chrine

I brought this tea from a vendor at my local farmer’s market. Either I don’t remember the brand or the vendor blended it herself. After the first few tries, I decided I didn’t like it much so I haven’t drank it in awhile. It tastes mostly of chamomile with something else that is not distinctly citrus-y.

I made my husband a cup tonight since he has been drink teas in the evening with me when I offer to make him some and I’m trying out different kinds of tea to figure out what he likes, which is so far everything – he did particularly like a spicy holiday bagged tea last year though I can’t remember the name now. He rarely drinks a second cup unless I make a pot which he will keep drinking, even more than his fair share sometimes. So I brewed it again for myself. In a lighter version, it’s actually not bad but I’m not sure I actually like it still.

2nd brewing: 1.5 tsp.

I brewed my Rooibos Chai a second time earlier this evening. After 6 min, the color was very weak so I tasted it before adding milk. There was little flavor. I continued to steep and taste and steep and taste. I finally just drank it rather weak without milk. It was still pleasant but I probably won’t brew this multiple times again.

2nd brewing: 1.5 tsp. Over 12 min.

After watching Inspector Lewis being given cups of tea for over an hour, I was longing for a cup. I enjoyed Rishi’s Masala Chai quite a bit the other day so I was thinking a Chai sounded good. I went with the Rooibos Chai because it’s late and it has no caffeine in it. It’s yummy but less strong, in both spices and the taste of the rooibos.

Striped pottery mug. 1.5 tsp. Milk.

Another tea that I have but haven’t Tealogged yet. I made my husband a cup of this this morning when I had my first cup of the Orange Rooibos. I made myself a cup from the same leaves as a break from the Orange Rooibos. I find this tea so-so and am just using up the last of it. The green rooibos in it isn’t really noticable but you can taste the green cardamon and lemon grass as well as the floraly tones. I brewed it a bit weak because I think the taste is rather strong.

Dark blue pottery mug. 2nd brewing: 1 tsp.

Today has been a drink-lots-of-tea day for me, tired and worn out. So I started off early this morning with a cup of Orange Rooibos because I knew I wanted a nap and didn’t want any caffeine in my tea. I’ve been enjoying the Orange Rooibos for awhile now, this is just my first Tealog of it. Now that it’s cold out, my tea consumption should increase. On the whole, I love rooiboses and prefer red rooiboses to green ones. The Orange Rooibos tastes smooth and red-Earthy/twiggy like a red rooibos and the orange is noticeable with a nice hint of bitter.

I had a second brewing before I had lunch, which was leftovers from dinner last night – salt&pepper-crusted roast salmon, winter squash with nutmeg and brown sugar, and asparagus with pecorino and lemon. It was just as strong and good as the first.

Deep blue pottery mug. 1.5 tsp.
2nd brewing: 6 min.

This morning was my last cup of Blood Orange black tea. I thought I had enough for two more cups but I only had a little more tea left after measuring out the first cup so I put it all in. I enjoyed the first cup, then decided to try brewing it a second time even though I usually only brew black teas once. The second brewing came out fine if a bit weak.

Deep blue ceramic mug. 1.5 tsp. 1 tbsp milk.
2nd brewing: 5 min.

This is the first time I’ve had Rishi’s Masala Chai tea. Upon opening the canister, I was hit by the yummy spicy smell and the lovely assortment of spices. There seemed to be more of spices than actually black tea. I’ll begin by saying that it was indeed a yummy tea but my preparation of it needs to be tinkered with. I brewed it by the “cafe style tea” instructions on the canister. The amount of tea seemed like a lot to me but I thought I’d try it. I can safely say I’ll be using at least half of that amount next time I brew it. The tea came out strong and I had to put in more milk and sugar than I’ve have liked to use. I think my rating will go up a bit once I figure out the optimal brewing method for me.

Large, round, light blue-glazed pottery mug. 2 tbsp. 3/4 water, 1/4 milk.

So… We picked this up on sale at Earth Fare, our regional Whole Foods-type store. We thought it might be soothing for sick or rundown days. This morning I woke up after a poor night of sleep and I was sniffle-y and scratchy throated so I thought I’d give a try. I added the recommended two tsp of small pellets to a mug of hot water and it barely had any taste. After some addition of tea pellets, I figured out that it should have said 2 tbsp. Or my taste was quite impaired by the sniffle-y-ness. But still: YUCKO! It was bitter, herb-y, and had an unpleasant aftertaste. I didn’t finish my cup. I might not even try this again. I might just throw it out. I do not recommend it.

White Mepkin Abbey ceramic mug. 2 tbsp. Instant.

I had my possibly second from last or third from last cup of this tea this afternoon. I’ve been trying to use it up for awhile but now that I’ve finally figured out how to brew it (higher water temp and less time) I’ll be sad to see it finished. That said, I probably wouldn’t buy it again.

Grey, teal, and maroon striped pottery mug. 1 tsp.

Btw, love the new Cupboard and Discussion. Now I have to decide if I want to log all my teas into my Cupboard. I have a lot and it would be a project. I also might have to change my Steepster routine. I used to check my Tealog, then my Dashboard for the last 24 hours, then the Tasting notes for the last 24 hours. Now I have to add Discussion in there somewhere and I’m sure I’ll be a bit addicted to the Latest Activity stream when I’m on.

