Mandala Tea
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Grandpa style, only I haven’t refilled my thermos at all.
I put 4 tiny nuggets in the bottom of my not-a-timolino this morning, and added boiling water. I’ve been sipping randomly all day, and it’s been SO good! Really mild and soothing. A little foresty but not much. IDK, I just really like this tea this way.
Preparation
Hmm. This one is pretty good, but not really what I’m looking for either. The flavour is a much more delicate version of what I got from Noble Mark. Is it the fermenting? Aging? Idk, but it’s not foresty enough for me. This one reminds me strongly of Silk Road’s Golden Phoenix, a grapefruit-cinnamon puerh. :) I can see this one being excellent with a sliver of Ceylon cinnamon added to the steep.
Rinsed and steeped per package directions, I’m drinking the first 1 minute steep. I’ll try steeping it longer for the second to see if it works better for me.
Thanks so much, Dexter3657, I really appreciate you sharing this with me. So far I like the Special Dark best out of the Mandala puerhs that I’ve tried. :)
Ooo….. Cinnamon is SO GOOD in this wow. Second steep: 1:45.
This one was also from Dexter. Unfortunately it’s one I don’t like nearly so much as the Special Dark.
The flavour was just too… something. A little honey improved it, but I ended up dumping the cup. My mom will probably like this one as its a stronger, smoother puerh with a similar flavour profile to one she has and likes.
I’ll probably try this one again, but… I won’t be too fussed if I don’t like it. There are other teas I love. :)
(I did a rinse and tried 2 1 minute steeps. Didn’t care for either.)
I’m sad that you don’t really like it. This is my favorite Mandala pu’erh.
I’m happy that you got to try it and find out for yourself which YOU prefer so that when/if you decide to order some you can choose the ones you love. :))
Something about it just didn’t work, but I can’t describe it. I think my mom would like it a lot more so that’s where it’s going. :) I might still end up ordering some for her.
OH WOW.
WOW OK.
Today, this is fan-freaking-tastic.
And it’s the last of it. I’m pretty sure. Unless there’s another wee sample packet hiding away somewhere. (There might be.)
SO GOOD. Like Mexican chocolate. Mole. Deep chocolate with spices and a little sweetness.
OMG. OMGOMGOMG.
Thank you, Dexter!
Did you do anything special to it or are you just in the right mood?
I am going to miss this one soooooo much. Might need to try the Streetshop88 one Western for about 10 minutes and see if it works at all like this…..
I’m just short steeping it. Did a rinse and let it rest. I think this might be the second time I’ve had it, I never thought to order any. :)
Oh man…. I’m so sorry you hadn’t tried this before….in time to be able to order some. I have been hoarding mine….really should break it out this weekend or maybe the weekend after the dog eventually goes home.
This is the second time I’ve had it. OMG, all shou will be but a poor reflection of this tea. SO GOOD.
Did many steeps. Time for bed. Will steep more tomorrow…
Wow.
Wow!
Wow…
This is good. Thanks, Sil! Definitely staying on my shopping list. I suppose I’ll share it with my
Mom or brother. Maybe.
hahahahaha i seem to recall the box was largely for your brother :P
Shh! :D Yeah, they’re splitting what’s left. It’s just so good! Mandala has risen to the top of my ‘to buy’ list…
some fabulous stuff at mandala. I’m holding off, hoping for a black Friday sale so that it can be one of my tea orders for that day
Exactly! I hope they take PayPal. I haven’t checked yet due to No Internet. Gonna be another week or two before it gets connected!
garrett takes paypal :) If you’re shipping to canada and not a tea mule, he’ll invoice you after letting you know what the shipping price is to canada…at least that’s my understanding.
I don’t have a tea mule, sadly. And shipping across Canada would probably be just as much as shipping from the states!
Awesome, glad to hear that you love this.
Mandala website is not set up for shipping outside the US. They welcome international orders, you just need to email Garret and tell him what you want – then as Sil said, he lets you know what shipping will be and sends you an invoice from PayPal. Also, Garret in an amazing, friendly, knowledgeable, fantastic, awesome person. If you have any questions don’t even hesitate to email him.
I too am trying really hard to not put in an order with them. I need to try some of their black teas….
dexter – just give me a poke when you see some show up on my tasting thread. I’ll send some your way…i picked up a couple..
:)))
Thanks! Good to know. :)
A great sample from Mandala—super generous!
