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Homygawd this is awesome.

Okay, so here’s a little secret: out of all the teas I’ve gotten from Adagio, the one that I’ve been sneaking smells from the most often is the Gunpowder. It just smelled so unusual and different from any of the others. And this tea is frankly, adorable. The little glossy pellets look like droppings from a rabbit god. Or something like that. The smell was sooo good too. Smoky and deep and complex, begging me to just taste it.

I brewed up a level teaspoon in my IngenuiTEA, and waited for the magic. Now, you might not know this, but I’m new to loose leaf, and therefore am fascinated by the leaves unfurling. I sit in front of the IngenuiTEA like a kid in a candy show and watch the fireworks. And boy, did these little critters put on a show. They were writhing and shuddering in the steeper like The Little Shop of Horrors was coming to town. Bursting open with their little leafy tentacles… I expected one of the little buggers to wave to me. That’s how lifelike it looked. The leaves also blew up in size and proportion as they bombastically exploded. I was shocked at the jungle in my pot when it came time to pour.

The liquid that comes out of the craziness is a pretty yellow-green, that color in the Crayola box that you could sometimes never find use for. There wasn’t really much of a smell at all coming from the cup. But the taste? Mmmmm.

Okay, let’s go on a tangent here. Trust me, it’s necessary. When I was little, we’d go to Disney World on occasion for vacation. My favorite part was EPCOT, and my favorite ride was Spaceship Earth (hey, I’m a dork – leave me alone!). Ridiculously enough, my favorite part of Spaceship Earth was Rome burning. Why? Because they’d pump into the air an awesome smell of burning wood and smoke, a mesquite-like scent, that I’d try to keep in my lungs as much as possible after the ride moved on.

This tea tasted like Rome burning. And it was amazing. Smoky and deep and mysterious. I was in heaven. There was a bit of a sour taste, and a bit of a sweet aftertaste. The sweet taste fought a battle with the smoke and won as the cup cooled down. Sweet and a teeny bit grassy, with the smoke as the aftertaste. But at the highest point of heat, it was all smoke. I’m not getting the ashes description that a lot of people are suggesting, but still. There’s a little bit of a slight astringency on the palate once it’s cooled down a bit, but it’s sort of pleasing in a way that I can’t describe.

I do not think this tea is for everyone. The proof was when I offered my mom a sip of this. She was on the phone when I gave it to her. She immediately shook her head and visibly almost gagged. And I thought, well, that was interesting. It pretty much tastes like it smells dry, so if you don’t like the smell, don’t drink it.

But yeah, I love this already. We’re going to try and get multiple steepings out of this baby today, so stay tuned for future logs as the day goes on! :D