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Mastress Alita’s Sipdown Challenge – “A tea from a US company”

One of three teas I impulse bought from Asheville Tea Co. a couple of years ago, and the only one left in my cupboard. For some reason I thought this was a tisane, but it’s actually a white tea. Good thing I’m not sensitive to caffeine, heh.

This tea is right up my alley. I always love evergreen flavors in tea, and this adds mint and wintergreen to the mix as well. The resulting flavor is soft and refreshing, and really transports me to a winter forest. I mostly taste mint, wintergreen, and the white tea up front, and then the fir sidles its way in at the end of the sip for a lingering fresh aftertaste.

I will say I wish everything were a bit stronger, and I’m not sure how much the white tea is adding here. I feel like this could have easily been an herbal tisane, and focused on all those minty fresh ingredients. But it’s still a lovely, evocative tea as-is, and I’ll have to think about whether I want to reorder it this winter. These Asheville Tea Co. teas tend to be pricey, but this is also a very lightweight tea, which means more volume for the same weight…

Flavors: Earthy, Evergreen, Fir, Hay, Mint, Peppermint, Smooth, Sweet, Wintergreen

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 3 min, 0 sec 3 tsp 16 OZ / 473 ML
Kelmishka

This sounds really nice!

Cameron B.

Lovely, if perhaps a bit too light. :)

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Comments

Kelmishka

This sounds really nice!

Cameron B.

Lovely, if perhaps a bit too light. :)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

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Bio

Hi, I’m Cameron!

I’m a 30-something software engineer currently living in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two pugs, Gobo and Ume. I tend to cycle between my different hobbies, and they include piano, knitting, video games, board games, miniature painting, planners, bento, Korean skincare, and – of course – TEA! But really, what I’m best at is “collecting” hobby-related things… ;)

~ 2025 SIPDOWN CHALLENGE! ~
- February sipdowns: 5
- Total 2025 sipdowns: 39

I prefer my tea lukewarm or at room temperature and without milk or sugar. I steep Western style, and fluctuate between using big mugs or small teapots depending on the season.

I am always up for a swap! Just let me know if you’d like to try something in my cupboard.

Tea Preferences:
I enjoy both flavored and unflavored teas in many forms. These days, I drink mostly flavored teas, and I tend to gravitate most toward black, green, oolong, and herbal varieties. I do have a special fondness for straight Japanese green teas, however.

I do not sweeten my teas, and pre-sweetened teas are usually too sweet for me. I also do not enjoy stevia (or monkfruit, etc.).

I tend to reach for fruitier flavors rather than desserty ones these days, but I do have favorites from both categories. Willing to try anything once! There are a few ingredients/flavors that aren’t generally my jam, such as coconut, rose, lavender, and chocolate flavoring. But I also have teas that I love with some of those things, too! :)

Favorite Companies:
3 Leaf
Bird & Blend
Dammann Frères
Harney & Sons
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms
Lupicia
Old Barrel Tea Co
Simpson & Vail
Taiwan Tea Crafts
TeaVivre

Tea Rating Scale:
90-100: Outstanding! Permanent cupboard resident
80-89: Great – a possible staple
70-79: Good, but I wouldn’t buy it
60-69: It’s decent
50-59: Meh… I may or may not have finished the cup
40-49: Ick. Couldn’t finish it.
00-39: Repulsive, I spat it out

I will sometimes refrain from rating a tea if I feel I’m too biased due to my personal dislikes, or if I suspect the sample has been compromised by age or scent contamination.

Cupboard Spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZEuKf1-ppR-VXajO4vV39zU1N3zjFJteEPAynqD2yl0/edit?usp=sharing

Location

Austin, Texas

Website

https://www.instagram.com/tea...

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