Popular Tasting Notes
Thanks mrmopar for this nice Puerh Sample!
Yesterday someone said in their review that it seems that overnight the trees had turned color without them noticing the change. Blink and it’s Autumn!
I agree! When I lived in California the seasons didn’t change as dramatically as they do here in Colorado.
I was just looking at the forecast this morning. 82 today dipping to 28 tonight (Obama and Romney better have Jackets in Denver) and on Saturday the daytime will be 37 degrees (that’s an almost 50 degree drop!). ‘The times they are a Changing’.
One September I went to visit my mother-in-law Selma in Fairbanks, Alaska and drove way out along the Pipeline towards Valdez. After you pass the Air Force Base around North Pole Alaska, you see few people or cars. After about an hour, if you pull to the side of the road and get out, there is a panorama of golden trees UNBELIEVABLE and not the sound of ANYTHING. No birds, bugs, people, cities or cars. Total quiet. (The birds have gone South and the animals are hunkering down for the Winter which would come within a week or two.)
On the return drive, as the night sky turned black, the Aurora Borealis lit up the sky with an iridencent green light show. Again, stopping and getting out of the car to hear the siren sound of the sky and see the amazing movement of light that only is visable twice a year.
Ah Autumn. http://flic.kr/p/dgv2Nm Fall Alaska Set
Tasting
The color of the liquor for this Shu Puerh was first a golden honey brown and thereafter a clear dark red-brown.
Although I love to smell wet leaves, I didn’t find this to be a extremely potent or strong smelling Puerh. It was just a mellow, easy scent that was tame, a little earthy and pleasing.
After one 30 second rinse, I kept steepings at 30-45 seconds which was more than enough time for a rich broth.
The lightest (and first) steeping was like honey and Bing cherries with a light spicy finish. There wasn’t any earthy flavor or bread taste. I did find the sensation to be wet, not juicy.
My mind went off to thinking about water and then I came to my senses realizing how odd that was.
I poured another cup. This was more like the Puerh’s I was used to, like digging into rich, dark and chunky premium potting soil.
It tasted juicy and extremely smooth, becoming thick at the back of the palate.
There was something sweet about this Puerh. A cherry flavor and a creaminess during later steepings that I had not come across often in Shu’s. (I thought I was wacko about the cherry flavor but I tasted this tea over again the today and I’m convinced, though the Bing cherry taste is elusive.)
The other illusion that I had with this Shu was water.
As I sat sipping one round after the other I began to tea regress. Have you ever felt like tea is your shrink taking you back to your childhood? Well I have.
I thought about a night sitting on the beach in Santa Cruz, CA all alone. It was one of those starless nights when all you could hear were the waves crashing like thunder. Now and then, there was a glimmer of light from a wave but nothing else as I dug my toes deep into the still warm sand. I must have been 16 or 17 years old and a real dreamer. Fearless and full of wonder.
An older guy in his 20’s that I knew came along, sat down next to me and we began to verbally make up poetry in the dark. He said a line, then I made up a few, then he made up some more. A perfect romantic experience in the purest sense.
We never spoke again.
Tea can be a beautiful moment like that. Like a poem or a crashing wave.
Some are an experience that lingers for a little while.
My favorite ones are the tea’s you remember forever.
And some, well not so much.
This one was better than many I’ve had and will linger.
Preparation
Okay, enough.
I haven’t really read Steepster since at some point before Christmas, having been caught up in the holidays and avid reading of something else that was deemed a little more important to chew my way through at the time. There’s just no way I’m ever going to make it back through all of the Steepster posts I’ve missed. I’ve skimmed back a couple of days and I’m leaving it at that. If I missed anything important, please link me.
For the second tea of the new year, (the first being the orange pu-erh from Nothing But Tea, which Husband has developed an affinity for. You should have heard him try explain why earlier. He sounded like me on Steepster! LOL!) we had the next out of the 52teas Christmas box.
And once again I feel wary. I’m afraid I’ve had some sort of caveat with all the teas in box this year, although in some cases I’ve managed to overcome it. There are only two of the ones that are left that I’m actually looking forward to, so I suppose it’s been a bad 52teas year for me. I recall having better luck last year. Oh well, we can’t win them all, can we?
Anyway, the reason for my hesitation with this time is simply the fact that it’s chocolate flavoured and although I’ve had teas before with some sort of chocolate element to them, I’ve never ever found one that actually tasted properly of chocolate to me. I’m completely open to the idea of a chocolate flavoured tea, and the moment someone manages to make one that works I’ll be the first to swoon. But it hasn’t happened yet. The closest I’ve ever been are those black teas that have a strong naturally occurring note of cocoa. But those aren’t flavoured, and cocoa is not the same as chocolate.
It started out quite well. When I opened the envelope, the first note I noticed was something that reminded me of honey. A strong flower honey. This note persisted after brewing, and now also had a note of chocolate to it. Dark, heavy chocolate and in combination with the strong honey, the aroma of this tea struck me most of all as something akin to a dark chocolate toblerone. Husband thought it reminded him more of stepping into a heavily scented garden, which I consider to be in the same sort of category as my strong flower honey. There was a slight note of milk and of nuts as well.
When I took the first sip, it finally dawned on me why I’ve never managed to find a chocolate flavoured tea that works. When I get something with chocolate I expect a thick and slightly sticky texture, the sort of feeling one get from real chocolate melting on the tongue. When I then get a thin, watery mouthful of tea, it’s just not the same and it breaks the illusion of chocolate quite severely.
Add to this the fact that I might have rather different ideas of what constitutes as chocolate and what doesn’t than many of you Americans. Where I live, milk chocolate must contain at least 25% dry cocoa solids and dark chocolate at least 35% dry cocoa solids. Otherwise it’s not chocolate and is not allowed to be sold under the name of chocolate. The US rules for when chocolate is chocolate are based on how much chocolate liquor it contains, so it’s not directly translatable, but when reading about both it seems, if I understand it correctly, that the US will accept what amounts to less dry cocoa solids than the EU will. This supports my experience with Hershey’s Kisses which some undoubtedly well-meaning soul sent me once. They were quite, quite foul and had little to nothing to do with chocolate. Mind you, this was about a decade or so ago, so I suppose it’s possible that the quality of the product has been increased.
And all of this is why I don’t think this tea lives up to its name. At first there was the initial disappointment that once again a chocolate flavoured tea had failed to work. After having got over that, I could start paying attention to what it actually tasted like, and I have arrived at some very dark caramel. Slightly bitter, with a strong note of burnt sugar to it, but also with just a smidge of sweetness. I discussed this with Husband and while he hadn’t thought of that by himself, he agreed with my assession. It’s nice and all, but to us nothing in this cup even remotely resembles what we understand as ‘chocolate’.
Glad to see I’m not the only one that was not that impressed with it.
I have pretty much given up on chocolate tea. I love chocolate far too much and I miss that texture. And you are quite right about Hershey’s Kisses – blech.
Chocolate teas are always a bust for me as well :(
I feel like chocolate teas are really hard mostly because so much of eating chocolate is the texture. You can’t really get that in a liquid. I haven’t had this one to say for sure or not, though.
Sigh. The US and food regulations. It really wouldn’t surprise me that we’re missing out. Is there a brand of chocolate you would recommend? I would love to try it and see how different it is.
Della Terra has a couple of nice ones but generally chocolate teas do not thrill me.
Nicole, Exactly. I agree.
JoonSusanna, I wish I could give you specific recommendations, but I don’t know what’s actually available where you live. I seem to recall having heard that you can get Lindt, though, so that’s a good place to start. In general, try to look for something which is produced by a European company, because they’re more likely to sell European chocolate. I can’t guarantee, though, that exported products aren’t modified to local tastebuds. It’s probably more expensive, but give it a go anyway if you find some.
Tor Ince, I don’t think I’ve tried very many almond teas that I can remember. I know there has been some nut ones, but not just off the top of my head. I had a walnut green once, though, which was super sweet, almost to the point of being undrinkable.
I’d like to try that, but I must warn you that I’m currently likely to be a little slow with return parcels. I’ll follow you, so shoot me a message whenever.
I gave my mother some cinnamon flavoured coffee one year for Christmas. My father thought it was dreadful, but she and I quite liked it. (Probably especially me)
Strangely enough, I don’t really care for cinnamon in tea, but I like it in cooking and baking. I think for me it just doesn’t mix well with tea. I’m searching high and low for the Perfect Vanilla Tea, though. No luck yet.
Quince is not super popular here, I don’t think. Husband is English too and if I remember correctly he only had very superficial knowledge of it until I gave him some quince rooibos that I had. I didn’t like it at all, but he loved it. Once upon a time I had a rather enjoyable black tea with quince, but I can’t remember where I got it from and haven’t seen it since. I must admit that I had kind of forgotten about it until you reminded me just now, so I think I’ll keep an eye out now.
‘When I then get a thin, watery mouthful of tea, it’s just not the same and it breaks the illusion of chocolate quite severely"
- YES. THIS!!! I’ve given up on chocolate in teas.
As an American, I think Hershey sucks as well. It has a kinda icky taste. Personally I think it is if you combined real chocolate and bakers chocolate; also it seems to taste better if it is used for baking.
So far, my favorite vanilla black is colonille from serendipitea. We drink a fairly large amount of said tea. Plus, they’re super nice people.
The differences between US and European chocolate are even deeper than percentage of cocoa solids. Speculation was when they started to make chocolate in the USA they did not know exactly how to process the milk and the process they used was different, leading to production of butyric acid. The wikipedia explains it better
""Hershey process" milk chocolate is popular in North America. It was invented by Milton S. Hershey, founder of The Hershey Company, and can be produced more cheaply than other processes since it is less sensitive to the freshness of the milk. The process is a trade secret, but experts speculate that the milk is partially lipolyzed, producing butyric acid, which stabilizes the milk from further fermentation. This compound gives the product a particular sour, “tangy” taste, to which the American public has become accustomed, to the point that other manufacturers now simply add butyric acid to their milk chocolates."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Types_of_chocolate
I really do not like american chocolate and was glad when I was able to understand the whys of it.
About quinces, never had any tea. Beware of one thing though, the ornamental quinces are not nearly as glorious as real ones! They grow very easily in my country and are very popular to make a sort of jam (true marmelada, which gave origin to marmalade). But they need a lot of sun to ripen properly, not sure if the ones growing in England are not the japanese ornamental ones whose fruit is not great. Even the fruit ones have the most beautiful blooms!
I agree…real chocolate, dark and lush…or forget it…it rarely balances well with tea and those few lucky and skillful enough to do it proper, realize that its a balancing act….
Hershey’s might be the most widely available chocolate in the United States, but it is certainly not the only kind made here. Skip the Hershey’s and go for the Scharffen Berger or Green & Black’s.
