New Tasting Notes

good balance again by these Yuuki Asa’s. this one didnt get quite the amount of steeps the higher quality/priced ones like the Tenryu Misakubo but still not a bad Organic choice in a “lower priced” asa. i think I may have actually enjoyed the flavor profile of this one more than the higher priced hand picked tenryo. Just got more longevity out of the tenryo..

I’m having this while finishing up my homework assignment. So good and the husband even liked it.

I tend to steep Asamushi a tad longer than fuka and chu. 1 min to 1.5 first steeps are normal for me with these. at 1 min..nice balance of sweetness and astringency. Good umami here.
2nd steep 30 seconds. 3rd steep 1-1.5min, 4th steep + 2 min.

As they say..Very nicely balanced. has a lot of steeping longevity in this one. Deep full flavor but very little bitterness and light on the oceanic flavors. Much more on the sweet side of things to my taste buds at least.

Very light, clean and delicious. Starts out floral, but takes on a savory note in the finish. Intriguing.

Very nice quality Organic Asamushi. Nice mellow flavor. Low astringency. very enjoyable.

1st steep – just as recommended – pre-warmed the cup, rinsed the leaves with the boiling water (maybe 5 seconds?) then dumped that out and infused for 30 seconds in 6 oz boiling water.

It’s a lovely golden yellow color, with just the right amount of jasmine – the jasmine is a whiff of perfume in scent, not a gulp of it down the mouth! The pu-erh gives it a bit of earthy body – more than the other jasmine green teas I’ve had. But there’s no “off” tastes or any of the scary things I was afraid of… I would say this was probably the perfect intro pu-erh for me! I am so glad I took Chicago Tea up on their free sample offer (two touchas!) and and strongly considering ordering the wild orange pu-erh because I am SO intrigued by it!

2nd infusion – 30 sec – I think it’s actually a tad bit darker this time. Scent same. A bit more astringent. The tuocha broke apart completely on this steep.

3rd – 45 sec; used slightly cooler water – less astringent, which allowed the gentle jasmine to come through more. Almost as dark as ever, and not at all “watery” tasting.

4th infusion – 1 min – still a beautiful coppery yellow; but the astringency (though not terrible) is masking the jasmine this time (my water may have been hotter than on #3)

This was a lovely experience which greatly exceeded my expectations! (not to say they were low – more like I was very trepidatious both of pu’erh and of resteeping). Thank you Chicago Tea Garden for a wonderful tea, and such informative steeping/resteeping parameters.

Smells very berry-like, which is kind of confusing. And wood, which makes it kind of unpleasant because it is almost hitting that sour wood thing. The taste is woody – sweet, bordering on sour wood. (Huh, it’s apparently not just a rooibos thing then.) Actually, I take that back, it is the just aftertaste that is bordering on rotten-sweet (and that lessens when I take big sips). The rest of the taste is a nice, plain wood. I don’t pick up any of the cedar or orange or leather notes the tasting notes mention. Just wood. Well, maybe a faint hint of bright citrus note that makes it more fresh, sanded wood and not just a tree limb. It’s not all that complex tasting (at least not to me) but it isn’t flat tasting either. Fairly straightforward and… well, honestly? Kinda plain.

I was uber-excited to receive the swap package that Jessica had sent to me. I’d only requested one tea and wanted to be surprised by the rest. When I saw this particular tea this was my reaction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeqZpbuZlqI

Only I’m nowhere as awesome or talented as Simon Pegg. Why was I so excited? Well, it’s one of Ewa’s favorites and I’ve also never had a Teavana tea before. Double-curiosity killed two cats?

It’s really quite nummy! I’d probably rate it a lot higher and put it on my shopping list if I hadn’t had Leland Tea Co’s Bogart. This is like an almost-realized version of Bogart. This is still super-almondy-cinnamony-yummy, but without the snickerdoodle oomph. I’m thoroughly enjoying my first cup and can’t wait for the second. Ultimately it gets two thumbs up from me, but I won’t be purchasing more. Thank you so much Jessica for letting me try this! NE

ETA: bumped up the rating by 2 points due to super-yummy aftertaste.

