Popular Tasting Notes

Lovely.

Thank you Azzrian. I was hoping I didn’t upset anyone.

how can you upset anyone when it is your opinion and your life
i thought it was great

no need to apologize for being YOU Bonnie! I love your stories, this one included.
May all those who passed rest in peace

A beautiful review, thank you Bonnie!

Great story and beautiful church

This Church is St. Peter and Paul in Ben Lomond,CA in the Redwoods.

Bonnie, I’m listening to the Music link while I drink my first cup of the day, a blend I make to support my immune system: 1 Qt of water, bring to simmer with dried astragulus root (from Cheryl’s Herbs) & thinly sliced fresh ginger root. Don’t ask how much of either, a couple TBLS or so. Simmer covered gently for awhile…15 minutes or so? Remove from heat, add a handful of fresh lemon balm (from my herb garden), a few thin strips of lemon peel, & a spoon of local honey to taste (Cheryl’s carries an amazingly awesome local honey). Drink throughout the day. Thanks for the beautiful music, & the photos as well. :)

The tea and your memories of the vigil, the church and those lost are all beautiful! Thank you for sharing that part of who you are, your spirituality is wonderful and that church is gorgeous! Is it Greek Orthodox as well? I grew up Roman Catholic in suburb and everything was dark and dull and somber, none of the beautiful colors and art and culture that I see in both the photos and picture in your words. I know there was occasionally incense at mass though I didn’t care for it as a child, but roses? Engage all the senses! I value all religious/spiritual paths (I also grew up a Unitarian Universalist) and love the diversity here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI0KT-xSvlI

=)

:) it did indeed, especially when the people started moving. Jim also gave me a little lesson in Orthodoxy in a PM. The Alaskan Native American Orthodox services sound amazing! Love cultural preservation though the video did remind me a bit of a documentary we watched in my high school Global Studies course where Islamic missionaries went to a remote Northern African tribe and told them the tree spirits they worshiped were the devil, that made me very sad as I also believe that the Divine expresses itself through nature, my husband finds himself much in line with Japanese Shintoism, but that is neither here nor there. Thank you for sharing your tradition!

Keep in mind that Orthodoxy has been in Northern and Eastern Africa for two millennia! The patriarchate of Alexandria is one of the original five (Jerusalem, Rome, Antioch, Alexandria and then Constantinople). The Coptic and Ethiopian expressions of Orthodoxy are some of the oldest and most carefully preserved in the world.

One reason why Orthodox traditions throughout the world manifest so differently from one another is that rather than going to a place and saying “your faith is bad, let us tell you about a good faith”, Orthodox rather go and say “your faith is good, let us tell you about what we know and see where they match up”.

There is a fine line between panentheism (the divine is in everything) and pantheism (the divine is everything). Animism (like Shinto) and other polytheistic systems stray a bit too far to one side to be entirely compatible, but if the understanding can be honed to come to understand that there is one divinity which is able to express and manifest itself in many forms (both through cultures and nature) then common ground can be found even with those who worship tree spirits. It is a subtle business which can take generations to achieve.

It’s Orthodox yes. Here in the U.S. we hear people refer to the church’s as Russian or Greek etc. because we don’t have an American Patriarch as yet (working on that) and immigrants brought their culture and sometimes Priests here from these different places (although Orthodoxy has been here in the U.S. over 200 years through Alaska). All but a few old ethnic Churches are in English and a mix of people just like you and I.

AWESOME REVIEW!!!! :) Enjoy your bliss!

Yes, I definitely need to try this one again…

I’m glad you enjoyed the tea Daisy! It really is an amazing feeling getting “tea drunk” :) I think it has a great taste, and I saw you thought it does have some of the brr “flavor.” I hope you enjoy what you have left! Just so you know, the first time I brewed this, I used 5g of tea with 4oz of water, one rinse, and then short steeps. I love that even if you brew too long, it doesn’t get overly bitter, it seems to be a pretty forgiving tea!

Sounds great! I’m doing the same right now, approx 5g in my little gaiwan – I’m combining 2 steeps at a time but keeping them relatively short. Definitely going to try a “western” brew with it too – but tonight I’m feeling like I have the energy to keep my gaiwan goin! :D

Sounds good :) Personally, I find myself normally doing western steepings with black teas, and the short steepings with oolongs :)

You found your party tea! I have my few too. Amazing when it happens it feels so good. My granddaughter Schey got her first buzz at the Tea Festival in Boulder and was all giggley, like she had too much wine or something walking around sipping samples at all the tea vendor tables. Really funny. Glad you’re having a good time!

I haven’t had tea buzz for ages! it’s an amazing sensation :P

So need to try my sample of this when i get home :)

It really is amazing! Man tea is a life changer.

This is what we look for in our Tea….

How many seconds did you do each brew?

I started at 2 seconds and added 2 seconds to each subsequent brew – until I got to about 10 seconds – then I did 10, 20, 30 second steeps and so on!

Hey Daisy, how’s it going? Last day of the season at work today, so ill finally have tons of time to spend on tea!!! I don’t know if you saw the new thing Verdant is doing, being able to vote on which blend they will make!!! Hopefully if it goes well, David will let us vote on straight teas, which I think would be really cool!

Btw, I’m stringing out my aged TGY, while I’d love to drink it every day, I think I may go through some serious withdrawal when I eventually run out :( Anyways, have a great day!

Hey! I did see that – I definitely voted. I can’t wait to see where it takes us!

I’m baking a bunch of stuff for a friends Thanksgiving supper today – so I think I might join you and have a session with this tea to relax and re-energize. Well, now that you have me thinking about it, I think I need it! haha! You have a great day too :)

That is what I think is so nice about the tea, it is a very relaxing brew! I don’t know if ill have some tonight…depends on how many steeps of Laoshan Black I have at work today. Then tomorrow, I’m going to be brewing some white leaf Dancong, which was a private reserve sample that I can’t wait to try!

I was coming on Steepster to make the exact same review! I just got my Timolino a few days ago and already it’s perfection.

LADIES: I WANT ONE SO BADLY!

What would the difference be between this and a Contigo from Costco? (minus the basket for the leaves)

I just got a bunch of Davidstea gift cards for my birthday so I’mm all over the idea of this

Timolinos keep your tea hot longer. Mine actually has a mesh screen instead of a basket, so I use it for long steeps (green jasmine pearls, herbal teas, some puerhs, etc) when I’m hiking. The contigos don’t make you unscrew a lid before drinking, so I find them easier when on the go.

Thanks for the comparison!

Not sure about the Contigo, but I like how the Timolino is leakproof.I want to put it in my purse and not worry about my kindle!

omg i love my kindle too! but there is love for both in my heart. timolino meet kindle, kindle meet timolino. now double high-five all of us!

i mean i love my kindle so much that i immediately went and bought my boything and my sister each one. like when you love a song so much that you want the whole world to hear it really loud so they understand!

Hahah, yeah I totally understand those feels! I bought my sister a kindle for her birthday and she just… neglected it. :O Then my boyfriend bought a Kobo reader but he barely uses it either. OMG PPL IDEK.

Double high-fives!

