Not feeling very talkative right now since I’m dealing with a migraine this morning that was developing when I went to bed last night. But I decided to still try a new tea anyway. Let’s see how that goes.
Following Teavivre’s recommendation of steeping for 30sec, 1min, and 2min in boiling water. I used one whole sample of 7g in 200ml of water.
1st steep: I was surprised opening the pack when I got the strong scents of burnt wood and roasted peanuts. There was a real sweetness in the background of it all, best I can say was like stone fruit. The wet leaf had these as well, but also the definite smell of cooked vegetables came first…the sweetness reminding me of Brussels sprouts (a good thing—I love them!). In the cup the combinations of all these aromas made me picture peaches and plums grilling over a wood fire, and still the nuttiness of the roasted peanuts. As I write this, it sounds absolutely delightful and like something I would normally rave about. But I’m not feeling like that. I’m chalking that up to the migraine. Apparently my senses are working, or I wouldn’t have got a lot of these flavor-pictures (if you know what I mean). But the emotional aspect just isn’t clicking right now. It’s more like I’m doing my duty of reporting for you and the benefit of my memory, but I’m not begrudging it.
2nd steep: Now I think I understand what people are saying about oolongs changing flavors with each steep. It’s still smooth and thick feeling, but there’s just a touch of astringency developing. And it’s still got the roasted aromas but more of grains rather than nuts this time. But now that’s joined by the sharp sweetness of dried apricots, and maybe a little spice. It feels juicy and almost “chewy.”
3rd steep: Still smooth and thick, and absolutely no astringency. The roasted aromas continue with a buttery sweetness that reminds me of baked apple.
I wouldn’t have thought until very recently that I would like smokiness in tea at all, and roasted flavors also just didn’t sound like something I’d really go for either. Well, there’s been a little bit of smokiness in a couple teas I tried last week, and it was added a nice depth to those. And today’s exploration into roasted flavors really brought out some new flavor profiles to my tea experiences. It danced around with a few different fruit flavors through the steeps and it worked really well! I’ll have to try this tea again when I’ve got the full capacity of my senses and my emotions so I can be as deliriously happy as I think this tea wants to make me!
