This morning I felt like giving myself a treat, so I decided to depart from my morning habit of attempting to drink up some of my starter teas before my tastebuds are fully awake and drink something new and likely to be quite nice. So I reached into my box ’o goodies from the French buying co-op that Doulton organized and picked this out.
The name of this one is so romantic. Makes me think of sidewalk cafes; lofts on the West Bank; misunderstood, tortured souls bursting with angst. In other words, being in my 20s and an American in Paris. ;-) Or maybe Rimbaud and Verlaine.
All of the flavored Dammann Freres teas smell divine when you open them up. Like walking into a pastry shop. They look rich and dark and beautiful. Steeped, this one smells like apples with a touch of cinnamon and caramel. There’s a lemony high note that seems ornamental rather than necessary to the substance, like a grace note.
What a nice way to start the day. Apple pie fans should like this one. It’s tea, but it’s also apple pie flavor, and the flavor emanates organically from the tea rather than feeling pasted on or dropped in. It’s not overly strong, nor is it too subtle. It’s mostly apple and cinnamon, but like the best apple pastries, it is well balanced between the two flavors.
I got this tea mostly so I could compare caramels. I’d thought I shouldn’t give up on caramel flavoring after my bad Necessiteas caramel apple experience so I decided to try a number of caramel flavored teas to get a sense of the possibilities. This isn’t really a caramel tea. The caramel is around the edges giving the flavor a depth, rather than a sweetness. But it is still a very nice apple pastry tea.
I had two cups, so I could stay in Paris just a little longer.
Preparation
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Ooh-ooh-ooh! This tea’s in the Shakespeare box and I’m dying to try it! I’m really trying to practice self control and hold off on this and a few others to spread out the ones I’m pretty sure I’ll love. We’ll see how long that’ll last ;)
I know, it’s hard. I have so many untasted teas that sound terrific, and a bunch of hangers on that I know would just start to gather dust if I didn’t keep up with the waste not want not program.
Ooh-ooh-ooh! This tea’s in the Shakespeare box and I’m dying to try it! I’m really trying to practice self control and hold off on this and a few others to spread out the ones I’m pretty sure I’ll love. We’ll see how long that’ll last ;)
I know, it’s hard. I have so many untasted teas that sound terrific, and a bunch of hangers on that I know would just start to gather dust if I didn’t keep up with the waste not want not program.