Oh, I recently took up knitting and someday I hope to create a tardis cover for my kindle. That’d be SLICK. (and bigger on the inside)

well my boyfriend neglects his too. BUT my sister uses hers enough for all 3 of us so it all balances out :) (yay english major)
the doctah + kindle cozi = just too much

I put mine in my purse with my ipad! I usually have lunch and a reusable shopping bag (for padding) in there too, so all my mugs stand upright. I have started to carry 2 in my purse and one in my hand…

Agreed with OMGsrsly – Timolinos have better heat retention, which is good and bad. Contigos are still pretty good though! Timolinos are also smaller (at least, I haven’t seen them in bigger sizes), and they are easier to clean – the Contigo has bits up top that are irritating. Contigo – definitely easier for on the go, and although both are leakproof, and I’ve never had a problem, I’m more concerned about the Contigo than Timolino. I’ve heard mine slowly taking in air if the vacuum got to be too much.

That’s it you guys, I’m buying one this weekend!! Davidstea gift cards ftw!!

one other note about timolinos…(and i feel this way about beer or wine too)…if i am going to fully appreciate and enjoy the drink i need to be able to smell the liquid as i drink. meaning it’s best to have a somewhat open top to my drinking container. (thus a travel mug with one little drinking hole or a beer bottle are not ideal. phooey).
i like that the timolino has a strainer type top so the scent of the tea can still easily reach my nose. but i also often times just twist the whole lid off so i can really get my honker in there.

I didn’t end up buying one because I didn’t like the plastic basket, wouldn’t it absorb the smell of every tea you made and get dirty really quickly? It seems sort of cheaply made which made me nervous. For $30…

I got the pink/purple one last night! eeee! am using it right now.

YAY! welcome to timolinoland Ellyn

Ellyn, Where did you buy it?

I bought it from the david’s store in the south end of boston, Mass.

So no one else finds the plastic basket thing questionable? Does it get all stainy?

Whatshesaid – I found my older one has a few stains on the basket, and along the rim, but I don’t think it interferes with the taste. I didn’t take very good care of that one though – I think the stain was from leaving a full tumbler of tea in there and forgetting it but to be fair I wasn’t getting a lot of sleep at the time. Also I drank coffee in it. (Don’t do that!)

My new timolino has been taken care of much better and I don’t see any stains. But even with the old one I don’t notice that the stains impact the flavour of the next tea. Hopefully Shmiracles can clarify.

I have to second that it’s important to be able to smell the tea too! I’ve been steeping both timolinos, and then taking turns drinking out of both by pouring the tea into my little bubble cup. Lets me enjoy the tea, without it getting cold, and then I can switch back and forth too! I find I waste less tea now because I’m not dumping cold cups down the drain.

I love your picture btw. I just want to grab all those timolinos and hug them. #YesThatsAStrangeThingToSay

you said it Covocorax!! no more cold cups down the drain ever! and i can brew a different tea for each timoliono and just cycle through them as slowly as i want! you said it!!

(sorry but i can’t say much in regards to the brewing baskets. i’ve gotten lazy and i’m always running late and i basically only use disposable tea bags these days.)
(i’m not sure who but somebody mentioned using unflavored denture cleaner for removing stains, and it seems to have worked nicely for my one super stained one. i’m gonna try it on some of the brewing baskets later this weekend.)

I still have a gift card to Davidstea so you never know. I do find them kind of small though! But I am a tea guzzler, haha

I totally advocate for the use of unflavoured denture tablets. :) It might take a few goes, but they really help loosen the stains (and smells).

Wow! Multiple timolinos so you can sip different tea throughout the day? utter and complete genius. Wow wow wow. I’ve actually been lusting after the white one, and now I feel justified in pursuing this temptation.

I finally got one, keychange! I actually got the white one, and today right after I opened the box and cleaned my shiny little Timolino, I saw on Facebook that Davids now has them in 16 oz. Now I really really really want the bigger one! I figured that I’ll use the 12 oz one to make sure that I at least like it instead of mailing it to exchange it. If I like the 12 oz I’ll just buy a 16 oz. :)

Haha Josie jade, don’t you just hate buying something only to realize something else has appeared that you want even more? How much do you want to bet that within a month or so, you’ll own a 16 oz one and I’ll have it in white? hahaha! Do you think the white one will get dirty/fingerprints on it easily? I want one!

16 oz?! haha oh no!
i don’t want it but i want it. i still use mine every day, in some combination or another.

Kittenna,

Have you thought about writing a review of the Contigo? I for one would be interested in learning more about your experience with it and how it compares to the Timolino or Zojirushi. Thanks!

http://steepster.com/teaware/contigo/46360-autoseal-16-oz-stainless-steel

going to have to try this one again… have a vague recollection of not enjoying it that much when i first tried it but that seems like eons ago.

That sounds like everything I want in a tea, Azzrian! I just checked my order (due to arrive tomorrow, I hope…), & that one isn’t on there… :( Actually there are a few others I want to try now. Verdant Teas look SO awesome, I really want to try everything! I guess I’d better finish paying my bills…

Terri – verdant has gorgeous teas! Totally worth saving up for.

Sil we can’t love them all I guess but this one really is nice for me! :)
Terri I am sure whatever you did get you will find at least one or more new loves! :)
Yeah lol the bills are calling my name as well.
I also need to reply to your last PM – today has been chaos will reply asap xox

I just ordered the summer blends that Verdant Teas still have in stock, and this was one of them. I’m happy to read your tasting note on this and can’t wait to receive my snack-sized order. (Although, after reading this note, I am already kind of regretting only getting the smallest (7g) size…)

wow you have alot goin on girl! but I am SO happy for you and your daughter!

Nik – that’s fantastic!

Hurray for your daughter!!

wow, you have a lot going on! So nice you could stop and enjoy a tea!!

Real rest is rare these days, isn’t it?

Thanks everyone!
Emma did decide to NOT work two jobs today after only one day in the training it was just too ambitious for her (they work the employees REALLY hard there) but she is going to apply at the YMCA for a counter job tomorrow and I am sure she will get it as my son used to life guard there. So that will be a far more manageable second job and its a block from home!
LOL thats how things roll here lately though change change change :)

@gmathis – you know it lol

@ Nik I know I only got the 7g myself

So excited to see the garage sale. :) (I love my tea set I bought from you off your garage sale). And, a blend just for yourself sounds absolutely marvelous and tremendously well deserved. <3

DeliriumsFrogs-It’s mostly going to be left over tins, thermoses, etc but I will be posting a few items from my house. There is a really great teaware set that I will be breaking up. I’ll post a sneak peek on instagram. :) Also, there will be those necklaces we made but never did anything with.

Oh yeah and a few cupping sets.

Those awesome tea vial necklaces with the little cup charm?!?!?!?! I loved those!! (i’d have to grab one…)

DeleriumsFrogs-Yes! Those are the ones. If you want one, let me know I can always hold one for you. We only have 3 and I would like to keep one for myself. We have Hello Sweetie, Citrus Dream, and Almond Indulgence. I’m waiting to hear back from the person that made them about pricing. I’m trying to convince her to keep it low.