Green and Black´s is nice, though IMO a bit pricey for what it is and the fairtrade thing apparently slightly dodgy, but it´s a british company isn´t it?
Apparently it was originally … it’s now owned by Kraft Foods, and my current bar was manufactured in Poland. It’s global chocolate now. :)
Everything is sort of global now, Twinings is made in Poland I hear. American candy bars sold in Europe are usually made in Europe and would not be surprised if some brands are owned by Unilever. But I tend to associate the nationality with the original one, so G&B is to my mind british chocolate (as is Cadbury´s which is I think also now owned by the same company or some other boring conglomerate).
The cinnamon/apple aroma from this tea is a fair bit more powerful than that from Hot Toboggan, although I’m not really getting any crust aroma… but the flavour is a different story. Immediately upon sipping, I tasted pie crust, followed by cinnamon… and just a bit of apple. Whaa?? The apple is so prominent in the aroma, where could it possibly have gone in the flavour?! It does seem to come out a bit later, but it’s really not as strong as I would have liked. There’s also a bit of astringency in this one. By far, this one reads more like an unsweetened apple cider, as I remarked before, than apple pie.
Given the choice, I think I’d choose Hot Toboggan, as my cup of that is gentler and more appley, and I think there’s potential to brew it a bit stronger. However, if I still have some of this around when we make it back into fall/winter weather, I’ll brew it up and sweeten it instead of using cider powder + apple juice :)
ETA: Third infusion would have been more successful on the same day, and with attention paid to steeping time. That said, not bad.
Preparation
I tried this cold brewed, and it turned out pretty good
you’re right about the apple let down in this one…you’d expect burst of apple, and you get a diluted taste of it!
Ooh, tigress_al, I might have to try that! I ended up having a partial cup of both this one and Hot Toboggan left over last night (as in, I was too full to drink them), so I left them to cool on my nightstand. I ended up with a dry throat at sometime during the night and gulped both down and they were quite good! (I have done this in the past with other teas and they weren’t so good, but I needed moisture more than flavour at the time!)
TheTeaFairy – it’s disappointing, isn’t it.
Your update made me laugh. :) This change is gonna be hard to get used to!
I knowwwwww, and I still may not be successful. I should have considered anonymity a little bit more when I started out on here. On the plus side, I’m going to take lots of tea when I go visit, and hopefully leave some behind!
The name change confused the heck out of me for a second XD
I warn you it will change again. I’m just not sure what to… Likewise pic/bio will be redone. I just panicked… :P
Oh I completely understand what you’re doing. I have two identities online myself, one RL people are allowed to know (this one) and one they absolutely aren’t which I use on LJ. That’s why I won’t tell people my proper LJ account but use a gateway account which they can add, and I can then contact them with the real one. Not very practical but I feel better about it.
Yeah. I’m not even concerned about most RL people, just my family.
At least you can lock your LJ… I was freaking out last night about whether I should delete my account on here or something. Decided that was overreacting though, but for a while I had no info on here at all, and a the first random pic I found on my HD that wasn’t identifying.
But your pic still shows here by your comments!
What is LJ anyway?
Yeah, it’s because your cache hasn’t been refreshed, or something. Probably for the best it lingers for a bit so everyone isn’t so confused! LJ is LiveJournal. Not as popular as it used to be.
Ah okay thank ya!
No, it isn’t, unfortunately. They’ve made some fairly bad business decisions in recent years and a lot of people have left in protest and gone to InsaneJournal instead, or Dreamwidth. I have an account with Dreamwidth and mirror all my posts there, but I’m not very good at remembering to check it. LJ is still my internet home, and likely will be for many years to come. :)
Man, I used to have a live journal. I wrote moody poetry there when I was a teenager.
Yeah, my old LJ is filled with things I’d rather forget! The life of an undergrad… (yeah, i wasn’t even a teenager. Lame!)
Thick, honey, malty, smooth, cocoa-ey, molasses-y… good for 2.5 steeps of long length. I seriously regret not buying a larger amount.
This. Is. Freakin. Good. Tea.
Preparation
mmmmm
This review singlehandedly made me add this tea to my wish list. Lol
What whatshesaid…said. Well that was awkward lol
That’s what sometimes I call her whatsherface giggling
Er…why not what
I’m ready to change my name but fear no one would know who I was, haha
dont change, its fun
im not happy with mine, what the hell i was thinking…
Aww.
as long as you keep the picture the same for a while, name changes are doable. i think
Sil you’ve changed pic several times. When notifications come its by name. And I like her name;).
I think it still keeps people following you. I know I’ve had “new” people show up in my dashboard and had no idea who they were until I figured out that they had changed their name. :) But I like everyone’s names. :)
haha yes, i change pics instead of names :)
boychik, I love your name!
Terri, that’s how my late grandpa called my son. I dunno why I picked it. I just miss him a lot
Lets just keep it the way it is, I think I’ll start freaking out;)
I think boychik is adorable, and that explanation is so worth keeping it :-)
You can always change the display name but keep the url name the same. Like how Sil’s or Nicole’s display names are different from their urls. :)
Never noticed that before!
shhhhhh angrboda!
i agree…boychik cannot change names! :)
We’re going to pretend that the next words off my finger tips are not words typed by me. I.Love.This. Green. tea. yeah that’s right. this is a sipdown and i’m a little sad. The teafairy sent this one my way and i have to say i made it today and started sipping on it, not expecting to really enjoy this. And then suddenly, i was at the bottom of my cup and re-steeping a second cup. Yeah. That’s right. I found a green i really like. It doesn’t have that usual “green, vegetal” taste to it. I can believe it when they say this is a rare tea because the flavour was uniquely interesting. The sad part? It was so delicious i just kind of gulped my way through this and didn’t take very good notes on it, beyond loving it. So it’ll go on to my shopping list for a future tealux order with their black tea that i love…and we’ll give them another shot :) thank you teafairy!
Preparation
love tencha too, yum!
if you liked this green, I need to consider it ! as you I am not a very green person
WOW!!! That is awesome that you found a green that you like. Best thing about swapping and letting others choose tea for you. They might pick something that you wouldn’t have chosen for yourself that turns out to be a winner.
Ysaurella – if i order some in the future, i’ll pass some along to you. saves you having to order it heh
Dexter – agreed! and that’s why i love swaps. teafairy also sent along a bunch of oolongs for me to try so it should be a fun time :)
ah Oolongs are wonderful, you’ll have fun for sure as TheTeaFairy’s tastes are really very good !
I need to try some of this also!!
I’m gonna have to try this one too. :)
haha ok but if you guys don’t love it…don’t blame me! :)
OMG, triple, quadruple YAY!!!!! Isn’t it pretty and usual to look at also? Such a nice deep green…so happy I have included it :-)
Guys, I would gladly send some to you if I had enough left, but the rest goes to another swap I have going on.
Ysaurella, I have other stuff I want to share with you, will be contacting you soon when time is right if you’re interested :-)
it DOES have a great colour to it as well :)
If I don’t like it, I can just make ochazuke with it!
Awwww crap.
Ok, here’s the deal. I’m exhausted, falling asleep in my chair – which likely has something to do with the HIIT I did this afternoon.
I had a piece of 75% dark chocolate and made this tea, 100 degrees for 5 min.
Took a drink, and was lovingly cradling the cup, inhaling deeply, and enjoying every sip.
To the point where I went to calculate on the website how much it would cost me to get a can.
I can’t even tell you what I was tasting. Both because I’m tired, and also because eating the chocolate first may have messed with my tastebuds. And also I only pretend to sound like I know what I’m talking about, with most things, most of the time.
If this is what Keemun tastes like, I’m IN.
Thank you so much, Cavocorax!!
What a comforting cup. Excited to try more tomorrow.
And it’s $10. To ship a can of this to me. In case you wondered.
keep an eye on their facebook page. A&D DOES do free shipping promos that DO apply to canada as well…
Good to know! But this is limited teaaaaaa
By the way have you tried their yunnan gold tips?
horse face? yes :) i did not buy horsecan….but I did buy spring keemun (times two) i wanted the tin for horsey…but the tea was middle of the road for the shipping/costs benefit of getting that as well lol
“And also I only pretend to sound like I know what I’m talking about, with most things, most of the time.” Hey, me too! That’s been my MO for years
I wanted to order four cans, but didn’t like the shipping and so I facebooked them and asked if they were going to have any shipping deals soon so I could place my order; they sent me a coupon for $10 shipping! Just something to keep in mind in case you decide to stock up on tons of tea!
Thanks for the tip!
I have the golden tips. It came with a plastic horse head finger puppet! :)
I had actually considered letting it take a tour with the latest round of the BBBB, just for fun, but I forgot to put it in the box. :)
Is it delicious?
I’ve only drank it once or twice. I can’t remember, LOL
You could check the reviews. Want me to send you some?
No, that’s ok but thank you :)
I read the reviews and it just seems like everyone is all “it’s not amazing but it’s pretty good” and then they rate in the high 80’s -90’s so I’m just curious as to how it tastes
For a ‘not amazing but pretty good’ Keemun, I’d probably rate around 85-90 too, actually. But that’s because I’m so fond of keemun in general so it just being keemun is worth a LOT of points for me already before I’ve tasted it if you know what I mean. :) It doesn’t take much (in a keemun) to make me do the happy sigh, but it takes a fair bit to completely wow me. :)
@Angrboda – I’m prediposed to love Keemun too, but I have to say this Spring Keemun isn’t my favorite. It’s ok, but I didn’t love it. I was expecting to love it the way Sil loves it and I just didn’t :(
i liked salty element in Spring. i haven’t noticed it in other Keemuns ( but i didnt try that many). I think it makes it kinda unique (for me at least)
MzPriss, I agree. I found it extremely floral and that’s not one of my favourite qualities in keemuns. (or any tea for that matter)
Just for the record, when I said this:
“I read the reviews and it just seems like everyone is all “it’s not amazing but it’s pretty good” and then they rate in the high 80’s -90’s so I’m just curious as to how it tastes”
I was talking about A&D’s Yunnan Golden Tips :)
So do you guys have any keemuns you love and would recommend? It’s probably my next mission, try lots of keemuns
I loved A&D’s Yunnan Golden Tips. But i tried lots of others so its some point it very hard to say this is the best. its very good solid quality tea. And I love gongfu it. i think it shows the best qualities. You lady need a sample. We are all different. you found mushrooms in Special Dark;)
Good to know, thanks!
And yes….sooo much mushrooms :(
i really like teavivre’s keemuns! a few of them have smokey notes though, not all….as a heads up. To be fair i prefer some of teavivre’s keemuns to the A&D keemun…it was different than i expected it to be, but i’m enjoying it nonetheless
Hmm I tried one the other day and didn’t like it as much as this for some reason!
I’m attempting to get started on working my way through Upton’s keemuns. I got a bunch of different ones to sample – I just haven’t done it yet.
