ashmanra

Yep, had another one today. Yums.

I drank one steep of my Southern Season puerh and then put the leaves in the fridge to cold brew a pitcher of iced tea. I was feeling unsatisfied, puerh-wise, so I decided to treat myself to several steeps of Purple Rhyme.

I love the box it came in, the careful wrapping of the paper with such beautiful, uniform folds, the stamp that holds the paper tight. I love the care used to present this product to me.

The tea is really dark, because I love strong, smooth puerh and I let it steep longer than most people do. The taste is fresh and so clean.

This is a sip down, and the end of my very first Puerh purchase ever. I remember smelling the Puerh at A Southern Season and giggling with Sandy over the smell. When I finally bought some we were both a little apprehensive about tasting it, but in spite of the fishiness, we liked it! And I definitely recognized almost immediately the beneficial effects Puerh tea had on my digestive system, relieving the miserable overstuffed feeling after having pizza with crusts dipped in garlic butter.

I ended up buying all three types of puerh sold there, and got another friend really hooked on shu puerh. Now that this has aired out a bit, it is much more pleasant. It makes a really black cup of tea, but I do enjoy my puerh that way so I often steep it for at least three minutes.

Now I have found so many other puerhs that I like much better than this one. I am decupboarding it, and I do not intend to buy it again. When I want more mini Tuocha they will come from Teavivre or Mandala Tea. I am grateful to this little Tuocha for introducing me to puerh, though!

Someone stop me, please! No, don’t. I am going to sing to my matcha lattes…..if lovin’ you is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.

Since almond flavor is a big favorite of mine, and one I only tried in recent years, not having been brought up around it, I decided tonight’s flavored matcha latte would be almond. While it was DELISH, I think I am starting to prefer unflavored matcha. GASP! (We knew this day was coming, didn’t we?? I plan to try an unflavored and a Bavarian Cream Latte tomorrow. I have high hopes for the Bavarian Cream one. It is so fresh and lemony, I think it will be scrumptious served cold.)

Now I want to try the three highest grades of unflavored matcha that Red Leaf sells and see which one makes the very best latte! I am hoping i can use one of the not quite so expensive ones successfully!

I am really loving these with honey instead of the raw cane sugar I was using. That is totally unexpected to me. I really like my raw cane sugar and thought the honey would add too much of its own flavor to the drink, but instead it really enhances it.

I met a dear friend for lunch today and she was so sweet to bring me samples of several teas she just bought at TRT. This is one I had my eye on to try for a while but haven’t gotten around to it yet since there are probably ten on the list every time I go!

I am pretty sure this is a Teageschwender tea since they have a tea of the same name and identical description. This reminds me of the fine French teas which are perfumed with so many floral scents.

I would love this in my room, in my closet, in my chest of drawers scenting my clothes. I am not sure I would want to drink it often, though it is quite nice. It is just a bit too perfumed for me. Perhaps with food or cake and a friend to chat with it would be right over the top and I would adore it, but as of right now, I don’t desire to go buy this. I would recommend it to anyone who loves floral teas that make your pinky hoist itself into the air on its own.

It is possible that I also need to play with the parameters a bit, as black and green blends can be a little touchy. There is a little bite of astringency, like lemon, that I think is the main thing making me not fall in love with this one, though I do think it is a very good tea.

A dear friend called this morning, one I don’t get to see as often as I would like, and one who helped start me on my Harney tea journey. We started discussing tea (of course) and I mentioned Blueberry Green, she wasn’t too sure about it because she isn’t the biggest fan of blueberry, but she was pretty excited when I told her you can get two sachets to go very cheaply at Barnes and Noble. That way you can prepare it how and when you like before committing to a whole tin.

She said she was going to B&N right away so I suggested we meet there. I took a thermos full of this tea and two tiny gong fu cups. Long story short – she loved it and insisted on buying a whole tin RIGHT THEN. LOL!

Michael Harney, if you see this I just want to let you know that you have three people right here in my little circle of tea drinkers who want this loose leaf! Please? Pretty please? With a blueberry on top? :D

After guzzling the plain matcha latte with the new recipe today, I decided to try a flavored matcha latte that way. I have been putting all milk in my lattes, or just using a tiny bit of water to mix the matcha because I thought milk and water sounded gross! I really believed I needed for it to be almost exclusively milk.

I made this tonight by sifting my teaspoon of matcha into my big tumbler, shaking it with about a half cup of water, then adding another half cup water. I added four teaspoons of honey and poured in skim milk to near the top of the glass. I mixed it with my aerolatte because the honey was all sitting on bottom. Then a half cup of crushed ice from the fridge door was added.

