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Back to this tea in hand. I received a sample pack of 10g from NBT a while ago as an exclusive pre-release taster before it was launched on the site. Now it’s up for sale I decided the best thing for me to do was ice it to try and get the most flavour from it. So for two days I have had 10g of this blend steeping in my fridge using 1litre of water. Coldsteeping is much softer and keeps delicate tones, it’s my preferred method of icing tea/tisanes.

I haven’t mentioned much about the look or scent of the blend but honestly there was not much to it. The blend looked floral and multi coloured which bared a subtly sweet yet herbal scent. The fruit was too delicate for me to really say much about it and I decided to let it’s flavour speak instead. So I waited for the outcome with enough time to thicken with flavour.

Today is the morning I try this and the resulting liquid is a light brown/orange colour with a delicious sweet, fruit scent. Particularly like apple and strawberry with honey. A real contrast to it’s unsteeped scent. It’s flavour is just as wonderful! Sweet honeyed fruits with a touch of floral after tones that leave my mouth feeling sweet and refreshed. The fruit tones are mixed but notable berry with a touch of sourness with an exotic fruit affair behind them.

Honestly this tisane gave me a lot more pleasure than I thought it would and I’m happy to say this Honeybush blend is a winner. I don’t think I would have liked this if it was a Rooibos base and the Honeybush really does make this blend stand out.

More information on SororiTEA Sisters.
http://sororiteasisters.com/2015/10/02/honeybush-malaika-tisane-nothing-tea/

Out of all the different things I could drink today I found myself wanting this one, primarily for it’s beetroot like flavour. The last couple of days I’ve wanted nothing but vegetables and fruit to eat and while I don’t really like beetroot I can still appreciate some things about it. Perhaps I’m just mad for wanting to drink something that reminds me of another thing I dislike…Anyway I chose it and after this serving I have one more mugs worth left for another time. Probably in the near future I imagine to clear it out of my stash and replace it with something else.

Anyway yes, tea. This one was reminded also when I read notes from Scheherazade after recently trying it from the EU TTB. It is Pu Erh like in some ways but I like that about it. First of all I wasn’t sure what to make of it but now I’ve had this tea a fair few times I find it has grown on me. It offers that complexity of beetroot, earth, damp, musk and sweet but dry wood which is rather unique. I’ve come across aged tea before and I love to try things older than I am (perhaps because I think older tea must have more knowledge and insight) but I don’t remember tasting beetroot in a tea before. Well except one tea that actually contained beetroot…and I cannot remember where that was from now I think about it.

To match this unusual but delightful tea I have some pop punk on. Currently loving Vicious Love by New Found Glory. I had the fortune of seeing them when I was around 13/14 years old at a small local venue. Listening to them now gives me an awe of nostalgia…which may also be why I chose an aged tea. Plus it makes me feel young again and so I can jump up and down and dance whilst doing other things…for example when it came on tv earlier I was preparing some pesto using carrot tops. There I was jumping up and down whilst singing along and adding ingredients to the pesto. Plus fyi – Carrots make good fake microphones when you really need one.

This was a free sample from NBT so thank you. Though I admit I have not the foggiest idea of what Mullein actually is… Research time I think.

Verbasum aka Mullein is a flower that grows around Europe and Asia. It has been used as medicine by different cultures for many years to help with " disorders of the respiratory tract, skin, veins, gastrointestinal tract, and the locomotor system".

Well thank you Wikipedia, now I at least have some idea as to what this is. It also mentioned that the Austrians traditionally drank this in tea form for their medicine.

I steeped 10g of leaf into my 1litre bottle overnight via coldsteep method. The colour is still very subtle but it does have a slight yellow/brown tinge to the liquid now.

The flavour is sweet and sugary with a touch of refreshing herbs in the after taste. And honestly that is about it…the sweetness is a bit strange, it tastes like sugar water with a weak clove essence. There really is not much to it at all. Either way it tastes so inoffensive that It is easily drinkable but I can’t find anything remotely special about it. I suppose that is why this is marketed as a medicine, you wouldn’t drink it purely for the taste (or lack thereof).

Well it made for an interesting drink but it’s not something I would buy, at least it was worth a try.

Thank you Angel for this sample.

The mood struck me for some Pu Erh steeped western style which I almost never do, usually because I enjoy the ceremony in making tea traditionally. Today however I am making Christmas decorations as the craft bug has bitten and I have no time for tea traditions at the moment. Still need tea though!

As I open the sample pack I am impressed by the large pieces of tangerine peel, hopefully that will mean it’s got a lot of orange flavour.

Once steeped this has a mild yet sweet orange scent with some dry earth undertones.

