MRE Tea

Most of you probably know what an MRE is. For those of you who don't, MRE's (Meals Ready to Eat) are the standard field rations of the United States military. I have had many MRE's since my first one in about 2000. I also love a good cup of English tea. Interestingly enough, MRE's contain components of tea; I mean, it's sort of a crap shoot which component you'll end up with, as not every MRE can be relied upon to supply you with everything, but the following elements needed to make a cup of tea in the field come in MRE's:

Flameless Ration Heater (standard)

Hot Beverage Bag (standard)

non-dairy creamer (common)

Domino sugar (common)

Lipton tea bags (uncommon)

So, one of my hobby goals while I'm here in the Mojave is to develop the skill needed to make a truly excellent cup of MRE tea, using only the components found in MRE's. I made my first attempt yesterday, the only exception to this rule being a tea bag that I brought from home. The first attempt was drinkable, though certainly not as good as my standard cup of morning tea. As I continue experimenting, I'll continue updating you folks. I have enough heaters, drink bags, and creamer packets to do about six cups of tea at this point, though MRE Domino sugar is tougher to come by, and I haven't seen a packet of Lipton tea in an MRE in months.

More on this as it develops.