My up-and-at-‘em pick this morning. This one funny enough has qualities like those I just described for the Tanyang Gongfu, where it’s thick and starchy-sweet and smooth but also floral, but I appreciate that it’s not quite straightforward sweet potato this time, that there’s other elements like fire (Terri is so right that it’s kind of like roasted green chiles!). There’s a quality to it where the taste evokes more astringent, dry-woody teas like Darjeeling or Zhu Rong in flavor but not actual astringency (there’s pretty much none; this is as smooth as any of the popular Teavivre black teas). A neat trick. Good morning tea and strikes that smooth-vs.-woody, Chinese-vs.-legacy-type balance in the same way I appreciate with Zhu Rong. I really, really like this. I think I’ve figured out teas that don’t tidily fit into either of those vague categories but sort of take the best of both worlds and throw in some unusual unclassifiable characteristics (that smoked chile heat!) are my favorite discoveries right now. Jerks a jaded tea palate awake in the nicest way.
Preparation
This sounds awesome.
I really want to order some of the black teas from Mandala….
Great to read this review!!! Thank you!! This was my pre-run tea this morning. And what an appropriate tea for today… it was a chilly morning here in MN and the smell and vibe of this tea blended nicely with the wood smoke issuing forth from a farmers chimney near the trail head this morning.
Your line “Jerks a jaded tea palate awake in the nicest way” is perfect! I read that to my teabiz partner, Jamie, this morning and we both enjoyed it! I am grateful.
Ha, I’m glad you got something out of it. I am grateful you sent me some—it was really generous of you! I’ve really enjoyed the teas I’ve tried so far (I’m pretty sure Loose and Luscious Lincang altered my state of mind the other night…what a whopper of an experience). Feel very lucky to be able to taste such special tea!
K S, just to clarify, it’s definitely not spicy like, say, Butiki Winter Fire spicy. It’s subtler than that. The smoky spice is not the defining characteristic so much as a wonderful surprise dancing around the edges. Terri’s right—it’s combined with a sweetness kind of like corn (masa harina), so that it evokes savory Mexican-type dishes in a way.
ooooh, very nice mandala! simply complex.
very smooth, reminiscent of a tie guan in, or yellow…… i really don’t think i would have guessed it was anykind of oolong had it not been on the packaging. robust but in a light hearted kind of way.
on a completely separate note, i wanted to thank your group for your product excellence. i had lunch with my mum today. often we don’t get on, but life has been a bit tough on her lately and the place where we meet always has great food but ghastly tropical flavoured bagged green teas. i brought my bag of yellow buds with me and made her a pot at the table. she loved it! she was very surprised at the steep time, the colour, the taste. i know things are going to be difficult in her life for a while longer, so i sent her home with the tea and told her i’d get her more when she ran out.
your company really is a class act. and while my mother doesn’t know you at all, on behalf of us both i will thank you.
i find these days i bounce between paris (mariage and dammann) complexity and manadala’s understated simplicity. but that’s like calling a circle simple to someone whose only ever drawn straight lines. thank you for the introspectively quiet circle.
most sincerely, james.
Preparation
James, thank you so much for not only taking time to write the reviews, but for the kind words about our humble endeavor here at Mandala Tea. I am honored to have earned such accolades from you. This makes my day. Truly.
Grateful,
Garret
most welcome and well earned, garret.
Uh oh, I’m in trouble! I already have it in the back of my head “I’d love more of Mandala’s teas, they are fantastic”, its close to my birthday, I kind of wanted their tea thermos, then I decided to crack open a sample to review.. which lead me to browsing the shop some more, which enticed me to buying that thermos. Why not add some tea while I’m at it.. and more tea. Hmm, this White Peony is good, maybe I’ll try another of their whites. Hmm, that other tea looks good too, add to cart x3. Gah, stop looking and just proceed to the checkout!!!
This White Peony, whoa! Fat leaves! Very good quality and gorgeous tea to look at and steep! Nice complex, though light, flavors of buttercup floral, oak, birch with a creamy texture.
Full review on my blog, The Oolong Owl. Really nice pics of this tea too! (though, I really need that macro and prime lens for my camera) http://oolongowl.com/white-peony-mandala-tea-oolong-owl-tea-review/
Preparation
Still super boring thanks to lack of a working nose. Got all these amazing teas to enjoy from Butiki and Shang and Mandala and Harney but grrrr.