So…
2nd infusion, here, but first a PS to the first infusion…
When it got cold it really does taste like applesauce and it’s terrific!
Tasting Notes for 2nd infusion…
I’m not going to lie…I stole a potato! NomNom!
The aroma is still present and pleasing.
The taste and texture is incredibly clean. I can taste a very clean plain potato flavor now. On the end sip I can taste the apple. It’s more of a Potato and Apple and not as much as Potato Pancake and Applesauce, per say, but it’s still impressive and flavorful and unique!
Overall, tho, 2nd infusion, the major difference is less apple – more potato – certainly more Comfort Food like…like Mashed Potatoes…no butter.
Neat! Just…NEAT!
The more I sample David’s Tea products, the weirder their overall profile seems to me; they’re very much like Teavana in that way. It’s basically a concept/execution issue, as the ideas are often excellent, but the end results can range from unfathomably poor, I mean really, truly what were you thinking poor, to quite tasty. But for me, it never really gets beyond that ‘quite tasty, but…’ with either Teavana or DT.
This tea, albeit double-bagged, had taken over most of the swap box when it reached me – not in a permanent way, it just needed some airing out, but the fact remains: this is a very strongly scented tea. It’s also a hot mess in every possible way. Every sip offers a new flavour combination, every whiff makes you flinch in confusion and sensory overload. This tea makes no sense.
However, I really like when things make sense, so the scenario I would like to propose is the following:
It’s a quiet day at the tea factory, all quotas are met, Dario the Junior Tea Blender is just messing about, playing little drum solos on the ingredient tins.
BUT ALAS!
OH NO!
FLORP!
The unfathomable has happened. The shelf containing the jars for hibiscus, apple, raisins, rooibos, candied pineapple, candied papaya, orange peel, coconut chips, rosehips, elderberry, mallow blossoms, peach, almonds and cinnamon COLLAPSED from Dario’s musical pounding. David the Senior Tea Blender is NOT going to like this.
Dario must make haste to sort this out before David returns! He secures the shelf, returns the tins, and is in the process of scooping the fragrant mess on the workbench into an empty jar, when…
David the Senior Tea Blender enters the room! All hope is lost!
Mamma mia! Dario exclaims, freezing in place.
Cocking an eyebrow, David the Senior Tea Blender leans over the offending tin. His skeptical expression turns to one of delight as he roars, ‘Dario! This is brilliant! You even got the name just right!’
(As usual, thanks for sharing, whoever put this in!)
[Sample from the EU Travelling Box, autumn 2013.]
Preparation
I laughed out loud at work!
As a general rule I avoid teas with more than three ingredients. Very seldom do I break this rule as when I do I usually regret it.
haha That’s great!
david’s teas, although they have one or two i like, i generally consider to be a sort of ‘tea daycare’, because nothing gets left out. that’s grand for kids, crap for tea. especially when you’re taking about coloured sprinkles and whatnot. just MY opinion.
Lol this is the best team story ever! Thank you for making my Friday :)
Aw now, David’s definitely has a few gems!
Lol. Thank you for that.
And I’m less impressed with Davids than I was originally, but teas like North African Mint and Movie Night make me happy. I always buy samples now.
Aw, keychange, of course they do! No pouting!
And yeah, Cavocorax, there are a few I really want to try – Movie Night is number one on that list; I’m obsessed with anything popcorn.
Love the story!
I’m with KS on David’s tea. I’ve actually only ever tried a few of them, & they weren’t for me.
i like the vanilla orchid, and i likED the blueberry jam, but i can’t do stevia, and i like to add my own sweetener. call me picky, lol.
*oops I mean tea story haha not team, I also enjoy a few DavidsTeas, but I definitely won’t try Mamma Mia now LOL
I absolutely love your tea reviews … they make my day! Keep up the great work :)
“hibiscus, apple, raisins, rooibos, candied pineapple, candied papaya, orange peel, coconut chips, rosehips, elderberry, mallow blossoms, peach, almonds and cinnamon”
goodness. That is a lot of stuff indeed.
I am not biased against a lot of stuff, sometimes a lot of stuff is perfection itself and unlikely ingredients can work. But this ingredient list, well, it would take a genius to make it work.
lol I love this review too! I had to read it to my husband. He laughed too. I haven’t tried this tea yet, but man, that sounds like a lot of ingredients. I could see how that would definitely confuse anyone.
yes a lot of ingredients the only probs is …where is the tea in DT ? I never found it…
This is my second David’s tea and I had it thanks to Darby.
The dry leaves have a scent of rum… or am I crazy ?
I see very few tea in this tea…many marshmallows and chocolate chips but really few tea leaves …I am suspicious and a little worried.
I steeped it 5 mn and the scent of the liquor is really spicy (cinnamon is the leader)
I don’t get the marshmallow taste, just sugar.
Had the impress to drink a hot water with cinnamon and sugar – weird
As mentioned this is only my second DT and I have the same problem : I don’t really taste the tea base. I get the flavours (not all) but not the tea base.
Really odd,I’ll continue with testing DT, I’m sure I didn’t taste the 2 main teas of their collection.
Awaiting to taste their masterpiece …which is ? to your opinion ?
Preparation
Their special ones don’t seem to have alot of tea. I even tried to get more tea in the sample too. I think these would be even better with more tea added for depth.
You noticed the same thing I did! :D That’s the company that turns their ‘tea’ into candy… some of us ‘grownups’ are looking for TEA in our tea :)
Well I’ll continue with DT as you kindly sent me a lot of DT samples Darby.I’m pretty sure I’ll find one with a more pronounced tea base.
Fleurdelily, I have the habit of the European teas (French and English brands) and the tea base is maybe stronger than in North American brands ? I’ll taste H&S teas soon and I’ll have a better idea on this. I’ll always remember the day I had a coffee in NYC…for a French or an Italian, a NYC coffee is just …incredibly not a coffee, our coffees are so much stronger it just seems to be a totally different beverage.
Wonder so if North American tastes in terms of tea are the same. Maybe the majority prefers mild blends ?
I think one of their stars is Read My Lips, but again, it’s mostly mint and not too many actual tea leaves. I personally love it, though.
To me, this one is mostly allspice.
I personally don’t like DT all that much. I much prefer many of the other places I’ve found through steepster. I like read my lips. But that’s about teh only tea I’ve really enjoyed from DT and even that one is just kinda of ok.
I tried Read My Lips and it was nice, but I do not think the base is too strong. Must brew more of it. And I got Oh Canada (which i recommend just because MAPLE SYRUP rooibos. I mean it´s genius) had a definitely wimpish rooibos base – it was green rooibos and honeybush, can not really judge those, but the flavouring concept was so brilliant I wish it had a stronger body somehow.
I think there is an american style of tea certainly. They have more teas recreating certain desert dishes than Europeans usually are ( I got a german tea called wiener apfelstrudel though). But they take it further: carrot cake tea, or caramel cheesecake tea or pumpkin pie tea. Also I think american tea sellers make it clearer, more of a point when a tea is low on caffeine or without caffeine.
I can taste the tea just fine in H&S blends…you have to try for yourself, we all have different taste buds. Personally I enjoy DavidsTea’s tisanes rather than ones with tea, but you usually need a lot of the tea to get a decent flavor. Then of course it is a heavy blend, so it becomes expensive for each cup.
I only smelled this one and it did not smell like marshmallow one bit.
Harney has beautiful little tins, but their blends are too much flavoring. More than once I’ve bought a tin I liked and just threw the tea away.
@ momo yes absolutely agree and as I saw so few tea leaves, I put at least 3 spoons of blend …and it was still so weak :(
@ fleurdelily you erased your previous message but no worries with me, as typically French I do adore freedom of expression and strong opinions :)
The only teas I have liked from DT enough to buy more of them are Glitter & Gold and Santa’s Secret. They tend to be too sweet and often too murky for my tastes. I have had some H&S teas that are very light but I’ve also had some that are pretty bold, in my opinion. I’m anxious to see what you think of them, Ysaurella!
HA! What Nicole said about DT! same here.
come to think of it, I’ll say it again. Americans have a wicked sweet tooth and don’t take tea seriously. That’s why we have little boutique tea blenders that are very good, but the main large tea companies make inane lame over-flavoured crap. There. That is my opinion. No one needs to like it, but I am here to say “told you so” when you eventually realize I’m right! ROFLAMO (trying hard to say that with an authorative air and a straigt face) :p
Unfortunately, what you are noticing so far is true…It’s a tendency that is occurring more and more in the last year or so with DT I would say, I find most of their new blends unappealing for that reason, more and more «stuff» including artificials, less and less tea…
Nothing new in this mercantile world… too often the bigger you get, the poorer the quality gets… I liked DT better when they were at a smaler scale…
So except for a few new blends, I much prefer some of the older blends where artificial flavouring were almost never being used. I remember praising them for that reaon alone… Things have changed unfortunately… I still try some of their new teas, but instead of buying 50gr online right off the bat, I now buy small samples in store…
Ysaurella, quand nous ferons notre swap, je vais m’assurer d’inclure des mélanges qui sont moins artficiels et qui ont fait le succès de DT :-)
I stay away from anything with any flavoring (natural or artificial) added. Some people love stuff like that, and yes, we all taste different things, which I find to be really neat. I have also noticed that the larger the company gets – the lower the quality and the more the flavoring. I went through 30 samples from a tea company that mainly deals with distributers and every one was fake tasting and horrible. It’s sad, and it’s not just tea companies either, happens in all industries :/
My business promise is to never incorporate flavorings into anything and retain the same hand-blending styles and quality no matter how large I get. Make sure to never buy from me if that changes. :)
Ohhhh I just love tea! :D What a fantastic world of tea lovers here on Steepster! :)
@whisperingPTC: I like your company’s philosophy! I will definitely check you out :-)
And you are so right about Steepster’s fantastic world of tea lovers!
Damn you Terri! No orders until June! WANT! MOAR! NAO!
Holy hannibel, i had this in the morning and let me tell you, i have a single normal person cup’s worth left and it might just be hoarded. Because i am trying to commit to no tea orders until June. It’s going to be hard because i have been thinking about this tea most of today. This is a great assam! mmmmm i have no words beyond “now accepting donations to get me through the month of may” lol I kid! but seriously? This has me wanting to try many more Steven smith teas since this was my first taste of their teas.
Augh! Not another tea vendor!
Nicole..yes…i know the sororiteasisters have mentioned steven smith before, or at least one of them has but this was my first time trying one. And this is a delicious assam! and reasonably priced imo 5.50 for 2oz?