It is shocking how fast I am slurping these things down, but it is so refreshing! I know what I will be having lots of this summer! I can’t wait to try this with some of the fruit flavors.

Today on Facebook, Kai Matcha suggested making an iced matcha latte with this. I was feeling a little sluggish this afternoon so I did it! I have made matcha lattes before but they were usually flavored matcha, all milk, and raw cane sugar. I didn’t follow their recipe exactly but made a few changes.

I sifted one teaspoon of matcha into my Starbucks cup that is like a Tervis tumbler. I added a little water, put the lid on, and shook like mad to mix it. I added the rest of the water for a total of one cup water, then added skim milk to the top of the glass, a little over a cup I suppose. It said four teaspoons honey, so I drizzled some in until I thought it was the right amount. I whooshed it a sec with my aerolatte to mix in the honey. I added a half cup of crushed ice from my fridge door. And then I slurped the whole thing down faster than I can believe. It was total deliciousness. I am going to be doing this a lot more often.

I must admit to being seriously tea drunk right now, though. I am not used to so much caffeine in so little time!

Whoosh! A whole pot all by myself! Well, I drank it by myself in that no one else had any, but I wasn’t alone. I enjoyed a nice Sunday morning with my godson who is visiting from college, chatting about the future and life-purpose, thankfulness, and living purposefully, loving and serving others. What a great young man! If you are ever having the “what is the world coming to?” blues, ask him to come over!

The tea: lots of good sized pieces of coconut are in this blend. The black base reminds me a lot of Harney’s straight chocolate tea, but this isn’t really tasting exactly like Soho Blend to me. I think Soho has a little additional flavor, maybe vanilla? Or something floral? It has been a long time since I have had it, but I think when I restock it will be with Soho.

I have never really made fruit smoothies myself, but Sil has inspired me. I have made this a couple of times now but hadn’t gotten around to logging it. This is my first smoothie recipe I concocted:

One banana (peeled, of course), big scoop unflavored Chobani Greek yogurt, cup of crushed ice from fridge door, two teaspoons raw cane sugar, a handful of frozen blueberries (will use fresh when they come back in season), a good splash of milk, and 3/4 teaspoon of matcha. I did not sift as I felt the blender was powerful enough to make it unnecessary.

I whooshed it until smooth and creamy looking. This is an incredibly easy way to get fruit and yogurt in. I try to like yogurt and some of the flavors are nice, but the texture of ANY yogurt gags me, and some flavors, like peach, make it especially bad. This way I feel like I am drinking a milkshake, but I am really getting lots of healthy goodies that my body needs!

I questioned whether the matcha would make any difference in that big glass of ingredients, but it definitely does. You can smell the Bavarian Cream and it is so yummy!

Next up is going to be a peanut butter smoothie!

The description of this tea says to let the tea seduce you. That is exactly what the aroma did yesterday in the shop. I intended to buy a white, a green, and a black and my eye fell on the name of this one. Intrigued, I asked for a sniff. The seduction worked and a pouch of it came home with me.

There were big chunks of candied fruit, I think kiwi though it also says raspberry. The dry aroma is powerful and I was even worried as to whether it was going to overcome the tea, but when steeped this is nicely scented, slightly fruity and sweet, and the white and green teas in the base still come through. A fun purchase that I will enjoy sharing with my bestie who is trying to get into white teas.

When I bought the teabag version of Tulsi I knew I was going to keep an eye out for a loose version. It is going to be difficult to compare the two teas because when I made the tea bag one I also added some lavender flowers, and there is definitely nowhere close to as much tulsi in the bag as the loose leaf recommends, so it was considerably stronger.

I had braced myself the first time for an unpleasant medicinal taste since I had never had this herb and didn’t know it was tasty as well as helpful. It is quite good, though, and is a comforting drink that I think would pop to mind first if I wasn’t feeling well.

My back was hurting really badly last night, and though it didn’t stop (T3 vertebra problem) I definitely felt much more relaxed and peaceful after drinking this.

There is almost a minty or lemony high note. It tastes both lightly savory and sweet. I am reminded of some of the Republic of Tea “Get _______” line, so I suspect this may be in some of them.

Overall, tasty, helpful, and I am glad I bought it!

I ordered this because my Wednesday tea party friend loves, loves, LOVES blueberries. I was pretty excited about it, too, because I am a tea nerd and I think the tin is pretty. And it’s new.

I am not disappointed. To the contrary, I plan to start harassing Mike Harney to give this to us in loose leaf as soon as possible. This is brilliant. I swear it smells me candy or something very familiar that I can’t quite put my finger on, something like American Smarties?