Been drinking this every day ‘cause I finally restocked it (yay) so I don’t feel terrible using a cup’s worth of leaves each day (resteep champion!) on this stuffed up, phlegmy, voiceless bag o’ guts. This Friday marks the beginning of what traditionally has been the ushering of For Real Now, No Foolin’, No Turning Back Spring here—the crawfish festival and art walk. Still can’t taste much, still feel blegh. Stupid weeklong cold! But I am looking forward to when I feel better, any moment now, so I can dive into the warm weather, new tea, perfume, and recently mildly redecorated house. So there.
And I’m so grateful for this tea. I can still smell the leather and chocolate and roasty notes, delicious. I’m not sure I’d ever have thought to use pu erh as a sickness tea, but it works rather well.
I hope you start feeling better soon! I’ve been in a similar boat where I can’t taste some of my teas. Certain flavors were just GONE. BLERGH.
Puerh is for everything. for better sleep and for those days, for stomach aches. this is my remedy! hopefully you will feel better soon. Today is official spring break. Kids are home till apr22:)
oh, that’s the worst Cheri! i’ve had a couple of those moments. i find taking a break from tea for a while and going back to it helps…or trying tea types i’d never had before. sometimes you just kinda get burned out.
do you have any fun activities planned for your kids, boychik? yay spring break! and i agree, pu erh is surprisingly therapeutic.
We should go to Poconos to turn the heat off. then I planned to come back. its so much to do in a city, why go anywhere? plus my older one have to finally take off her braces on 17th. she cant wait nomore.
Crawfish festival? I am SOOOOOOoooo jealous!!! Hope the hot sauce helps to clear you sinuses. Have fun and I hope that you feel better.
so charmed to learn you’re a fellow crawfish fan, Dexter3657! yes, it’s lovely…it’s usually the first solid gorgeous spring day of the year (has been the last 3 or 4 years at least), and it’s down the street from my apartment (one of those events where they block off the roads and people who live on this street offer visitors parking space in their driveway for a fee!), and i walk down in shorts and sit in the sun eating crawfish and drinking fizzy lemony beer. i love it. simple pleasures. thank you for the well wishes, by the way. yes, spices—we had a thai curry for dinner last night which helped clear things up a bit, ha.
that sounds like a big event for your daughter, boychik! i never had braces but i can imagine i’d be counting the days if i were her, ha. and you’re so right about NY—super jealous you live there. (:
Fizzy lemony beer and a short walk (down your street!) to a crawfish festival!? Oh dear, that is heaven!!
And I love your perfume knowledge… scents are magical (which we all know, since we love tea so much…), and perfume has always seemed so mystical to me. Why does it have to give me headaches!? (do you think that’s just cheap perfume?).
i think it’s a really common issue, DF! it’s why i don’t wear perfume out much, because i know lots and lots of people who are sensitive to it, like allergic. perhaps all-synthetic cheaper stuff is the worst, i’m not sure, but i know it’s hard to find a perfume these days that lacks something synthetic, even the pricey ones.
i’m actually not knowledgeable at all about perfume—my friend Kate in california is way more of an expert—but it’s a fun hobby once in a while! i like little private sense-memory treats, which is probably why i like tea so much too. (:
Last night I was rereading the Harney tea book and getting the strongest craving for a cup of this (our spring continues to be a halting process—one day it’s 75F and I’m in shorts, the next it’s pouring, overcast, and the heater kicks on as I wake with a stuffy head), but it was too late to entertain. So I woke up today and that minisecond when you’re lying in bed anticipating the day was spent dreaming of this, as well as cold pizza and pistachio gelato for breakfast (don’t judge).
I get out of bed to find the freezer door’s been left open, the gelato is melted, and I can’t find my Mandala pu erhs anywhere. Begin panicking because despite how MUCH tea I have, I’m pretty durn organized about it, so losing track of a favorite is hard to believe. Begin combing through everything, still not finding it, getting more agitated by the drawer, all that jazz. Finally find it—hidden behind some tins of Verdant blacks in the hallway curio, tucked into a green box I was seeing past because I don’t store anything else but pu erhs in boxes. Phew.
Enjoying it with milk and a little bourbon smoked sugar (sacrilegious maybe I know, but it’s such a gloomy day, cut me a break!), dreamy eyed, calming down and beginning to get that pu erh buzz. R sniffs the air and asks about it, I laugh and offer him the second steep unsure of what he’ll make of it (he’s never had pu erh), he shyly says “well, if you really don’t mind sharing…” and the next thing I know his nose is buried in his mug, comically glued like a dog in his food bowl, and he’s all “MMMM!” inhaling and happy. Husband likes pu erh! Who’dathunkit. Today’s nice revelation. (Oh, and this is an especially sweet one because he can’t eat most chocolate but he loves the stuff—so this is a heavenly cheat for him!)
