Autumn Hearth

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Autumn Hearth drank Chance Combinations by Custom

Ha! I just made a Teavana blend out of two other Teavana teas. Just got home from Dairy Queen, where we didn’t get ice cream because the toddler wasn’t behaving, so I was jonesing for some desert tea, ideally an oolong based one but really my choices were chai or Gardens of Anxi and while the later is amazing, it’s not what I was craving.

Earlier today I had thoughts of using up an Upton Assam with a Teavana chai. I have a handful of little tins of various chai from errors at work, be they people over filling a canister or accidentally mixing two teas, the chai was always given to me. Anywho in one of the little tins was not-a-chai, it was Teavana’s one straight pu-erh from the Forbidden Kingdom collection. Low quality straight pu-erh with overly powdered spice oolong? Sure why not?

So what I ended up with essentially is Teavana’s French Spice Pu-erh. I was one of the few people who actually liked blend, it reminded me of Aveda, not Aveda’s tea mind you, but of there shampoo and such. It also gave me a nice warm buzz. Sure this is missing some subtle nuances, the clove and black pepper aren’t as pronounced yet I still can taste mint and even vanilla even though there may be none in here.

It’s not bad, actually. It would be a nice winter warmer and will probably be how I use up the rest of the Nan Nou Shan Pu-erh and Maharaja Chai Oolong. Also today I used up the rest of Upton’s Ceylon Select Earl Grey and brewed it with a teaspoon of their Extra Bergamot Earl Grey, twas nice.

2012-08-20 20:57:30 -0400

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Alex_Allen 2012-08-20 21:48:16 -0400

Great idea, not wasting anything. I was going to throw away my Golden Monkey stash that I got when I first started at Teavana, but you’ve inspired me. I think I’ll try cold-brewing it for a nice iced tea :)

Autumn Hearth 2012-08-20 22:21:42 -0400

:) we’ve been cold brewing pitchers of Nine Dragon Golden Needle over here. Was my husband’s favorite, so we bought 2 lbs during the Heavenly Sale.

TheTeaFairy 2012-08-21 09:46:55 -0400

Ah, tea recycling! Great idea! I’ve been quite an alchymist myself this summer, cold brewing all my «unworthy» teas, some turned out pretty good but some will remain in the hopeless category…

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Druid, artist, poet, mum, lover of tea, ritual and myth. I grew up on Celestial Seasons herbals but fell in love with straight loose leaf tea working at my local Teavana for a year. I am grateful for the introduction and the experience, but have moved on.

I see tea as an experience for the senses, I like to imagine tasting the land and the weather as well as the effect of sun, air, fire and the human hand. I have a soft spot for shu pu’er, yabao, scented oolongs, wuyi oolongs, taiwanese tea as well as smooth naturally sweet blacks, creamy greens and surprisingly complex whites.

I began ordering lots of samples from Upton to educate myself on different varieties of tea we didn’t have at work and have fallen head over heels for the unique offerings from Verdant Tea. I am learning things I like: buttery mouthfeel, surprising sweet or spice notes, woodiness, mineral notes, depth and complexity and things I don’t: astringency, dry and sour notes.

I collect tea tins and am in danger of collecting pots, though I am trying to restrain the urge due to current lack of space. I brew mostly in a glass infuser mug or a tea maker, only using cast-iron for company now (still need to get a gaiwan) and tend not to sweeten my teas unless they are British or fruity and iced, which is not often.

As far as ratings, I lack a definite system and haven’t been assigning numbers lately, wanting to spend multiple sessions with a tea first. I usually only log a tea once, unless it is a new harvest or I have significantly different observations, but will go back and edit or comment if I find something interesting or new.