When are you going to put up the garage sale items? Like this week? Also would it be in the day or night time? Asking because I have work this week xD

Ost-Not sure yet. I was thinking about posting to our official Facebook page a little bit at a time before doing the website post since it takes more effort to post on the website. Are you looking for anything in particular?

Here is what we will definitely be posting:
3 small cup sets, 2 cups each. Different sets
1 glass tea pot
2 8 cup pyrex measuring cups
These cups: http://instagram.com/p/zOPOnnlfKU/?modal=true
2 bombillas
5 cupping sets (white cup and steeping vessel)
1 small cup (oc Japan)
1 large tea dispenser (this is maybe 12 cups, stays hot 24ish hours)
1 large metal thermos
1 paisley gaiwan
tins-so many tins
2 magnetic tea displays
unsold teaware (not a lot but tea jars, and yixing cups with white ceramic on the inside)

oh man..those necklaces…hello sweetie!

Sil-I was looking at the Hello Sweetie more as a ‘break in case of emergency’.

I will be waiting with baited breath for the pricing on those. Heh

I’m with Sil…. those necklaces!!! :))))

I’m totally wanting to yell, HOLD ONE FOR ME!, but I don’t want to be all greedy and grab one before anyone else… (honestly, I love all your teas, so it wouldn’t matter at all which tea was in the vial)

They are a little more then I would like. They are $15.99 and come with a chain.

Ahhhhh! I really love them, but I should probably hold off… They’re so perfect, though! (I can’t ever find decent tea jewelry…)

Do you still have the pics handy Stacy? Pretty sure i’d still love one but my memory is a little foggy.

Welcome back Stacy! Hope you had a wonderful trip!

Now about that tea dispenser… How much do you think it will be?

Sil-let me email you a pic. I’m trying to find the really nice pics my friend took but do have the charm one readily available.
Kaylee-Thank you so much! I did, it was so wonderful. :) The dispenser will probably be $8 + shipping.

Garage sale is on! https://www.facebook.com/butikiteas

Can I lay dibs on the dispenser now?

Kaylee-Absolutely. Here is a pic: http://s1094.photobucket.com/user/butikiteas/media/Garage%20Sale/BigThermos_zps46319c9e.jpg.html?o=9 Still interested? Send me your zip code. If I remember correctly, shipping probably wouldn’t be too bad. I saved one for myself. They are great. I use them at parties and potlucks.

Sil-Let me know ASAP if you would like a first crack at the necklaces. Will be posting them today but can hold one for you if you are interested.

Bonnie – positive affirmations coming your way love. Hang in there and stay safe. ((Virtual Huggs))

I’m ok…just all the news for weeks and the being shut in and now 2 more cities on fire. All the news is homes on fire. It’s awful!The Airforce Acadamy was just evacuated. I haven’t heard from Jason…he works there. Chadoo lives in Boulder and theres a fire there. Eeks!

Im glad your holding up Bonnie please keep us posted on how you are. I figure as long as you are tea logging your okay. Don’t disappear on us!

I won’t but I’m just upset…having a hard time doing reviews. I need to gather myself together!

:( I’ve been reading about the fires on news websites, and it sounds quite bad. Keep safe and keep us updated as best as possible. Hugs.

2 Hrs ago friends evacuated with just minutes to gather photos and leave!
They posted their pictures …so sad!

Oh Bonnie, this breaks my heart! for so many reasons. All those lost houses, and the forest animals to… I’m with Kristaleyn, keep us updated!

We’re thinking of you, Bonnie, and all of those affected by this terrible summer! Please stay safe.

Bonnie, you are in our thoughts. And everyone in the surrounding area – I hope for their safety and strength to stick together and support eachother through the fires.

Does anyone know how the fires started?

Lightening! It’s been over 100 degrees too. This afternoon we’re expecting lightening again and the winds come up to 30-50 miles per hour. You can imagine…fire and wind. There was a beetle kill of trees in the mountains last year so that’s dead wood tinder and the monsoon season is yet to come so the forests are super dry. Everything is going up in smoke super fast. The fire by me is the biggest ever in State History. The others are new…just began.

Wow. How close are the fires to you? Hopefully many many miles! :(

Dear Bonnie, we are thinking of you here, and send all of our wishes to you and everyone affected. While there is little I can think of to make things better from Minneapolis, I do hope that you, like me, find joy and strength in tea, and in the community built around it.

Bonnie-You are in my thoughts. I hope things start getting better soon. So sorry to hear about this.

Thanks everyone! I’m ok really. The danger to my home is over (looks ok now), just more storms and smoke which makes me ill. It’s the others still in danger and friends, even Steepster friends in harms way. People I know being evacuated. Weeks of this type of tension behind my house, smoke like fog, lack of sleep, migraines, high heat and now new fires just made me spew here on Steepster! I have no other voice! Sorry everyone, and thanks! Hope for those fighting these blazes!

I’m sorry… I hope you get some relief soon

Stay safe and prayers sent to all.

I hope all the fires get under control soon! So sorry that you and yours are going through this!

I’ve actually been really worried about you, but I’ll keep the others in my prayers as well. Stay safe!

Oh…don’t worry. I know who has my life in His hands! I care more about the others. I’m really fine. I just stress and can’t rest.

You and all those close to fires are in my thoughts. Get some rest friend. Some times relaxation exercises help me, maybe they will work for you.

Bonnie, also sending good thoughts your way…

I know, I know…amazing! Pavlovs dog…yes…it gets you! And you crave it! So bad! Then the feeling you get from it…shush! (we could sell this on a street corner in Beverly Hills!)

ha – I need to get this soon!

Oh no you’re right – I am so going to crave this one… I added a new note to the bottom on how I was naughty like Bonnie ;)

Yes Amy – it is the bomb!

My order is due tomorrow. I could live with 3 tea’s in my life. Laoshan Black, Xingyang 1998 Puerh and this Laoshan White. Nothing more.

Lovely – and your life would be full and vibrant with them in your life :)

Wha? Naughty? Moi? Oh yes I am!

You are a naughty girl…vixen DaisyChubb…we have a bevy of naughty tea vixens here I’m sure of it!

Oh most certainly, no doubt of it!

Argh, I badly want this one. August. Please let there still be some left in August.

DaisyChubb and I are going to buy out all the stock…hahahahahaha! I’m mad…crazy…mad! Bowahahahahaha!

O: Bonnie! I thought eet was a seecret!

Are you French now? Eeet Eees a Seecret…Tais-toi!

Also love to go to heaven any day of the week!!!

Oui! le petit chat. en francais.

Today is Friday now – so I will most certainly go to tea heaven all night looong

I will be receiving some today teafairy will get a little with the Laoshan Black…Black and White!

So, are still talking about tea or something else……lol. I think I need to place a Verdant order based on this review alone!

I must say I usually go to a different kind of heaven on Fridays…along with my significant other… we call it «Le Paradis»!!!

Ok! Enough! Poor me! Noone for years! Waaaah!

Is this what’s known as “Immortal Springs Laoshan White” on the website? It has the same photo…

YES!

happy to have you back!

