Shmiracles

one of my many samples from davids.
(i’ve been hoarding them all up, for emergencies)
http://instagram.com/p/Wh6qBZIc__/
i didn’t expect this tea to be this delicious! i mean i’m not gonna go buy some asap or anything, but i didn’t expect it to taste so fancy.
it still reminds me a bit of Stormy Night or basically any of Davids chocolate/coconut/vanilla teas. and it’s a yum.

omg i’m so excited!
omg what did i just do?!
i swear i was just gonna LOOK at the davidstea stuff…
but then all of a sudden i had The Earl’s Garden, Bamboozled, and Big Apple in my cart
PLUS
TWO Timolino Travel Mugs?!?!?!, one White and one FUCKING AWESOME Mate Purple!!!!
i couldn’t help myself! it was just so beautiful!
our eyes met and my knees immediately went weak. and i’m so excited to hold it close.
also i left my timolinos at home today by accident. weird. and it’s also raining and snowing at the same time right now out my window. help me Big Apple.

i haven’t tasted this yet because i’m still waiting for it to cool.
but it has been brewed in my brand new black timolino.
!!!
now i have a black timolino for black tea and a green one for green and white tea.
(i just need to do a good cleaning on the green one is all)
i feel very satisfied with this arrangement. i use my timolino always. even when i’m not traveling. because it keeps the tea good and hot and i’m a slow sipper.

i ordered it! and it arrived today! and it smells heavenly!
i love all the ingredients in it. so i knew i had to get some.
and when i realized i have no interest in any of the other spring teas coming out tomorrow, i just went for it!

it’s supposed to snow here today.
and i have been so so very blue feeling.
i’m supposed to be marathon training but i can’t seem to get myself motivated.
what’s your favorite feel good tea?
and also what’s your favorite ‘escape’ crap telly?
i mean that’s what overcast dull snowy days are for.

this is a fine puerh. i like puerhs a lot. they are dark and brooding. they have an undercurrent and a pull to them.
they have gravity.

personally, i do not want to cheer a puerh tea up with berries, or cajole a puerh with coffee beans. …however the sour flick of citrus always seems to do a puerh a graceful and sultry kind of compliment. basically i love a blood orange puerh. purrrr.

alas, the story ends strained because i have been spoiled.
here in my city a tea shoppe called Carytown Teas has the most amazing Blood Orange Puerh i have ever sipped and probably will ever sip. and it has changed me. i’ll never be the same. amazing when a tea can do that. (but davids tea blood orange, i have found my true love and you will never again touch my lips. we’ll just have to go our separate ways. the distance will do us good.)

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When My Ship Comes In (i play bass on this song)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EhEnphW7xw

oh thorin, all of your bravado, greed, and loud warrior spirit still can’t mask your warm and oversized heart. no matter how hard you try.

i bought this because i love thorin and the hobbit and also i’m on a puerh kick. so i felt like they made this tea just for me. or that basically i love thorin because he is like puerh?

also if you were paying attention you will know that i already love Richard Armitage. (http://steepster.com/shmiracles/posts/149839) and if you don’t love him after watching North and South then i can’t help you. oh swoon.

so analysis shows that in fandom blends
armitage is to puerh (guy, thorin),
as cumberbatch is to lapsang (sherlock, smaug),
as freeman is to irish breakfast (bilbo, watson)

this tea may be a blend of 3 teas but really it is a puerh with other hints thrown in. the puerh is the star of this tea show. it is soft and earthy and full of body. wet, earthy body. (hubba hubba)
the puerh dante tea is described on the site as “a clean, damp forest aroma, dried mushrooms, leather and earth. Some sweetness of figs or dates and a slight creamy flavor. Mellow and grounding.”
…. thank you universe, for always putting Armitage in leather.

grounding. such a beautiful and accurate word. for both thorin and this tea.

assam melody adds some pungence and maltiness and astringency to the cup. (if you wanna go there you can think “dwarf sweat”) agitation and short tempers. an edginess that is palpable.

the ginger and cinnamon and orange peel from the gingerbread tea is faint. it’s mostly overpowered by it’s company. but it’s absence would be immediately missed. it ads a touch of added warmth and sensitivity.
and like thorin’s bright blue eyes, when the orange peel pops out i pay attention.

and then lastly, the cocoa nibs add a small layer of darkness. deep and brooding. so subtle, but it is there. like the weight of thorin’s responsibility, and the difficult memories he still carries, that never seem to give him true rest. (until perhaps sometimes when bilbo the zen master is there.)

