Gathering Berries

Getting to a few more 52teas in anticipation of my incoming order(s)!

This one, I recall being a favourite, although there was a surprising amount remaining. (Most favourites appear to be down to the final cup; this one was probably just misplaced for a while.) I didn’t really pay a ton of attention while drinking it, but definitely still enjoyed it. BIG fan of hojicha/white blends as the base tea, and Anne does berry flavourings quite well. I think the white tea is going off a touch though – it seems to do so in many blends, so I probably should finish this one off promptly.

I’m excited about this tea after reading the description – like picking wild berries on an autumn day, leaves all around. There are definitely berries present in the aroma. A bit of roastiness too.

I cold-brewed some of this last night and am sipping on it now. Very pleased with the result! The base tea offers a sweet, nutty, toasty flavor and it melds really nicely with the fruity notes of the berry flavors. I have a difficult time picking out the individual berry flavors but I didn’t really intend for them to stand out on their own – I wanted a mixed berry kind of taste and that’s what I’m getting.

Really good.

This week’s tea of the week! Your friend and mine – Liquid Proust – suggested to me some months ago to try blending Houjicha and Shou Mei together and I’ve gotta tell you – it’s genius! The combination creates a flavor that’s a little roasty-toasty but not quite as aggressively roasted as a straight Houjicha. The Shou Mei lightens the flavor just enough and adds some pleasant fruity notes to the toasted nutty flavor of the Houjicha. When I first tasted the two teas together (without flavoring or other components), I enjoyed the ‘foresty’ flavor of the blend. Immediately, my mind started entertaining ideas of what this flavors this flavor combination might work best with.

This is my first of a couple of ideas – Gathering Berries! To the base of Houjicha and Shou Mei, I added golden mulberries, elderberries, black currants and blueberries. And seriously though – the taste evokes thoughts of hiking through the woods just as the autumn leaves have begun to fall and gathering some of the last ripe berries that nature has to offer. (Just no nightlock, please!)

Yummy!

I didn’t blend a large quantity of this tea (why? Because the leaves are large and bulky and I can’t fit a lot of the tea in my blending vessels!) so after sending out all the subscriptions, I have very few of this tea left – so if you find yourself interested at all, you should grab some quickly while it’s here!