Thank you Sil! Don’t think I’ll be able to catch up with your 1200 notes, but I’ll sure try:-)

nice to see you back and with a so beautiful tasting note

Welcome back! :) Oh wow, that sounds crazy scary. Good thing your intuition kicked in.

Those are some awesome pics! Would you consider entering them in our photo contest? http://www.butikiteas.com/Contest.html I’d love to post one of them on our “community” page.

I love that silk ribbon feel. I know exactly what you mean.

Merci Ysaurella! Great to be back :-)

Thank you Stacy, didn’t know you had a contest, I guess I missed a lot about what’s going on here! I will definitely look into it, which one would you like me to post?

I am so sorry that happened to you. Some people criticize the concept of intuition but I’m with you. It’s definitely there. I’m lucky to be ultra intuitive and perceptive too.

The gaiwan is beautiful. Congrats on the win! I have been eyeing Stacy’s paisley gaiwan.

TheTeaFairy-Ooh, well I think number 4 is my favorite though I do like the others and number 3 is great too! You can certainly submit as many photos as you like.

Incendiare-I agree it is there and is so important. I’ve had some times where I’ve felt a horrible pit in my stomach and a deep sense of dread and this overwhelming feeling and I’ve listened to my intuition then but there are a few times when I’ve met a couple people where I instantly didn’t like them and felt very negative towards for no reason (and I’m the type of person that likes everyone) and not listened to my intuition and they turned out to be a really bad person. I had this when I met a good friend’s new boyfriend. He seemed really nice and was very conversational and a good listener but I felt really negative towards him. I remember having a conversation with my husband where I was convincing myself to like him. A few months later we found out that he was pretty much a horrible human.

@Incendiare and Butiki:

Yes, we all have it inside but some of us are hypersensitive to it. Many years ago, human beings needed it for survival, but as we evolved in modern society, we don’t need it as much and for most people, it is just buried. This is fact by the way, it’s not a theory. I say this cause I’m a super sceptical person, I don’t believe in many things, especially supernatural stuff.
Stacy, what you wrote illustrates just that. Our brain is designed to catch signals by perception, we just don’t listen or pay attention to them most of the time, cause we don’t focus on that. Our mind is so busy with so many distractions, who has the time, right? But that little voice told you this man was bad news, cause his composure probably sent some signals that your brain was able to catch. I studied body language a little, and I find this stuff fascinating. I hope your friend didn’t suffer too much from this bad relationship…

As for the photos, if there are no restrictions I’ll post them all then :-)

Wow so glad you are safe and that you listened to your gut!
Welcome back, you’ve been missed!

Huh, I’ve never thought about intuition from a science-y perspective. I always assumed it was more on the psychic-y front. I wonder what it was in his body language that my brain picked up. Unfortunately, she did suffer but she was able to leave the relationship immediately. A few years later, we found out that his violence had escalated towards women and he ended up killing his current girlfriend.

I would love to learn about body language a little more. I bet its a very fascinating subject.

Nope, no restrictions. Send in anything you want. :)

What??? Holy crap, now that was a signal! I have chills… how right you were!

I don’t think the signal was as strong as some situations I’ve been in that I’ve left but I think that was because I was in no immediate danger. Its pretty creepy to know that I’ve hung out a few times with a murderer.

I wonder if one can go as far as connecting intuition to introversion. People who are more introverted have sensory processing sensitivity, so they’re more sensitive to stimuli. I wouldn’t be surprised if introverts who can easily read others also have a strong intuition. I, for one, am quite introverted and my perceptiveness always freaks people out.

Stacy, that is so terrifying. I am really glad your friend got out of that relationship, but still tragic that someone else ended up being a victim instead.

Incendiare-That’s an interesting theory and it does make sense.

incendiare, it is an interresting theory. I for one wouldn’t qualify myself to be introvert, but I am very sensitive to my surroundings at all times, I do focus a lot more on my entourage than on myself. For instance, I often feel other peoples distress before they ever mention anything. Then I get the « How did you know?» comment and a weird look sometimes:-)

Beautiful review & I love all the comments too.
I have a sample of this, waiting to be sampled.
Drugs of choice: tea, music, food (growing, preparing, eating).
Intuition: couldn’t live without it!

Thanks Terri! I hope you won’t be disappointed with this tea, I tend to be over the top enthusiast when I love something, that’s just who I am :-)
Wish I could grow stuff, but aside from basics such as tomatoes and parsley (cause they basically grow themselves!) I suck at it, always end up being the serial killer of my own garden!

I used to tell my friends that giving me a houseplant was like writing it’s death warrant! That was a long time ago, & luckily I’m better with plants than I used to be! Not all of my gardening experiments are successful, but years of gardening have helped :)
I love walking out my back door to see what I’m eating today!

Thanks for sharing your story. Your gaiwan is gorgeous. And I too do not have a green thumb except when its covered with matcha!

@Terri: I won’t give up then :-) Must be awesome to go grocery shopping in your back yard everyday!
@Chelle: Matcha green thumb, hilarious :-)

This is also one of my favorite teas. It’s hard to find a good aged oolong.

I’m with you Doug, this was my first aged oolong, but I have tried a few since then, and none have provided me with the same level of enjoyment! Having said that, 1991 Da Ye Aged Oolong is my second favourite and is ALSO from Butiki. I just sampled it, it’s really good, sweeter, but I prefer my 2003.

Thanks for the tip! I’ll try the 1991 in my next order.

Uh oh….. Want!

I will have to try that one when they get the Rivendell in stock.

Lol, sil, you shall get then :-)

Allan, you can wait for our swap, but I have a feeling you of all people will want a much larger quantitity of this ;-)

I love this shou and I love this note and I love my Fairy

<3

:-) <3

This sounds good. I just need to get over this weird thing I have going on and try shou.

I am going to have to get into this one day. Cheri “Good” shou will surprise you.

Drool

Sounds fantastic! I adore shou as well :) . . . Actually I like Sheng a lot too. I will look for this tea… This intrigued me: “No trace of earthiness or even leather in this. It’s all nuts and creamy vanilla”. That sounds delightful. Thanks for the review!

Parsifal we have a “puerh of the day” post you may like on the discussions page.

I will check that out, thank you :)

Very nice, Lucky you :)

Thank you for sharing your story :D the military life can be rough but not just on the soldiers but on the families as well.

I love military stories, although yours seems rather sad. I hope things have looked up in life for you along with this tea.

Everyone’s life has up’s and down’s. There isn’t anyone who’s immune. What you do with it is what counts. I love life.

Bonnie thanks so much for sharing this glimpse into your life! It’s so interesting to hear about your personal/familial experiences with and in the service.
Oh sounds like an interesting tea as well!

Wow, a 1953 tea! I am of the same vintage! I’m glad to hear that it is holding up much better than I am!

I am sorry that you had to go through those injustices. Hopefully we, as a nation, have advanced beyond that today.

I’m of the opinion that older people should share stories. TV is impersonal. I think it’s helpful to know that life can get pretty dark and dangerous (and you have no idea how much more dark and dangerous the stories in my life are…) but you come out the other side not forgetting, but able to have a happy life. I stand for hope!

thanks for sharing Bonnie, loved this review as everything you write !