I looked at the site. Bookmarked for payday…
jealous! lol i now have to wait until june. must resist all tea sales. must go a whole month without ordering lol
He has a shop here in Portland and i’m planning on making a run there pretty soon to grab a variety of flavors and then send some samples to Terri. I’ll put you on the list too Sil if you want. I have several bagged varieties already since they sell those in the grocery store here, but I want to hit the shop since there are several they don’t sell at the grocery store.
whimper you need to find teas in my cupboard you want lol I can’t even explain why this particular tea makes me so happy. Lol
Yay TastyBrew! Definitely check out my cupboard too, I want to send you a fun-box! :D
Sil – it makes you happy because it is awesome!
Tasty….beware the fun boxes from Terri!
LOL!
Seconding *Nicole*’s Augh! That website looks SO tempting, but it’s another that doesn’t
spell out its international shipping policies, so double augh. But your review…!!
Hallie – if I make a purchase (in June) remind me and I can send you some to try :)
Thanks! Or if I cave before June, I’ll send you a care package to keep you going. :)
You may also be able to poke someone who has this and see if they’d b killing to do a mini swap with you in case international shipping is a bust. I can’t even remember what it was when I was looking at it.
Hah, don’t think I need this tea enough to do any killing to get it. :)
LOL! Hallie, I’d be glad to share…
And you won’t have to ‘kill’ me to get me to do it :)
I can share too. I’m a pushover, literally, if you just push me over I’ll share some. No killing necessary.
I’m so relieved, Terri & TastyBrew – I just find that killing doesn’t put one in the best frame of mind for enjoying a fine tea, y’know? :P
Seriously, thank you both! I got an amazingly quick response from Alex at Smith Teas and am going to play with the cart to see what shipping is like. If it’s too bad, I’ll see what I might have to offer in return for this Assam-of-Happiness!
Ugh auto correct killing = willing and that was totally a poke at Terri and tastybrew since I know they’re awesome for things like that :)
They were totally awesome, especially as neither of them knew me at all! But Alex was very helpful and I [blushes] placed an order. Small, really!
Awesome! Can’t wait to see your reviews :)
Yeah! Makes me want to fall off the wagon & order something! :D
Lol – I love the comments. :)
Also, I guess I’d better bookmark this tea for later…
I’ll be hitting the shop soon, any special requests? Speak now or forever hold your peace… Or at least until next time I go. Or the next. Or the one after that.
no need for special purchases for me but would love to try “bonbon” (herbal) or no. 9 (black) if those happen to be ones you’re picking up. though i suspect that in june i may just try picking up the variety packs. TOO MANY CHOICES!
All of those black teas look interesting to me :)
Of course, I’ll be willing to try anything! So far I’ve had #49 & #55. The Chai sounds interesting!
Aaah, I’m so weak! (Also so far behind in tasting notes it’s not funny.) But the force of tea-pushing is strong in you, Sil!
My head hasn’t been quite where it should be at lately… So I’ve been drinking lots of shou.
For some reason, shou helps me find my balance. I’m very passionate about it, and wish to convert as many people as I can to it.
It gets a bad wrap sometimes. But once you get passed the misconceptions and open your mind to it, it’s so rewarding…
Of course there are bad ripe pu’erhs out there and you must find the right ones.
This is the right one.
So smooth and warming. Not heavy on the earthy and leathery notes, perfect shou to try if you’re a little afraid of them.
Temple Stairs is a go to tea for me, and tonight I’ve been sipping on both the tuocha and the loose version of it. (Thanks Sarsita for those cute mini tuos!)
Thank you Mandala for helping me find my centre tonight…
This really is a nice little tuo :)
I bought that last week, maybe I will try it tonight. Sounds good.
Glad you like it too Terri :-)
Allan, can’t wait to find out what you think of it!
Tea Fairy, did you buy the Temple Stairs cake too? I am waiting to try that too, got it with my order.
I’m the same way. When in doubt I drink shou! Any kinda pains or blues I drink shou! Not demanding and so much comfort it brings
I’ve noticed Shou has that effect on me too. Is there a difference in the flavor between the different forms of this tea? Or are they all about the same…just the tuocha being more convenient?
Allan, I did not buy ttge cake yet…
Boychik, right you are :-)
Tealizzy, I prefer just a little bit more the loose version, but not by much…they are very similar, but the loose one seems a little more flavourful to me. And yes, the tuochas are so convenient:-)
Thanks, TTF! I have this tea on my wishlist from trying a sample of the cake…I’ll have to check out the other forms!
HI!! Temple Stairs!! I climb them every morning before meditation and yoga!! Love this tea.
Here is my take on what I have found over the years with loose vs pressed ripe tea: In the first year or two, I find that the loose ripe develops more quickly in depth, flavor, clarity. But after 2 to 3 years of being pressed, the cakes develop more complexity than the loose ever will.
Of course, there are a few considerations, first of which is the overall quality of the leaf and original ripening of it. Compression and quality of storage conditions will also affect how a tea ages. But for the most part, I find loose more appealing for year one and two. After that, it’s cakes all the way!
These mini’s are impressing the heck outta me already. Glad that I had 10,000 of them pressed!
And I agree about ripe tea and its soothing qualities. You just can’t go wrong with a good ripe tea, in my opinion. Does that make me sound like a typical “shou” salesman?
Only if the Shou fits, Garret ;)
Lol, you are everything BUT a typical “shou” salesman Garret, that’s why I adore doing business with you :-)
I know I’m late to the party, but 10,000 mini shous?? That’s so awesome, G!
I like shou also!
I LOVE bananas foster so I am sooo glad NayLynn was awesome enough to send me some of this tasty treat (Thank you NayLynn!!!).
First off, the brewed cup smells awesomely delicious – like caramelized bananas (shocking, right?). And as I sip on it now, I am reminded of the 52 tea’s Butterscotch Banana (another shocker :P). There is one exception and that is the base – there is a quality to it that is a touch present but it is lending itself to the rum component of a bananas foster. Overall, I continue to be impressed with 52 tea’s banana blends and am glad NayLynn was so generous with her sample size.
In completely unrelated news, has anyone ever used snapchat? I got the app because a bunch of my friends are spread throughout the country and it is a fun way to keep in touch but also its just really weeeiird.
Ohhh man, that sounds nice. Incidentally, I’m making some form of banana cake tonight. I’m thinking with whole spelt, dates and maple syrup. Really moist and luscious. I’m making myself hungry.
Super weird (can get creepy); I find only younger folks use it, and I just use other app if I want to chat with my friends.
Ooooh Sami, that sounds delicious!! I hope it turns out amazing!
And MissB, I am pretty sure a lot of people use it for some not-so-innocent reasons but luckily I don’t know anyone who would decide to use it in that manner. So far it has been funny faces, pictures of food, and screenshots of TV shows. Not the most productive or cultured way to spend our time but still entertaining.
To chat to groups of friends simultaneously, I just use whatsap.
A lot of my friends have Iphones so I use imessage but this is also a fun alternative.
I haven’t used it in forever, but I have a snapchat! I think it’s roswell_mfs if anyone wants to add me.
Haha we can snapchat our tea time :P
I kept reading “snapchat” and registering “chatroulette”, the chat site that sets you up to video chat with a random stranger… which reminded me of that dude Steve Kardynal. Now I have to watch his chatroulette video again. It’s the best ever! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6DmHGYy_xk
I wonder how many of those who laugh their asses off at that consider the fact that they wouldn’t have laughed if it had been a woman rather than a man performing exactly the same moves.
Also, as always, MASSIVE props to all the straight dudes getting into that performance bigtime.
He also did this one a few years back: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o71kCuva4B4
I have this vague memory of reading some interview with him a long time ago, where he stressed that he wanted to address gender issues. Otherwise, I’m obviously aggressively against the ‘dudes dressing up as ladies is FUNNY’ brand of humour.
Dustin – YES. I love that video.
He has done a few chatroulette videos now, but I think the Miley one is my favorite. I love all the guys who are laying down in bed with their shirts off hoping to get a hot voyeuristic girl on the other end, but get Steve instead.
I was in high school when the Nirvana video came out where they were wearing dresses (had a huge crush on the drummer) and have thought that guys in dresses were hot ever since. Mrs. Doubtfire and White Girls type guys in dresses is irritating (maybe that is the same type of humor you were talking about Anna), but drag queens are amazing and get mad respect. I do get a little envious of guys that have sexier legs than I do tho. :)
Unf yes, boys in drag (looking forward to when it’s not ‘drag’, but everyone just wears dresses and skirts, guy or not) and, for me, also boys in make up (everyone really does look better with make up, in my opinion). There’s a FB thing going around now (I think only Great Britain) in connection with a cancer donation campaign – women post selfies without make up and men post selfies with make up. My feed is like Christmas.
Part of a joint order with OMGsrsly, which I forgot about for months until I found my portioned ziplock hidden in my closet.
Mango flavour paired with toasted rice is very tasty and satisfying as long as I don’t remember Marshmallow Treat and start craving that instead.
… And I ran out of both my flavoured genmaicha blends within a week of getting back home from Japan. I’m struggling oh so much.
Flavors: Mango, Toasted Rice
Preparation
Lack of flavored genmaicha makes me sad. I actually ordered the three-tier genmaicha tin from the 52 teas kickstarter and it got lost on route between my dad and I :(
@VariaTEA – I’m so sorry about the teas getting lost in the mail. That’s a bummer!
On the upside, I have made it a point to start making a flavored Genmaicha every other month. :)
awesome liberteas….now can you fix the exchange rate? hahaha
^ That.
Wow that sounds fantastic! I’ve only tried strawberry genmaicha before- by metropolitan tea company, and its one of my favorite fruity teas for sure.
Sorry, I can’t do anything about the exchange rate. Truly, I wish I could. I also wish I could do something about the crazy high prices to ship to Canada because I would love for those to be lower. Back when I was doing business as LiberTEAS and shipping my teas out – the rates to ship to Canada were at most a dollar or so more than what it would cost to ship the same package throughout the US so I didn’t even have different shipping costs for Canada back then. That was probably the biggest shocker for me when I started shipping as 52Teas – just how much it costs now to ship to Canada!
yeah, it’s pretty awful
The shipping costs make me quite sad, too. I’d definitely place a 52Teas order, and with other American tea companies, if the rates were better.
Yeah, given the crappy exchange AND THEN, the exorbitant shipping fees on top of that gives the impression that we are being penalized for being Canadian.
That’s what we get for being maple syrup-guzzling, hockey-obsessed hosers. I mean, we get what we deserve!
Ha!
Mmmmm, this sounds yum! I need to have a look at 52Teas again…
i would love to be supporting a number of US companies but it’s challenging and i HAVE a tea mule. So i try to at least promote verbally even if i can’t do it with $
…at least sales help bring the price down to “regular price” for us…then it’s just the shipping factor… Of course the canada post strike is going to make things interesting around here for sure
Canada Post strike? Shazbat!
I had no idea about a CP strike. Wasn’t there just one a 3-4 years ago?
It’s also annoying when companies don’t always have everything in stock, or don’t have enough selection to justify making an order. I’m not going to pay the crazy shipping on top of the already insane prices just for a couple teas.
