Timolino

Since I lost my precious sparkly burgundy one, I bought a new one for my birthday!

Yay!

It’s a golden/orange sparkly colour, with this kind of mesh screen lid: http://www.timolino.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=VMB-38TMTR

I love it. So glad I went back to this kind. The DavidsTea timolino lid with the horrible strainer just… sucks. I was not happy with it.

I have the one with the flat filter in it, which means that for black teas the brewing time is the 4-5 hours it takes to drink my tea. I usually use it for herbal teas because of this, but if I want black tea for later (because it truly does keep your tea super hot), I’ll make it in another container then pour it into this mug.

Sad thing is I forgot milky tea in mine, and I can’t get the smell off the rubber seals. I think it’s time for another baking soda soak, and maybe a vinegar or bleach soak as well. :/

This travel mug is brilliant. The only thing I wish was different about this one was that it was bigger. It keeps everything nice and hot for hours. I actually burnt my tongue on the tea not realizing it was going to stay that hot for that long. It’s been awesome to have when I know I’m going to be outside in the cold. It keeps it nice and hot even though the outside of the container doesn’t feel hot.

I definitely recommend this travel mug.

Pretty sure I’m the only person to actually destroy a timolino completely, and I accidentally ran over it with my work van, and it’s about the size of a HandiDart (short) bus! smooshed it right flat. I cried. three days later (payday) I bought a new one, and it goes everywhere with me. My tea-loving pony knows what it’s for nnow too, and will yank it out of my hand to get to the yummy treat inside. So it gets a LOT of horsey abuse, and there’s a few teeth marks in it, but it’s never leaked, keeps tea HOT or COLD (I usually plop an ice cube into my hot tea so it’s a more drinkable temperature, otherwise it’s burn-my-face-off hot for HOURS. I’ve had tea stay hot for 12 hours before, and have had ice cubes still clinking around after 8 hours)

this thing is indestructable, and I’d be lost without it!

I decided to splurge on this a few months back with some birthday money – otherwise I don’t know that I would have dropped $30 on a tumbler! For me the biggest selling point was the sleek narrow design – it’ll actually fit in the cup-holder on my stroller! The other one I have barely fits, and if you go over any kind of bump it’ll fall out, so…. not practical.

I bought the green one – my favourite colour – and I’ve been impressed with it! It is amazing at keeping the heat in, and I haven’t had any issues with it leaking. It’s really sturdy and stylish too. I like simple designs.

The only downside: it’s amazing at keeping the heat in. I brew my tea and then it takes FOREVER to cool so that I can actually drink it. I’ve started to brew it in a mug and then pour it in the Timolino instead.

Oh, there’s also a little storage compartment in the lid. I imagine this would be useful once I’m off maternity leave, and I stash extra leaves for my afternoon tea break.

I think I’ll be forever torn about my Timolinos. I have two of them that I use regularly. Well technically I only have one, and my girlfriend has her own, but she never uses hers. So it’s mine now :P
We’ve got a red one and a sparklyish black one. The first day I used mine I dropped it on the pavement as I was getting out of a cab. Oh noes! It has a decent sized dent near the bottom now, and a few little scratches, but I guess it could be worse.

I’ve been using these for..I don’t know..about 2 years now? And I like them, but I don’t.

Pros:
-Keeps my tea HOT!
-Leak proof. Gotta love that.
-Perfect size to hold in my hand or toss in my purse.
-They’re pretty and sleek, and don’t have a silly useless handle.
-Even though I rarely use it, that secret compartment for extra leaves is pretty nifty.

Cons:
-As I said in the pros, it keeps my tea HOT. Like, really hot. Undrinkably hot sometimes, which is sad when I want tea in my belly five minutes ago.
-I add milk to a lot of teas, especially black teas which are what I generally take with me in the morning in my Timolino. Even after a thorough washing, the milk can leave a weird, gross smell that lingers in the plastic parts. YUCK. Baking soda or vinegar takes care of that, but is also a pain in the rear.
-Not dishwasher safe. This is probably my biggest con, since I am supremely lazy. That and a run through the dishwasher would also take care of the icky smell issue. So I’ve taken to just tossing mine in the dishwasher anyway, on the top shelf. I haven’t noticed any adverse effects yet, but I fear that it might ultimately shorten the lives of them. I’ll continue to do it anyway though, as it’s the only way I can be sure that all of the nooks and crannies on the lid are truly clean and avoid that odour that completely ruins my cup of tea. I always have to just toss my cup if I notice that smell, it just churns my stomach.

So there you have it! My longer-than-expected review of my Timolinos. Still on the search for my perfect, dishwasher safe, leakproof travel mug. Maybe one day.

Keeps tea HOT for 4-5 hours then it starts to cool to a drinkable temp. Can keep a moderately hot cup of tea for upto 9 hours. I’m not a fan of the brew basket though.

Just LOVE my timolino. Is great at keeping tea hot and cold. I’d agree with the post below that liquid stays at the original temp for around 5-6 hours, but my hot Southern Belle from this morning (brewed 7 hours ago) is still quite warm, and the lid has been off for about 2 hours.

My timolino goes everywhere: to work, to my yoga fusion class, smuggled into the movies, to the hospital, on inter-state trips, and hopefully in the next month or two, camping (along with my timer and thermometer so I can make perfect green tea tent-side). I’m also a bit clumsy and have dropped mine on numerous occasions on hard surfaces like cement, and nary a scratch in its 11.5 month life.

I got my other half a tea thermos by another company, and he finds his isn’t as insulating, and is still eyeing mine off. Damn you, international shipping…

Let me explain something. I am really clumsy. I have two delicate tumblers for when I want to feel elegant, and two stainless tumblers because I’m also a realist. This is my favourite of the two. Why?

I’ve dropped this sucker a number of times and not had to worry about it shattering or denting: it has one scratch on it roughly the size of a pinhead and I take this everywhere.

Like a lot of silicone seals, mine will try to leak if I’ve overfilled the bottle past the ring. It has kept hot tea hot for around 4-6 hours and ice tea iced for around the same time (sometimes there are even little bits of ice clinking around later).