Bonnie, you should start working on your bio. Really. With such a life, we need a book!

I second TheTeaFairy!

OK you two come help me!

I think this is a new tea based on a 1953 recipe. There were many for sale on EBay

I think we should invest in a recorder, sit down have some nice tea and listen to you stories!

Charles- Don’t know, mine was faded, crumbly (dusty) and looked more like a sheng but was a shou. Often though old and new are blended together (a common method or creating Pu-erh if people are not aware). This was a gift and I’ll look into it.

Invader Zim, count me in!

I’m mad now! You started High School 30 years after I did! I no longer feel sorry for you staying up till all hours concocting new tea blends!!! Young-un!

what sort of oolong was it when it started? where did it hail from? what style or fermentation/oxidation level?

Bonnie-Hahaha. :) My family is such a late night family. I just don’t function well at all before 10am.

Kashyap-It was a Da Ye Oolong. They aren’t very common now since the plant produces less tea than other more common plants. It came from Nantou, Taiwan (middle of the country). The oxidation level is between 20-30% and is charcoal roasted.

nice…I love teas from Nantou and the lighter oxidation explains the buttery and creamy mineral notes

Kashyap-I too am a big fan of teas from Nantou. I’ve been very big into Taiwanese teas lately. It is very buttery and creamy. So delicious.

Fascinating about the mineral notes, I didn’t know that!! Maybe I’ll pack some away in a tea time capsule :)

guess what stacy! i’m ordering some of this! woot woot!

Indigobloom-Only if you don’t mind digging it up every few years to roast.

Sil-An oolong, I’m surprised.

@ stacy – i really loved the 2003 four seasons one.

Sil-Glad you love that one! I think you will enjoy this one too.

Good to know! I’d be scared to burn it tho

Indigobloom-Best to leave it to the professionals, though I would be curious to try it myself. It takes great deal of skill.

I’m a little confused…Stacy, you sent me a 20 year aged Oolong and this would be 22 year old Oolong? Or is this the one you sent?

Bonnie-Sorry for the confusion, the sample I sent was this tea. I typed up that sample in a rush, so looks like I missed the extra 2 years.

Oh good…I can write a review under the right place! Drank with the guys today. I’ve been sick since last Saturday and just ventured out today.

Glad to hear you are feeling better Bonnie. That’s nice that you were able to share it with the guys. :)

been wondering where you got to Bonnie! whew, glad you’re on the mend now

I graduated high school in 1993…trying to decide between this and the gui fei oolong as one of my samples. Tough choice.

Heather, personally I enjoy the aged oolongs a little more Gui Fei though I very much enjoy both. There is such a lovely creaminess to this tea. Both are great though.

I opted for the Gui Fei this time…but this one (1991 Da Ye Aged Oolong) is a close second. It was hard to choose.

Fresh apricots on the tree! Peaches and apricots are my fondest memory of golf courses in the Okanagan! That area is by far my most favourite place in Canada and the US!

Oh my! My grandpa had a partnership in a golf course and owned a golf cart company. He got to do his dream job, a Scot going from one golf course to another…one was Pebble Beach.I went to the course before I left and took pictures not knowing if I’d ever see it again. You should take pictures too. I’d like to see your favorite place.

Thanks Bonnie – your story reminds me of my childhood. I had horses and our pasture backed up to an apple orchard. The apples were so plentiful that hundreds would drop off into our pasture – WAY in the back by the fence line. Our horses would eat them up and we would find those that had recently fallen and were not crushed or black and eat those up. We would take rides to the back line and collect bags full of them and take back to the house.
Nothing like tree fresh fruit no matter what kind it is.
I miss those days too.
Luckily – the family who owns the orchard still owns the property and home there and the orchard is still going strong!
I just no longer have access to the apples. lol

Wish I had some of those apples too, for apple pie and spicy cinnamon applesauce and apple everything! (oh apple tart!)

Bonnie-What a story. Thank you so much for sharing. You brought me back to my childhood. I grew up in a town with mostly dirt roads and farms. They are now all housing developments and schools which makes me a bit sad. I must say, I relate things a bit more to peaches than apricots. Our area has a lot of peaches and a wide variety of them. There are these “doughnut peaches” here that are named that because they are short and fat in the shape of a doughnut. They only appear at farmer stands for 1-2 weeks at the beginning of the summer and 1-2 weeks at the end of the summer. They are super juicy and sweet and remind me of this tea. Apricots in our area are not as common. I have yet to have a great apricot but your story is making me want to seek one out. :)

I’ve seen the doughnut peaches. I lived further north up by Chico, California (2 hours north of Sacramento) in the 1990’s. They grow peaches, and kiwi’s there among other fruits.
My mother always canned Freestone peaches which I loved the best. Apricots are wonderful off the tree but what you get in the stores isn’t how they taste ripe and fresh. It reminds me of the difference between bag tea and loose leaf!

One day I will have to try a fresh picked apricot. :)

Thanks for this review Bonnie!
I have a sample (from Butiki, thanks Stacy) of Mi Xian Black that I’m planning on enjoying tomorrow morning probably. I love love love peaches & apricots, so much that I have one of each trees in my backyard (along with an apple, cherry, & a variety of berries). There is nothing like homegrown!

I look forward to hearing what you think Terri.

See, I found the same thing as you where the smell was dead on, but I had a hard time drinking my first cup because I found it uncomfortably peppery… Maybe I need to try it with sugar, like you did. Anyway – I’m sending nearly all of it to Kittenna. I’m curious how it’d do as a tea soda, though…

I think this would make a good tea soda. I think though I would make an iced tea concentrate out of it and then mix it with the soda. I will have to experiment a bit. I definitely think it tastes much better with sweetener.

does this taste like Canada mountain dew or US mountain dew? heh

I would say the Canadian mountain dew. But I haven’t had US mountain dew in a super long time, so it is hard to compare.

If there were no tea, I could live on Mtn Dew. That said, what is the difference between Canadian and US Dew?

There is a different source of sweetener in the Canadian vs US Mountain Dew. I always found the US version to be much sweeter. Also Canadian Mountain Dew is traditionally caffeine free, although you can now get it with caffeine I think. I always found the US Version to have more “kick” or “jolt”, if that makes sense.

i like to boil it down to. US version tastes gross and the canadian version is nice ;) canadian = more lemon/lime US = caffeine gross tasting blech

haha

Crazy! I had no idea there was a difference!

cavo..oh yeah. mountain dew was? is? at one point the most caffienated of all the pops in the us. canada it’s always (until now apparently) been caffeine free

I had no idea about mountain dew differences either – interesting!

Orange Crush is high on the caffeine scale as well. No caffeine in Canadian MD? That’s just wrong. ;) Sil, everyone is entitled to an opinion – even when you are wrong. lol

It’s funny because orange crush (and the other crush’s), Mountain Dew, root beer, gingerale, and I am sure a few others, are traditionally caffeine free in Canada. Not sure why the difference. We also have ketchup chips. Ha ha.

If you just google Canadian vs US pop (or soda) there is some interesting info.

