4/5 ESP Emporium Teas
Oh, the pain! The pain! Day 1 of P90X was bad. Day 2 was worse. I haven’t even done Day 3’s workout yet, and I honestly don’t see how I’m going to. My whole body hurts. Plyometrics is a b****. Who came up with twelve different versions of jump squats for an hour and decided it was a good idea? Ugh, someone put me out of my misery! It’s time to have a nice cup of tea and try to relax. Operative word being try.
The dry leaves smell exactly like strawberry fruit roll-ups. The leaves are slightly flattened, long, and vibrantly green with lots of large dried fruit pieces and only a couple stems. The suggested steeping parameters are quite broad, so this might take some experimenting to make perfectly. I went with a quick 2 minute steep at 180 degrees.
The flavor is light and fruity. It reminds me of drinking the juice out of a fruit cup. Sweet and sugary, but not in an overpowering way. It’s a natural fruit sweetness. The base is somewhat buttery with a touch of floral, reminiscent of a green oolong. It’s not grassy though. The aftertaste is only slightly vegetal, which tells me this is definitely a Chinese sencha.
I’m going to try a second steep for 3.5 minutes at 185 degrees. The berry notes are quieter in the second infusion, but the green base is still going strong. The fruit taste comes out more as the cup cools. It’s not distinctly any one fruit, rather it’s just generically fruity. A slight astringency is becoming apparent at the end of the sip.
This is good! I love the buttery oolong-like qualities. I think I’ll really be able to enjoy this. :)
