Terri HarpLady

I’ve arrived at the Argosy Casino in Alton, IL. I’m all set up to play & my harp is tuned up.
This was my driving tea: bold, bright, tart.

I’m getting ready to head out the door to play 2 gigs today. The first one is a brunch at the Argosy Casino in Alton, IL. It’s a bit of a drive & requires some tea!

This is like having German Chocolate cake for breakfast! What can I say, I’m a sucker for flavor!

Saturday Sample Sipdown #2

Thanks to Amanda for this sample. Not something I would buy, but it was ok.

My original review of it, written in character on International Talk Like a Pirate Day, is here:
http://steepster.com/Terri%20HarpLady/posts/130732#comments

Saturday Sample Sipdown #1

First off, thanks to Amanda (not to be confused with Momo) for this sample. When I first joined Steepster back in sept, she was one of the first people who offered to trade with me.

I love peaches, I love vanilla. Although there are no actual peach pieces in this, there was a little peach flavor. The tea base was weak, the vanilla was more prominent, but the most noticeable flavor was a buttery caramel taste. Not bad, but not particularly satisfying.

Tony placed his first tea order last week, & he included a tin of the English Breakfast for me, as he knows I love my breakfast tea. That was really sweet of him, he’s the most wonderful man I’ve ever known. (no, he’s not reading this, it’s actually true).

The tea is ok, but nothing to write home about. I’ll drink it when I’m at his house, but it’s not something I would buy.

But he’s still wonderful! I love my Man :D

Tea of the Month Club Reserve – February ’13

In the spirit of experimentation, & in an effort to use up some of the samples I have sitting around, I brewed this Laoshan black & another one that I got in a trade with Invader Zim in 2 separate gaiwans simultaneously. Zim gave me “Mr He’s finest 1st Spring Picking Laoshan Black.” I believe she got it in the Davids choice box, from ’12. SO….

The look: ’12 is a little darker, I think. ’13 is more curled up.
Aroma: Dry, they both share a chocolatey profile.
After steeping they both smelled roasty & chocolatey. ’12 smelled like a dark chocolate pudding. ’13 smelled chocolatey as well, but with a noticeable green bean aroma.
They both received a rinse, with 12 having a sweeter rinse water, & 13 a little beanier.

The first 3 steepings were at 10 sec each, then 1 minute, then 2 minutes. Throughout the steepings, they both tasted great, with 12 having a slightly roastier flavor & depth throughout, & 13 having a slightly vegetal green bean taste (that actually became more of a long bean taste) throughout. They were both sweet, chocolaty, and tasty. 13 had a very creamy texture, like silk soy creamer.

Both were sweet & tasty, although admittedly I probably prefered 12.

I have loved this tea since the first time I tried it. I’ve reviewed it countless times, so I’ll just say now, “I love this”.

I have so many awesome black teas to sample now, including Mr He’s first picking Laoshan Black (TOTM-R for Feb), & last year’s Mr He’s finest 1st Spring Picking Laoshan Black (given to me by Invader Zim in a trade, which she received in her David’s Choice box). So why am I drinking this? Because it’s awesome! Because I like to start the day with something wonderful. Not to say that those others won’t be wonderfully awesome too, but I have to establish a baseline somewhere, & this is it. Good morning everybody! :D

I think the high in St Louis today was 60 or maybe higher. We have all the windows open, airing out the house. It’s so nice! Tomorrow the high is suppose to be 32, LOL.

I’m heading out the door to play a valentine’s dinner gig, but if I wasn’t I’d be headed down the driveway on my Harley!