Orange crush is high in caffeine in the US?! So different! I’ll have to Google it out of curiosity sake.
Smiles, and I just happen to have ketchup chips on the table in front of me right now.. not than I am eating them.. :-)

Here is a link I found for US caffeine content. http://www.cspinet.org/new/cafchart.htm

oh man..now i want ketchup chips…

Thanks, KS – interesting the amounts of caffeine in some things.
Sil, I know, I keep looking at the bag of chips… ;-)

Mountain Dew now has caffeine in Canada! I think it’s only certain kinds though. “The new Mountain Dew will feature a proprietary bottle, fully embossed with the Dew logo and both Mountain Dew and Diet Mountain Dew now contain caffeine while still having the same bold, great taste. The caffeine content is in line with the standards outlined by Health Canada.”

http://www.pepsico.ca/en/PressRelease/Mountain-Dew-brings-the-mountain-to-you-Toronto03022012.html

Mmmm, ketchup chips. I have ketchup popcorn flavouring at home, so when I get home from work that’ll have to do…

Wow, I didn’t know they were starting to make MD with caffeine it, I will have to check the ones I have at home. Hope it still tastes the same.

I should get some popcorn flavouring. I never knew it came in such flavours as ketchup though!

“…just butter it!….”

Dill Pickle chips as well. I think I need to stop for “groceries” on the way home!

better than dill pickle chips are regular ruffles chips with creamcheese dill pickle dip.

Hmmm….

it’s like the guilty pleasure here in the house…Ian noms it all before i can ever get some most of the time haha

OH man, I am totally craving some of that right now. I… I don’t even know where my nearest convenience store is. We have an Iranian market down the street, but they don’t have chips.

chuckles You always make your reviews so entertaining! _

Thanks so much! I figure I can at least try to make up for my lack of tea knowledge with mild amusement. I’m glad people are enjoying them.

Hah, excellent! I inadvertently reviewed this today before I saw this post. I wish it had more pumpkin flavor to it :(

It’s always nice when my thoughts converge with someone else’s. Makes me feel like I’m not just talking out of my ass. [Though I often am.]

Late to the party it would seem. But this review is made of timeless win.

Oh my goodness. So much retro love. Thanks everyone!

@Angrboda That I have created anything that could remotely be considered timeless makes me giggle like a little schoolgirl.

A+++++ would LOL again!

What Shanti said. What a great read! =)

I vote for “more often” (since you just admitted loving it) : )

: ) I think that I might have to. Thanks for the vote!

Keep skating. If you stop you’ll end up like the rest of us. We bundle trips to the bathroom with trips to the fridge because its too far to walk if done separately.

K S you made me laugh out loud… OK, I will keep up the skating and try to avoid your handy suggestion of wasting fewer calories by economizing footsteps… : )

Shhhhh K S … don’t scare her about getting old
That made me lol too.

Preach on, K S … Unlike Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory, holding still and muttering, “I am the master of my own bladder” does not work.

Oh wow.. Sheldon… the little Spock episode had m crying it was so funny. And they drink a lot of tea. Not good tea but it is tea.

Bahaha, just watched the little Spock episode. Love that show!

K S – also highly amused at your earlier comment :D

I understand your pain! I trained for the Olympics as a shot putter when I was young (16-27 even after having kids). Had an injury that put me out. When I was in my late 30’s early 40’s I coached guys and girls highschool weights and throwing and as a coach you demo…ha, ha, ha…what a show off I was…till I could not lift my arms above my waist! Stupid me! Sore and feeling really bad! Now I can’t do any weight exercise because of the fibromyalgia and I used to bench press 250 lbs.! Humbleing! (You never know what old people used to do when you look at them do you!)

Oh man, I feel your pain… when I did squats for the first time (properly that is) a few weeks ago, I thought I was going to permanently walk like a penguin! so sore…
So I second everyone else, continue skating! keep up with the things that bring you joy :)

I was just reading some of the comments to my wife. She called us dorks… Is that a bad thing?

I’m proud to be a dork! :P

Hahaha… K S, as far as I know being a tea dork is a good thing! ; ) Please do thank your wife for the complement! : D Tea Dorks join forces! I agree with Indigobloom, I am also proud to be a dork!

Bonnie- Wow… That’s amazing! I know how much a sport is missed… I won nationals (Ecuador Nationals that is…) quite a few years ago, but then had to quit because I had hairline fractures in both of my legs and it got to the point where it hurt all the time. I will always miss it at a competitive level… My Grandma also is an amazing woman, being older by no means equates to being older or untalented!

YES!!! Dorks unite!! :P

You poeple are just wonderful! Love all your comments :)

I’ll throw my hat into this ring (as a dork, that is)!

Ninavampi, I know exactly what you’re talking about! I love horseback riding but hadn’t ridden in a while. I stupidly went out for a 5 hour trail ride and then woke up the next day and was surprised that I didn’t feel bad. So, I went riding again. The next day, I literally could not walk. At all. For an entire week. I’m not joking! I had to crawl around and call out of work. Stupid stupid me. Hahaha! So yeah, don’t wait too long between skating and definitely don’t skate 2 days in a row if it’s been a while. ;)

Thanks for the excellent advice… I believe I have learned my lesson!

A lake AND mountain view? ooh I am looking forward to your shot!

Did she pick up anything good on sale?

if you name your cane, then will it come back when you call it? :D

I love naming inanimate objects – my car is named Gretta, and I named a car generator thingy my husband got me, Sam (because he’s helpful like Sam Axe on Burn Notice). :) Good review too!

Yea for naming inanimate objects! (And, in my case, anthropomorphizing them…) I named my wok Fozzie just so I can say “wocka wocka!” and chuckle every time I start cooking. =]

I bet she has great taste! She must, if she hangs out at Happy Luckys ;)

She folds into three pieces and then voila, springs back solid which puzzles and delights small children.

I am also a namer of things & plants : )

I’ve decided you should name her “Wanda”… because she’s a magic wandA and also, she likes to wandar. Whatcha think?

Ha! I love Wanda for those reasons, @fleurdelily. Dora (the Explorer) might work, too. :D

Ya’ll is SICK! Funny though! She’s my Schtick. I’m not a Wanda, Dora maybe, she’s more of a tea bar fly kinda gal…a tea lush like her owner.

Dora Wanda Schtick it is then! :)

Oh, a farm where no one eats the animals makes me happy :-) and I’m glad you liked this one, I thought my sample was amazeballs too!!!

Oh, a happy animal farm sounds like absolute heaven!

You guys can come visit my farm utopia! And in the meantime you can drink this and picture it!! :)

Happy animal farm! Of Happiness! I’m HOME where ALL he good tea is and I got a Mandala box and a Whispering Pines box and my day just got a whole lot better. There is a big fat cake of 2009 Mengku Jade Dew Raw 400g in there too – so WOOT!

I missed my other two teaplets. If I can scrounge up ANY energy at all – I’m gonna sheng.

If I ever begin a tea farm with animals, I will be calling it the Happy Animal and Tea Farm. Of Happiness!

So glad you made it home and that you had some lovely surprises waiting! Missed you!!!!

How much do you love this Jade Dew?? I <3 it hard. My Happy Animals are going batshit because mama’s home!

