I am a sucker for good Japanese food. Or good Chinese food. And one of my favorite elements about it is the sesame – either as an oil, paste or seed. Needless to say, I was excited about this tea as soon as I read about it.
The fabulous Lena provided it to me in a swap (thank you!!), and I am really glad I’m getting to try it!
I see what others have mentioned with the leaves being “oily”. They look and smell for all the world like they’ve been coated in sesame oil. Yum. Sesame oil…. :)
Brewing up, it smells like I’m at my local sushi joint rather than lounging around the house in natty sweats. The brewed aroma is a meld of the sesame and the tea – I’d expected the sesame to be a little stronger than it was, but the two were evenly matched.
The taste is nice. I first taste tea, and then taste tahini as almost an afterthought. It also tastes warm, not as in temperature or spice, but like the feeling you get when you’re warming up after a day outside in the cold. Comfortable.
I would definitely agree with shortening the steeping time – I cut it down by about 30 seconds, and next time I’ll cut it down further. There’s a hint of bitter I think can be cut out.
