I was making soup when the doorbell rang. I was surprised because I wasn’t expecting a package and no one else ever rings the doorbell. I set down my spoon and hurried to the door where the dogs (I am keeping my grandpup for two weeks) were enthusiastically announcing the presence of the postal carrier and there was indeed a box by the door! A surprise box from White Antlers!
I read the nicest letter and then dug into the box of goodies. Everything looks so good! I picked this to be the first I try.
About the soup – I was inundated with cucumbers from the garden. I have given away cucumbers. Made cucumber sandwiches and cucumber salad. Some cucumbers were about to get away from me, looking a little sad in the fridge but still edible. They are not a sort suitable for pickles.
So I cooked some onion, added broth, tossed in chopped cucumber, lots of dill, garlic, evap milk because I don’t usually keep cream on hand, blended it….and it was really delicious. But I really didn’t taste cucumber. It could easily have been cream of zucchini. I decided to make it go a little further and added finely diced carrot and potato. Topped it with mozzarella. Yes! We will have this for a couple of days for supper.
All that added to say that when I saw the instructions for this tea, I was a little leery of sencha with boiling water. I looked at other reviews and decided to go with a lower temp and short time. And when the water hit the leaves…it smelled a lot like the soup on the stove!
A short steep of two minutes and…This tea is THICK. Or as the young whippersnappers like to say THICC.
The name would imply the taste of cherries, but it is not cherry. It is salted cherry leaves, such as the brined leaves wrapped around mochi. There is nothing fruity about this tea. It is savory through and through!
This is like drinking a broth, nice and salty, something that would take the edge off your hunger when you are sick and can’t really eat anything but you are hungry nevertheless.
And what was really cool was that it smelled so similar to my soup that was still simmering on the stove. This would be an excellent addition to the base for a fresh vegetable soup, especially a cucumber, zucchini, or turnip soup. YUM.
Thank you, White Antlers! There are so many teas in the box that I can not wait to try!
Yay! I’m glad you liked this too! It really does taste best when it’s freshest in spring. If you liked it, I suggest buying some then. It does still taste good, but I noticed a significant flavor difference from the last time I brewed it a few months ago. There’s just too much tea to enjoy to only drink one! :D
So true. There are only a few teas I drink more than 2 or 3 times a months because I love variety so much.