88

Since my April tea of the month club offerings have arrived, I think it’s time to close out March. This was the last of the three March Teavana Classic Tea of the Month Club teas.

This will be brief, because while there is nothing wrong with this tea, it’s not exceptional either. I have had other Chinese greens that were juicy and had a lot of depth, and that made it fun to play “name the vegetable” when deciding what it most tasted like. This has a mild vegetal taste and aroma and a tiny bit of the buttery flavor that I like so much, but it is lacking in depth.

Others have said that it is a good every day tea. Basically, I think if I was going to have an every day Chinese green tea, which I take it means relatively inexpensive, at this point I’d pick Tazo China Green Tips. The full leaf version of that has far more flavor than the Three Kingdoms does.

Even considering cost, I can see no reason why even an every day tea should be just ok — there are so many extraordinary teas out there at all different price points. And Teavana has a reputation for being overpriced. I haven’t done a comparison to pin this down, but I’d think there are more robust, flavorful green teas for the same price or less.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 1 min, 30 sec
Ricky

Ha, sounds like my Hubei Spring Needles.

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Ricky

Ha, sounds like my Hubei Spring Needles.

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I got obsessed with tea in 2010 for a while, then other things intruded, then I cycled back to it. I seem to be continuing that in for a while, out for a while cycle. I have a short attention span, but no shortage of tea.

I’m a mom, writer, gamer, lawyer, reader, runner, traveler, and enjoyer of life, literature, art, music, thought and kindness, in no particular order. I write fantasy and science fiction under the name J. J. Roth.

Personal biases: I drink tea without additives. If a tea needs milk or sugar to improve its flavor, its unlikely I’ll rate it high. The exception is chai, which I drink with milk/sugar or substitute. Rooibos and honeybush were my gateway drugs, but as my tastes developed they became less appealing — I still enjoy nicely done blends. I do not mix well with tulsi or yerba mate, and savory teas are more often a miss than a hit with me. I used to hate hibiscus, but I’ve turned that corner. Licorice, not so much.

Since I find others’ rating legends helpful, I added my own. But I don’t really find myself hating most things I try.

I try to rate teas in relation to others of the same type, for example, Earl Greys against other Earl Greys. But if a tea rates very high with me, it’s a stand out against all other teas I’ve tried.

95-100 A once in a lifetime experience; the best there is

90-94 Excellent; first rate; top notch; really terrific; will definitely buy more

80-89 Very good; will likely buy more

70-79 Good; would enjoy again, might buy again

60-69 Okay; wouldn’t pass up if offered, but likely won’t buy again

Below 60 Meh, so-so, iffy, or ick. The lower the number, the closer to ick.

I don’t swap. It’s nothing personal, it’s just that I have way more tea than any one person needs and am not lacking for new things to try. Also, I have way too much going on already in daily life and the additional commitment to get packages to people adds to my already high stress level. (Maybe it shouldn’t, but it does.)

That said, I enjoy reading folks’ notes, talking about what I drink, and getting to “know” people virtually here on Steepster so I can get ideas of other things I might want to try if I can ever again justify buying more tea. I also like keeping track of what I drink and what I thought about it.

My current process for tea note generation is described in my note on this tea: https://steepster.com/teas/mariage-freres/6990-the-des-impressionnistes

Location

Bay Area, California

Website

http://www.jjroth.net

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