Flavour is rich and dark with earth, dry wood, sweet orange and a light, creamy after taste. It is very orange in comparison to the actual strength which is about average thickness. The sweetness is a nice contrast to the dry earth tones and the melody lingers nicely in the after taste.

I shall keep re-steeping this until it’s completely spent, but at least it’s a comforting and delicious aid to my crafting.

My tisane of the night before bedtime. Not a casual chamomile drinker but I am trying to cut out some caffeine (particularly at night) and this is the start of things.

The chamomile flowers are beautiful, whole for the most part and bright yellow. So light and fluffy to the touch, so very pretty. They have a herbal and slightly sweet scent that is beknownst to chamomile.

Flavour is thick and full with a sweet after taste. I say full but I mean in terms of depth, it is by no means strong or overpowering, it does however coat my tongue and mouth pleasantly. The herbal taste is only minimal considering the smell and it lingers softly in the after taste.

The flavour remains consistent half way down the cup and is as pleasant as it was with my first sip. If anything it actually starts to taste more sweet and less herbal.

Overall I like this one, it’s not too herbal but nor is it too sweet. I rarely like a chamomile drink but this must be one of my favourite’s so far. Glad I managed to trade and get some of this one, my new night time friend.

I cold steeped this tea overnight for a quick review today. Unfortunately I have no idea what the ingredients are as the sample packet I had didn’t say and this is not on the website. Other than Oolong I have no idea, though I did note it had a spicy scent when I was steeping it. Perhaps the spice was why this is Mexican?

In flavour the spice has continued to a point that I’m thinking it resembles black pepper and cinnamon. Perhaps some clove in there too as it has a refreshing after taste. Rather spicy but it does have a sweet and refreshing after taste that lingers. Also getting perhaps a citrus note, like orange rind though subtle compared to the spice. And Oolong wise it’s a dark Oolong.

It’s quite nice but even if I could I don’t think I would purchase this one. It’s not special in terms of flavour or blend and while it might be a nice drink today I can guarantee it will be forgotten about tomorrow.

Yesterday when I was perusing the £1 shop I found a diamond, faceted glass (like mason jar size) with a groovy patterned lid and straw. It screamed ‘Ice Tea’ to me and I had to get one then and there. Several hours later I remembered my purchase and I really wanted to use it but had no ice tea prepared, on top of that the sticker on the bottom of the cup said it is not suitable for hot liquid. I came up with a solution, half cold water and half 70c water. Last night this was tested with another tea and it worked very well, so much so that I cold steeped a strong concentrate of it overnight (roughly 1/4 of the mug full) and left it in the fridge. This morning I was able to add 70C water to it without additional cold and it filled up again with flavour to create another good steep. Plus it must be said that the straw also keeps most of the leaf parts out of my mouth, something I sometimes have issue with when doing the traditional method of high tumbler.

So with that introduction you have some understanding of how I have steeped this tea today. Different from my usual methods but sometimes the ease of making tea beats the ceremony of it (not always but sometimes). For right now it’s the perfect method to use whilst I finish cross stitching a Christmas card for family this year. As such a simple method there are simple tasting notes. While I have had this tea several times before I can happily say it tastes similar to a gongfu or gaiwan steep. Primarily this tea is very subtle in strength but does have some dryness in the after taste, not to mention a mild sweet, grassy tone that is rather refreshing. Also just a touch of astringency and sweet pea notes. It’s a nice Mao Feng but would not say this was particularly special or memorable. Still I can’t complain, it’s nice enough and I’m thankful to be able to steep it easily now.

Plus in my cup the leaves float, which I was really not expecting.
https://instagram.com/p/8A9UsVMd6C/

And a picture of my cup.
https://instagram.com/p/8Acnu1Md37/?taken-by=kittychajin

I want to apologise for being inactive. A lot has been going on recently. I had my driving test and study before hand, of which I failed and have had to re-book. That was very upsetting, the nerves got the better of me and I made stupid mistakes. So this left me feeling down, as did the fact that if I want a car I need to find a job and save up for one. My husbands money is covering everything else but we can’t get a car as well, so for the last month or so I’ve been job hunting. After starting at one place and fainting on my first day, there has been no other progress. I was messed around a few times with training and supposing to start work but at the last minute they let me down. So needless to say everything has left me feeling about an inch small and my depression got the better of me. Hence no blog writing, no SS posts, no Steepster posts and so on. It’s been difficult and I’m just back on the road to recovery. This really is a long story put simply into a small paragraph, please know it was not my idea to leave the wonderful tea community for the time being but was rather something I needed to do. I was away from most online communities but continued to cross stitch as a sort of therapy, stitching away my problems.

