1598 Tasting Notes
So Dexter3657 drank this yesterday and got me thinking about it, and since they don’t need me at work today it is TOTALLY the right choice to drink this one today while I can enjoy it. (Aside from the sick hubby and toddler who need attention. :P)
I’m taking a Special Dark break!
The first time I had this I followed the instructions and steeped it for 30 seconds, but this time I went right for 4. Maybe next time I will go for 8. I didn’t realize this one couldn’t be oversteeped but you can’t blame me for being hesitant! If I did this to one of my favourite blacks it would likely be too bitter and strong at the end.
This, on the other hand, at 4 minutes is quite rich and dark. And yes, very chocolatey. I almost want to rip open my 85% emergency-use-only chocolate bar just to compare the different types of chocolate, but I’d better save that for an emotional pick-me-up. This cuppa has made me happy enough already!
Yes. This is complete proof that Puerh ISN’T something to be afraid of! I can do it! I can enjoy it! Also, this makes me want to put in an order at Mandala to see what else they can do with Puerh!
Flavors: Cocoa, Earth
Preparation
Backlog: So, it figures I’m the only one to rate this one and I was sorta distracted while I drank it. I remember it was spearmint and orange, as was promised in the description, and that I liked it.
Not much else though. Sorry. That’s the hazards of drinking tea at work I suppose.
I’ll pass the rest to Sil and you can see what she thinks!
Hmmmm. I just can’t go wrong with this one!
And I felt better after my sore throat tea, so this was my celebratory tea! :D
It might be wasteful having it so late at night when I won’t be able to resteep it, but dangit, my tea is meant to be enjoyed! I can’t treat it all like some rare precious thing or I will die without drinking any or finding the ‘perfect time’.
(And that’s the end of that weirdo rant)
This is my 2nd oldest tea, right after Tetley’s Orange Pekoe. I hate having to drink it, but it feels like my throat is so constricted right now that I don’t want to drink anything. So maybe this will help me out.
And ugh. Really? I can’t believe I’m sick again! I think I had 1 week where I was fine, and in that weekk my daughter and husband got sick.. Now it’s back to me and the whole house is fairly miserable Except the kiddo – she’s pretty much over it.
But seriously. You guys must be sick of saying, “Get well Cavo”! :P I’m sick of needing to drink this tea.
So here’s the deal: I’ll finish this tea off in the next day or so, and then I won’t get sick again this year!!!! Bwahahaha.
Preparation
Oh geez, you’ve been on that merry-go-round for quite a while, it seems. I really do hope you get well soon, and it won’t be too serious of a cold/flu this time.
Sounds like a plan! Hopefully this one is a short one.
Hope so! I already feel better after that cup so I’m back to the good teas!
Heh. Get well, Cavo! :)
Thanks guys. :D I’m hoping tomorrow I’ll be back to normal.
AND STAY THAT WAY!!!
This is another sipdown (145), and I think this is the first time I’ve reviewed it. I know what that means – I couldn’t make it work and didn’t want to review it until I did.
And today my throat is so sore/swollen that I probably couldn’t even tell if I HAD made it work. Oh well. There are plenty of Butiki teas that I love!
And I’ve got a few more coming through from Shadowfall – my package just hit Canadian Customs. I hope hope hope (!) that I get it by Friday!
This was a mixed-up Monday steeping, which means that I didn’t put enough water into my timolino and the steeping basket wasn’t fully submerged so I ended up with barely flavoured warm water.
Ah, crap.
Sipdown too! (146)
Bleh, but yay for the sipdown. :)
It’s good to know that it happens to others. Most of the time it happens to me when I am out at a restaurant (even when I bring my own teabags) because you can’t control temp. When I use my Teavana tumbler, which is very similar to the Timolino, I tend to over steep and get bitter tea. Oh well!
Try steeping upside down in the timolino. Makes sure you get a lot of water-leaf contact. That, or get the mason jar ;)
That’s a really good suggestion! Thanks
And the mason jar is cool but I’m still OMG-25 oz of tea. I feel like 16 is too much sometimes!
Then again, I don’t have to fill it…
And this was another sipdown (149) I finished off earlier today, after being happy with how Boston worked out.
This was a letdown-sipdown. There was no lovely hazelnut chocolate to this. It was just…. dusty? IDK. Not good. It might have been age I suppose. I originally bought this in April. Perhaps it just got stale?
Believe it or not, I bought 7 oz of this in August. On a whim. It was on sale, so that made it ok?
This is a good tea. I don’t know that it was 7 oz of hoarding good. But I am down to just a few servings of this after this cuppa! YEAH!
Preparation
Holy crap, I didn’t think you would be that close to finishing it already. Didn’t you also buy it for swaps?
I’ve yet to purchase that much of one tea in one go haha.
7 oz?! That’s impressive.
I sorta had huge cups of it everyday for a few weeks. :P
And I barely swapped any of it away. So much for that plan!
Now to get through the 7oz of Ceylon Star that I also bought on impulse a few months afterwards.
Wowwww. That’s a lot!
Yeah.! Sil made fun of me for a long time for buying it, but it was $12 or something and my brainjust went OMG SALE! I didn’t realize it was 7 oz until I got home. :D
WOOHOO! That’s awesome. :)
I would LOVE to have 7 oz of this stuff! I love it! Even my two year old is nuts for it. He bugs me for sips every time he sees me drinking it lol. A mini tea connoisseur in the making :) . I’m enjoying a nice big mug of it as I type this and I would never swap this either, it’s just too good! I really hope I can find this in bulk because it will be a staple for sure!
Keep an eye out on DavidsTea’s web specials page! You might be able to grab it there. They change the selection every so often.
:D Love this one
Crazy right? But it totally works, and it’s yummy.
I placed a Mandala order this morning…. Garret is so nice, and the teas are amazing. I already have shipping confirmation with tracking number. Can’t beat the customer service. :))
That’s pretty awesome. Shipping is generally around $10 too, right? Maybe at the beginning of March I’ll be able to place an order! (Unless they have a sale which lets me break any resistance I have! :P)
And my second steep of this at 10 minutes is pretty awesome too. I was going to drink Laoshan Black today but now I don’t want to….
They charge actual shipping cost. I order A LOT today. I ordered 9 oz of tea, plus 2 × 100g pu’erh cakes, plus 6 oz of their tea soak stain remover. So that’s 15 oz + 200g of product and shipping was about $15.00. I’ve placed smaller orders with shipping in the 10-12.00 range, and I once ordered tea and a yixing teapot and it was 17.00. It depends on what you order. It’s a bit expensive if you consider lots of places do free shipping over 50.00 etc. BUT there are lots of US companies that try to charge us 30-35.00 for a couple of oz of tea. I consider Mandala “medium” when it comes to shipping costs, but the tea is AMAZING. I’ve ordered a few times and will continue to do so….
Wow I wish I had your tea budget, Dex! :D Can’t wait to read all your Mandala reviews!
Cavo…also it’s 5$ through sharon for shipping….just saying
LOL Sil – keep encouraging….
Stephanie – I think I’m doing good – 175.00 ish since Cyber Monday and the vast majority of that was Mandala today. Less than 200 in two months… not bad – for me at least :))
Sil – lemme know next time you want an order!
cavo – march sounds good to me unless you need it earlier lol that will give me time to sip some down OR you can come shop at my house for samples so you can narrow your choices down haha
March works for me too!