I do have sales occasionally – I can’t afford to do that too often though – Plus, I have my daughter to answer to. (She’s the boss of this outfit.) I don’t want to put her in the position of feeling that she has to fire her mother.
Exactly, Fjellrev. If I make a cross border order, it is going to be a big one to justify the shipping expense.
I can understand your position, 52teas. Also, the very nature of your business means that you can offer only a very few of your teas on sale at any particular time. Clearly, they are going to be the ones which are not moving as quickly as the more popular or desirable ones. Sucks for us Canadian shoppers.
@Fjellrev – our comments must have crossed – I didn’t see yours before or I would have commented on it.
By the very nature of our business – we can’t keep all the teas in stock all the time. We’re called “52Teas” because we put a new flavor out there every week. We’d need a warehouse the size of Costco to be able to keep all the teas in stock all the time. We do have a large selection but we only make small batches of every tea that we create to keep the flavors fresh and maintain space within my tea studio to house the teas until they sell.
That is totally understandable in your case, 52Teas! I used to order from 52Teas years ago when it was still reasonable cost-of-the-tea-itself-plus-exchange-rate-plus-shipping-wise but I found that I just simply cannot afford/justify it anymore. I agree, Evol, that in this case, in order to get the more popular/desirable ones, you’d have to make more frequent/smaller orders, but that means paying so much extra for shipping every time. It’s awesome that shipping is free with $75+ orders, but even then, it works out to $17-18/50g even if you commit to the larger 1.5-2 ounce pouches right off the bat.
“I can understand your position, 52teas. Also, the very nature of your business means that you can offer only a very few of your teas on sale at any particular time. "
I was referring to when you are having a sale. Perhaps my meaning didn’t come through.
Also, Fjellrev, I think the large sizes are now 50 grams. Uncertain of current prices.
@evol – yes there’s a 90% chance of a CP strike starting July 2. Our corporate team is on it as it affects tons of what we do.
The 50g price is “usually” $10. If it’s a more expensive base, the price will adjust accordingly.
@Fjellrev: I understand. The prices have changed because the quality has increased – I’m using better quality teas (and other ingredients) than were previously being used.
So I should order tea and stuff well before July 2nd. Got it.
Sometimes I contemplate getting one of those border mail boxes for about $5 per parcel, but I’d rather try a group order or find a way to justify a large order for free shipping- hard to do with limited, specialized companies like 52teas for the reasons Fjellrev stated. It’s tough right now.
Thanks, Sil.
I personally enjoy and support that you’ve improved the quality of teas and ingredients, 52teas. The result is a better product which is better for everyone all round.
And as CrowKettle states, it is tough right now.
Soooo i haven’t had any tea since Sunday. When i woke up this morning i knew i needed a couple of old favourites to get me through the day since my next few weeks are going to be a little crazy. Got in last night, and now i’m at an offsite for two days which means the work is piling up! There’s a release over the weekend and then i’m back on a plane for a couple of days, which means more work piling up. Long story short…looks like there will be some overtime for a while! eesh.
This is such a wonderful tea to kick off my time back in Toronto. On the upside, i think the team is going bowling tonight which will be awesome! even though all i want to do is go home and sleep haha.
Gee, welcome back busy woman!!!
No tea since Sunday? How did you survive??
No tea since Sunday? But… but… it’s Wednesday today! Welcome back!!
Overtime means more money to buy tea!
(Or, I guess for your wedding…)
At least you made it through and it’s all behind you now. Curl up with a nice cuppa and forget your tealess days in a puff of aromatic steam.
Nice choice, especially since you’ve been hella busy! When you have the time, make sure to go through my cupboard and pick stuff out that you’d like to try so I could return the favour and send some back your way. :)
oooh i’ll try and take a look this weekend before i leave again. maybe this time my hotel room will have a damn kettle!
I’m feeling so restless today. I want to do something, but I don’t know what I want to do, so I do nothing, then get annoyed with myself and even more restless. Rinse. Repeat.
I was going to try the Elderwood this evening, but I grabbed this instead because I thought it might have a calming effect.
Method: 1.5 tsp, 8 oz, 180 degrees, 1.5 min, muggy strainer
Dry Leaf Aroma: wow, gorgeous. Pine/evergreen and a very strong floral, like jasmine
Brewing Aroma: heavier on the floral
Flavor: the floral is first, with some gentle piney notes. Then there’s this fascinating and totally unexpected nutty note. It’s strong, too. It’s also got a creamy feel and a buttery taste. It’s also a little sweet and has a nice lingering aftertaste.
Is it bad that I have a reminder on my calendar to get this in August before the batch is gone?
Edit: Ehrmagerd!!!! 2nd steep. 3.5 min. Sipping this. Yum. Ok yum. What’s that? Holy crap! It’s pine nuts! This tea tastes like little pignolis on the end of the sip. SB- I love you!!!
Preparation
I have a Friday miracle Sars! A wee teaspoonful magikally appeared in my little sample bag. I’m having some TOO!!!!
Dear Universe, Thank you v. much for making a weeny bit of SB appear in my house. I really, really, REALLY needed it and I can’t get any for a couple of weeks til it comes back. grateful…Love, MzHBP
LOL aaaaaw HoneyBelle!!!! I’m so glad you found some! Now we can drink it together!!!!
I’m really looking forward to August!!!!
Me too!!!!~ I’m sipping this very, very slowly. I’m gonna try an additional couple of steeps – cause the Tea Hobbit says you can, although I don’t usually re-steep. This is just so dreamy.
I just did a 2nd steep, too. I let it go to 3.5 min and used a little less water. Want. More. NOW.
You and I will chill out together Sars. Just smell this tea. Calming. I need chilling out majorly and it sounds like you do too.
Yeah, it wasn’t even a bad day. I’m just feeling all jumpy but I want to be calm. Was your day stressful? I hope the tea is helping
I have to edit my review because I figured out what the nutty flavor is! So exciting! Pine nuts!!!!!
Most of my work days are stressful. It’s just been a mofo of a week. And the tea is totally helping! I love this tea too much
I need to eat some dinner and I’m thinking of having something really odd for dinner. Kimchi Tacos.
Oh wow. That sounds interesting. I like kimcheeeeeee!!!!
I love it. I’m making some with Terri’s recipe. But this one I bought. I was gonna have bean and cheese tacos on corn tortillas and came home and realized I had no beans. Then I noticed the kimchi in the fridge and I’m like “hmmmmm” We shall see. I’m gonna make a couple and re-steep this tea and be back to have SB with you and LTF
hmmmm….now that sounds interesting…
No fair, I want to join in on the fun! :P
OK report….(first of all Cameron – come have some SB or something with us) So I warmed a couple of these really delicious corn tortilla this lady makes here in town that they sell at my co-op. and then just barely warmed some kimchee – enough ti take the chill off and keep it from coolng down the tortilla but not enough to kill the good bugs. Annnnnd – it’s not bad y’all! Pretty good actually.
But in Austin we tun everything into a taco :D
and oh Sars – I DO like the second steep of SB. I like the first better – but this is still really really good!
If I had more, I’d send ya some, Cam. But I only had a little sample. I’m impressed tho. I highly recommend this one.
I’m on the 3rd, MzP. Still good!!! Glad the experimental tacos are yum!!!!!
I’m gonna go for a third when this cup is done. I like the tacos and I didn’t want anything heavy. I had some lentil curry in the fridge too (which will also LOL become tacos!) and this was just the perfect thing
The curry would have been too much. This is nice and light and has two of my fave things: corn tortillas and kimchi
I clearly need to follow in your footsteps and become more creative with my taco fillings!!!!
Dude – you can turn ANYTHING into a taco. We have tacos for breakfast here. A potato, egg and cheese taco with screamingly hot salsa and a Dark Beauty cocktail are the best. hangover cures. ever.
I’m already planning some faux chicken with bean and rice tacos for this weekend!
I literally put anything in tacos. Salad. Sometimes peanut butter and creamed honey
I dub thee Lady HoneyBelle, Queen of the Taco Fillings, Ruler of the Corn Tortillas.
Laughs! Tacos make life easy and tasty.
I agree, LHBQotTFRotCT. :p
Soooooo…I think I might have found my wedding dress!
I tried on so many dresses yesterday, it was a whirlwind of a day! For unidentifiable reasons, I started to freak out after the second dress at Kleinfeld. The consultant put me in the third gown and left the room to pull more dresses, leaving my mother and me alone. Once I started to calm down and actually see myself in the third dress, I was so surprised!
It was beautiful and romantic and looked great on me. But it was nothing like what I came in wanting. At the very end of the appointment, I tried on a highly detailed, bead encrusted, satin ball gown. My mom burst into tears and cried, “OMG! That’s your dress!” That’s when I became really confused. It was, in truth, everything I had ever thought I wanted. It was a corset, lace up, dramatic, “wow” factor, dropped waist ball gown that fit me like a glove. But I couldn’t get the lace romantic gown out of my mind. I never thought I would pick a romantic, tiered lace, fit and flare gown. But it really made me feel like a bride.
Now, I’m sooo confused! I don’t know what I want. Should I go with my original vision of the dramatic, “wow” factor ball gown? Or should I go with the romantic lace dress that kind of snuck up on me? I don’t know. I’m still trying to find a picture of the ball gown online, but here’s a link to the Tara Keely gown for anyone that’s interested. http://www.jlmcouture.com/Tara-Keely/Bridal/Spring/2012/Style-2206
The dry leaves smell very chocolaty. I brewed it up and brought the cup into the living room where my fiancé was playing Diablo III. I launched Steepster to start blogging and he said, “That smells good whatever that is.” Then he started taking exaggerated deep sniffs of the air. He’s totally right. This tea is powerful! It’s the first time my apartment has actually been flooded with a tea aroma.
Oh. My. God. This is insane! It tastes exactly, I mean exactly, like chocolate dipped strawberries!!! I’m getting creamy chocolate. I’m getting fresh, juicy, ripe strawberry. And I’m getting just a hint of floral rose. This is one of the best teas I’ve ever had. EVER! The aftertaste is just as luscious and delicious as the tea itself, which is incredible!
And this is all without additions! I didn’t want to mar the tea’s inherent beauty. And you know what? I can’t bring myself to want to change anything about this. There’s a rich tasting tea base underneath the flavor of chocolate covered strawberry and no bitterness or astringency or anything to complain about whatsoever.
After a few minutes of enjoying this tea, the following conversation ensued between me and my fiancé…
“Let me try some,” says he and takes the cup without waiting to hear my response. He takes a swig (yes, the boy doesn’t sip; he swigs) and says, “It IS chocolaty.”
“Well, what did you think it was?”
“It’s chocolaty,” he repeats. I sigh.
“It’s chocolate covered strawberry tea.”
