Homemade Coffees and Teas

Had this at a cafe in Kyoto, seems home made as the ingredients were fresh, not even dried: sakura flowers and yuzu rind. The sakura flower, as the waiter explained, had salt on it, perhaps to help preserve it. Indeed the tea tasted like it had a bit of salty flavor, but the gentle sakura taste and yuzu rind taste where still predominant. It was a pleasant and adventurous experience but I would probably not order it again, due to the salt component.

Had this quirky number at a Kyoto restaurant. It seems to be quite a popular dish. I could not taste the tea in it as it was overpowered by other flavors but my guess is that the tea was oolong judging by the color and that oolong is second favorite to green tea in Japan. The taste was nice but it was mainly a mental “I am eating a tea porridge” experience than anything else.

Bought this sample at a Craft Show. The lady told me that she buys the black tea from someone near Harrisburg, PA, and then grows her own additional ingredients. In this case it was Orange and Mint. It’s a medium colored black tea coloring. Smells mostly like a mild black tea with just a pinch of mint…spearmint, I think. There isn’t one ingredient that overpowers the others really. Pretty good for an independent non-corporate tea company. Thumbs up for growing their own stuff