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My tea of the afternoon. I made this pot a little sweeter than I usually do, and it tasted like dessert. I think I will be looking for an Earl Grey Creme with a little more sophistication than this one. It is good, and inexpensive, but I think I can find better.

My current breakfast tea of choice. I have a few others that I like in the morning, but this one is now the default. I had a small pot this morning with a piece of whole wheat bread, with peanut butter and local honey. Yum.

I can’t belive this is the first pot of this I have made in my new little green teapot. (I think the teapot needs a name! Maybe Sprout? Camellia?) The thought of drinking this all day by the time I resteep makes me so happy!

Tea of the afternoon. This is like my regular rose tea, but on rosey steroids! I like it! The tea base is very good, and the rose is definitely in the forefront of this tea. It is also very present in the aroma. In the other tea blend, the rose is more of a complement to the tea base, rather than the featured flavor. I definitely have a place for both in my cupboard!

24 oz. teapot, 4 actual tsp. tea, freshly boiled water, 4 minutes, lightly sweetened.

Backlog from yesterday…..

I fixed a to go mug of this to take to my son’s last baseball game of the season. Good tea, slightly sweet, and hot. It was a cold day. I think the high only got to about 65. Unfortunately, we lost the game 0-10. It was that kind of year with only one win. The good news, I think my son still had a good time and wants to play again next year. It is good to know his love of the sport does not depend on winning. He just loves the game.

A tin of tea purchased from the local Asian market. It is less than $4 for a half pound.

I decided to try this one as a cold brew iced tea. 8 perfect teaspoons (12 actual teaspoons) in a 40 oz pitcher, steeped overnight. I am thinking less tea next time. The tea is more smokey and earthy than I think I would like and probably just a little strong. It makes a great bold iced tea, and I don’t have to feel badly about using large amounts of it quickly. I watered it down a little and it is perfect!

Morning tea….. I survived my first day of no coffee yesterday. Now, I am not sure I will ever go back.

This is a nice bold Keemun that would stand up to milk well. I think I’ll add some to my second cup….

24 oz. teapot, 4 1/2 actual teaspoons tea, 4 minutes with freshly boiled water, lightly sweetened.

I was kind of shocked at how expensive a small amount of this worked out to be. I think I got just a little over a few ounces and it was $9. So much for an inexpensive trial. I guess when you are filling bags of bulk tea yourself, it is a good idea to check the weight on the scale they provide to avoid sticker shock at the checkout.

This one smells so sweet dry. I am not an avid drinker of this type of tea, and I do think I prefer jasmine in blends rather than mostly on its own. However, this tea is sweet enough to stand up all by itself with no additions. It was really pleasant and soothing.

Jumbo mug (16 oz), 2 teaspoons, water just before boiling (can’t wait for that variable kettle!), 3 minutes.

So I took a little adventure yesterday to seek out our local Asian market. I have to say it is the largest one I have ever seen. When we lived near Chicago, there was one I used to go to in the suburbs, and it was not nearly this big. I guess you could say I was curious, and I knew I could find a few of the Korean packaged noodles my college roomies introduced me to. I found the noodles (Neoguri and Chapagetti), and checked out the the bulk tea, and the packaged tea (I am sure I looked like I was lost!). In bulk, I bought this organic Keemun, a tin of Keemun for cold brewing (it was $3.69 for half a pound in a tin!), some Dragon Pearl Jasmine bulk, and Wild Mountain Green bulk. They did also have some packaged Russian teas, and a large selection of packaged tea. Most of the tea was in bags which kind of surprised me.

This tea is a fine basic Keemun. I am not sure I will buy it again as it seems kind of pricey for what it is. Good body, slightly smokey, and very smooth. (Knowing that it cost roughly the same per ounce as Golden Snail gives me pause, though.) I need to try a pot of the Keemun from the tin to see how it compares. I guess being organic is a plus. The leaves do look slightly longer than the Keemun in the tin, and I do see a little more dust in the tin, so they are probably different grades.

24 oz pot, 4 actual tsp tea, freshly boiled water, 3 minutes.

My first coffeeless morning (let’s hope, for my family’s sake, that I don’t get super crabby later)…so I turned to Mincing Lane. I don’t usually add milk to any tea, but this one seemed to be screaming for it this morning. The first cup was just lightly sweetened, and the Assam in the blend was just kicking my tastebuds. At that point, I was thinking it would not be on the reorder list. For the second mug when I added milk, the flavors mellowed out again, and I was happy. Hmmmm. Adding milk has me rethinking stronger morning tea…….

24 oz. pot, 4 1/2 actual teaspoons of tea, freshly boiled water, 5 minutes.