The blueberry is almost grape candy flavor, maybe because of the lemongrass which is a delightful touch and brightens the tea without being harsh or tart. The vanilla is smooth and light.

Since this only comes in a thirty sachet tin right now, I was a little worried about how fast I will burn through these sachets. The ability to resteep was a big concern. I am happy to say that cup number two is every bit as enjoyable as the first one. Hooray! Michael? Russell? How about a fifty sachet bag and some loose leaf? You have a winner here!

Edited to add: Even when dry this sachet was absolutely stuffed to busting! I got three steeps!

I love this tea, and I know it was the favorite of one of our group members who came to my house tonight. He specifically requested that I make a second pot of Anna’s Blend, the raspberry yogurt black tea, but when I went to make it I saw this pouch and thought they might really enjoy this tea as well, and seeing as how we had already burned through two pots, why not make extra? Good thing I did, because this turned out to be his favorite.

This is a green tea base that is not grassy or sour but very smooth, rather like Harney’s Tropical Green base, which I believe is an Indian green tea. The strawberry is a nice hint of fruit, but the vanilla is really what pushes this over the top. Nice, nice touch!

I can’t believe we finished this pouch of tea tonight. And I can’t believe that I immediately thought, “Oh no! I have to get to Raleigh to get some more!” I NEED to sip down a bunch of tea without buying replacements! But I will be getting this one, because it is one of the few flavored black teas hubby likes. This is his replacement for Marco Polo, as he finds this one smoother, less fussy, and tastier.

Tonight was Writers’ Group night at my house and as usual tea was requested. I was shocked to realize that only three of us were drinking tea, yet we finished four pots this evening!

This is a nice black tea base with a fruity raspberry scent and a distinct sharp tang that is referred to as yogurt but that reminds me of that wonderful fruit topping made of sour cream and a bit of sugar, like Jason’s Deli serves. (The actual recipe is sour cream, a touch of orange juice concentrate or a bit of orange juice, and brown sugar. Mix thoroughly, then use for dipping or topping strawberries, cantaloupe, etc.)

My friends and I take it plain, hubby likes it with a wee bit of sugar and some milk.

This is one of my “if you could only have ten teas” cupboard staples. Heck, it is in the top five! This was the third tea of tea party and at the first sip I sighed, my shoulders relaxed, and too tight muscles began to melt.

I. Love. This. Tea.

I have been intrigued by the Valentine’s Blend but have never purchased it. I bought Chocolate Mint, but mint and chocolate in tea have not appealed to me together thus far, thought it is nice enough. I also bought plain chocolate tea a long time ago but back then I was just giving up milk and sugar in my tea and didn’t really appreciate it yet.

Today I decided to try my hand at making something akin to what I think Valentines Blend must taste like. While I do not know what the original one tastes like, this one was excellent, and my guest loved it and asked for more! She said she hoped I wrote down the proportions I used, so I would say this was a success. I love keeping Rose Scented on hand to blend with other teas!

The aroma is almost exclusively chocolate in these proportions, but the rose is subtly there and adds such a delicious touch!

I served this as the first tea of tea party today. My guest loves trying new things, so whether it is a new tea or a new food, I try to keep things interesting. Today we were having “store bought” food but the teas were interesting!

She really loved this. It is sweet, smooth, and sweet potato-y. Definitely a good choice for a cupboard staple, and I am thinking this would be an awesome summertime iced tea.

Thank you, Nature’s Tea Leaf, for the generous sample! You have so many great teas.

Tuesday is Ike day, the day we keep Ike the puppy for my friend. When my friend comes to pick up his dog we often tea. Until recently my friend had only had Lipton black tea, hot with with milk and sugar. He has enjoyed puerh, smooth black teas with no additions, and oolongs, so I tried this one out on him today.

A loaf of bread was just coming out of the oven, so we paired the tea with hot bread and butter.

I love the lingering aftertaste, like exotic flowers at the back of the swallow, blooming well after the sip and staying for quite a while. My friend liked the tea but said he couldn’t taste the floral note much, probably due to being a smoker. A big surprise to me – after he got home he texted that his blood pressure was 127/88. This is phenomenal for him, as he has spectacularly high blood pressure and is about to have kidney surgery in an effort to lower it since his meds are not controlling it well anymore.

I would have thought that ginseng would raise, rather than lower, blood pressure, but it didn’t have anything to do with the tea at all.

I love this one, and since my tin is half empty I plan to reorder on Friday!

This is my first time trying tulsi of any kind. I kept reading the paeans GMathis wrote on its benefits, but I never thought to pick it up. Today, my daughter’s orthodontist appointment took me very close to our health food store. I used my few minutes to pick up a box of tulsi and some loose lavender flowers.