26/02/2013
so yeah, i’ve kinda been absent lately.
the seasonal affective depression thing has kicked in, and marathon training is a struggle and a time suck (though good when it’s good!), and i’ve been escaping by reading too much fanfic and slash, and i’ve also been trying to cut down on my caffeine (gasp!).
no more than 3 cups a day. and only in the morning. but i used to just drink it whenever i wanted and it was heavenly.

but now i’m trying to come back, and i’m excited about the new david’s teas spring collection. and the eventual turn of the clocks. and maybe even being able to leave the house wearing only 1 hoodie instead of 2.
and i swear i’m gonna send Courtney that box of tea samples this week! at least i feel like it might happen this week…

17/12/2012
i’m surprised this tea didn’t stand out the first time i tried it.
it’s touchingly subtle, and yet brave at the same time.
super balanced.
a mellow sugar and clove sipper. and it smells like no other tea i’ve had yet.
the sparkles are a gimmick, and if the tea wasn’t unique they wouldn’t matter,
but because this tea DOES feel like somewhat of a special loner to me, the glitter just makes it that much more romantic.

i’m gonna save my last cup worth to have on Xmas day as i watch Doctor Who (after a cuppa weeping angel of course).

so good!
with apple pie and hobbit talk and discussion of things to do and see while i’m in paris.
then i went to the gym and ran/walked over 17 miles as i read some super fun hobbit fanfic.

the tea was brewed perfectly. i mean i’m not a lavender person at all, and my sister accuses me of actually not liking earl grey (i argue that i don’t buy it cuz it’s everywhere though i do certainly like it!) but the tea was so perfectly balanced. i have to say that carytown teas seems to always consistently have the best best teas. i feel lucky that it is in my city every time i go there and buy a new tea.

so i gave this one a second try. but that’s all it’s gonna get.

not the tea’s fault.
but i only like cinnamon gum. those candy hearts? nope. cinnamon mouthwash? nope. what else is there? idk but i probably don’t like it.

i love real cinnamon though!! i put it on every bowl of yogurt or oatmeal. like tons.
so there’s that.

happy cinnamon to you!

sometimes i just wanna write a review that says “i drank this”. which probably infers that it’s a boring tea. but not an awful cup by any means. it’s just a tea.

i drank this.

A Spot of Tea
(by mithen http://archiveofourown.org/works/731462)

The shopkeeper gave Thorin Oakenshield a dubious look as he walked through the door, and Thorin could hardly blame her: an armor-clad, rather shaggy dwarf was woefully out of place in this room full of floral upholstery and white lace. But Bilbo had been so delighted at the sight of a Laketown tea room that he had insisted Thorin come along, and considering the hobbit had saved his life two or three times now Thorin felt the least he could do was drink some stewed leaf juice with him.

Gingerly, he took a seat on a delicate white-painted chair covered with a rose-patterned cushion, and watched Bilbo enthuse over the floral centerpiece, the doilies, the fluted stained-glass lamps. A waitress in a starched white apron came over, and she and Bilbo had an animated discussion as to which tea was superior as Thorin tried his level best not to stand out too much.

From the looks he was getting from other customers, he was failing miserably at that.

It was…interesting to see the burglar in something like his natural habitat, he thought, watching Bilbo chatter about aroma and nose with the smiling waitress. He looked comfortable and happy, something Thorin had rarely seen him look over their travels.

It suited him.

“And you, Master Dwarf?” The waitress’s voice broke into his thoughts, and Thorin snapped out of his reverie. ”What would you like?”

“I’ll…have what he’s having,” Thorin said, pointing at Bilbo.

“Oh, that’s an excellent choice!” Bilbo beamed, just as if Thorin had made an informed decision. He looked around the sunny little room, interlacing his fingers on the table. ”This is such a pleasant place,” he said. ”It feels rather like home. Although everything’s too big, of course,” he added with a wry look at Thorin. He picked up the teacup in front of him. ”Look at this, what an exquisite pattern.”

Thorin picked up his own cup—far too dainty for his wide hands—and peered at the little purple and yellow flowers twining around it. ”Pretty,” he agreed.

“Violets, my favorite,” Bilbo sighed, putting it back on the saucer with a tiny click.

Dwarvish drinking cups were generally made of metal and wood; Thorin’s hands felt clumsy and awkward on the satiny china. Bilbo was talking about different kinds of sugars and something called clotted cream, his voice happy. Thorin watched him, absorbed in his own world of flowers and tea and doilies. A month ago he would have dismissed such things as frivolous fripperies. A month ago, before he had seen this fussy little hobbit hold off a warg, fight a giant spider, rescue him and his men from the deep dungeons of Mirkwood.

Soon enough, their teacups were full of steaming brown liquid. Bilbo inhaled the steam rapturously, and Thorin followed suit, surreptitiously watching Bilbo’s face to make sure he was doing it right as he cautiously lifted the cup.

The tea was light and sweet, with a slight hint of bitterness beneath. ”It’s good,” he said, somewhat surprised.

