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Got this as a sample from Angel at Teavivre. :) I was really excited to try all of the teas I was sent, but I went with this one first, because I was looking for a black tea at the time. Anyway, the dry lead smells lightly… fruity? I can’t quite put my finger on it.

The flavor is… all right. I tried this tea on two separate occasions, thinking the first time was just a fluke. Maybe I didn’t use enough leaf? The second time I know I used more than the first… but I just can’t coax much flavor out of this tea. I steeped it according to the directions, which is even longer than I normally do with blacks. For some reason, it just tastes like hot tap water to me. :/ I want to like it, so perhaps I’ll try it again, with different parameters. Stay tuned.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 45 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
TeaVivre

Maybe you can try it with Gaiwan:

5g tea, 90℃, rinse,10s,15s,20s,30s,40s,60s

teataku

Thanks! I don’t currently own a gaiwan, but I imagine I could replicate the process fairly easily with some of my equipment I have here. I’ll give it a go.

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TeaVivre

Maybe you can try it with Gaiwan:

5g tea, 90℃, rinse,10s,15s,20s,30s,40s,60s

teataku

Thanks! I don’t currently own a gaiwan, but I imagine I could replicate the process fairly easily with some of my equipment I have here. I’ll give it a go.

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I very clearly remember my first experience with tea. It was in a Target near my house, and my best friend handed me a cup of chai from the Starbucks inside the store and said, “Try this.” I believe I was about 12 at the time, and from then on, I was completely hooked.

Anyway, as my increasingly weirded out family will tell you, my obsession with tea has (almost) steadily escalated since then. I discovered the world of tea slowly, first with just chai, and then with bagged teas I could get from supermarkets and specialty stores, and then with loose leaf teas. I mostly shop for tea at Teavana, but I also patronize other local shops that I’ve discovered within the last couple of years. I’ve ordered a smattering of teas from a few online places, but I’m always leery of buying tea online, since most of how I select teas in person is by smell… unless I’m at The English Tea Room.

My favorite types of tea are blacks and flavored blacks. And oolongs. Right underneath that are rooiboses and whites, and then greens and herbals, and then mates. I’m always looking for a new favorite, but I appreciate rediscovering old favorites. I like to blend teas, but I never store them that way, mostly because I like to leave myself options.

I prefer nutty/sweet/rich teas to fruity/light-flavored teas or bold/full-bodied teas, but I do try to drink some of everything to widen my palate. I’m always willing to try any tea at least once (except this one tea that Teavana mercifully discontinued… the loose leaf smelled like cheese, I swear). I do perhaps rate teas a little leniently… because I’m not very picky. I will try a tea at least three times before I pronounce that I hate it, and I will always focus on the good aspects of a tea rather than the bad. That’s just how I roll. :3

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Colorado, USA

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