Oh, how I love thee
Let me count the ways
you’re like a wonderful chocolate croissant with a very thin veil of orange marmalade & a splash of rosewater…sigh…

Sadly, this is a sipdown. I have hoarded this tea long enough. It is time to let go, with a deep & devout hope that David will repeat this wonderful blend for those of us who have loved it.
Please…I beg you…

Damn, this IS GOOD!!!
Savory, peppery, malty awesomeness!
I’m on the 2nd steeping now. After the awkward moment of realizing I’d accidentally dumped this leaf in with the watermelon xylo leaf (F^@K!) & all the time it took to separate them, I OT’d a little, so the first cup was pretty strong. The main feature of that cup was the pepperiness & roasted barley, & the resulting jolt of caffeine has me feeling more energetic than I have in days! :)

For the resteep I dropped the strainer into a larger mug, & although it’s still quite bold, I do tend to like my teas that way, so we’re good. Now I’m getting more of the buttery toast flavors, with that smooth linen feel & a nice mouth watering tingle.

Now to select something for my bubble bath…hmmm…

Boy did I screw up!
I measured this out, then I thought I’d also measure out some Jin Jun Mai, but I accidentally put them in the same cup! ACKCKCK!
It’s all Theresa’s fault (nobody really likes her much). She distracted me with her endless list of “You have to do this today”, & "you need to (blah blah blah).
Luckily they look very different from one another. This one is beautiful sage with hot pink amaranth, the other is black & brown & smaller leaves. I meticulously picked them apart, & although there may be a pink flower in the Jin Jun Mei, no harm done.

Delicious & a sipdown!

I woke up reluctantly at 6:30 am (which is early for me).
Little Terri was talking about the new tattoo she wants.
Theresa (the office lady, business manager, bitch…oops, did I say that?) was talking about bills, taxes, & getting organized. That’s all she ever talks about.

I turned on Pandora’s “calm meditation” channel & did yoga. That’s the only way to get them to be quiet.

Laoshan Black, you are wonderful.
“Have I told you lately that I love you?”

Tony (my awesome man of 13 years) actually made his first tea order!
He’s been drinking London Tea Room’s ‘Jubilee’, which is an earl grey, for quite some time. He used to drink English breakfast, until he tried earl grey, & now that’s pretty much all he will drink. So he was at a coffeeshop & they had an earl from Ahmad tea, which he really enjoyed, so he ordered some. He knows I like breakfast blends so he ordered some of their English Breakfast for me (because he once heard me say, “There’s no point only ordering one tea. If you’re paying for shipping you might as well order 2 or 3”). I’ve never tried Ahmad teas, so there’s something to look forward to.

This tea came out of Traveling Tea Box ‘A’. I wanted something caffeine free for the evening, so I kept 2 bags. I double bagged it, & I’m glad because there really isn’t a lot there, flavor-wise. I also added stevia, & that helped. It’s ok, passable, & probably my last tea of the night.

This is one of the Verdant Tea of the Month Reserve selections for February! It is a beautiful hand crafted tea, sage green with streaks of tan, with the heady aroma of jasmine…aahhhhh!

Damp it smells of moss & key lime.

The first 2 steepings had me lying in the forest on a bed of moss. The flavor is lightly floral & vegetative, with what I can only describe as a mossy texture, & a lingering jasmine sweetness in the back of the throat.

3 & 4: mmmmmm, creamy & sweet, with a hint of astringency & a fuzzy tongue sensation. These were my favorite.

5 & 6: I steeped the hand-twisted tea in a glass gaiwan (even though it always gets ridiculously hot & burns my fingers) so that I could watch them unfold. At this point they are fully unraveled & beautiful. The tea from these steepings has a taste & mouth-feel of key lime (I actually compared it to one of the limes on my mini-tree), with a clear & bright sensation, a lingering bitterness on the tongue, & sweet jasmine in the back of the throat.

7 & 8: The lime & moss aromas are gone, now I just smell the jasmine in the wet leaf. The flavor is still bright, but the bitterness of lime peel is gone. Now I have a fine, clear jasmine tea.

This is a luxurious treat!

Finally! Something with a little substance!
I’ve been sipping through several steepings of this, gongfu style, & it’s quite pleasant. I swear, to me it has a peachy taste, undercurrents of chocolate, cinnamon, & a delightful roastiness.
Also, everything I said in my previous review of this tea still applies!

