The House of Tea

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First Sipdown of the day!
Tony & I just finished breakfast, & now we’re hanging around in our PJs waiting for the Cardinals game to start. There’s a 1 hour rain delay, so we have the sound turned off & Tony is serenading me on guitar. He is not a professional musician (meaning he doesn’t play gigs), & he will try to tell you that he is not very good, but that would be total BS, because he is an awesome drummer, with an amazing drum set. He used to play with people when he was young, but he doesn’t really like performing much, & really hates hauling his equipment around, so he just turns on music & plays for fun & enjoyment at home. Of course, that’s the most important reason to play anyway! He’s also a very good guitarist, and I enjoy listening to him. He’s also a fair blues pianist (thanks to yours truly, who taught him everything he knows).

This Assam is bold & beautiful, from the box Sil sent me. This was a very generous sample. This is the 4th time I’ve reviewed it, & I’m sad to see it go. Thanks again Sil!

I can’t believe I’m still drinking this from my generous trade with Sil!
Tony & I played pool for a couple of hours this afternoon, & I’m pleased to say I kicked his butt several times! Once at 8 ball & 4 times at 9 ball. I’m feeling pleased with myself, & yes, I’m gloating!
This tea, with its bold maltiness, was my reward upon returning home.
Thanks again Sil!

Sil, just in case I haven’t thanked you enough lately, I just wanna say Thanks! Our tea trade was really fun, & I’m still having fun!
This Assam is quite robust, with a bit of a bite under the tongue, and a high grapiness in the palate. Is rich, dark, deep, & assam-like!

Thank you Sil!
Wow, this is a cup of TEA!
The flavor is deep ASSAM, with a bold & bitter edge that is satisfying for me right now. What I like about this tea is it has a strong base note, a substantial middle, & the top is also bright. It also re-steeps nicely! Hazzah!

Beautiful colors. So fragrant you can smell it through the plastic bag! Surprisingly light, sweet taste considering how potent it smells. I’m in love!!

This is a delightfully strong blend of Assam and Yunnan teas. There is a slightly smoky kick to it that I thoroughly enjoy, and it lacks bitterness (in comparison to other Assam/Yunnan blends I’ve tried.) A bit too hearty to act as a breakfast tea for me, but I enjoyed sipping on it after a good lunch. :D

I went to the House of Tea looking to pick up a few new things, and out of the corner of my eye I spotted this tin with a somewhat intriguing name. I asked the woman working to pull it down, and decided to buy just an ounce after smelling (and noticing the price tag.) I brewed it at 180 degrees, and the cup was a very clear & light golden green. The flavor was delicate, nutty, and sweet. Extremely light, but delicious. I normally prefer super strong hearty black teas, but this was a green tea that completely charmed me.

This tea is glorious, and (to everyone I end up forcing a sample upon) a universal favorite. It combines the better parts of my tea addictions and has led me to neglect all other loose tea blends in my cupboard. Highly recommended. Floral, but not overwhelming. Sweet enough on its own, even for those who have at least two spoonfuls of sugar normally.

Brewed a bit of this in my cast iron. I put this and a floral Tie Guan Yin in there, and I find that the two rarely conflict flavor-wise. It is a light green liquor and the flavor of cherry is sweet enough to merit no additional honey/sugar. It is always refreshing and light.

Floral and citrussy but not bitter.

After having an allergic reaction to the last tea, I wanted something fruity & black to keep me awake after taking a Benadryl. Better with milk than straight.

This is my very favourite black tea, anywhere, ever! A close friend of mine bought some a few years ago and gave me some – we were both hooked. Sadly, however, we cannot find it any longer in our city, at least not the real Arctic Fire, as shown in the picture here. Some tea-shops say they have Arctic Fire, but it’s not the real one… We’re still looking!

Midday cuppa

The almond is more in the aroma than the taste.

The lavender & grapefruit make this an incredible PMS, or any time you need de-stressing, tea.

I wish I had a photo to go with this tea, because it is unbelievable. My friend Rebecca went to Vancouver, and abashedly admitted to paying $57 for 100 g of this tea. But, in my opinion, it was so worth it. We celebrated last night with tea, ginger snaps, and Apples to Apples!

The bag said 90º C for something like 3 min., but we decided to go a bit lower as to not hurt the leaves, and steep longer. Cleaning them, the leaves smelled smoky, and several steeps later, had enlarged such that they probably took up 1/4 of my teacup. The leaves were so delicate that the water never turned past a light cyan color. It is so light that you really can just leave the leaves in the cup and not over-steep.

I’m no oolong master by any means, but I could absolutely taste how smooth and slightly buttery this was, with absolutely no bitter aftertaste as you have with so many teas. The floral notes, presumably from the Kauai orchid (which I know next to nothing about, I’m afraid), were absurdly delicious and light. I could drink this by the gallon if Rebecca would let me, and am definitely going to try (and probably fail) to get one last steep out of the leaves this morning…!