Why does Steepster hate me? It keeps eating my syllables.

I knew what ya meant. And I love this so very much. It’s deeeelish! And I was all happy sniffing and drinking it!

Yah me too, got 2 cakes of this, insane I know but Mandala did an awesome job aging this.

LOL, Sarsonator, you’re going to have a total sheng over from all the shenging you did today

Never!!!! I may be tea drunk, but I can never have too much sheng, or a sheng over :p

I love the way Mandala cares for these babies too Cwyn. It is a bigass cake too. Will make me happy for a long time

I’m buying more to keep for later :)

Best hurry – my not from Garret says there isn’t much left.

note

Well poo.

I think 4 cakes. I bought some more Wild Mountain Green too but I love that one so very much. And some kinds I haven’t tried before. You will be getting some of those too in your box.

And that’s “pu.”

I have one of these I need to get out again soon.

Good idea, mrm. It has the Chairman Meow seal of approval!

Where did you buy this tea?

Saw in earlier chat you got it from Mandala. I ordered one.

Sweet

Chairman Meow wasn’t born when I got this one.

Cracks me up every time I read that kitty name.

Props to you Bonnie!

Thanks Azz

You are most welcome! The world deserves you! xox

Wish I was there and I wish I had somewhere like Happy Lucky’s!

The reason I always write about my tea pub is 1. I like it and 2. I think people should look for one…really hunt them down around where they live. Or start something.

Such a nice story! I love that you set up a tea time after Church. A great opportunity for people to experience new tea, in a whole new way! :)

I’m working on some recipe idea’s with this tea for the holidays…

Good stories as always :) and same as Mrnixonpants the more i read your story the more i wish i had a Happy Lucky’s near where i live who know maybe starting one some day after a couple more year of practice with tea :P

Zoltar, I hope more people DO start places to share tea! Walking into a tea shop where tea is sold but you can’t sit and drink tea isn’t the same thing. Having knowledgeable, well paid servers who see their work as a career is key I think too.

I’m definitely going to try some sort of recipe with this tea! We should swap recipes when the experimenting is done, perhaps ;)
(if mine turns out that is – there’s always risk when it comes to experiments! That’s the fun!)

I’m not going to squeek any more details to you daisychubb…we should see what we come up with. I have 3 ideas now. All VERY different for the coming Holidays!!!!

What a good idea! Okay, they shall be secret surprises :3

Happy bday I sure hope you get feeling better. Take your time but can’t wait to see your gifties!

Happy Birthday! You know, my husband always looks at me weird when I comment about drinking tea out of plastic or paper cups. I tell him that it affects the flavor of the tea and he just looks at me like I’ve lost my mind.

Oh… and I hope the migraine goes away soon. I hate them. I am glad that I do not get them as often as I used to. I think that the increase of tea consumption has helped! :)

Happy birthday! Glad your party was a success, nice recruiting work! Feel better soon and enjoy your gifts!

Happy bday! I sometimes get headaches from parties. I suspect that it’s all the stimuli. Feel better!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY (and make sure you have caffeine for the migraine!) did you by any chance have a bunch of chocolate?
That could set you off…although with migraine people it can be anything…weather, lights, candles, crowds…yuck…
celebrate anyway!

Happy Birthday to you!!!

Happy birthday!! Hope you’re feeling better soon!

Happy happy birthday! & hope you’re feeling better <3

WOOT! I’m so glad this went off well. Happy Birthday!

Thanks everyone! I think what set me off was a mix of the humidity, work stress, having our first guests over and dehydration! haha today is much better, and I’m enjoying many cups of tea to combat the next one!

Happy belated birthday :)

Happy Birthday!

Happy belated birthday, Daisy!

Happy belated Birthday!

Happy belated birthday! Hopefully you feel better today and celebrated with some birthday tea!

Thanks you guys! You’re the best :D

Actually, I had planned to spice it up a bunch but after tasting it this way, I just couldn’t do it. The base definitely adds to the buttery-ness.

Nice, looking forward to trying this

Just put in a Butiki order. Will have to wait until next time, but sounds really good.

there are a few new butiki teas coming out so we’ve got lots to be able to have in new orders!

Sil – I think you will love this whether or not you hate eggnog. I can definitely get the eggnog reference, but you could definitely also take this as a vanilla custard tea, or somesuch. And it’s blended amazingly. The base was a perfect choice.

Also, yeah. I will likely buy an ounce or two or this plus all the other new holiday teas once they are out…. siiiiigh! Probably a bit more of the Maple Pecan Oolong as well…

Also Stacy – I re-read your tasting note and noticed that you had mentioned opting not to super spice it all up! So I retract my comment about being disappointed about the lack of spicing (it really is quite fabulous as is) and instead will endeavour to make it a bit more eggnoggy with spicing myself, just out of curiousity’s sake. It would be a shame to cover the delicious creaminess though.

Sounds great. I’ve never tried any Butiki teas but it seems I’ll have to correct that in the new year!

I highly recommend doing so!

Cavocorax dooooo it! sooo tasty!

Also Kittena – I’ll be placing an order to pick up at the very least, this and the plum pudding one stacy’s working on. We should coordinate later :)

Totally agree! No way I can hit $75 on my own again for a while, but I’m going to want a bunch of the new stuff. Since we have to meet up in January due to Kally Teas & Verdant anyways, we may as well place joint orders until then, haha.

i rarely hit 75 – i just pay for the shipping since it’s damn reasonable from stacy compared to other companies coughthepersimmontreecough

Oh, it’s reasonable. I just like to avoid paying shipping if I can :D

ohhhhh dear, I feel my resolve slipping! I wanna try this sooo badly, but I have so much to drink down first. Ack!

Aww, too bad about the watered down latte. Makes me wonder if he even drinks them himself.

AWESOME! wave as you fly over me! and you just let me know when you replace your carry mug LOL

fjel, I wondered the same thing! because who in their right mind would enjoy a watery latte ever? I mean, there’s only one right wayto have it: creamy and milky! mmm

And sil, keep an eye out for me around noon tomorrow! I’ll be in an adoreable little porter airplane haha.

And yup, I know where to go when I need to…ummm…recycle my mug. heh!!

your weekend sounds awesome! Have fun!

Yay for the carry mug!

Have a great trip!

Glad to see you mention that you got your mug. I saw your post earlier today and wondered what you did. :).

Have an awesome weekend!

Thanks guys! And yeah, super excited about my carry mug!

Have a fun weekend!!!

Have a great time this weekend!

I want to come, too! PACK ME PLEASE PLEASE.

Oh wow, that sounds like FUN!

Have an amazing trip! :)

Thanks guys! the trip was kind of lackluster, although fitting anna in with all her lupicia melon oolong would have helped! hahaha!

You did not PACK ME. I was NOT PACKED. I have sads.

But you also (presumably) have melon oolong. Which cures pretty much everything, as far as I’m concerned. So no more sads! (besides, you would have hated this place. It was very not-anna-like)

Aww. That’s disappointing your vacation wasn’t all you hoped for. :(

It is, although to be honest, I should have known better. I seem to be one of those people who need a lot of recharge time, and this didn’t allow me to have as much as I needed, hence the wind it took out of me and the subsequent 15 hour “nap” I took once I got home. LOL.

