Maddy Barone Send Message

Thanks to the kenalog shot I got at the end of May I am enjoying faint (sadly, very faint, but a teensy bit discernable) sense of smell. That means I rush all over the place, opening bags of tea and jars of spices just to inhale them. It’s really too warm out for hot tea, but many teas smell best hot. I was digging thru my drawer in search of a Mariage Frere that I am sure I have, but no luck. I went with this one instead. I remember it being quite delightful. Creamy and rich and sweet. However, this cup wasn’t quite any of those things. It may have been because my sense of smell is very weak. The leaf isn’t that old. I got it in November. But it may be aged enough to have lost some of it flavor and scent. I drank the entire cup. Although it wasn’t as good as I remembered, it was still a pleasant cup.

I’ll just keep the air conditioner running at first blast so I can enjoy more tea over the next few days. It’s like Christmas morning, trying to decide what to have next!

I haven’t made a tasting note in a while. I’ve been drinking tea, but it’s the same old, same old teas. Nothing new to write about. But last night I woke up around 2:30am with a horrid sore throat. I got some water and went back to sleep and just kinda dozed until the alarm went off at 6. It has gotten progressively worse. Maybe should have made some Clary tea from whispering Pines or some Cold 911 from David’s, but a friend suggested a ginger tea. I thought, what the heck, and made this one.

Ah, delight. Soothing warm tea on raw throat. If your throat feels like it has a six-sided pebble stuck in it, I can recommend this tea.

It was darned cold this morning. Below freezing. So I wanted some nice, hot, comfort tea. I didn’t knw I had any of this left! I’m glad I did, though. It was yummy.

I’m feeling a little guilty. I had two things to get done today: putting the quilt backing together, and basting the quilt. Did I do that? Nope. I spent the entire day sipping tea and reading. Oh, well. I am under a ton of stress. I need a day off.

Gosh, I’ve had a tough week. I know it’s only Tuesday, but believe me, it’s been tough. Since it was one of those cold, rainy days in late spring, I decided not to cold brew a jug of tea. Instead I made a hot pot of this. I earlier tried Brioche from The American Tea Room. I know I like that one, but today it just didn’t hit the spot. I drank about half a cup, then poured it out. I’m sure it was me, not the tea. Even this one, one of my absolutely favorite old reliables, tasted bitter and a bit astringent. Still, I enjoyed it.

I’ve been drinking the Watermelon and Mint tea iced pretty regularly, but I decided to change it up a little and cold brewed this one. I prefer the watermelon. This one has a bit of astringency at the end of the sip. I might add a few rock sugar crystals to my next glass to see if I can take the edge off that.

It’s getting a bit warmer now, so I cold brewed a big pitcher of this. I think I’ll nudge my previous rating of 70 to 75. It is refreshing. Since I can’t smell and have no idea what it tastes like, all can say is I find it refreshing, with no aftertaste or bitterness. I recently got a soda stream soda maker and added some sparkling water to it. Very nice. I don’t think I’ll run out and buy more of this, but the pre-measured pouches the tea comes in are sure handy. I’ll enjoy a few more quarts of this until it’s gone.

It’s darned cold here. I left my sewing room window open about an 8th of an inch, and my apartment was FREEZING this morning. I had my two cups of coffee, and switched to tea. This tea is superb. Malty, rich, and flavorful without ever getting bitter even when I re-steeped it three times. I know this tea is a little more expensive than some of my other faves, but the quality is worth it. And when you can get three or four good cups from one batch of leaf it pays for itself.

I still love, Love, LOVE this tea! It’s smooth and bright, with no funky aftertaste or astringency. I also had a cup this morning of a Mandarin Orange tea, and it left a bitter bite behind. Not this one, though. Nothing here but good tea.

It’s bright and sunny out there, and I thought I wanted a “summery” tea. Something fruity. But I as I went through the tea drawer nothing appealed. I hadn’t had this one for a while, and tho it doesn’t seem summery, I decided to brew up a cup.

Num num. I like the taste of this tea. It’s warming and almost sweet. It would be absolutely perfect for fall or winter, but it’s pretty darned good for early spring, too.