I brewed a small pot of Sencha to drink while catching up on stuff at my desk. It started out a bit bitter but as my tongue got used to it, it softened nicely into a decently yum cup. This tea has always left a little tea leaf residue in the tea but there seems to be noticeably more in this pot.

Robins-egg blue teapot. 2 tsp.
Cream pottery teacup.

Chris and I share a pot of Blood Orange Black this morning.

I’ve had this tea for awhile and did not like it. I had been trying to drink through it so not to waste tea because it wasn’t awful. The blood orange had just been coming out so bitter and astringent that I had been picking the pieces of orange peel out. I was left was an okay orange-y black tea.

Since Steepster, I’ve been experimenting more with tea steeping times, water temperature – which dramatically changed my liking for different types of teas, and amount of tea used. I tried brewing the Blood Orange Black at only 3 minutes instead of 5 – I used to think I liked really “strong”, longer brewed tea before the above experimentation – and it was like drinking a different tea. It’s still not a favorite but it’s immensely more drinkable and one of the few blacks that remains in my tea cabinet. I have been hinting to my husband that I’d like the Damn Fine Tea duo that has gotten some rave postings here for our “dating” anniversary on the 17th.

Not too long ago, I didn’t think I liked white tea. I hadn’t really drank it much. Now this tea is one of my favs and half the canister is gone. I’m also surprised to find that I can actually tell if I made the tea badly. Water was a tad to hot. Tea was a bit too brewed. But still yum.

Small robin’s egg blue teapot. 2 tbsp.

New cream pottery with dark brown speckles teacup that I brought from the farmer’s market just this morning.

Getting rid of a slight headache finally. Enjoying this tea for the second time. Yum!

Deep blue pottery mug. 1 tbsp.

Second brewing. 5 minutes 30 seconds.

Headache all gone now. Enjoying a nice salad of romaine, spinach, spring mix, cumber, scallion, radish, tomato, and ginger dressing.

Third brewing. 6 minutes.

This should tide me over until dinner is ready and my husband wakes up. He’s on nights for the next two weeks so later dinners to let him sleep a bit more. This might be the best brewing of the batch.

Last year, Teavana had a tent at our local farmer’s market and was selling 1 oz tea sample for a dollar. I swear I got this mango green tea from them there but I had moved the tea into a small container once I only had a few portions left so I don’t have the bag to look up the tea’s name. I search Steepster. I looked on Teavana’s website. It had to be called something else or discontinued. This is bothering me.

On to the tea, it tastes of mango and I can tell it’s a green. A bit sweet, a bit more fruit, a decent amount of vegetal bitter. A yum drink.

Deep blue pottery mug. 1 tsp. Gently steaming water. 1 minute.

Today I tried a tea my mom brought back for me from her vacation in Nashville, TN. My dad and her decided to take a long weekend and see the area, for no reason other than that they’d never been before. This is the first tea I’ve logged on Steepster that I haven’t had before.

Generic sencha taste, not strong. Non-descript tropical flavor, no one fruit stands out. Decent, not good, not bad.

Large pottery moose head mug. 1 tsp. Gently steaming water. 3 minutes.

I didn’t think I liked white teas. In fact, I didn’t think I liked this tea. But two days ago, I had it again for the first time since I started paying attention to water temperature. Delish. Light, grassy/vegiteal, and easy to drink. I’m adding it below the oolong on my this-is-all-I-want-to-drink list.

Standard mug – blue pottery. 1 tbsp. gently steaming water. 5 minutes.

Second brewing. 6 minutes.

I was hoping to try a third brewing but I fear I might be tea-d out for the evening.

I’ve brewed a cup of Peach Rooibos to drink while reading the day’s posts on Steepster. Yummy, but slightly flat tasting. The thermometer I use seems to have stopped rising past a certain point. Ugh. I need to get a new one now. I should probably get one that’s specifically for tea. I’ve been using an instant read meat thermometer.

Standard mug. 1.5 tsp tea. Water at a boil. 5 minutes.

I had another pot of Rishi Wuyi early this afternoon. Just as delicious as the two pots I had yesterday. I had hoped it would fortify me to make a large Target run. But alas, a poor sleep last night won out over leaving the house. I did triumph over two loads of laundry though and a nice bath.

This is the first and only so far oolong tea I’ve ever tried.

My local Earth Fare had several Rishi loose teas 50% off and this is one of the several I brought to try. I did not know if I would enjoy it at all. I haven’t been too fond of unflavored black teas so far and thought an oolong would taste similarly. To my surprise, I loved it. It rapidly became one of my favorite teas of the current batch in my apartment. I start drinking and before I know it I’ve consumed the whole pot already.

I’m about to drink a pot of the second brewing of this set of leaves.

Husband and I shared a pot of this green tea with Chinese – Hot and Sour soup, Tangerine chicken, veggie Low Mein, and rice – for dinner tonight. We watched Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice. PP was better than Grey’s this week. So glad Violet and baby didn’t die.

I made a second brewing that I’m drinking now as I balance my checkbook and pay my bills.

The tea is light and only faintly lemony. The first brewing was for 1 minute and the second one for nearly 3 minutes. About 180 degree water. 3 cup pot, 3 tsp of tea.

Tea Fail

I made a cup of Turkish Apple Tea before bed last night when my husband got home. We sat down to watch a show off the DVR (Mercy – blek). My husband kept giving me pieces of the Runts candy he was eating. After we were done watching the show, he points to my cup of tea and says why didn’t you drink that?. Tea cold. Bedtime.