The Tea Merchant

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Rose petals. That’s the taste I get with the first sip. Like I’m drinking liquid rose petal smell. Very strange though not surprising considering the actual rose petals I saw in the blend.
I am surprised at how relatively sweet it is plain. It’s not like candy sweet, but more a subtle sweet with that light rose/floral note. Though if I didn’t know there was supposed to be black tea in this, I would never know. I get more of a white tea taste than anything else. Maybe the scoop I brewed was just light on the black tea or something. I’ll have to mix it up more next time.
The longer I sip it, and I guess the more it cools, the more I’m getting the grape-y taste to it, especially when I roll it around in my mouth a bit.

I wonder how this would do iced? Might try it, though I have the uneasy notion that the rose might come right out and sock you in the jaw. Lol.

Edit – Unfortunately this tea made me just a bit ill later on after drinking it. Well, not even finishing the rest of my cup after this review actually. I’m wondering if it might be the rose? Possibly ’cause now all I think about is tasting what I see as a cloyingly sweet rose smell that makes me feel ill thinking about it.
Unfortunate because it was such an interesting tea before that.

2nd steep, forgot and brewed about 11 minutes. Still tasted okay, yay.

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Tuesday

Tuesday

Tuesday

Tuesday

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And I thought yesterday’s morning cup of creamy earl grey was aromatic. Wonderfully strong vanilla and black tea. The bergamot is barely detectable until the cup is cool then it still remains in the background. Though I prefer my EG with much more bergamot this is still a very nice cup.

Yesterday was the day of Too Busy to Mind My Steep Times. This tea performed fabulously. The long steeps were a bit stronger than usual, but—at least at the 180-ish temperature of the office hot water tap—did not get bitter or unpleasant. Huzzah!

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I’ve noticed since being out of work, the last 4 months, that tea hasn’t tasted as deep or amazing to me. Which is odd considering I have tried some really deep and amazing teas lately. So it got me wondering. If it is not the tea, then what? Is it my attitude? I really don’t think so. I am actually adjusting quite well. I am making plans for the future – something I haven’t done in years. It can’t be my brewing equipment since I brought it all home.

That leaves one thing unchecked. The water. I used tap water at work and had great tea. I am using tap water at home but it is a different source. I have always complained of microwaved water at home – maybe it is not just the microwave. So I am using bottled water today.

Unfortunately after that long introduction, I can’t yet determine if it made a big difference. I think I got the water too hot for this white / green blend – or just maybe I am going to have to adjust how I brew things. Wouldn’t that be fabulous. Leaving the rating alone because I can’t redo this cup as it is a sipdown.

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