Advent Day 11
A black tea! Wonderful! It smells lightly floral with some sort of deep red berry scent. It tastes like that too. Maybe a hint of apple in there too? I’m trying to sip it while it’s hot because I have to go somewhere. I might leave the rest of the cup and see if I like it better when cooled.
I’m realizing that a lot of the MF teas I’ve had and really enjoy are not ones I usually like after one cup. They have to grow on me over time and an advent calendar isn’t really conducive to that method of finding new favorites. Still, I wouldn’t change having gotten the advent. I’m still thrilled at getting to try 25 new to me teas!
Update: Back to half a cold cup. This is way fruitier than before. I’m tasting strawberries very clearly. The finish is a little bitter, but the sip is still smooth. I usually favor greens cold steeped, but this might be a good black to try iced.
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I really do need at least two cups to make up my mind about a tea.
Maybe one needs to get two of the same calendar.
Also, because French teas tend to be layered and complex, I especially need more than one cup.
I agree, I almost never leave a tea review until I’ve had a tea multiple times, prepared various ways, so the advent calendar style is very different for me!
The dilemma with hit n’ run tea sample notes.. I’m enjoying this advent so far, and there are a couple I want to revisit, but I also wish I had longer with each tea.
I personally like recording fleeting first impression notes and then comparing them to later encounters though. Sometimes my experiences line up and other times they don’t; I find it insightful keeping a personal record of inconsistency, missteps, and preference shifts across the years too! :)
This would be a pricey advent to buy two of, especially with shipping, but I’d like to have more than one cup worth of each tea. It’s too bad they don’t offer a deluxe version like Theodor does some years or Fortnum and Mason. The only thing that is a bummer about MF is that to get another few cups of any of these you’d have to buy 100g which is a lot for a tea you are uncertain of.
I also love seeing how my feelings on a tea changes over time, good or bad.
Yeah, I agree with you. They don’t have good options for sampling; maybe “Grand Coffret HENRI” but it’s pricey and has a lot of unflavoured teas. A joint order with a few people would be a good way to divide 100g quantities, but those area hassle to organize. MF’s catalogue is also huge! Even with this advent, and ignoring 100g sizes, I don’t know where I’d start..
I really do need at least two cups to make up my mind about a tea.
Maybe one needs to get two of the same calendar.
Also, because French teas tend to be layered and complex, I especially need more than one cup.
I agree, I almost never leave a tea review until I’ve had a tea multiple times, prepared various ways, so the advent calendar style is very different for me!
The dilemma with hit n’ run tea sample notes.. I’m enjoying this advent so far, and there are a couple I want to revisit, but I also wish I had longer with each tea.
I personally like recording fleeting first impression notes and then comparing them to later encounters though. Sometimes my experiences line up and other times they don’t; I find it insightful keeping a personal record of inconsistency, missteps, and preference shifts across the years too! :)
This would be a pricey advent to buy two of, especially with shipping, but I’d like to have more than one cup worth of each tea. It’s too bad they don’t offer a deluxe version like Theodor does some years or Fortnum and Mason. The only thing that is a bummer about MF is that to get another few cups of any of these you’d have to buy 100g which is a lot for a tea you are uncertain of.
I also love seeing how my feelings on a tea changes over time, good or bad.
Yeah, I agree with you. They don’t have good options for sampling; maybe “Grand Coffret HENRI” but it’s pricey and has a lot of unflavoured teas. A joint order with a few people would be a good way to divide 100g quantities, but those area hassle to organize. MF’s catalogue is also huge! Even with this advent, and ignoring 100g sizes, I don’t know where I’d start..