NEWS FLASH: I have something new to say about this tea.
Amazing, having added 25 tasting notes on it.
But something has happened.
I’ve been buying it from Cafe 16, which is around the corner from my house. It’s been a very consistent product. And I’ve had it two or three times hot at T-bar.
But the batch I picked up yesterday is suddenly different. It’s bigger, and the flavour is stronger. And I’m not sure I like it.
I took some to our son’s place yesterday, and I noticed it was different, but I put that down to different water, different equipment, not being able to find anything and the fact that the kitchen was a tip.
But this morning, under the highly controlled scientific environment of The Devotea Test Kitchen, I have made some up using Cyril the Transparent Teapot.
It is woodier, has a mushroom tang, is stronger, is deeper.
And I’m not sure I like that, The jury is out.
It’s like waking up next to your partner of many years to find they’ve changed. It’s an uneasy feeling to find a tea for which you have professed undying love is now different.
Different crop? Different batch? Substitution? I will be worrying about this all day.