Would this be a good place to start for someone oh has never tried pu’erh?
*who
i think so, yes, because Mandala’s are very “clean” as far as pu erhs go from what i understand, but also full of flavors often associated with favorite black teas—this one for example to me tastes like darkdark, almost burnt it’s so dark, chocolate and espresso, with some bready notes, among other things.
my biggest piece of advice to someone new to pu erh is to RINSE FIRST, ALWAYS. as in, the first “steep” is really only like 10 seconds, and doesn’t have to be a lot of water, then pour it out and let the tea sit a moment damp. then proceed. my first attempt at pu erh i disregarded that, and i’m not alone apparently going by rating logs, and it compounded the weirdness which you want to avoid for your first foray into a new tea type, i think. even if a pu erh’s packaging doesn’t say to rinse, i always rinse now (and usually i don’t bother with any other tea type). also, shu pu erh like this one wants to be bathed in the hottest water possible. that was the other thing. and, for this one, don’t be afraid of tempering it with a little milk and/or sugar. i almost never put anything in my black tea so i didn’t with this one at first, but i love it even more with milk and a dab of sugar. it can definitely withstand it. also, pu erh is a good resteeper.
That’s great advice, thanks!
bourbon smoked sugar? OMG
Hah, I read sugar as cigar for some reason. Which would also be interesting…
The fact that you were able to turn melted gelato into a happy moment is magical (and, I would never judge you. ha! I eat ice cream sundaes for lunch, as you know…).
This whole note was so much fun to read…and I would never try adding milk or sugar to a pu erh, but you’ve got me curious now (and extremely interested in this particular pu erh).
also, I second TeaBrat….. bourbon smoked sugar?!
picked up the sugar during a Harney clearance sale over the holidays; i think they still carry it, but right now it’s back to full price (quite a lot for sugar…but yeah, really lovely sugar). it’s a finishing sugar, but i like a tiny bit in certain very hefty teas that can handle it (again, no judging! :). and yes DF, i like that you understand my need for an occasional ice cream-based meal. (:
i never would’ve either re: milk and sugar in pu erh except someone i quite admire, a longtimer here, Bonnie, mentioned she does it all the time. it gave me the courage to. with this one, it makes sense to me especially; this is like a little cup of espresso and a square of the darkest eating chocolate, with some leather/pu erh-y aromatic depth. i don’t do it with the lincang/phatty cake as it has a mint element and lots of library-ish and forest smells i think i’d lose if i did. experimentation! s’fun. (:
whatshesaid, no prob! seriously, my number one piece of advice is rinse first always. and yeah, mandala is a great place to start bc their pu erhs are sweet, rich, and not too funky. best of luck finding something you like! (and welcome back! :)
I milk and sugar in pu’erh too, especially if it’s a very dark one. No shame, it’s good! Sweet, creamy deep farm flavour? Get in!!!
Thanks :) it’s been added to my ‘to buy’ list!
Happy to be back!!
This is one intensely chocolate (like, so intense it’s bitter as much as sweet, almost like burnt chocolate) tea. Dang. Also a revelation. Again, that initial fishy thing is there (weirdly, for this one it’s not at all in the dry leaf, only once steeped, at the beginning of the sip), but it’s faint and immediately eclipsed by the intense chocolate and roasty coffee-like aroma. It adds an earthiness, a slight soil quality. This is like a really good cup of incredibly potent espresso enjoyed with a square of super dark chocolate in a bustling Italian square market where they sell fish and mushrooms and bread nearby. Complex but also instantly gratifying, satisfying. I really, really like it! I think next time I will try it with a little milk just because it’s SO intense.
Preparation
You get fishy from this one??? Whoa, not me! Other than the fishy thing I’d say our opinions in it are very similar :)
It’s really light, and disappears almost immediately, but yeah. I bet once I’m used to drinking pu erh more often I won’t even notice anymore. I can sense how it’d be one of those acclimation type things, like learning to like wine or beer.
Maybe so!