Bilbo sighed happily. ”It is, isn’t it?” He smiled at Thorin, and Thorin looked down at his teacup, took another quick sip. ”Thank you for sharing this with me. It’s a shame to drink tea alone, and as much as I like them, the other dwarves, well…”

The image broke into Thorin’s head unbidden: thirteen dwarves in the cozy little tea house, juggling sugar cubes, guzzling tea and belching. He snorted with sudden laughter, choking slightly on his tea, and heard Bilbo join in.

Everyone in the tea room was looking at them, but Thorin Oakenshield couldn’t possibly have cared less.

14/02/2013
i bought this tea because my sister wanted to try it. and i was like sure why not :)
but then it arrived and i think i drank the whole bag. it’s possible i gave her some to take home? but i think i drank the whole bag.

24/04/2013
i didn’t drink the whole bag after all! i did give my sister some and she brought it back into my house when she moved in last week :) so here i am finishing it…
what can i say! you snooze you lose! hahaha nom nom nom

how is it possible i haven’t reviewed this one yet you ask?
well, i have a horrible thing to admit…i’m not really a chai drinker.

but the truth is that this is really a chocolate tea!
i mean it is isn’t it? it’s warming.
it’s like mexican chocolate, it has a little bite at the end.

but i feel like that’s all obvious from the name of the tea.
good name.

i loved this tea’s eathiness. very dark and robust. cuz world leaders don’t mess around.

della terra really kinda can’t lose.
they do every tea right.
(at least from what i’ve had so far.)

i haven’t been around much. i guess i just don’t have a ton to say about tea at the moment.
also marathon training has picked up in miles and requires more of my free time.
but don’t worry, i’m still obsessed with tea!

proof! look what i just bought!
special Mandarin White Puerh http://instagram.com/p/VXJqSQIc_3/

i had a dentist appt and then stopped in to Carytown Teas to get one cup to drink. and the next thing i knew i’d spent almost $25 dollars. but that mandarin puerh so beautiful!!!

also the blood orange puerh was very very nice! (though maybe a hint of chocolate couldn’t hurt.)

i think calling this ‘evening escape’ is strange as i would never really drink this type of tea in the evening. but maybe it’s like you can travel to an evening-time mood anytime of the day with this tea?
oh i see, you can end the day with a cozy sit by the fire. this is a fireside blanket in a cup.

it’s a lapsang blend. and i love lapsang blends. it has some little floral notes. it is a cheerier and lighter lapsang than we might be used to.

good bye prince vlad. i’ll probably buy you again someday.
maybe even in person when i go to Paris in a few months.
until then, i’ll think of you every time i re-use your tin.

in my opinion this tea is understated and classy. it’s also the first tea i am logging while using my new computer! this screen is huge. it feels so wrong, but it also feels so right.

i swear, the first time i had this tea i was like ‘meh it’s nice enough’.
but it’s really hitting the spot this morning.
it’s honest. cinnamon and vanilla black tea.
and snow is on the ground here for the first time this season. school/work was delayed 2 hours. and i have a book to read and tea to drink.

started the morning with this bold cup. these kusmi teas don’t really mess around do they. Tea capital T.
i don’t see exactly why this one is not liked as much as some others by the reviewers. it’s not a favorite tea, and i guess it is a bit more on the sour side than other teas. but it’s still nice enough.
but then again i don’t drink many earl greys so i am definitely not an earl grey person. not YET! i’ll get there eventually. i’ll evolve there.

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the problem with hanging out on steepster more is that the reviews make you wanna buy buy buy and try try try! this morning i bought two try me sample packs from Della Terra. the Magic Mint one with Swiss Mountain, Jasmint, Shamrock & Shenanignas, Shamrock & Roll, and Moroocan Mint in it. and a DIY try me pack of Cafe Vanilla, Chocolate Almond Coconut, Chocolate Orange Slice, Oolong Creme, and Malt Shop. it’ll be a mint chocolate spring.

i’m not very experienced with mates. but i like the 3 others i’ve tried from davidstea much more than this one.

hopefully i can pawn this one onto my boything, since he likes mate often.

drinking this cup at 4:30p will probably help my 5:30p run :)

2013/01/30
i don’t understand this tea.

2013/02/03
peace out secret weapon.
i can’t say that you’ll be missed.

i only have one more cup worth of this tea at home. so i steeped this lot twice.
sweet and warm. perfect for a windy and overcast day.

here’s a picture of my desk tea: http://instagram.com/p/VHQzYeIcy_/

went to Strange Matter.
the best punk bar with tea in town.
it’s a vegan (and non-vegan) dive bar for punk shows and they always have maybe 4 different loose leaf teas available. so much love for this place!