545 Tasting Notes
This morning I had a cup of Vanilla Bean with milk with my 10 grain “oatmeal” with milk and honey. I think I could taste the vanilla today, or maybe something that reminded me of vanilla. Still not a favorite, but drinkable. Sometimes I just reach for a bagged tea when tired.
Preparation
Last night I was heading into my bed to read before sleeping, when I absolutely had to have a cup of tea to take with me. Now, sometimes I thinking about it before hand and make a cup of tea to drink while I read while I’m getting ready to shut down for the night and head into the bedroom. But no, last night I already had the lights off, the heat lowered, the computers sleeping, book, cel phone, and water in hand, heading into the bedroom, when I realized I had to have tea, that I would be preoccupied wanting tea while I read if I did not make some. So I put down my stuff and headed back into the kitchen, prepared to out of bed a bit longer while I made tea.
This brings me to a problem I keeping meaning to query my fellow Steepsterians about. What do you drink when you want tea late at night?
I’m talking 9/10pm when you’ll likely only drink a cup or two. I don’t want to drink a black tea because even though I’ll occasionally have one while making dinner, with dinner, or right after dinner, it’s just too late to have one that late. I don’t want a green or white tea because I’m likely to drink only one cup and feel like I’m wasting the multiple steeps I could have had from those leaves and I personally am not comfortable leaving wet tea leaves over night. Which leaves me with herbals. I like rooibos but I’m low on it and often don’t feel like it that late at night. I tend not to like chamomile straight or in blends where it’s a dominate taste, but I don’t mind being able to taste it in blends so long as it isn’t the strongest flavor. I don’t mind hibiscus cause I like tart things so I wouldn’t avoid it but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find it either. So far I’ve had a hard time finding non-rooibos herbals that I like and want to drink, not just this is okay and I can finish the box/tin ones.
So part two of my query, Steepsterians, is to ask for your herbal recommendations. I will also take good rooibos recommendations, since not many of you drink it, and I’m open to them, but I’m looking for mainly herbals to consider.
Now back to my regularly scheduled late night tea story. Barbara, my mom, brought back a ton of teas from the Celestrial Seasonings plant in Denver, CO, when my dad, my sister, and she were visiting my sister’s boyfriend who was stationed there with the Air Force. One box that she gave me was a sampler of their fruity herbals.
As someone who also readings “junk food” romances, I’m also embarrassed to admit that I kind of like these teas. I enjoy fruity teas and herbals, when I’m in the mood for one. And while these aren’t as good as others I’ve had, they are decent and I don’t mind the tartness from the hibiscus.
I did steep this tea less than the recommended four to six minutes and with water below boiling. It could probably be steeped less time and with cooler water. It was still a dark purple-red. It tasted fruity and tart with a general berryness. It filled my late night need for tea.
Preparation
Question 1: I just take whatever. I typically don’t pay attention to caffeine content and the like so I just take whatever I’m in the mood for. I haven’t even developed any specific habits about preferrring a particular type at a particular time of day. Lately I’ve had difficulties getting to bed at a proper time which is a bad thing when you have to be out of the door by 6.10 in the morning, so I’ve tried to teach myself that tea is off limits after 8. Not going so well, though.
I’ll skip question 2, because I don’t drink herbals at all unless I’m ill. I’m just not that interested in them at all.
…How’s that for unhelpful answers?
1. I’m in an experimental tea period so I don’t have a particular night tea
however, 2. I find that I like Harney & son’s Lemon Herbal but at the risk of sounding redundant, you do have to like lemons. I’ve not had the chance to try many other herbals & tisanes, yet.
I like Strawberry Lemonade from Teavana – it’s a nice tisane with no caffiene. As far rooibos – I’m only a fan if it’s a background flavor, because I don’t like the woody-ness of it in the foreground. And two that I like are Carrot Cake by Tea Guys and the much vaunted Caramelized Pear by Art of Tea. both of these don’t have the rooibos coming out and grabbing you – which I consider a bonus.
