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Making a pot of something rosy and delicious to sip on while I finish editing my story.

I actually remembered I have a real teaspoon to measure out my tea leaves with. The only trouble is that I didn’t get any of the rose powder and I think my tea may have ran out of rosebuds, so this tastes just like plain black tea. Still better than Lipton black tea, but I was kinda hoping for the rose. Next time, I’ll shake my pack a little and try to get some of that pink rose powder I see on the leaves and look for some more rose buds.

I am lowering this because it really isn’t as flavorful as when I first had it. Don’t get me wrong, it is tasty and it will have a special place in my heart for being my first ever mate, but it tastes like coffee. I don’t really like the taste of coffee.

I am tired so this first tasting won’t be as detailed as my other first tastings, but I love the Queen. Slightly smokey with an undertone of chocolate. This would make a very nice morning tea and I can’t wait to get home so I can have another pot of this. It has to be my favorite out of the Harney & Sons tea samples Ashley gave me. Yummy!

I think I have learned a few things about loose leaf tea since the last time I tried this. The most important thing is to actually fill my tea ball up fully halfway. According to my note, the taste was weak. I think that was because I didn’t use enough leaf because this pot full was nice and flavorful.

I could taste the black tea base and then I got a strong floral taste. I’m still not entirely sure what rose tastes like, but the other taste I was getting was sweetly floral. But it was not a honeyed sweet floral taste like I get from chamomile. It was more of an earthy floral taste. I need to find a straight herbal rose tea so I can pin down that taste better.

But I like it. And now that I am using more leaf, I will be sipping on this one more often. Nice and light before bed.

I had the last of the teabags I took from my teacher’s tea basket for dinner. I think the love affair with the Lady is wearing off. I’m ready to go back to the Earl now. Farewell for now Lady, I’ll still love you. I just want something new.

I bought a half pound bag of this when I was at the store last time. It was a risk, but I was betting that I would love my new indulgence. I was right. I do love it down to the very last drop. I brewed this in my teapot and managed to get three steeps out of it. I could have gotten more if I didn’t shake most of the powder out of the tea ball.

The first steeps were roughly at 5 and 10 minutes. The liquid was a nice light honey brown. It smelled nice and I hoped that the unflavored mate tasted as good as the flavored. It tasted very earthy and a tad bitter, but I liked the bitterness. It reminded me of petrichor in taste form instead of scent.

The second steeps were another 5 and 10 minute steep. The liquid this time was a light green, which surprised me. The taste was a little softer, but it started to taste sweeter. I shared this steep with my roommate (she got the longer steep) and said that the taste was lighter than she was expecting. At the end of my cup, I was entertained by the fact that it tasted like I had real sugar in there when I didn’t. I am easily entertained.

The third steep is where I stopped paying attention to how long I was steeping it. I also ran out of water in my kettle, which was fine. The water was a little cooler by now. The liquid in the final steep is a light yellow green. The taste is reminding me more of green tea, but a little earthier than green tea. A slight sweetness is still hitting the back of my tongue, but it is less than the second steep was. So the third is more earthy and less sweet. I am down to sipping it now instead of really drinking it, so I think the balance of earthy and sweet in this cup is spot on.

So, I managed to get six cups of tea and I drank five of them myself. I really like the concept of re-steeping. It lets you get more flavors out of a pot of tea. I really need to get myself a gourd and a bombilla to try mate in the traditional way. But, for now I would be happy with getting a small one-person french press to have a way to make it easier in the morning. That way, I could have this as my morning tea again. Yummy!

I definitely like this one brewed up stronger. I think I didn’t get the water quite as hot the first time, so I got a slightly weaker cup until I steeped it longer for my last cup. Made it through two steeps and then ran out of water. I probably could have gone on to a third steep, but I won’t get that far because this was my last sample. I will have to explore yunnans more because I really like the rich, dark taste of a longer steep.

Backlogging from Thursday afternoon:

Oh, Double Dark Chocolate Mate! How I have missed my mate! Any mate! Why did I ever forget to drink your dark liquor even when I ran out of my own bags? How could I have forgotten that you were lurking in my teacher’s tea basket. Untouched except for my fingers scooping you out of your tin and into my styrofoam cup to have a bath in warm water to let you release your flavor. So delicious. So chocolate-y. So mocha tasting. I will never forget you again.

Backlogging from Thursday

I picked up three bags for the week from my teacher’s tea basket. I think this tea has become a staple for our whole class. Many of us drink it now.

I have never had blackcurrant anything before, so having this tea is a real step out of my comfort zone. If this tastes like blackcurrants, then I really need to have more blackcurrants in my life.

It tastes a little bitter with a faint splash of juice on the back of my tongue. It mixes really nicely with the black tea. The flavor is strong but not overwhelming. I had a carmello candy bar before this and it really helps get the sweet out of my mouth without being overwhelmingly bitter.