My husband and I shared a pot of Kenchanjangha this afternoon while watching this week’s Mad Men then cooking dinner – naked baked salmon with just a touch of sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, pole beans (long, flat green beans), and sweet potatoes with brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon.
I don’t know what was off but the Kenchanjangha didn’t come out as it has in the past. The first two steeps were bitterer than usually and the last steep was on the weak side (it’s usually as flavorful as the others). Perhaps it was steeping in a teapot instead of by the cup or perhaps it was too much leaf. I intentionally used to bit more than normal but not by very much.
I nearly forgot to mention. I love the smell of this tea (okay, I love the smell of quite a lot of teas). It’s different from any other I’ve smelled before and I had yet to be able to put my finger on quite what I thought it smelled like. Today I distinctly thought it smelled like nice really dark chocolate or unsweetened dark cocoa powder. My husband did not get this when I asked him if he smelled it too and I’m not entirely sure it’ll smell like that to me again next time I have it.
1st steep: 2 min.
2nd steep: 2 min 15 sec.
3rd steep: 3 min.