Lovely and smooth. A good idea for those who shy away from ham-fisted Assams.

Let me set the scene. It is a gloomy rainy day. The house has fallen dark even with the occasional curtain open to allow what little light that may actually enter. I sit here quietly reading with my dear husband tinkering up the office and my 3 year old daughter taking a much needed nap all alone in the quit of my thoughts in my living room. All I can hear is the dull sound of rain passing through the video montior setup up in my daughters room. Then it dawns on me this is the perfect chance to have this tea. It smells of excitement, spice, and allure. Perhaps the perfect choice on a rainy day in Chicago. Here are my thoughts…

First, a strong sensation of “Red Hots” I was worried but then I take a sip it was a flavor explosion, this rooibos blend is not to be messed with. It is loud and in-charge. It is sophisticated. I had the urge to raise a pinky. Who am I kidding I raised my pinky. The “orange” is in my opinion the magic ingredient, simply brilliant. It keeps the cinnamon and cloves from fighting to the death and creates a controlled experience. It is like “Xanax” for teas. It let’s out just enough of it’s wild and bold character without being obnoxious and as a result a wonderful warm tea for gloomy days and cold days too.

Very, very, very pleasant iced! Doesn’t lose its peachiness at all.

Doulton’s Shakespeare: A Tasting Note in 5 Acts
Act V scene 1

Time shall unfold what plighted cunning hides:
Who cover faults, at last shame them derides.
King Lear, Act I scene 1

I chose not to look up this tea’s ingredients when I pulled this teabag out of the box. I didn’t even really smell the bag itself until after it steeped. The smell surprised me quite a bit. It reminded me of Bigelow’s Constant Comment only more subtly orange. Even as a bagged version (I’m still blown away by Kusmi’s bags) it’s still complex, but I have a feeling that its complexity is muted. I get the orange, the sweetness of vanilla, and hints of almond and spices. This one also moves to the forefront of “bagged teas I’d like to have on hand.”

I was a giant “Errr…” when it came to where in Shakespeare’s cannon this tea would fit. I was pleasantly surprised at how pleasant it was. It was an honest upfront sort of tea with a bit of what Morgana calls the “French Thing.” Aha! Honesty and even a little bit of French: Cordelia from King Lear! She’s honest, doesn’t play silly games, and eventually marries the King of France before being executed. Er, she sort of sets off the whole tragedy…

But this tea isn’t a tragedy! Hooray! So perhaps Cordelia isn’t the perfect embodiment of this tea, but it’s close enough. NE

Fruity and delicious….the nuttiness of Genmaicha with a fruity side to it

A while back, the husband and I got a food dehydrator to make jerky. (The husband makes seriously awesome venison jerky.) When we first got it, we went a little dehydrator-crazy. If it was edible, we’d try to dehydrate it. Some of our experiments were more successful than others (I highly suggest dehydrated zucchini slices – they are potato-chip-level addictive.) But I knew we had gone too far when we dehydrated watermelon.

The dried watermelon bits were textured like Fruit Roll-Ups (which wasn’t bad) but the taste… it was melon and slightly sweet and very musky. I cannot adequately explain how musky it was. “Extremely” would be an understatement. It was perhaps how licking a male muskox would taste. Obviously, this was very weird to me and I found eating the dried watermelon distracting and unpleasant. After that experience, I decided to retreat back into dehydrating only jerky and zucchini and never think of the watermelon musk disaster again.

Until I drank this tea.

Robust and smooth black tea with a slight chocolate undertone to it

Delicious!!!!! Smells like an “after eight” chocolate mint treat and tastes just as good….no sweetener needed also super tasty as iced. Will get bitter if over-steeped….

cold’s trying to come back – time for another pineapple-OJ-matcha immunity & energy booster!

Subtle sweetness to it, I would steep it a bit longer next time I drink it hot….makes a great iced tea! Nice tea for bed time….

Wow. I can’t decide it if is vile or somewhat interesting. The interesting part tastes like fresh snapped peas (non-cooked)… that have been doused in cigarette ashes. Yes, I believe that is about as complex as this one gets. The green bean taste saves this from being rated lower. I am staring at the mug daring myself to drink more but my stomach says nooooooooo.