I also like Sleepytime Vanilla by CC- because I don’t like chamomile, and the vanilla in that cuts it down and makes it creamy and smooth.
I have some of the same concerns as you!! I’ve been enjoying this late at night:
http://steepster.com/teas/tazo/1926-vanilla-rooibos
It’s not super rooibos-y – the rooibos just lends it some depth. I think it tastes like an herbal apple pie :)
…but I would like some variety so I’ll be watching the answers you get closely :)
I tend to go for herbals, or at least try to. I’m working on expanding that section of my tea collection so I have more choice. Right now I have green rooibos (which I enjoy) and a decaf muscat black tea (also good), both from Lupicia. It’s hard for me to find good herbals that I like, so I am still on the hunt. The MF Rouge Ruschka I had at lunch I think is a good one, too.
I know teaplz is conscious of caffeine consumption so maybe she’ll chime in with some good ideas.
(I would just like to clarify that I mean Mariage Freres Rouge Ruschka…)
1) I don’t do anything with caffeine after dinner, so I’m limited to herbals.
2) The ones I reach for most often are Adagio’s Chamomile (sorry, can’t be a help there!), Celestial Seasonings’ Sweet Apple Chamomile and Tension Tamer, and herb + ginger’s Bollywood Star. I also echo wombatgirl on Teavana’s Strawberry Lemonade, and I hate rooibos but Rishi’s Blueberry Rooibos is AWESOME.
1) I’ve been trying to stick to greens and herbals after dinner, but with all the new black flavored teas I’ve been picking up I don’t always follow this.
2) I love orange herbals at night. Two I’ve tried lately are both from Teavana (only store near me that has loose leaf): Tarocco Ruby Orange and Wild Orange Blossom. The tarocco Ruby Orange is more hibiscus-y and has a bit more bite to it, where the blossom is calm and less tangy. I don’t enjoy chamomile either, unless I’m really sick but then I’d rather grab mint tea.
1. after 6 pm i switch to herbal or red 2. Azteca Fire-Teavana, Passion-Tazo, Vanilla Rooibos-Tazo,
I’m usually up late anyway doing homework, so I tend to drink just about anything. I don’t have many herbal teas on hand, so if I really want to get some sleep, I just have to sit through my tea cravings. Sad.
However, I do have one herbal tea that I love and is perfect before sleeping…Comforting Tea by Aveda. Ohmahgaw, so yummy.
Whoa! Comments! The Steepsterians have come through.
Angrboda ~ Suitably unhelpful.
Lauren ~ I do like lemons. I’ve noted it on my Shopping List.
wombatgirl ~ Strawberry Lemonade and Carrot Cake noted on the Shopping List. Carmelized Pear was already on there. Lemonade I have to be in the mood for. The husband is a big fan though. I like carrot cake but have a hard time imagining how it translates into a tea. Barbara also brought back Extra Vanilla Sleepytime from the Celestial Seasonings plant so I’ve had it at her place in the evening. Good enough, but not anything I’d crave drinking.
JacquelineM ~ I guess I’m not the only one. =) I’ve had a Tazo sampler pack but I can’t remember the Vanilla Rooibos though I’ve had vanilla rooibos from other companies and enjoyed them.
Auggy ~ I’ll be keeping a closer eye on your tealogs for herbals. The Rouge Ruschka sounds yum and has also been Shopping Listed.
teaplz, please chime in with your herbally knowledge!
Bethany ~ Barbara also gave me an apple chamomile tea recently, I think it’s Twinings though. Neither the husband or I liked it but I will give it one more try. Then it’s going back to Barbara’s. Not sure about the Tension Tamer, lots of ingredients, including catnip! Might also prove too irresistible to the cats. I can’t imagine what the Bollywood Star would taste like from the ingredient list but I added it to the Shopping List cause I liked the company’s name. I love blueberries so you know that one got added!