:D That is totally my kind of nap. I did something similar when my Gramma took me and my brother to Mexico a few years ago. I was so wiped from everything we did I just slept and slept and slept. :)

Aw. You clearly deserve more melon oolong! And, you know, if a place is not-anna-like, upping the loincloth-clad grape-feeder staff ratio really is a small fix.

Have you ever taken one of those introvert/extrovert self tests? (Myers-Briggs, for instance.) I’m hugely sociable, but a solid introvert, so too much people interaction drains me. I remember when I was a kid, and went to birthday parties – I was always sick for like a week afterwards, because the interaction part took so much out of me. I loved it, but it really exhausted me.

Yes to the tests. I think I have a foot planted firmly in each world, although if we’re going with the question: do you recharge with people or on your own? my answer is firmly in the “on my own” camp. I get drained very, very quickly by social interactions, despite excelling in most social settings.

ditto! i think we should all have a party at my place. everyone gets their own room to relax in and we can meet up for 30 mins every 2 hours in the kitchen haha

LOL. Sil, you are a perfect person.

Indeed she is!!

That sounds like my kind of party! (In the kitchen for tea, right?)

The way you spell “miaow” is adorable :)

I enjoyed sharing morning GO with you. I’m seasoning another VD pot RIGHT NOW and I’m also adding my big fat vanilla bean.

MJ, in Denmark the cows say “miav”

Cats!

The cows say “muh”

Cute mug!

“Miav” and “muh”, that’s hilarious Mazipan!

http://d3dsacqprgcsqh.cloudfront.net/photo/3968718_700b.jpg ;-)

Mj, that’s the “fairy way” :-)

Haha! Marzi, that WAS funny!!

Tealizzy, thank you :-)

Brenden, I always wondered if french cats wore a beret… now I know!!!

Cute mug. I can’t wait to try this tea. It’ll happen one of these days.

MzPriss, I love that you’re adding a vanilla bean for seasoning your pot. Great idea!

Missy…I ALWAYS enjoy sharing with you…and ALWAYS will <3

Which other pot did you end up choosing for it?

French cats are apparently also existential: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q34z5dCmC4M

mj, that’s awesome. Thanks for sharing.

I’m going to use my slightly bigger one with an awesome pour. It’s in one of the pics on my flickr or tumbler or one of those things. It’s the same Eternal Beauty shape but it’s the darkest, biggest one.

@Cheri – that was Brenden’s idea (like a lot of the good ideas are). It’s gonna be amazing. Cheri, didn’t I offer to send you something? I’m packing boxes now so remind me what it was?

Love the French cat video. Thanks mj.

OH wait! It’s GO right??? I will PM

Aawww poor kitty – no one loves the poor French kitty… I think that’s how Max feels most of the time…

This is what it’s like to be married to someone with a different mother tongue than you. You spend lots of time lazing around going, “What do you call Tigger? What do cows say? What do you call Canada?” (Tigger is “Tiger Animal”)

Thanks MzPriss. It might have been GO. I can’t remember for sure anymore. Hahhaha! But you’re right about Brenden and his good ideas. I look forward to hearing how the pot turns out.

woow gd

Happy 300! I love this one too

Congrat’s on 300!

This sounded too good. I’m having some right now in my cute new green mug

OH! And I’m having cherries in my smoothie this morning :D

Oh! Me too then…with almond milk and chia seeds. Mmmm, cherries. Me and my Steepster friend Dexter (not talking about my dog here!!!) are legendary cherry lovers. Happy to have found another cherry nut :-)

Mine has chia seeds as well because <3. I use half organic kefir and half locally made organic yogurt, cherries, chia and some whey protein. It’s cherry-y and tangy and mmmm-y

Whoa – half my comment disappeared. What I said was: mine has half kefir/half yogurt, cherries, chia and some whey protein.

Thanks loosTman :-)

Yours is a meal!! I don’t “eat” breakfast weekdays but have green smoothies with way too many ingredients to list here, lol. But I’m planning to have oatmeal and apples and berries later so I must keep the smoothie a smoothie!

WOOHOOO! grats on 300!

Mine IS a meal. It’s what I have for breakfast weekday mornings. Tomorrow morning I’m making cornmeal pancakes with peaches and cottage cheese. And probably a little bacon.

I love chia and almond milk smoothies! I use soy yogurt, rolled oats and fruit in mine. I also always add a handful of spinach to get some veggies. Can’t even taste it!!!

I do sometimes put a handful of baby spinach in – you’re right, you can’t taste it. I also do like some oats in on occasion.

I use flax seeds sometimes, too. You guys are making me want cherries. I found some wild cherries when hiking last week, but the trees were too tall for any kind of real harvest. So sad!

Thanks Sil :-)

Sarsonator, I add oat too most of the time, isn’t it great? I started making green smoothies about 3 years ago. I remember how everything tasted weird at the beginning. I now use a ratio of about 2/3 veggies 1/3 fruits. Kale, spinach, carrot, celery, beets, cucumber, anything goes, and I LOVE how it tastes. The boost of energy that follows is unbeatable.

I love the green juice with kale and spinach and celery and parsley – I can feel my cells just sucking it up and smiling

I make green smoothies, too! I normally do fruits, almond milk, soygurt, oats, chia in the AM, and then veggies/fruits for lunch. I love carrots and apples with spinach and kale!

Congrats on 300!!!

Congrats on 300! And this is a fireworks tea for me, too. :)

Congrats on 300!! :D :D

Great idea :)
Congrats on 300!!

I hate when that happens

sounds incredible! what would you say it tastes like…if you could compare it to any flavor or tea? is this a flavored black, or a straight black with cream bits thrown in? or does it just have an inherently creamy quality sans additions? any notes you’re picking up on, like caramel or vanilla? from the way you describe this tea, somehow i’m picturing a dark, rich liquor.

It’s a flavoured black, no bits in there. It’s like Irish cream….so creamier…more like vanilla than caramel but it’s not vanilla….heh

thanks for your clarification! sounds delicious, added this one to my shopping list!

just poke me sometime mid February and i can send some your way if you like. saves you an order in case you don’t like it :)

I’d love to give this a try as well :)

[sheepishly adds to shopping list]

lol 5$ says you try it and wonder what crack i was smoking when i drank it :)

Dangit Sil, you made me snort tea out my nose!

puhlease..like that’s hard.

[looks down into the mug]

shush…

AHAHA! Ceylon Star, I love what you’ve put in your bio. :)

This has gotta be good, and something I can’t screw up…since I suck at making matcha.

Srsly? YOU, of all people, are judging me? Hahahaha!

Thanks Sil, you are too kind.. I’ll be sure to poke u in February ;p let me know if there’s anything in my cupboard you’d like to try, tho it’s hardly exciting!

pyarkaaloo – you’d be surprised at what i can find to tantalise my taste buds from ppl’s cupboards…i’m trying to taste ALL THE TEAS after all haha

that’s right!

Not judging, Ceylon Star! I think it’s awesome! And the icon too. :)