Slàinte!•[ slanj’-uh; often shortened to slanj ] (To your) Health!
I’ve been away for a couple of days at the Scottish Games in Estes Park, CO with my beloved daughter Annalisa and we had a great time!
Thank you to ashmanra for this tea sample!
The mountain air was refreshing the last few days. 70’s in the daytime and high 40’s at night with a drizzle late yesterday afternoon for a short time. I watched mist rise in wisps above the 14,000 ft mountain peaks, sweeping higher and higher like silken threads forming into clouds by force of nature.
How could I observe such beauty and stand.
When I hear the bagpipes play in such a setting as this, I feel as though all the breath inside of me goes out with the piper into the instrument and the cry goes forth…“Here we are, mere humans in the middle of this beauty and we give all our strength in this breath as a gift.”
Yes, I’m a sentimental Scot! I had my dram of whiskey too with the Clan Cameron Men looking fine in their Kilts!
On to today’s tea!
I was getting a bit sleepy this afternoon so I made a pot of tea. I followed the instructions for brewing temp. and time, then took a little sip. WOW, this was a STRONG cup of tea! I wasn’t expecting such an extremely potent brew!
Not only was the tea dark and strong, but it was on the bitter side.
“What’s this?”
“Maybe this is one of those tea’s very particularly suited to milk and/or sugar,” I said to myself.
Not wasting time, I added some milk and found the tea much more palatable. Then I added sweetening, then more and more until it was exactly to my liking. (This tea took more additions that any other tea in my memory).
The flavor was malty with a little raisin taste, and brisk. With no additions the tea is bitter like a strong espresso.
The wet leaves had the aroma of cinnamon bark (not sweet cinnamon) with a hint of vanilla.
I liked the heaviness of the brew for a morning cuppa. You could really go to town with any type of additions and not overdo it.
When the tea cools down, the malty flavor mellows and becomes more cocoa. You can leave your cup, let it cool, then come back and there is the cocoa taste you may have wanted in the beginning.
A h-uile la sona dhuibh
’s gun la idir dona dhuibh! May all your days be happy ones!