Meghann ~ I used to love Wild Orange Blossom, back before I drank mostly loose teas. I remember taking a box of it to leave at the husband’s when we were dating long distance. Good nostalgia, thanks. Ruby Orange went right on the Shopping List cause I love oranges too. Oddly chamomile can sometimes make my stomach feel sick, not better. Mint teas are growing on me, I used to hate them.
Amazon ~ I remember liking Passion too. I’m going to say that I don’t think the Azteca Fire sounds like my cup of tea.
Shanti ~ As in Aveda, of Rosemary Mint shampoo fame? Neat. It is! I can tell from the labeling. On to the Shopping List.
Okay, that was totally fun browsing all the teas you guys suggested. I should add that I use my Shopping List more of as a ‘hmm, that one sounds good, I’d consider trying it’ then a literal To Buy list.
Crap @ no edit. I meant to bold.
That may have just won the record for longest comment on a log ever. Well done!
Late to this party, but my current night herbal/rooibos rotation includes:
Samovar | Ocean of Wisdom, Orange Ginger, Wei Chi Cha and Cinnamon Stonefruit [the last two contain hibiscus, though you did mention you don’t mind it]
Art of Tea | Caramelized Pear
And I do enjoy Rishi’s Blueberry Rooibos every now and then, though it’s very heavy on the blueberry and I can’t drink it too often because of that. I may be forgetting some, but those are what come to mind.
Yeah. lol It is long. I commented as I browse the teas. Yours will be short. =)
Ocean on Wisdom – already on SL. Orange Ginger – added to SL. Wei Chi Cha – not sure about that one. Cinnamon Stonefruit – added to SL.
See? Short. But special. =) (Or I’m loopy at night.)
I honestly like black teas late into my evening. I am a sort of night owl when at home dreading that the night will end and I am forced to face my job at the end of a cold pier… all good coffee and tea a fond memory. LOL
Slightly sick for the past few day, I’ve had a bit of an upset stomach in addition to the dry, scratchy throat and the runny, sniffy nose. I haven’t wanted to eat much and haven’t had any tea.
Today marks my return to tea. A nice, simple cup of Ceylon. (2nd steep: 5 min. Pinch of fresh leaves.)
Preparation
Backlogging
Shared a pot of Yunnan with the husband and takeout Indian chicken tikka masala, saag paneer, and baingan bhartha. The Yunnan stood up to the strong flavors and spiciness of the food and still tasted smokey. 2nd steep: 5 min.
Preparation
Ugh…. I skipped dinner and I’m hungry and your post sounds… delicious! I love saag paneer.
That sounds sooooo ggod. I am especially crazy for anything with eggplant in it – and the tea sounds like a great pairing.
Wow, I love how well the tea went with all of those flavors. I wish it was still available. I wasn’t as quick on the draw as you. lol :)
I wanted to try the Yunnan again today even though I was quite unsure of how it would go with breakfast. It went surprisingly well. I wasn’t able to really taste this cup as well as the previous ones due to some slight nasal-throat things I have going on due to the cold dry weather and heat running a lot. Don’t worry, I haven’t gotten sick.
Preparation
I haven’t tried Andrews & Dunham, but I like Yunnan on a cold day when I’m not quite sick but my throat is soar. My sinus is pretty weak, so I get that feeling quite often living in Michigan. When my throat’s sore, I always find myself heading for Keemun or Yunnan, those Chinese Blacks… strange, because normally I’m a fan of stronger “Western” blacks.
Backlogging
My sweetie and I enjoyed two pots of this yesterday afternoon while waiting for it to start snowing and reading on the couch with the cats. 2nd steep: 4 min.
