Me: sips tea Hm.. interesting. Pups, you like this?
Snuggles: sniffs thoroughly and gives a curious lick when offered a drop. Goes back to sleep
Cali: Sniffs twice and turns away. Gives a polite lick
Husband: Sniffs and makes a horrified face. Tries to give mug back
Me: Come on! The pups are braver than you! Man up!
Husband: Sips …didn’t I hear you flush a minute ago?
And that’s how my family reacted to this tea. :)
EDIT: For those who are interested, I made a marinade with soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, maple syrup, grated garlic, dad’s homemade hot chili sauce, and a strong brew of this tea.
Marinated some cubes of pressed tofu and shrimp for 5 hours or so. They were so very tasty. Smokey, sweet, spicy, savory, and totally awesome. I served this over some rice with sauteed cabbage. Drank a cup of this tea with my meal. Perfection.
As husband was going in for his second helping I said to him, “You know that tea you thought was disgusting earlier?”
“Uh huh?”
“I made this food with that tea.”
He mimed throwing up, and then ate the rest of his dinner. What a silly goose. :D
On another note, I went to make a pot of green tea with the same strainer I had used to make this tea. I noticed it smelled strongly of smoke, so I soak it for a few minutes in boiling water. Out of curiosity, I sipped on the liquid the basket was steeping in and it definitely tasted like smoke. Yeah… this stuff sticks!