Whoamygosh this is amazing. It smells so good dry—the mint sets it apart, it isn’t strong or overpowering but just there enough to keep the earthiness in check. There’s the usual earthy, almost mushroomy aroma, but also a bit of chocolate (starts out like bittersweet chocolate, then at the end of the sip there’s a lingering sweetness), some leather, and even a bit of tobacco—if you know me you know these are all smells I adore. There is still what I’d call a faint fishiness initially but it’s much softer here and recedes almost immediately upon smelling the other things. Either that or I’m just getting used to it, ha. Anyway, I rinsed this time and made sure everything stayed hothot. Brews up deep dark. Steeped the aroma is very leathery while the flavor has that wonderful, odd mintiness that clears the air a bit of the more expected pu erh flavors. Makes me feel like I’m in an old private library full of leatherbound books and furniture, one with a window open next to a forest that just got rained on. Cleaned up but still full of all those mysterious things like soil and leather. I love how complex the interaction between that subtle but ever-present mint and everything else is—the mint both contrasts with everything but also somehow sharpens it all, makes the earthy elements more distinct. Wow. This is precisely the group of aromas I seek out when I buy little vials of rare, unusual perfume. The kind I buy so that sometimes, after dinner and before bedtime in the dark cold months, I can pop one open alone in my warmly lit bedroom and just take in the fragrance and be transported, writing in my perfume diary. A full-on experience. It’s dare I say it masculine, and clean, and well, sexy. Wow!
Preparation
Yes, pu-erhs can be very masculine, but not in a bad way! I think the mint element is what I don’t find appealing about this one. I’ve tended to prefer pu-erhs without the minty vibe. shrug to each his own :)
I love “masculine” scents and flavors, so yeah, for sure. I can definitely see how the minty vibe could be unwelcome to some, but I think for me it’s a good transitional easing into pu erh’s full on earthy funkiness. Ha.
I think it would be kind of neat to do a cheesy sort of “yin and yang” tea tasting sometime with so-called feminine profiled teas—light, with roses or lavender and fruit, say—and masculine ones too, and then maybe ones I think bridge the gap.
I love that idea! I also love the range of flavored tea has to offer us :)
You could go feminine with a delicate straight white tea, or a light and fruity oolong. Wouldn’t even have to go the floral scented route necessarily :)
*flavors not flavored in that first sentence
Yes, white for sure! And maybe flowering even. I think Flowery Pineapple Oolong would be good, and/or Champagne Rose and Cream. American Tea Room’s Victoria. White Jasmine would be a no brainer except I don’t really like jasmine much…
So many teas, so little time, ha!
This review was delightful to read :-)
Jeez, I’m so behind on my posts that I won’t even try to catch up!
This is my 2nd tea of the day, the first one was a pot of Tiger Assam, which was absolutely wonderful with breakfast.
This one is a sample from Garret. It’s a green tea that was roasted in a clay jar, & it’s the flavor is very different to me. It reminds me of something, but I can’t quite place it… roasted green bell peppers & I’m kind of getting some roasted chestnuts in there too. Of course, my tastebuds might be a little out of whack! LOL!
All in all, I’ve gone through several pleasant steepings while teaching, & I’d call this a savory brew. Thanks Garret!
In a clay jar…who thinks this stuff up? (Cool!)
You are more than welcomed!!! Thanks for writing up your thoughts on it. This has really become a popular tea for us. Some people are really digging this in the tea glass style of brewing, that’s for sure. Lots of repeat buys on this one. Yay!
I steeped mine in my glass test tube steeper!
I’m finally tasting the 2014 version! Thanks for the sample Garret
Well, this is a delicious sheng. Not the same as 2012…no smoke at the beginning, a little more bold. Still VERY enjoyable though with a great energy! I’m glad to report that it is a suitable replacement for the last harvest :)
I still plan to use the rest of my sample to do a side by side comparison! Then I should be able to write a better note! :D Fun!!
I should get some of this while I still have some of the previous one, so I can compare them :) I’m way overdue for a Mandala order anyway, & thanks to online itunes sales, I actually have some money in my playpal account!
Great to know, Stephanie…I’m still sipping on my 2012, but those days are almost gone :-(
I ordered another 2012 cake that I may hoard forever and ever, lol.
I love them both. I love the 2012 version so dearly and was certainly anxious to see what the autumn 2013 mao cha would turn into once pressed. I dig it. Totally drinkable now. And yes… waaaaay less smoke, due to processing and time of year it was harvested. Lots to hold my interest in the new pressing, for sure. So excited that I could make another pressing happen.
It’s fun to get down with the Wild Monk no matter what vintage. Sometimes, it’s the only thing that makes sense, am I right?
