Veri-Tea

This tea consists of very small, relatively neat, dark black leaves. It’s quite pleasant. A touch smoky, quite smooth drinking. Not that much different to the Keemun from The Tea Centre actually. I am always craving teas that I don’t have, and this morning I could really have gone for a strong malty Assam, but this actually was not a bad substitute. Haven’t tried it with milk yet – next time maybe.

This was a bit meh this morning. I got interrupted and had to let it get nearly cold before I could finish it, which kind of defeated the purpose of having a warm drink on a cold rainy morning. Never mind!

Yum, just what I need for an afternoon pick me up today…

This is very similar in looks, scent and taste to the ‘oolong’ tea that came in the same pack. The main discernible difference is that it’s a little less fruity, a little more earthy. Ordinary but still ok drinking, especially in this cold weather that is less conducive to very flowery oolongs…

This is a very dark oolong, the leaves are extremely uneven in size and range in colour from dark golden-brown to nearly black. It came in a pack of 6 mini-tins that cost me $7.50 or so… so I was not expecting much. In fact I’m not quite sure why I purchased the pack except that a.) I occasionally have a perverse desire to drink cheap tea just to see if it really is worthwhile paying out so much money for quality as I usually do, and b.) I needed to make up my purchase amount to be over $20 so I could use EFTPOS as I had no cash. Also sometimes given that the baby can disrupt my tea drinking occasions so greatly, I don’t always get the proper value out of the fancier, more expensive teas that I have… so I feel a bit better about drinking something less precious. Is that bad?

Anyway, so as I said, I wasn’t expecting much from this tea. And it’s not spectacular, but it is ok. It is not stale tasting or musty as I feared it would be; it is a little leathery, a tiny bit fruity, a reasonable oolong to get by with. Not sure if I’ll go buy any more once the little tin is finished but I’ll keep it in mind.

Ok, have been on a mission since yesterday to get this out of my cupboard! Mission now accomplished. Discovered yesterday that if you make a single cup with 2 teaspoons of tea instead of just one and steep it for 5 minutes, it has flavour! So I finished off the last two teaspoons of tea this morning. Milk, touch of maltiness, nice.

Not going to bother purchasing any more English Breakfast of any kind for a long time I think.

Added a pinch of Lapsang Souchong to a pot of this to go with breakfast (pankcakes with bacon and maple syrup) this morning. Improvement! But not much.

This just gets mishier and mashier… and better and better. I did a tea cupboard clean out yesterday and added a bunch of additional spices and tea to the mix. Much hotter flavour now, genius!

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Yum. The perfect cold weather brew. Less apricot and more just chai-y now (I throw in whatever odds and ends of spice/chai blends I’m working on)… spicy goodness!

Used up the last of this at my parents’ today. Yum!

I’ve been drinking this all morning – think I’ve had about 5 infusions so far, of variable length and temperature (cos I’m also working) and the flavour is still good. The scent of the leaves is just so creamy, peachy, flowery… I love it!

Hitting the spot this afternoon… I am so tired… hopefully this will help get me through the evening.

A nice strong soothing pot of this is going down a treat while I am (over-)optimistically hoping that the baby will go to sleep so I can do some stuff… like update my steepster log. Heh.

Had some of this again yesterday with my little bro. Tried making it a bit stronger this time. Still pretty meh.

Nice mild cuppa to wind down my evening last night! So smooth.

Calming and soothing and just what I needed earlier this morning.

Just steeped this today (didn’t brew it like chai) and added a splash of milk. Lovely. Unfortunately had to let it get a bit cold before I had the chance to finish it otherwise would have rated it higher, but it’s just not as nice cool. Ah well.

Perfect for the grey and gloomy weather today. Being able to drink this while I was feeding the baby reinforced for me why my Keep Cup (which has a lid, like a disposable but not disposable) is the best thing I have purchased in ages. Comfort and convenience!

This was really pleasant this morning. Lovely malty flavour, very smooth.

I have no idea what tea this is, it’s in an unlabelled canister. I am sure it has been sitting in my parents’ pantry for at least 2 years. And yet, it is quite pleasant to drink. It’s not subtle or nuanced… it’s strong and kind of biscuity. I am not game to try it without milk though. Sugar would probably go well but I haven’t really felt the need to add any. Just goes to show that a decent cup of tea can turn up in the most unexpected places.

Comforting, just what I need this morning. Malty and sweet (with milk but no sugar).

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