Ginger Ale Bai Mu Dan

Oh dear. I don’t like ginger… It has even been decided long ago that I probably shouldn’t even bother trying ginger ale. There have been a few teas in the box that I didn’t much like, but this is the first one where I’ve thought from the start that I didn’t think I would like it. I’ve been sceptical of some others, yes, but haven’t expected something outright unpleasant. But here we go, then. In for a penny, in for a pound and all that.

It smells ginger-y, but also sweeter than I had expected. Not as stabby on the nose. I suspect that’s the white tea shining through.

Okay, not more procrastinating. Here we go.

Yes, it’s ginger-y and not really very pleasant for me, but it could have been a lot worse. Just like with the aroma, it feels a bit mellowed out by the white tea. Or the ale-y bit, I don’t know.

Still though. Ginger. I’ll just stop here, I think, because ginger. Sorry. It’s just… Ginger.

Finally getting around to rating this one. I think this is the third time I’ve had it now, and I’m just getting around to reviewing it. Just poor timing on my part, methinks.

The scent of this brewing is heavenly, but it’s a more warming scent than an overpowering one. Mint, you walk into a room and go ‘Wow, it smells minty in here!’ This, you walk in, give a soft sigh, and think ’wow, it sure does smell pleasant in here". I have no idea whether that distinction makes any sense whatsoever.

Then you take a drink, and this sweet, ginger elixir just glides over your tongue. Its a soft, sweet ginger flavor, as opposed to a spicier, peppery ginger. It has very little bite to it, which I think compliments the sweetness of the bai mu dan. After the initial sweetness, the bergamot flavor begins to sort of… blossom, for lack of a better term. I definitely taste the ginger and the white tea first. But by the end of the sip, the bergamot feels much stronger than at first. It rounds off the sweetness very well. This is just an extremely pleasant cup of tea, it is so darned tasty.

This really makes me wonder why I don’t see any ginger flavored Earl Grey’s around. The combination is so perfect in this tea.

I got lucky here too. I almost missed out on this tea, and if it wasn’t for Frank having the free white tea sale, I would have. This was kind of a throw-away. I wasn’t expecting to like it… and it’s so, so good. He was nice enough to put a double package back up on the website for me to buy more, as well. I figure I’m probably going to end up buying one of these a paycheck until he runs out.

Maybe I should lower the rating until I can buy it all… hrmm…

It seems most people don’t like Ginger Ale unless in a mixed drink or when they are sick…and if they drink when they are sick – it seems it’s better when it’s going a little flat, eh!?

Well…being born and raised in and around Buffalo we were a hop-skip from Ontario Canada and I drank quite a bit of Canadian Dry by choice whether or not I was sick. I enjoyed it. And YES it seemed to go a little flat a little quicker than other carbonated beverages but it was ok because it was still good! I still consumed!

This flavored white reminds me of that Good Ole Canadian Dry going a little flat. And that’s what I like about it!

Brings back memories, Frank, thanks, yet again!!!!

Too lazy to bother with aromas and whatnot because I have been doing quite a lot of that lately… did I mention I’m taking part in a cheese-tasting panel? As in, doing sensory analysis on cheeses? An hour a day for something like 6 weeks. We’re currently in the training stage, which involves tasting different concentrations of saline, bitter, umami solutions and ranking them by concentration, and identifying said flavours in cheese samples, etc. etc. Working up to a comparison of reduced salt cheddars. It’s really neat!

Wow. This one tastes fabulous! Not gingerale, but a fabulous creamy, citrusy (bergamot)-y white tea. Yes, definitely tastes like a white earl grey. Kind of like DavidsTea’s Earl of Lemon, now that I’m thinking about it. I’m really not getting any ginger though, which is kind of sad :(

Definitely kicking myself for not ordering this one as a freebie, since it’s turns out neither Peach Fuzz Chai nor Black Currant Bai Mu Dan was really a hit with me. Oh well! I think I have two cups’ worth left of this, so will just have to savour it (and compare to Earl of Lemon!)

Thanks so much for passing a bit of this on, Dylan & Missy! I know how much you liked it so I appreciate your willingness to part with a bit!

ETA: Second cup is delicious, although a bit oversteeped, I think. Also probably hurts it that the tea sat out for a few days. My bad.

I have saved the ones I am most afraid of for last (from last year’s 12 Teas of Christmas) – Ginger Ale White tea, Pancake Breakfast and Buttered Popcorn. The thought of them makes my tummy go queasy. White tea makes me nauseous and the other two just sound revolting in tea form. I won’t even eat buttered popcorn jelly bellies! Anyway, obviously this sample has been kicking around a while so take this with a grain of salt.

