1473 Tasting Notes
This is one of those always-perfect teas. I’m having anxiety about getting my hands on a DT Advent Calendar, of all things, and so I’ve been up since 4. I fell asleep at 1. Booo. So I made myself tea to calm down and soothe some of the anxiety with ritual. My wife took some of our stash of this to work and one day came home and said it was the best tea she’d ever had (in that moment), it just really hit the spot for her. I’ve been craving it ever since.
The whole house smells like mint chocolate now, I hope it doesn’t wake her up. Except for that part where I am painfully bored and wouldn’t mind if she did wake up XD.
And it is perfect, one again. It’s hitting that spot right on the nose and satisfying that craving. Although I will still likely grab a peppermint hot cocoa at the mall later today. I am very glad that the season of peppermint is upon us.
Preparation
I was up all night with a painful tummy and I feel just awful today, so I was in desperate need of some comfort tea. And oh boy is this it. I love this tea. It’s light and flavorful and refreshing and perfect. I am looking forward to spending my day with this perfect tea.
I had to add and review this mug because I love it so, so, so much! It’s so pretty and sturdy and perfect. It holds 12 ounces, so it’s perfect for those mornings with my 24 ounce bubble teapot. And it’s my Captain Hook! I have a deep abiding love for Hook and though I usually don’t care for Disney’s portrayal, I had to have this mug. Avast!
That’s a sweet mug!
They have a line of them the others are (oddly) Jiminy Cricket, Bambi, and Maleficent listed as The Evil Queen. I might have to go back for the Bambi…
Ack I didn’t look close enough, it’s the evil queen from Snow White, not Maleficent.
Ah yeah, I see them on their site. They’re pretty cool. I’m digging the Star Wars ones! Perhaps I should visit the Disney Store in Edmonton when I’ll be there next week.
My wife picked up the Luke Skywalker mug to take to work, I was actually about to add it to the database for her LOL
Haha awesome. I think I want the R2-D2 one. So badass.
It is awesome, that’s the one I wanted her to get, but since I’ve not actually seen the movies, she decided my vote was invalid.
Haha well you both have good taste. Are you planning on seeing them eventually?
I suppose. I’m just not that interested in them, but I think if I want my marriage to survive…XD
This is my coldbrew with yesterday’s leaves and it is heavenly. Light, roasty and refreshing, it’s almost taking care of the coffee craving my wife put into my head when making her morning cup of joe.
Seriously! I can’t believe how good it is cold brewed.
I don’t drink coffee at all, but every time I smell my partner’s morning coffee it almost seems like a good idea. It just smells so excellent in the morning.
I’ll have to try a cold brew of Da Hong Pao.
It is more yummy than can be believed!
I shouldn’t have coffee, it makes me ill, but uuuuugh it smells so good when she makes it…dang her!
Roasted yerba mate fills the craving for me too.
This is still one of my favorite teas, I just keep forgetting we have it because it’s in a different place than all the other teas. The spearmint is still strong enough to smell outside the box and it is lovely. I’m treating this like the Teavivre oolongs, two steeps in a bubble teapot and then overnight coldbrew. My first steep is a little weak, so I’ll likely let my next pot steep for a good long time.
As per usual, the scent of this tea has turned our orange cat, Pekoe, into a purring snuggle machine. She loves it and loves the hell out of me when I’m drinking it! It’s adorable.
Preparation
When Teavivre offered to send me more samples, I immediately had to request this one. Both because the school I went to had a mascot named Big Red (think McDonald’s Grimace, but red) and because our newest baby, a little redfoot tortoise, is named Da Hong Pao! We have three cats and a tortoise, and after the first cat, we got into the habit of tea names. We’ve an orange cat named Pekoe and a grey cat named Earlie. So, of course, when we decided on a red foot tortie, Da Hong Pao made perfect sense! We call her Pao or Pao Pao for short. For the record, our first cat is a brown tabby who is named Rosabella, but would have been Chai if we had been thinking of tea names back then.
Anyhoo, I don’t know that I’ve ever had a Da Hong Pao before this, and I’m not going back through 1000+ notes to figure out if I have. But dang, I should have! This is roasty, toasty goodness and I think I’m in love. Reminds me of home, with tobacco smoke and an underlying nuttiness that takes this tea to another level. I’m on my second steep of a sample packet in a Bubble Teapot (24 ounces) and, as is my habit, I dumped the leaves into a DT Mason Jar (25 oz) to coldbrew overnight. I want to get every last drop of goodness out of these amazing samples, but I’m way too lazy to gong fu. But I see an order in the near future, once the moneytree comes into bloom.
Preparation
….you went to WKU?
LOL Yes, yes I did!
Wow small world, so did I!
That’s awesome! I was there from 2003 until 2008.
You didn’t have a teacher named Renaud did you?
Off the top of my head, no, but maybe? What does he teach?
It’s a she, she teaches speech or public speaking or something in that department.
I don’t think so, but I’m terrible with names :(
She is my sister, and you would probably have hated her! Haha.
Ha! I remember now, my public speaking class was a summer course taught by some guy. The only thing I remember from the class is one of the speeches we had to do was a demonstration, and so someone showed how to cut a pineapple. I learned that fresh pineapple makes a hangover much, much worse XD
Parties at Western? Nah. At least not that my parents knew.
It’s a dry campus, dontcha know ;)
Meh.
That’s really just about all I have to say about this blend. Meh
It wasn’t good, it wasn’t bad, it was just kind of there. And it’s similar enough to the Pumpkin Chai that I have to wonder why it was necessary? My wife and I shared a pot and couldn’t remember anything about the tea afterwards. I’m making vegan butter “chicken” later this week, the rest of our sample will be used to flavor the rice.
Teavivre contacted me to do another round of tastings and of course I agreed! They arrived yesterday and immediately I had to try this one.
Holy cow this tea has staying power! I dumped my whole sample package into one of my 24 ounce bubble teapot. First steep I let go for only two minutes and it was light and delicious strawberry flavor, but the oolong was present as well, which I always like. Next steep, four minutes. Still strawberry goodness, though there’s a bit more oolong. Then my wife steeped the leaves in a 12 ounce mug for 6 minutes and enjoyed her cup, even if she had let it steep a touch too long. THEN we dumped the leaves into a 25 ounce mason jar to coldsteep over night and that’s my treat for today. I love how much tea I got out of maybe two teaspoons worth of oolongs. By the time we put them in the mason jar, they had uncurled to completely fill the infuser to overflowing. I think one of my other samples will have to go in my glass teapot because the leaves are just too beautiful.
Peppermint season is the best season! Glad to hear that it was some comfort to you in lieu of sleep :)
I whine and moan about pumpkin being everywhere before Halloween, but come peppermint season, I want peppermint everything. A bit hypocritical, but what can you do? XD