Preparation
I have a bit of a dry scratchy throat and a bit of a dry sniffy nose today. I am hoping it’s from not sleeping well and not from getting sick. I thought some warm tea would be soothing and picked this out at the last minute from the cupboard. It tastes exactly like you might think a lemon and ginger tea would taste. I’m not super fond of it though. I had originally thought I’d like it more than I did. I did steep it for less time and liked it better this way. I believe this one was a gift from mom, who sometimes buys me tea when she buys herself some.
Preparation
I hope you’re not sick, too! I’ve noticed that I can wake up feeling like I have a cold when it’s dry out like it gets during the winter sometimes. Getting some liquid in me usually helps quite a bit.
Feel better!
Thanks ya’ll. Still a bit scratchy, sniffy, dry today but it doesn’t seem to be a cold.
The eagerly awaited A&D DFT Yunnan arrived today!
The husband brought it up. We didn’t wait until I’d rescheduled his eye dr appointment tomorrow. We didn’t wait for the husband to take a shower. We didn’t wait until we were ready to drink it. We opened it up within moments of it entering the apartment.
The tin was wrapped in brown paper instead of in a bed of shredded zig-zags. I liked the art better on this tin than tins from Series 1. This tin opens like a mini paint can lid. I had to open it with a flat screw driver and bang it closed with it. I do not like that about it but am hoping it becomes easier to open and close with time. In the meantime, I’m keeping a screwdriver over the stove in the misc. cabinet. Oh, and we got two Series 4 stickers in our box. Anyone else get two?
The tea leaves were dark brown with golden yellow brown and ash gray mixed in. They smelled smokey and like something else that I can quite put my finger on right now but am hoping will come to mind when I’ve smelt the tea more. It smelled strong, bold, and good but not what I was expecting.
After putting a huge pot of chilli on to cook, the husband pushed to try the new tea tonight even though it was after 7pm at the time and it’s a black tea. So we steeped up a pot. The wet leaves were a dark brown of two shades and smelled smokey, like burning paper in a good way if that is possible. The tea was deep brown in color. It smelled smokey, rich, and full.
Sip sip. Sip sip.
It tastes smokey, no surprise there. But yummy smokey. I thought I wouldn’t like a smokey tasting tea. It also tasted ashy, non-cigarette ashy though, unctuous, and bold. The surprise was no bitterness or dryness. More notes on taste will comes as I drink more of this tea I’m sure. It’s unlike any other tea I’ve had. The husband also liked it but wasn’t as surprise he liked it or as into it as I was.
We steeped a second pot for 5 min. I was expecting it to be watery and need a pinch of fresh leaves to keep the taste strong enough. It was not at all. It was as full of flavor as the first steep but muted, less smokey. I think I liked this steep better. I also drank the end of this steep as I started to eat my chilli and was surprised that it held up to the chilli and complimented it well.
I decided to steep the leaves a third time to see what happen since the second steep went well. I steeped for 6 min this time. It was watery with nearly no tea taste. I threw it down the drain.
In conclusion, A&D’s Yunnan is a damn fine tea, I look forward to drinking it again quite soon, and it’s possibly better than Series 1’s black teas.
Preparation
Btw, I got #32 out of 50, even though I was #15 on the countdown when ordering.
Yay! I got two stickers as well. I think they said on the site that you get two.
I didn’t re-seal the lid fully – just enough to be on there tight-ish. I’d need to need to carry a paint key and a rubber mallet around, otherwise. I’ll have to sit down with this and drink it tomorrow when I can really pay attention to it. Tea nuances and studying do not mix well, it seems.
Ack! More people to be jealous of! ;)
Haha, I was 11 on the countdown, but somehow I got #28. I think they randomly pull one off the shelf. Yep, they gave two stickers here. Add me to the list of the not liking the paint can lid. Some loose leaves got stuck in the seams and I had to bang it really hard to shut it.
Haha, poor Jillian, no series #4 =P
I got #15. (I think. It’s at home, I’m at work) and I remember thinking – I thought I didn’t order that early…
But I really liked this tea too.. :)