The dry aroma is reminiscent of dill pickle popcorn seasoning. Wait a minute, what? Yep. Dill pickle seasoning. Weiiiird. I found this sample to be smaller than the others so I am pushing it to get two cups. Hopefully I have enough in there to make a well flavoured cup. Steeped in a T-Sac for about four minutes, this is lacking in flavor. Thinking I should have just used the whole sample rather than trying to get two cups.

Steeped aroma is non-existent, maybe a whiff of something tea-like. That’s pushing it though. The flavour is a smidge of ginger followed by sweet white tea. So far it’s not upsetting my tummy, but it’s not doing anything good for me. Not much of a taste or smell so it’s hard to judge. For me, this is not a winner but I am not a fan of white tea as it is, so it would be harder to win me over. I think a bit more ginger strength would really help here – the best ginger ales are potently ginger with less sugar, at least for me! : ) I can drink this, but mostly just for the merits of a warm drink on a cool day. The windchill this morning was -18!!

EDIT to add that this one only gets worse as it cools. While I did over-steep it a bit in my attempt to couch some flavours out I am just getting some over-powering lower quality bai mu dan. My leaves were pretty broken up and I am getting some bitterness from that, which is not my thing.

Second EDIT: Bergamot. Of course. That’s what’s making it so dusty and dry. I can barely get a hint of it, so my sample must really have suffered from the passing of time.

Thank you Amy Oh, for this fantastic sample!
I’m not really a fan of soda, partly because it’s too sweet and partly because the bubbles hurt my stomach. But I am a fan of ginger and white tea. And this blend is neither sweet or bubbly so how can we go wrong, right? Right. This tea is super tasty!

This has a bit of a medicinal flavor to it, but that’s because dried ginger tends to taste that way to me. Fortunately, this blend has enough other stuff going on that I barely notice it. The white tea is mild yet refreshing. It provides a good base for the bergamot and light ginger flavor. I’m also detecting something creamy or vanilla-y. It’s not really a replica of ginger ale, but it is good! Call it a White Ginger Grey if you want. It’s tasty and that’s all that matters.

It should perhaps be noted that I cold brewed this for at least 24 hours. Maybe longer. I had 3 other cold brews going on and this one was neglected for a while. It probably would have been fine with even a shorter cold brew. But not that I’ve tasted it, the pot is going to go fast!

This is my hangover tea today. I mean – my happy new year tea!
Don’t get me wrong, I have a grand total of 3 drinks last night! It was the red wine that did me in. I really can’t mix any other drinks with red wine. I get that from my mom.

A few days ago I brewed this up normally and threw it in the fridge. It’s a very pleasant iced tea, but I get more “white tea” flavour than ginger. I felt the same when I had a hot cup before I made the iced tea. It’s still nice though! Very refreshing and slowly hydrating my brain and settling my tummy.

Also also, I’m counting calories in an attempt to eat a little healthier – only for one month! It’s not a diet, just an awareness thing. That’s my small resolution! Then, in one month, we will have moved out of this horribledemoninfestedcraphole of an apartment and I will feel alive again! And THEN – off to Halifax in 3 months. If that’s not a fresh start for a new year, I don’t know what is :D

I forgot to review this when we tried it. Another yummy tea! An excellent combination perfectly balanced.

The ginger is sweet and well mannered enough to let the white tea shine through here. OH EM GEE! Yes folks here we have a bergamot that doesn’t make me frown. It’s very lightly done. I just get hints of citrus flavors, lime mostly. Yay! A tea that doesn’t smack me upside the face with the bergamot perfume.

Tea number nine from the Holiday Sampler today. It’s probably a familiar story – when Frank first blended this tea I dithered about whether or not to buy a pouch and of course by the time I’d made up my mind, they were all gone. It’s nice to see what I’ve been missing out on, although a little sad since once the two teaspoons-worth in the sample are gone – it’s gone.

The gingerale smell from this tea is lovely, sweet and gingery in an almost floral way – though maybe that’s the influence of the bergamot. The flavour doesn’t quite nail it, there’s a bit too much emphasis on the citrus flavour of the bergamot and not enough on the ginger itself. Maybe it would have been better to use lemon and/or lime peel instead to mimic the flavours. None the less, it’s a nice, enjoyable tea and the white tea base is perfect for it, supporting the flavours without overwhelming them.

This is a tea I’ve been looking forward to trying. I love ginger ale for reasons that are similar to Frank’s story about his grandfather, except that it wasn’t my grandfather, it was my “uncle” (actually, a very good friend of my father’s, who, out of respect, I would call uncle). His patio was party central, complete with a full bar and whenever I went over to his house with my dad, I would always get a ginger ale in a fancy glass, and I could pretend I was having a cocktail with the adults.

This tea reminds me very much of that drink, if for no other reason than the memories that Frank’s story conjured for me. It is yummy… and I’m finding I like it better iced than hot, so I will probably save this tea for warmer weather (as we have a blanket of snow on the ground right now, it’s no time for iced tea!)

