Appalachian Tea Send Message

Never has a tea been cuter and disappointed me more.

The Pu-erh is tucked down into the mandarin, just as advertised, and I was very pleased when I opened it. Then I smelled it…no hint of orange and it smelled very odd.

I had some friends over at the time and we all kept sniffing, trying to figure out what it reminded us of. Finally, someone hit on it: dirty hamster bedding. Kind of a cedar/must/mulch smell.

Well, I thought maybe it would taste better than it smelled, so I went ahead and brewed it.

Nope.

Re-brewed, just in case it got better.

Nope.

I suppose it’s a matter of taste, but stewed cedar is not a flavor I care for.