Anyway that is enough of that, I’m not back to bloody depress people! So today I’m drinking this English Toffee Matcha which was with my last RLT order. I tried it originally in normal flavour but thought I would order distinct, to really see what the difference was. It actually does make a substantial difference, this one is creamier and more toffee flavoured though it does still have some of it’s Matcha flavour characteristics. In the background especially; for example it starts off creamy, sweet and toffee but turns stronger and slightly bitter with mild grass tones. Despite that it leaves a very creamy after taste in my mouth, making it seem that the Matcha qualities were just a figment of my imagination…until I take another sip and taste them again.

This truly is delightful and I’m glad I went for distinctive. It was worth the extra money for it :D And this still tastes like English Toffee so I’m happy on all levels.

I will be working on articles hopefully this weekend, if not the start of next week. I have 2300 Magic The Gathering cards coming tomorrow so I will be busy sorting them out before I go down on Sunday to play with people. So please forgive me for that additional delay, but believe that I am back and plan on staying. It’s time to stop letting my depression get the best of me.

This was with my last Yunomi order and I added them purely because they were on sale. Plus I have been trying a few tea bags from Nakazen recently and this is another to add to the collection.

These teabags are each individually sealed in a silver foil pack for added freshness. The outer packaging can also be re-sealed.

Opening the foil pack I am met with a large polystyrene teabag with a white appearance and a tag attached to string. I cannot see any dust/fannings in the silver foil pack or my hand as I handle the bag. Though white I can see dark leaves filling roughly 1/4 of the space. They are small pieces of leaf. As I sniff the bag it is subtle with some wooden tones and a hint of dryness.

Steep one tea bag for 1 minutes with 100C water. (As seen on the pack)

While it steeps I don’t believe I’ve heard of Tsubaki tea before. A Google search says that it’s also known as: “camellia japonica (a relative of camellia sinensis or tea)”.
The Yunomi website also offers some information on this.
https://yunomi.us/shop/8717/nakazen/nakazen-okinawa-tsubaki-tea-tea-bags-8717/

Well once steeped the colour is golden brown (like a dark honey) and it bares a bitter, earthy, wooden and smoky tea. It smells like Pu Erh! I was seriously not expecting that. Just like a Ripe Pu Erh.

Flavour is milder than the scent though still somewhat similar to Pu Erh. It’s medium strength with damp earth, dry wood and a soft smoke after taste. There is also some sweetness to it though mild compared to the earthiness. The dryness increases and coats my tongue over time.

Half way down the mug at this point and I keep having to tell myself it’s not a Pu Erh. Still despite the fact of something it isn’t I like what it actually is. It’s not as ‘offensive’ as Pu Erh can be at times but you have the characteristics of it, plus it has a calming effect. I’m losing train of thought as I carry on typing.

In terms of this being bagged I would not have guessed had I not seen it with my own eyes. It made for ‘unusual’ drinking but I’m still happy I picked this one up.

In raw form the Oolong consist of average size pieces with a beautiful dark and light green colour contrast to them. Also some brown is present and the stems on some appear long.

They have a subtle but sweet and floral scent with a milk after scent.

Steeping Method:
Leaf – 5g
Gongfu Teapot – 125ml
Water – 85C
Time: 3 minutes and increase accordingly.

First Steep – 3 minutes

Once steeped the colour is light yellow with a soft, floral scent.

Flavour is very soft but bares soft, sweet floral tones. I liken it to gardenia and lily, with a touch of cream in the after taste.

Second Steep – 3 minutes 30 seconds

Still a soft steep but the gardenia is becoming crisp with grass notes. The milk covers my tongue like silk as it slips down. With some sweetness that lingers in the after taste, also with a touch of dryness.

Third Steep – 4 minutes

Still sweet and floral though the milk is toning down to a more buttery affair. Also dryness remains minimal in the after taste though it lingers softly on my tongue.

Fourth Steep – 5 minutes

Buttery flowers with a hint of grass and fresh sweet hay. So soft and delicate in strength and tone, but pure tasting.

Sixth Steep – 6 minutes

Very subtle at this point with very little left. A touch of sweet flowers is all that really remains.

Overall: This was a soft and delicate Oolong with floral and milk notes that developed into butter and grass. Pure and natural tasting with no bitterness and only very minimal dryness. An Oolong that uses very little leaf but gives beautiful flavours despite the soft strength. Note – The after steep picture of the leaf was all one part that was connected at the stem. It is one of the largest full ‘one’ pieces I have found in an Oolong after steep.

For pictures and more information please view my blog. http://www.kittylovestea.co.uk/2015/08/19/an-introduction-to-beautiful-taiwan-tea-company-with-paul-adamson-interview/