At 9am the city water guys came to the door to tell me they’d be turning my water off at 9:45 for 2 – 3 hours, so I jumped in the shower & got cleaned up. Then I realized I needed to hoard some water for my tea!! I filled every available jar, pitcher, measuring cup, etc. I also quickly washed the dished that were basking in the sink. And I filled a couple of buckets in the bathroom so the toilet could be flushed.

I haven’t really drank much tea so far today, as my guts are still a little out of sink from being sick. I tried Tazo’s Wild Sweet Orange, but it quickly became clear that THAT wasn’t going to work out (way too acidic, I don’t even like it on a good day). Down the drain.
I liquidated 2 apples in my vitamix…that was good.
I liquidated a carrot in my vitamix…also good.
I ate 1/2 an avocado & took a few sips of cultured kraut juice to get some healthy bacteria into my guts.
I think I deserve some tea now.
This tea is mild, which is not necessarily what I want, but it is what I need. There is a very small hint of maltiness & roses, & a citrus brightness as well.
They never did turn off the water…so far…

sipdown!
Ok, that’s kind of lame cuz this was in a sample package, but still, it’s gone now.
I started my tea drinking day with this because my guts are still a little achy & I’m not quite ready for food yet today.
This is a little minty, & quite soothing, so hopefully that will be helpful.

Continuing my quest for relaxing teas, this will be my last tea of the evening.
It is also the last cup of this in my cupboard: another sip down :)
This really is a flavorful cup, bright with the taste of fresh mango, a little spice. I’m not a huge fan of rooibos, it tends to remind me of tobacco for some reason, but here it gives a caramelized flavor as a backdrop. I sweetened my cup with Stevia, & it is perfect for tonight.

I wanted more tea, but not more caffeine. I used to have a lot of herbal teas, but somehow that is no longer the case. I did come across a sample box from mighty leaf that was given to me from one of my students, & this one looks interesting.

In my mind, this is a classic herbal tea. It is aesthetically beautiful, & the flavors are nicely balanced so that I can taste each ingredient, without anything being in my face. There is just enough chamomile, just enough citrus, etc.

As a side note, I’d like to say that I don’t care for the ‘silk’ bags. They are not biodegradable, & the proof is in my compost pile. If I were to order more of this, I’d want it loose.

This is my first cup of tea in 2 days. I woke up in the early hours of monday morning with a stomach bug, which seems to be going around. I spent all day monday sleeping away the delirium of feverishness, & today have mostly slept as well. I was awake for a few reading sessions (I’m now past 50% on American Heiress!).

This brings to mind an Irish Fiddle tune, “When sick, is it tea you want?” I can’t drink tea on an empty stomach, so I had none.

Now I’m on the mend, having a bowl of soup. It’s late in the day, but I really wanted some tea! I opened the cupboard & went straight into the ‘hoarding’ section, & I knew I wanted this. Such a richly balanced blend, I know that many of us had hoped that David would create a Winter blend, but since winter is almost over, that seems unlikely. I can only hope that he will make another summer blend. Until then, I will continue to hoard this until it’s gone.

I got an order from adagio, which included some rooibos samples. Those who know me will be thinking, “why did she get that? I know she doesn’t care for rooibos.” And you’re right!
I don’t dislike the flavor, it’s that one piece that always manages to somehow get stuck in my throat…akckckck

So why did I buy this (and a few other samples)? Because I’m trying to cut my caffeine back in the evening a little, but I still want to drink something.

So with this tea I did not have the “ackckck” experience, I’m grateful to say. But the tea was pretty lame.

I’m thinking a chicory chai might be interesting…hmmm…

The only decent tea I’ve had all day was the Keemun I had this morning. I just need one more cup of something black, something with some flavor, something satisfying. This is it. :)

I drank this yesterday, and it’s so nice that I’m drinking it again today while I eat breakfast & get ready to go play a gig.

I’m calling it a sip down, because although I have enough left for one for cup, I’m going to package that up with another sample & send it to one of my steepster friends as a surprise!! I’m not telling who, hehehehe, but I don’t think she’s ever logged it. :D