“Ohhhhhhh, that’s what it is!” He says with a giant knowing grin and winks at me. Hahaha, he’s so cute! :)
I’m in love. I’m in love with Love Tea #7 (and my fiancé of course ;) but he’s a given). I’m so glad I chose to brew the entire 5g sample. I thought about cutting it in half, but then I thought one strong cup of tea is better than two weak cups of tea. So, I forged ahead and found something glorious! *heavenly sigh This is perfection! Be generous with the leaf and you’ll be in love too!
I did a second steep for 6 minutes and added milk and sugar this time. It was still great, but the first steep sans additions is my absolute favorite.
Preparation
congrats on finding THE dress!! that’s happened to a few people I know, finding the ‘one’ that is nothing like what they expected lol
That dress is stunning! When you know, you know. I ended up getting a dress that never crossed my mind when I went dress shopping too. I say go with your gut! I also think I REALLY need to try some of this tea out…once I drink more of the tea in my tea cabinet that is.
What a beautiful dress! Congratulations…
That wedding dress is gorgeous. I think you should choose the wedding dress that you feel is right. This is a day about emotions, so go with the one that your heart tells you to.
That is a lovely dress. The dress i got wasnt what i envisioned either. Life can be surprising that way. Whatever you choose, you will be radiant from the inside out. :)
Beautiful Dress!
Don’t let the fact that it isn’t the dress you had envisioned in your head, stand in the way that it may be the perfect dress for you.
Like the other ladies that commented, I left the Bridal Dress Shop not only in a dress that I hadn’t envisioned for me but I actually hated it….on other people, but once I put it on….well, it was lovely.
If you felt beautiful in it, than its “the one”
Congrats!!
(the tea sounds divine too;)
My wedding dress wasn’t what I had thought I would get either! And also a great tea!!
Absolutely go with the one you liked best ON you! When I picked mine I also came out with the complete opposite of what I thought I would choose and the lady who was helping me said that sort of thing happens all the time. In my case it was to do with decoration and whatnot. I just wanted something simple, but she made me try some on anyway because it always looks different on a hanger or on a model than it does when you’re actually wearing it. And she was absolutely right.
Pick the one you liked best when you were wearing it. This is really not something you want to regret later, because you stubbornly clung to what you had initially imagined.
Right now when I think of mine I’m in a sort of ‘what was I thinking?’ phase, but I’m not really worried that I’ve changed my mind, because I saw it myself on myself in the mirror. I’m going for a fitting later this week, and I have all the confidence in the world that when I see it again, I’ll still think it was the right choice.
You guys are awesome! Thanks for all the advice and well wishes. You really made me feel better after my unexpected freak out. I’m trying the dress on again this weekend, but I’m pretty sure it’s the one. Choosing the guy was so much easier than the dress, hahaha!
You have the guy and the dress picked out! Almost all the way there!!! :)
Congrats on picking out the dress! I am sure you look beautiful in it!
How’d I miss that picture?! That is beautiful! As others have said, go for the one that makes you feel beautiful, like a bride, even if it doesn’t fit with what you thought you had wanted.
I FINALLY made a decision on my wedding dress! I decided to get this one: http://www.jlmcouture.com/Tara-Keely/Bridal/Spring/2012/Style-2200 but I kept the belt from the first dress linked above because I prefer the jewels to the flowery thing that comes with my dress. AHHHHH!!! I’m so excited!!!
It looks like you managed to find a compromise between the one that surprised you and what you thought you wanted. I think it was a good idea to keep the other belt. I had some sort of flower-y things on mine that were sewn onto the hip, but I had them removed partly because they weren’t really to my taste, but mostly because I could feel them against my arm all the time. It would have annoyed me so much, and it’s not something you would consider a problem until you notice it. But it’s just so hard to un-notice.
I have six sleeps left now, how many sleeps do you have left? (Or have you not come that far yet?)
Thanks Angrboda! I do think this dress is the perfect compromise. It actually has the exact same top as the lace dress, only the bottom is different. But the tulle bottom has that extra drama I was looking for. What’s a “sleep?”
Very very simple, actually. Six sleeps left = I have to sleep six more times. :)
Do you mean you’re getting married in only 6 days??!!
Five sleeps now. :D This saturday. We decided it was easier to count sleeps than it was to count days, since that takes out the discussion of whether you should count the day it happens, the day you’re ‘on’, only the days in between or all of the above. :)
OMGGG!!!! That’s SO EXCITING!!!! I’m so happy for you! Best wishes!! (I haven’t gotten to counting sleeps yet. We’re still about 10 months away).
Yeah, I can see that’s a lot of sleeps. :) I was tricked by the fact that you had gone to find your dress. I saved that task for last, but then again I’ve hated all this organising stuff from day one. I’m just not an organiser. A friend of my dad’s will be driving us, for example, and I emailed him the other day with a couple of questions. His answer? “you can have it whichever way you prefer.” What I really wanted him to do was to tell me what he was going to do and make the decision for me. :p My brain is getting a bit planning-fatigued at this point. All my thoughts are wedding-this, wedding-that. I’m looking forward to being able to think about something else. I don’t even know when we’re leaving for the UK, because there just hasn’t been room for that detail in my head.
Gosh, I didn’t mean to do all this complaining at you… O.o
Wedding planning is so stressful. It was the worst with my husband. At first he was all “whatever you want.” and then when I decided on something he suddenly had all these opinions. Argh!
Anyway, I hope you both have a beautiful wedding day! The memories will be worth the stress!
@Mercuryhime, hahaha! My fiance is exactly like that too! Doesn’t care one bit until I make a decision. ;)
@Angrboda, no you’re not complaining at all. I understand. I wanted a designer dress so you have to order that about 8-10 months in advance or it won’t be ready in time. I’ve only started to get wedding planning fatigued, but mostly I’m still in the excitement stage! :)
Oh, it was YOU who said brew this long and dark! Very good advice.
And the dress you chose is gorgeous.
Aww, thanks! I can’t wait now that I’ve finally found the dress. Only 277 days to go!! (Or sleeps as Angrboda says). :)
I have not been taking the time to sit quietly and resteep tea, focusing on the experience. Tonight I remedied that with a long and fruitful gong fu session with this tea. It looks like I am going to try it once a year until the cake is gone! I got out a knife but the cake is loosely compressed and I realized I could just break off a chunk with my hands rather easily. Yay! I plan to order a breaking tray from Garrett really soon.
For such a young sheng, this is very drinkable. My favorite steeps were the later ones, and I actually felt almost as if I were drinking warm wine. About five steeps in I heard my stomach start gurgling. Ah yes, the tea was working its magic! Puerh usually gives me the gurgles and it makes my tummy happy.
This was a fabulous way to end a nice day of shopping out of town with hubby, and technically, also a nice way to start Tuesday since technically it is after midnight now! This is tasting more like white wine with each steep and especially as the temperature is dropping.
I think I am on steep eleven and still going. There is a lot of flavor here. I will probably wait a year again to taste it and experience it!
I’ve been wanting to taste this one! :D
I just got mine in the mail today, I can’t wait to try it!
Oh, I can’t wait to hear what you think of it, Awkward Soul!
Thank you for the review!! I CANNOT wait to introduce everyone to the new pressings that are being done by me right now, either. This Heart of the Old Tree is really going to begin opening up in this next year and I’ll never forget the tea farm and tasting the mao cha there. More to come! Grateful to each of you, Garret
woohoo!
Yesterday I made some clever comment about this name reminding me of Ents and it never posted…then again, maybe it wasn’t so clever and it’s better that it didn’t :)
GG, I love that! Ents! Love em!
LOL! I love it! You know, someone posted a recipe online for the Ent Draught and I thought it really just needed to be a good, smooth sheng puerh!
I get around to steeping Heart of the Old Tree I’m now gonna think of drinking giant walking trees, LOL
I’m taking a short break since today is a long day and I will be working very late tonight in order to compensate for taking a shorter day tomorrow. I decided to gongfu brew some of the Banchang in a 50ml gaiwan. This time around I used a lot of leaf. I think, I prefer less leaf for this one. With less leaves, the apricot notes are very strong but here they are much lighter though still present. The spice notes are stronger now and more upfront. I’m getting a lot of clove, pepper, and cinnamon and some anise but also a nice creaminess and fuller body. Actually, I’m starting to love this despite missing the stronger apricot notes. Very delicious. The rhubarb is now making its way through a little bit. This is definitely my favorite Sheng! Shhh, don’t tell the Wild Purple Buds.
For the rest of work, I’m doing a Joy Division marathon. Unknown Pleasures followed by Closer, and finally Still. As the days are getting warmer, I’m just in more of an old school goth, industrial, and jazz mood. Just came out of a hip hop/rap mood which lasted through the harshest days of winter. Anyone else noticing their preferences shifting as it gets warmer? Here is Joy Division’s A Means to an End because it is awesome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oMFMRv5c3o. If I make it through all 3 albums then Sun Ra or Peter Brotzmann will be playing, which I can only listen to at work or with headphones.
Also, have to share this. I just funded this Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/159974695/calamityware-dinner-plate-3. This artist takes the classic Blue Willow pattern and adds ‘calamities’. Super awesome. Can’t wait to serve my guests food on this plate and see if they notice.
Those plates are fantastic!!!
Nicole-So excited about those plates! :)
I’m not just loving this for the plates and the tea, but for the Joy Division marathon! There just isn’t enough Joy Division out there.
^So true! Glad to see another Joy Division & tea fan! :)
This tea is super exciting. I’ve been enjoying more mellow music this spring :)
So tempting, but $30 shipping to Canada. Wow!
Stephanie-So glad you are excited for this tea! Mellow music is great for spring. :)
OMGsrsly-For a second I got confused and thought you were talking about the tea. Hahaha. $30 shipping to Canada for a plate is pretty insane.
Haha! No no, your shipping is reasonable. :) For the plate it is a little over the top. If it was $10, I’d totally buy one!
The plates are beautiful and so much fun, loving the bats!
Aww, You made me put on my old Joy Division reccords this morning, listening to Transmission right now, sipping on Premium Taiwanese Assam. yummy!
I get music mood shifts as well with the seasons. This is what I’ve been into lately, can’t wait to listen by the pool!
I, too, turned on the Joy Division this morning. It’s still going. (I’ve got every Joy Division track on Google Play in my queue right now.)
OMGsrsly-When the shipping is more than the plate that just seems out of whack.
TheTeaFairy-Yay, for more listening to Joy Division & sipping on PTA!!!!! :) I’m really digging your link to Hollie Cook. Very chill, lazy summer day feel. Perfect pool music! Love your music taste! :)
Cheri-Awesome! For me Joy Division is one of those bands that I end up listening to nonstop until I get sick of. :)
Glad you liked her Stacy, she’s the daughter of Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook, I think she’s amazing, the whole album has that breezy vibe…
Interesting! I’m going to have to check out the rest of that album. :)
OMGsrsly, the artists FAQ explains how to get around the international shipping to Canada:
Yikes! What if I live in Canada?
