But I suspect a lot of cheaper instruments have not been good for the environment.

I don't think I'd buy a guitar where wood has been substituted with plastic, but substitution of wood types doesn't bother me as long as the instrument still sounds good and plays well. I have a Gibson LP with the infamous baked maple fretboard and it is perfectly fine, even though many traditionalists screamed blue murder. I also have some Japanese instruments made with sen, a plantation ash species, and these are great as well. The custom shop guy at Maton, Andy, insisted that Australian Blackwood sounds better than mahogany and rosewood yet most overseas custom orders specify mahogany and rosewood because that is what Martin, Gibson etc. traditionally used.

where i buy m teas, it is indicated for each one what the water temperature and the brewing time should be. anywhere from 165-200.

Louis, do they specify caffeine content? This always interests me as a long-time coffee-drinker who is in the midst of a lengthy tea conversion process. I like to know what will get me revved up in the morning, and what I can have in the late afternoon without risking interference with my (precious) sleep. Thanks - ed