My Teavivre package arrived yesterday!! So this is a backlog from yesterday afternoon. A BIG thank you to Angel for this! The samples are VERY (and I mean, VERY) generous.
The reason I did not log this tea yesterday is because, though very good, I did not know, yet again, how to describe it. I had a few words, but they weren’t fitting. After reading through other tasting notes for both the Organic and regular versions of this tea, I now know what I’m tasting.
First, let me get this out: I usually do not like strong, black tea. (You’re probably thinking, then why order it?) Well, I wanted to pick samples that sounded good, but also pick a few that were something I wasn’t fully familiar with, so I could expand. This was also my first chinese tea. :D So I’m being a bit adventerous.
Now for the tea!!
Smell: Malty. Grainy. It was an interesting and nice aroma, but very strong, so after a while I had to close the bag. Some other people mentioned chocolate and of course, it’s supposed to have a hint of caramel. I didn’t really get any chocolate, but there was a caramel scent, though light. Steeping the caramel came out more, and it was very nice.
Taste: To me, it had, once again, a grainy characteristic, but also, especially once I sweetened to my liking, I swear it tasted kind of like honey. I may be crazy, or maybe that was the caramel adding it’s two cents, but that’s what it tasted like to me. And it was amazing. It was also what I’d call smoky, and bold and wonderful. I really did enjoy this tea. :-)
Side note: I rinsed my leaves, and instead of putting them in the strainer and steeping in a mug, I put the leaves straight into the tea pot, and poured my tea through a strainer. Very good, and I think that’s the best way to make loose leaf, though I don’t mind my in-the-mug method.