Husband and I each had a cup of this. I am so sleepy because I didn’t sleep but four hours last night and it has been a very stressful couple of days. I don’t know yet if this is reducing stress, but I can comment on the taste,

I don’t do a lot of herbals, and I do not like rooibos. Tis, however, is very nice and drinkable, even tasty. I made the mistake (or not) of making a cup of lavender tea at the same time and had just brushed my teeth, but the aroma of the two cups and the taste reminded of Yogi’s Bedtime tea, sans the super sweet licorice root. I don’t know if it was the tulsi or the lavender bringing it to mind, though.

I can say that if this is really good for me and also truly helps alleviate stress, it will be a pleasure to drink it, rather than an effort. This is tasty, and I hope to find sme loose leaf tulsi soon. I was surprised that there was none in the bulk bins.

Thank you, GMathis, for the recommendation of tulsi and buying lavender from the bulk bins! It is quite a savings over how I bought it before.

I made seven steeps of this tea tonight! I pried off about a teaspoon of leaf and put it in my eight ounce porcelain pot. This was infused three times and poured into a larger pot. The fourth steep was poured directly into our cups and was the first steep we actually drank. Hubby remarked right away at the strength of the tea. Amazing for a fourth to taste like it could be a first steep.

We drank the whole pot of tea after that, and I really wanted more. I went back to the kitchen and made steeps five, six, and seven, once again combining them into a larger pot. (We were watching Lord of the Rings.)

The seven steep at last shows some lessening of color so I stopped there, and we have finished off the last three steeps now. These leaves have had a good run.

When Nature’s Tea Leaf offered to send me some samples, I requested this because it looks so totally awesome. I knew I would love serving this in my little glass teapot.

I got both the jasmine and regular Daughter Rings, and today I am having this one with Asian buffet leftovers. I used 174F water and gave it a one minute steep. At that point, the water had barely changed color! Have no fear, though, it is nicely flavored. I actually made four steeps from one teaspoon of leaves in my eight ounce pot.

I like this! It reminds me a little bit of Snow Dragon. I find it to be very clean and fresh, with a mineral flavor that borders on metallic. (I like that.) I taste rocks, worn smooth and round and perfectly clean by icy fresh stream water that just melted on the mountaintop.

My biggest difficulty with Nature’s Tea Leaf is figuring out what to order! Thank you, Denise!

My samples from Nature’s Tea Leaf just arrived! Woo hoo! It was hard to pick what to try first, but this one seemed like a good choice to go with the lunch my middle daughter had prepared.

My first impression of the leaf when I opened the pouch was that it was very aromatic, and secondly, soft and fluffy, like you would imagine your pillow in the very best spa ever. I am gulping the scent of these leaves. Intoxicating.

The steeped tea: oh so good. Yunnan Gold teas remind me of sweet potatoes. This is smooth, sweet, and has strong honey notes in the aroma and the taste. There is a hint of orange like a mellow Ceylon. So here we have a baked sweet potato, with a dot of cinnamon butter, honey drizzled on, and a rich cocoa note in there as well. My now empty cup smells just like honey.

Good heavens, JacquelineM, you need to try this! It reminds me so much of the Yunnan Gold you used to love.

How good is it? Hubby, who drinks all black tea with milk and sugar, had a cup plain and made himself a refill. That is pretty close to a miracle.

Many thanks, Nature’s Tea Leaf!

My youngest daughter and I are reading The Fellowship of the Ring together as part of her school program. (Homeschool) My eldest daughter had just sent me this link that I so very much want to try – distilled tea recipe for Ent Draught! Distilled to be clear like the Ent Draught, but flavored with real loose leaf tea!

Tonight we read this passage: When they came to make their meal, they found that the Elves had filled their bottles with a clear drink, pale golden in color: it had the scent of a honey made of many flowers, and was wonderfully refreshing. Very soon they were laughing, and snapping their fingers at rain, and at Black Riders.

I don’t have the ingredients right now to make Ent Draught, but I can make yellow tea and add some White Gold Raw Honey and have some Elf Tonic! I must say this is not such a pale gold, but later steeps will be lighter. The taste is subtle, yet not hidden. Any stronger honey than this would be too much for me, but then I almost never add any sweetener at all to my teas.

The Elves can’t have left them chamomile, because the Hobbits knew it well and drank it themselves. I say the Elves left them either white or yellow tea! This is a precious brew that draws you near to enjoy its quiet beauty, which would be enough to fortify anyone against all that may lie ahead.