23 Tasting Notes
As a drink, this one wasn’t working out for me. Trying to find a balance between the number of packets, the size of the cup, and milk vs. water to get the consistency I wanted was just kind of a hassle. However, I did try mixing it with vanilla ice cream, and YUM! :D
My taste buds have always been overly sensitive to spices, so this one was just a little too gingery for me. It could have something to do with my getting distracted by the latest episode of Desperate Housewives and steeping it for a couple of minutes longer than I meant to…
My second steep was about half the time of the first, and the ginger was much more manageable — though I can’t tell if it’s because I steeped it for less time or because the ginger is naturally more mellow on the second steep.
More experimentation is required! I may try mixing this one with the oolong I just bought.
This is the basic tea that is served at Japanese schools, so I drink it whenever I have lunch with my students or teachers’ meetings. I appreciate this tea, as it was really my first foray into no-frills, unsweetened tea for the sake of tea… but I’ve been spoiled by Samovar’s Yuzu Sencha and was surprised to find myself a little bit disappointed in the regular old sencha this time around. I hope it forgives me.
(Tea 3 of 8 in the my-boyfriend-is-awesome series)
Living in Japan, I’m surrounded by yuzu-flavored everything, from yuzu ice cream to yuzu soy sauce — and, occasionally, actual yuzus. I’ve become quite the yuzu enthusiast, so out of all the teas Garrett sent me, I probably held this one to the highest standards.
I can smell the yuzu right away. Good start. And I love that cloudy, light green color. It tastes very grassy and sencha-y at first — is it my imagination or is the yuzu taste getting more and more prevalent with each sip? It’s like an author building up the suspense with every chapter and ending the book on a cliffhanger, but you don’t mind because you already bought the sequel. I steep a second cup to find out.
Second cup, the taste evens out. Yuzu and sencha work together, allowing you to understand the relationship between the characters.
Third cup, it’s yuzu all the way. Happy ending.
(Tea 2 of 8 in the my-boyfriend-is-awesome series)
This tea is utterly confusing. When you take a sip, it tastes plain and grassy, but after you swallow it, a sudden sweetness creeps up your throat out of nowhere!
If I drink it unsweetened, it’s not sweet enough for me. If I add sweetener, it tastes fine while drinking it but the aftertaste is almost medicinal.
I honestly can’t tell whether I like this tea or not, so an inconclusive rating of 50/100 seems only appropriate.
(Tea 1 of 8 in the my-boyfriend-is-awesome series)
I think I’ve already established that I have a mega sweet tooth. On rare occasions, I’ll try a tea, be satisfied with its flavor as is, and opt out of adding sugar or honey.
It is a testament to the flavor of this tea that I actually tried it sweetened, THEN unsweetened, but liked it much better unsweetened. That’s a new one!
This is a matcha powder that comes in individual packets.
I made a cup this morning and was a little disappointed with the results. I expected a richer taste, and even though I used only a small cup of hot water, the taste was a bit thin, almost watery even. Next time, I will try using two packets or mixing it with milk instead of water to achieve the thicker, creamier taste I was hoping for.
I’m not giving up on this one just yet! If it doesn’t work out as a drink, I could always find other uses for it — maybe in ice cream? :)