I once lived and worked in Toronto. So I want to help out my friends north of the border. If you live in Canada, shipping will be included in your pledge.
But you need to pledge in a special way. Here’s what I want you to do. When you make your pledge, pretend that you live in Pittsburgh. (It’s nicer than you think.) Don’t ask for international shipping. Don’t pledge the extra $30USD to ship overseas.
Later, when I ask you for your current mailing address, you’ll tell me that you live in Saskatoon, or whatever. We’ll need to trick the system once more by pretending that Saskatewan (or whatever province) is in the USA. I’ll change the mailing labels from US to Canada and you will have saved $30. That seems to work.
Ha! I didn’t even go there. I see the “additional shipping” and click the X. :) Thanks, beelicious!
I’m Back! Hi my Friends!
I’ve been very, very sick the past few days with a violent allergic reaction to a handful of dried peas.
This was something like being seasick and having the flu and a migraine all at the same time.
Today is the first time I’ve been able to eat anything or drink tea.
Hooray for Tea!
Very carefully, I chose a tea that was not flavored with anything that would make me turn green since I’m still a little queezy.
A good malty tea with warm chocolate and caramel tone would go down well and Puer would be good for my stomach also.
I’ve had the past version of the Breakfast Blend as a sample, but not the Imperial Breakfast Summer Blend. I had ordered the tasting set of Alchemy Blends which arrived today (great timing).
This afternoon, I prepared a 24oz pot of tea. I was so ready, you have no idea how much I had missed tea for 2 days. I chose Western Style brewing so that I could continue with multiple steepings for soothing my stomach throughout the afternoon and to rehydrate myself.
Steep time 1min. Color of liquor light golden honey brown.
The tea was malty and naturally cocoa cinnamon with good body. The richness was what I wanted…a real tea hug. I can’t explain it better than that. I love this tea flavor. Malty, caramelly, cocoa rich tea makes me do a bad, bad thing.
I have an addiction!
When I run into a very good malty tea, I go to my secret stash of ginger cookies and take a few…
and slowly break off pieces of cookie and eat it crumb by sweet spicy crumb while drinking the malty cocoa, creamy tea.
I can’t explain the sensual goodness…the delight in this combination…of unsweetened tea…that blends in the mouth with the sweet of the ginger cookie somehow enhancing the flavor of the tea. Oh My Goodness! Absolutely sensational!
So, yes…ok…I went for it and had the cookies and tea and I came alive again! (Here I should insert organ music like in the Phantom of the Opera…She’s Alive!)…The tea was…Delicious!
I’ve conversed with a few people lately about what Puer would be good for evey day use and this is one tea that I recommend because the Puer is mixed with other tea’s as a blend. This is such a delicious tea, a perfect way to begin the day and a wonderful tea to have as an afternoon stress reducer.
I’m back! (Not in the horror movie sense of the phrase) ; )
Glad you’re feeling better!
So happy you are back, Friend!
Thank you!
It’s not a secret stash of ginger cookies anymore, Bonnie :)
Yikes, doesn’t sound fun! Glad you’re back, but I’ve been so absent lately I feel like I have no idea who is and isn’t around right now!
I’m glad you are feeling better Bonnie ;) I believe you were telling me about this “imperial breakfast” on the posting I did on “everyday Pu-Er”!! Still trying to find a good everyday Pu-er?? Alot of people mentioned the 7572 and the 7581 Dayi (meng hai factory)!!(what company should I buy them from?) The only Pu-er I have had so far is the “ripened aged pu-erh” (teavivre) and the “silver buds Yabao” (verdant)!! Thank you for both of those samples by the way..I am trying to put together a “swap box” for you very soon ;) The silver buds are kinda unique tasting as far as pu-erh’s go (tastes more like a white tea) and the Ripened aged pu-erh was very earthy , which I actually liked very much!! I wish pu-erhs had more of a floral/jasmine taste..that would blend very well with the earthy/grounding component of the Pu-erh!!?
Glad to hear you are well again Bonnie!
Garret…not telling you my address!
Relmaster….Menghai tea has the 7572 I believe. I think you might enjoy sheng puerh instead of shu .
Glad you are feeling better!
Ginger cookies sounds like an excellent pairing with malty tea!
Glad you are feeling better. :)
Bonnie is this the “7572 Menghai” that you were referring to? (the listing says it’s a shu Puer?!) http://steepster.com/teas/menghai-tea-factory/2590-2008-dayi-7572-pu-erh Where should I get it from ? Puerhshop.com ? I like teas that are more floral in nature “jasmine dragon phoenix” is one of my favorites so far for example…and I really liked the “riped aged pu-er” by Teavivre!! Are their Pu-er’s with more of a floral nature to them?? I can’t wait to try all the other Pu-er’s and samples you sent me :)) (Highly appreciated ;)
The Mengku Palace Puerh (shu) was a favorite for me, from Teavivre. Soooo good. I will be serving it today to a puerh newbie.
My favorites are Shu Puer Relmaster, but what I was trying to tell you was that if you prefer lighter and more floral tea and still want Puer then maybe Sheng would be worth trying. Try a sample kit from Verdant or Teaverve or ask Steepsters.
I have been a huge fan of pu’er, shu in particular for years. Since my 2008 buying tea trip to Kunming, I am also now greatly into sheng pu’ers. At our shop, we have many ripe teas and our raw tea selection is growing fast. We now have 9 private label pu’ers with more on the way! If you ever have any questions, Relmaster, shoot me a message or phone me at our shop 507.453.7941. I am more than happy to help you and can often make recommendations based on what folks are looking for. We’ve got some very nice teas at mandalatea.com
Thanks Garret! I sent you a PM too…
Glad you’re feeling better! You know, I’ve only gotten to try this one iced at the Farmers’ Market up to now (super good, by the way). Yummm..Your review makes me want to try this hot very soon.
I really love this tea blend! When I ordered this, I knew I would probably enjoy it; I was absolutely right, and have been drinking it a lot!
This has everything I love in a tea. Not fussy, good anytime of day, resteeps wonderfully for another cup, and most important – so delicious!
Beautiful dry leaf that brews a fulfilling, smooth and and perfectly balanced cup of tea, with notes of honeyed malt, cocoa, pastries and a hint of fruitiness.
This is my perfect anytime tea, and I actually wish I bought more than just one tin!
Preparation
yeah… i agree.
Now I’m sold…I think this is the next tea on my list to order! :)
it’s not available anymore mike
Wow, that’s too bad! Thanks for letting me know! I’ll have to go for their Tiger Assam instead…that sounds good as well.
guhhh i should have bought some. so bloody expensive for one tin :/
tiger assam and red tailed hawk are both excellent imo.
have and love both!
are they comparable to this one?
Niiiiice. Ooh, I just took a look at the Red Tailed Hawk, looks great…Assam/Darjeeling combination?
By the way, you have the best Steepster name ever, whatshesaid…love it! :P
thanks :)
Haha, no problem.
so tiger assam i’m very partial to so i just take that out of the running lol but this one is better than red tailed…and i do love red tailed as well
Tiger Assam moves to the top of the list then. :P
Sil, I ordered a tin of this with one of the tiger assam after seeing the shipping deal you got for us in Canada last month. I had been waiting for a deal so I could order more of the tiger and thought I may as well try this one too. Glad I did, though yeah, getting a second tin would have been better!
Mike, the tiger Assam is great too! I have only tried these two but love them both. I’m sure you will like the assam one :)
whatshesaid, it is darn expensive, but the tea is good…and the tins are so cute too! When I ordered I told myself at least I was saving a few dollars on shipping :)
Cool, I’ll splurge for the Tiger Assam after I clear my cupboard a little bit. :)
yeah, i regret not ordering this one. ah well!
I have a guilty little confession about this tea. I love it! I love it so much that I really acquired it more for myself rather than because it filled a hole in our tea selection. This is my reward tea. Whenever I am feeling down or when I accomplish something big, I allow myself to indulge in a few cups of this wonderful tea.
The dried leaf aroma is strong with honey and plums and the leaves are thin, long, and wiry with a rich charcoal and mahogany color. The steeped leaves are more mahogany in color and range from a medium to dark brown. The wet leaves smell woody and sweet with a honey scent and now a peach aroma as well. As I open the leaves, I can see some little ridges from where the leafhoppers were allowed to nibble. This nibbling causes the plant to initiate its healing process making the leaves taste sweet like honey. The liquor is a dark amber color and produces an aroma of honey and wet wood. When I take my first sip, peach and honey notes first hit my tongue and mingle and linger. Then citrus notes and lychee notes become prominent and linger. A smooth and creamy mouth feel make this cup very enjoyable for me. I used 2 teaspoons of tea this time; however, I think I enjoy this a little more with just 1 ½ teaspoons of tea for 8oz of water. Either way, this is a delicious cup of tea.
Preparation
OOOOOOOOOOh You tempt me!
oooooooooooooooooo
Bonnie & TeaEqualsBliss-Its so yummy! :)
Humm I don’t think I have tried this one.
Aw man, now I wish I would have added this to my order yesterday! Maybe next time!
Azzrian-You reviewed this tea. Gave it a 98. Hahaha. :)
tigress_al-I can slip a sample in your package. Haven’t run out to the post office yet. FYI, I think this is the last day this tea is on sale, though knowing me I probably won’t take the sale down for a few more days.
Another awesome tea to try from Butiki!
A sample would be awesome, thanks so much!
LiberTEAS-I’m sure you will get to try it ;)
tigress_al-its in the mail!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. It sounds wonderful….
I tried to order some. PayPal kept telling me my session was timed out….
Charles-Hmmm, not sure what the problem is. I just tested PayPal and it seems to work fine from here. I will give them a call tomorrow. If it is easy for you, you can always send me a list of what you would like to order and I can send you a PayPal invoice ([email protected]). Also, I’ve had timing out issues specifically with PayPal in the past and have had to shut down my browser and restart my modem and router. Have you tried that?
I will try again today….
Thank you to Angel and Teavivre for this sample.
When I opened the sample pouch it was like a batman comic – ZIP BAM POW!
The aroma was intense and intoxicating!
So yummy of an aroma of spinach, butter, and sweetness!
THIS was going to be A MAZE ING!
I let my cup steep a bit longer than recommended as I tend to find all green teas a little too light for my liking so allowing it to steep 3 minutes I have a very full brothy cup of buttery vegetable goodness!
This green is a bit more intense than most I have been drinking as of late and I appreciate that! Often I feel green teas to be just too light, too lacking, but this has a full wonderful flavor profile!
I have actually been drinking many pure greens as of late but hesitant to log them because I kept feeling maybe I was doing something wrong. Not only has this tea been quite enjoyable but has affirmed that I actually do know what I am doing but have been drinking inferior green teas!