YUMMY! Thank you Frank!

Thanks to LiberTeas for sending me this, I’ve been wanting to try it. I love ginger and white tea so my hopes were high….

I read over some of the other tasting notes and was thinking “oh no, bergamot!” I don’t like a lot of bergamot especially Earl Grey type of teas.

I actually liked this, a lot! It’s very gingery and definitely reminds me of a cocktail. There’s a bit of bergamot in here but it’s slight. It’s difficult to taste any white tea in here but I was kind of expecting that… Definitely is hitting the spot as my after lunch tea. I bet this would be an amazing iced tea as well…. and no calories!

I’m buying some today! =)

It smells fizzy! and sounds fizzy when I pull the basket out of the tea! It even tastes a bit fizzy! How is it doing that???

Ok, here goes on this one. .. .

Its good, really good! But I cant place the flavors at all. It doesn’t really taste like Ginger Ale to me, but it does have notes of ginger in it. .But since its a white tea, I’m enjoying it regardless. . .

Almost reminds me of a gin and tonic without the carbonation. .

Yum!

52teas 12 Days of Christmas Sampler 2011 – Day 9

Ginger ale tea!!! What a surprise! I took a whiff of the dry leaves and got a recognizable ginger ale scent. Amazing! I’m even getting a bubbly, fizzy aspect like when you inhale a carbonated beverage before taking a sip. And this is a white tea? Wow!

The brewed tea aroma smells just like ginger ale too. It’s a little early in the morning to be drinking a white tea. I think black tea would be more appropriate. But I’ve got to get through this Christmas sampler box!

Well, this tea does not disappoint! I don’t know how you did it, Frank. But this truly does taste exactly like ginger ale. I’m really loving this! White tea was the perfect base. I can’t think of a single improvement to be made. How come I keep getting a slightly carbonated taste? How is this possible?!

Sooo good, and it has a wonderful aftertaste too. I take a sip and then enjoy the flavor for 10-15 seconds before I take another sip. If you like ginger ale, buy a pouch of this immediately!! I’m so impressed with this tea!

So I skipped a couple of days of the Christmas sampler mostly because I’d had those teas before, and been busy working at some semblance of a job during the day. This is the first tea (since day 4) that I have not had before, and it seemed to sound better to me as an iced tea, so I brewed it and let it cool to try it that way. I just couldn’t imagine flat, hot ginger ale!

I definitely got the bergamot and some of the ginger, though the ginger didn’t have an overwhelming amount of bite to it. I also got some vanilla, strangely enough – I wonder if that’s the bergamot? To me the flavors didn’t resemble ginger ale at all as I know it – though maybe that’s the carbonation I’m missing?

Eh, it’s not bad – I just don’t see myself wanting to reach for it at any specific time. I think of ginger ale as more of a sick drink, so maybe that’s why I’ve had such a lukewarm response to this.

Mmm… this one smells like ginger ale when you open the package. So promising! I’m not a huge fan of white teas, but I was looking for less caffeine as it’s nearing evening now.

185/3 min later… the smell is similar to the dry scent. It’s nice, fruity, but with a promise of spiciness. Then, the taste. Mmm… it’s really good. Bold for a white tea, due to the flavoring, I’m sure. It does taste like ginger ale to me, but no fizziness, thank goodness! It’s somewhat sweet, yet the spiciness picks at my tongue and throat. The tea is really mild, overcome by the flavors. It’s a nice pairing and really good tea and I’ll bet this would be delicious iced!

Enjoying this tea. It smells like gingerale, with out the effervescence. I like the bergamot in this with the warm ginger. I used 1 tablespoon with 12oz of water. I really enjoy brewing white tea with this much leaf. I can’t wait to try the second steep iced with a bit of sweetner.

Thanks to Dylan for the sample.

This… wasn’t bad, but I was a bit let down. The ginger wasn’t too strong for me. I was also surprised that this white tea, when it barely seemed to expand in the brewer.

It’s not bad, but I think I was hoping for ginger-ale tasting tea. Maybe I set my expectations too high?

Also, apparently there is bergamont in here, and I didn’t even notice. I’m pretty sensitive to it, so I’m surprised it slipped past my radar.

I’m also cold brewing some of this as we speak, because I wanted to see how it fared cold-brewed.

The always wonderful Dylan shared this with me yesterday. Wow. Yum.

I love ginger and bergamot. This really has the right amount of both. It’s very light yet distinctive. There’s also some aromatic note that reminds me of something from my childhood, but I can’t put my finger on it.

This is a worthwhile bai mu dan.

Thanks, Dylan!

Cold brewed this overnight…I’m waiting for my first boring class of the day to begin…microeconomics, can you feel the excitement?

This tastes better than ginger ale. I normally don’t even like ginger flavored drinks but I’m enjoying this. Not enough to buy a package though, but I’m definitely going to finish this up soon!