557 Tasting Notes
I was getting ready to brew up some of my Jasmine Silver Needle only to find that I must have used it all up already! I must remember to keep track of my teas better and to check how much is in the bag before I get ready to pour water in my pot.
So my eyes turn to my Dragonwell and it was exactly what I wanted. Buttery and grassy with a hint of astringency. Just the thing before I start to move on to my new round of sample teas from Teavivre. Have I mentioned how much I love that they let me sample different types of tea from them?
I have been craving chai, so I picked up a box of this when my mom and I went shopping this evening. Hot and plain, the scent is wonderfully cinnamon! It smelled like liquid Red Hot candies. Brewed up it didn’t taste like much.
So I did what any person familiar with chai would do, I put a splash of milk in it. The milk brings out the other flavors. The prominent flavor is actually a blend between the allspice and the nutmeg. Cinnamon is still the most aromatic.
This would be lovely in the cool winter mornings which is what I was hoping for. I’m not sure I would pick it up again so I am still on my quest for the perfect chai. It will make me very happy to drink it though.
Preparation
It is time for the last of this sample. There was a little bit more in the bag than I would normally put in, but it wasn’t enough for two french presses, so I poured in the rest of my sample bag.
Starting at two minutes and going to keep re-steep it until I kill it. So probably six steeps worth of tea. A very good choice for an afternoon tea.
Dad wasn’t feeling very good tonight so I made him a cup of white tea spiked with a bit of brandy. Wanting to join him, I made myself a cup of white tea spiked with jasmine.
Mom thinks it is funny when I play my handheld Harvest Moon while Dad is playing Harvest Moon Animal Parade on the Wii.
Wow, for the first time my basement room is warmer than the rest of the house and I don’t have the heat on that high. I went upstairs to make a cup of tea and ended up shivering. So this tea came out and I decided to brew it a little differently.
Since I like this best with milk in it, I put an extra teaspoon of tea in my french press and brewed it for an extra minute. Then I added a splash of vanilla almond milk. The chocolate is a little more prominent while the spices are downplayed. I think this would be best brewed double strong with milk and I’m going to use the rest of the remaining leaf for my next cup when I have it.
Not a bad chocolate chai once you figure out how you like to drink it.
I thought it would be a good way to wind down the day with my favorite jasmine white tea. I like this better than the green jasmine pearls because it isn’t as astringent as the pearls which means it goes better on its own.
I had a fun day today. My mom, dad, and fiancee took me out to The Gentle Arts yarn shop. They have a pair of plastic sheep when you first enter the store. One looks like it is eating a basket of yarn and the other is wearing a stylish hand knit hat. My mom took a picture of them to show me when they first went there and I got to see them in person today!
I also got to spin on four different spinning wheels! I discovered that I do really like spinning on a wheel and the style I like best is the double treadle wheel castle wheel. Yes, I did get to spin on a baby version of the traditional wheel that looks like the one is Sleeping Beauty. I also got a ball of red sock yarn and 4 oz of light brown alpaca to spin.
It was a fantastic surprise and I love that yarn store. Hopefully, I will be able to visit it again. Maybe next time they will show me how to work a loom!
A big mug of chocolate chai with milk with a pancake breakfast and a leftover 100 Grand bar from halloween. Birthday is starting out wonderfully!
I took my driver’s test today and passed! To celebrate, I made some of this tea for me and my fiancee. He gets the first steep and I get the second steep, then we will share the third steep and maybe the fourth steep if I feel like going that far with one tea today.
I have my driver’s test tomorrow and I was starting to feel nervous even though I just did wonderfully driving in heavy traffic. This tea to the rescue! I swear I taste something like grape in here. The juicy green grape type of grape and not the big black ones. Just wonderful and the jasmine calms me down instantly.