I probably didn’t even need the extended steep on this one but even still I did not get any astringency or bitterness by allowing it to steep longer! Yes I know I am supposed to add more leaf rather than let a tea steep longer but I was getting a bit frustrated with adding more and more leaf only to get no added flavor results form those other greens!
So with that said I am truly loving this tea.
Thank you Angel and Teavivre for allowing me to sample this!
NOTES: Buttery, vegetal, creamy, full mouthfeel, brothy, strong flavor, intense aroma, crispy long stringy leaf pre steep, long puffy delicate and fluffly feeling leaves post steep, rich flavor that leaves me wanting more!
Preparation
YUP! this is a goodie! Just finished a cuppa myself :)
Nice! great minds! :)
This is an excellent green tea, especially if you like the flavor to smack you in the face!
Mmmm sounds wonderful
I do! :)
Haha, zip bam pow!!! I like that
:) haha thanks :)
I like this one a lot myself,and I hope to order some soon.
I am glad you are liking the pure green teas; nowadays, they are all my wife and I drink on mornings (we used to drink a flavor-added one every now and then, but not anymore).
It is next on my order list! Can’t wait! The sample was very generous though and I still have a bit left to hold me over but order is going to happen SOON :)
Another green tea with a nice bold flavor that you might be interested in is 1500m (4500 ft.) Frosty Spring Yunnan Roast Green, First Day Harvest from Life in Teacup. Excellent green tea.
Oh and the Summer Harvest Laoshan green from Verdant is pertty awesome too!
Life in Teacup is amazing – I have only had the luck to sample a few! I need to add this to my list!
Love Verdant of course. Thanks for the suggestions!
I’ve been camping since friday morning and I just got back today, and it feels good to be home. I enjoy camping for the most part, but for some reason my family just loves the campground with the beaten down trailers and pink lawn flamingoes, and the tattered rebel flags wavin’ proud while old toothless men sit around drinking bud light and blasting country music. I’m not being judgemental, that’s just not my scene.
I had to listen to one too many conversations about how terrible a president Obama is, how he’s “a foreigner and a muslim and he should be assasinated” and things of that nature. All this has left me in a bad mood. One of the most resounding sentences that I heard come out of someone’s mouth was “Now I ain’t racist or nothin’, but I just don’t think that an african-american or a muslim should be running this country”. WOW. Sometimes I just have my mind blown by just how bigoted and mean and misled and racist some people can be. So yeah, I’m really glad to be home.
Anyway, on to the tea. I definitely am starting to see what Liberteas said about letting this tea sit for a little bit. I’m already starting to notice a creaminess coming out that was totally absent before, it’s not quite cheesecake but it’s good. Along with that, the bergamot is starting to mellow out and taste a little more natural. I better enjoy my stash while I can because my tea budget just went out the window after I bought my girlfriend a very expensive piece of jewelry for her 18th birthday. I’ll enjoy this stuff while I have it.
while camping can be fun if your with friends and if your campsite has an indoor bathroom instead of an outhouse :D There will sadly always be judgemental people in the world, it’s part of being human. All we can do is our best to be tolerant, understanding, and when all else fails remember you can always wear headphones :D or if online hit an ignore button :D
When you say to let it sit, do you mean let the tea age and flavors meld in the pouch before you open it, or let the cup sit and cool a little? I have heard people say to let custom blends age, so when I got my Butterbeer, I didn’t open it for thee weeks. Now THAT was hard! :)
Let the flavors meld a little bit, although letting the cup cool defiitely helps as well. Yeah, I devoured my butterbeer in a matter of a week. It was very hard to resist, especially after smelling it. And I have very little self-control when it comes to waiting to try a new tea, it just gets me so excited. :)
Wow! When My hubby and I go camping, we go out into the mountains (no campgrounds for us) we make sure we have no cell reception and usually never see another human the entire time.
We sleep outside and cook over a fire.
As I describe this it sounds more like a episode of Survivor than a Vacation;)
But, at least we only have to listen to our own conversation around the campfire.
I am glad you had this tea to come home too:)
That’s the way I like to do it too. :)
When I lived in Oregon we would just find a nice isolated spot in the mountains and pitch a tent, or just lay outside on a sleeping bag. But here in Pennsylvania it’s actually ILLEGAL to just set up camp in the woods, you can only camp in a campground. It’s ridiculous.
Really? Illegal!?
Here in Idaho, if someone tried to pass that law, everyone would be rolling on the ground with laughter.
Yep, it’s insane. So you’re in Idaho huh? If you like the mountains you should take a trip up to the Sisters area in Oregon, beautiful place.
I do love the mountains, and I agree the Sisters area is lovely:)
I’ve camped in the mountains in British Columbia, Canada when I was a lot younger. It was pretty fun but could be really cold at night :D
Now… I ain’t racist or nothin’ … (LOL! Just kidding, I just felt I needed to start the comment with that!) Personally, I love Obama… he’s been the best president since President Clinton. :)
I am glad that you’re getting more out of this tea now!!!
British Columbia is at the top of my list of places I want to visit.
I love BC. Its so lovely.
When we camp in the mountains, Helena, it has got down to the 20’s.
We were so happy that we brought our doggies with because we were all snuggled together and warm:)
If I let my dog sleep with me she might push me out of the bed/sleeping blanket. A link for more info on English Mastiffs if your curious
http://www.canadasguidetodogs.com/mastiff.htm
I saw a billboard on my way to North Carolina that said “LOSING HOPE? VOTE REPUBLICAN” and I was just like ….what. This is also a county with an active KKK group who wants to adopt a highway. Ah, the middle of nowhere.
Mountains. Solitude. Quiet. Fresh air. Can I come, wherever it is?
Lol, I bet she would not share the bed well.
What Beautiful dogs!
I have fostered a couple Mastiff mixes and just love their personalities:)
they are very good natured :D it’s really funny to see them playing with chihuahuas or other small critters. There are some cute videos on youtube. I saw one where the mastiff was watching a silly siberian kitten. Another one was where the mastiff was giving the kiteen a tongue bath sooo cute!
That is why you skip the campground and find a beach somewhere to set up camp on! .. or a lake.. or wilderness… somewhere where you can’t find people having those narrow-minded conversations
oooh a beach with nice white sand and some good cold tea :D
I mean, if a sentence starts with “I ain’t a racist…” I mean, the fact that that has to act as a qualifier for what is to follow kinda says something about a person.
This tea made me so so so so so so so so so SO happy. Of happiness.
Only one rinse was needed and the color is deeper than ruby, like a garnet. And AllanK was right – zero fermentation flavor, no dirty flavors. This tastes like chocolate mushrooms. That may not sound appetizing, but I assure you, it’s the fucking BOMB, yo.
This is my new fave shou. Thanks for the sample, Allan!!!!
I did one session with three steeps, then another, then another. A total of 9 steeps, which got smoother as they went along.
From the start, I felt buzzy. At one point during the 2nd session, I realized that I dazed out. When I came to, I felt kind of dizzy and happy. Tea drunk, indeed!
I also kept staring into the cup, kind of mesmerized by the color.
To sum up: WOW. So yumz. Much happy. Wow. So garnet. Tea drunkies.
Preparation
Little sarsy is now shouing!!! Weehee!!
And yo. Chocolate mushies!!
I am going to start calling you Shousique…
LOL. Y’all are so funny! :)
I told you it was good. I don’t get tea drunk from it though.
Nice!
I had to buy some because the thought of life without it was sad. This is definitely a good one!
OOooooo this sounds magical! yay for getting tea drunk from shu!!
It’s hard to go wrong with the Menghai tea factory.
It sounds like an experience in a cup! :)
I’m so excited to be getting more of this. I think it can definitely turn a frown upside down! LOL
Did you get it from Berylleb? If so message me and I can tell you a bit on how to save some $ from them.
Love the review!!
Thanks, mrmo! I did!
Thanks ZTJASFB! LOL Maybe I will call you Zen. I love the whole name, but its not easy to type on an iphone :)
I have always wanted to go to Alaska. Someday….
I lived in Alaska and feel blessed to have witnessed the golden yellow of the birch during the fall and the wonder of the Aurora, as it sounds like you have. It’s great to hear someone else share about a few of Alaska’s many wonders.
Wow those photos take my breath away!
Fall is slow coming here, but I hear it gets beautiful! I’ll take some pictures if it proves true :)
Good….love to see peoples pics!
SimpliciTea- Where? The Birch is so bright gold it almost blinds you. I went back the end of November when Selma passed away and it was -20 and never complete daylight. Very dry in Fairbanks too. Loved Caribou Sausage!
Beautiful pics Bonnie! I’m supposed to be going to Alaska next summer and I would love to see the Aurora Borealis!
I lived in Fairbanks and traveled all over the state (including going to a few villages in ‘the bush’). The tundra, a little north of Fairbanks, is absolutely incredible to behold in the autumn: the blueberry bushes (and other very small bushes) that carpet the floor of the tundra turn almost any color imaginable and are set against various shades of golden leaves which are in turn held up by birch trees clothed in chalky-white bark, and if your lucky there’s even a snow-capped mountain in the Brooks range in the distance (I think the range is called the Brooks). I’ll never forget it.
Obviously, I loved Alaska. Thanks for asking. : )
Invader- The Aurora Borealis is best viewed in the months of Feb., March, Sept. and Oct.. http://fairbanks-alaska.com/northern-lights-alaska.htm (watch out for mosquitos in the Summer before September, be prepared!!!)
I would love to see this in this lifetime!
Those pictures are beautiful. Is the picture of the Aurora at Chena Hot Springs (I think it’s about 25 minutes outside of Fairbanks)? That’s a hot spot (pun intended) for viewing the Aurora Borealis, away from the city lights, and all. And, yes, the mosquitos really are bigger in Alaska.
Thanks for sharing
bonnie you are a dear and i am glad you enjoyed this! a dib for garret and mandala for this wonderful tea!
SimpliciTEA- I didn’t take that picture, I have only a few original Alaska pictures because my ex-husband has the rest on his computer and it’s been hard to get them from him. The link above has some Chena Hot Springs pics. That photo is on Wikipedia and you can the video if you go down the page to the right. I saw the Aurora outside North Pole Alaska which was quite dark. When I left Alaska a week later,I saw the Northern Lights again from the Airplane. That was cool! The Moose and Fall pictures are mine. The 2 going towards Valdez (mountains) are where I traveled but not in the Fall.
The tundra with the purple, red and green was gorgeous!
Thank, Bonnie. I appreciate your bringing this up because it brings back lots of wonderful memories for me. I’m glad you had a chance to view the amazing colors of the tundra in autumn as well.
Tandem Poetry on the boardwalk, now THAT’s my cup of tea! Beautiful review, as always, Bonnie!