We have only a few tongs left of the Wild Monk 2012. One of them is mine :)
Grooviness to you all,
Garret
It has been way too long since I drank my first and favorite sheng. SO GOOD! I need to drink this more often. I also need to order another cake before they are gone! Guess I need to work on another Mandala order soon :)
new cakes are coming, you know;)
Do you like sheng as much as you like shu? Have you tried very many? I’ve only had a handful so far!
Nope, just a few. Some bitterness i just cant tolerate. Wild Monk is my fav.
i can tell you what i like (at least for now): i like shu that has sweet profile, dried fruits and leather is good combination for me. i would like to sample some sheng even if it has some bitterness, it would be tolerable and i could control with lower temps and super short steeps
I would very much like to try more shengs as well :)
Hello, you two! Wild Monk 2014 is here (though not on site yet, but we can always accomodate)! Also just in is a new cake (and mao cha) we call “Autumn Song”, also a sheng pu’er. Reviews in store here so far have been great. The 2014 Wild Monk (autumn 2013 picked leaf) does not have near the smokier sweet of the 2012 version but is truly delightful. I’ve already had several sessions with both.
The 2012 Wild Monk will soon be a thing of the past. We are going to hold on to 28 cakes for further aging in our vault and that means we probably only have a few weeks left of them at the rate they are going. Sad, but true…
And BC… I love both shu and sheng and you are right about water temps and shorter steeping times. With younger sheng, alot of our customers brew with water at 195 and slowly up the water temp through the various infusions. So fun to experiment. My favorite thing about great sheng, no matter how I brew it up, is that is always leaves me feeling really wonderful and open. I love that. I love tea :)
Thanks for the info Garret, I will definitely order one more 2012 cake before they are all gone! Hopefully I will have time to do so sometime today or tomorrow. I’d love to sample the 2014 version for comparison!
Thanks for being such a great purveyor of tea, and sharing your knowledge and love of it with us here on Steepster! I love tea, too :)
My pleasure, my friend! When you place your order, just shoot me an email at the same time and remind me to send along a sample of the 2014 Wild Monk! My email addy is [email protected]
And thank you, for being such a lovely spark here on Steepster! Always a pleasure.
Oh no! I need to order another cake! Ack! I hope there are stroll come left by the time I get back from vacation…
I just put an order from Mandala tonight. Sure to get me in trouble…
a naive question: what is the difference between Sheng (raw) and Shu (cooked). I know the Chinese words, but don’t know what they mean in terms of puerh…thanks
I can’t believe how fast I’ve been sipping through my Mandala teas…I’m going to try really hard to make it a few more weeks before I place an order. My cupboard is FULL. Anyway, I love this one. I’m not sure I ever want to explore other shengs because this one is so interesting I could drink it daily and never get bored!
Oh that’s the one that I’m dying to try… I love sheng in general and I have a feeling that I’m going to love this one a lot too.
Kam..this one is amazing. at least in my humble opinion. it was the first cake i purchased.
Ditto – love this one – ok love all Mandala pu’erh but this is my favorite sheng.
I’m spending today hanging out with my favorite Sheng. I haven’t brought it out to play in a while so I’m really enjoying it! :)
HI! I’m thrilled that you are enjoying this, my friend! I may not have told you that I had secured a bunch of the autumn 2013 crop of this leaf. 500 – 600 cakes are being pressed with it this week in China! So excited about it as the Wild Monk has been so well-received.
There’s a little bit of nail-biting that happens each time I do a pressing because I never know if people will enjoy it as much as I do and it’s a lot of money to throw down each time. I should stop it with the nail biting because people sure seem to enjoy the product :)
Wishing you all the joy you can stand,
Garret
Oooh, fresh pressing! I will look forward to trying it some day :)
I can’t seem to keep myself away from this tea lately! sips guiltily
That’s awesome – I haven’t really explored grandpa style…
It’s my lazy way of having lots of tea OR preparing tea when I know I won’t get to it for a long while but I want it to be tasty and not flat like it can sometimes get in a thermos. Wee bit of leaf, water, let it go. Wee bit of leaf. I’ve started using 4-5 oolong balls, so maybe 1/4 tsp? I haven’t tried it with Indian teas, but it works with puerh (even stuff that’s mostly steeped out), rolled oolong, and Zen Tea’s Phoenix Pearl really well.
I haven’t explored that style, either. Sounds so interesting (and convenient, and yummy, and just all around great. :) )