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I’m tired and my head is starting to hurt. My grandma on my mother’s side passed today, after choosing to end nearly a decade of dialysis which had grown very painful this last year. I was in full support of her choice and glad her pain is over. My grieving is mostly manifesting in just feeling a deep sorrow for the grief my mother is going through, and trying to be there for her as much as I can despite the fact I live in the western US and she lives in the eastern US. I guess the service will be held online due to That Thing That Shall Not Be Named. I wonder what that will be like…

This is my next old matcha that is now a smoothie target. I got it from an independantly owned teashop in Boise, and though they list Aiya as one of their matcha suppliers, they don’t have any flavored matcha, so I have no idea where they are sourcing this particular one from (or I’d list it under the appropriate source… sorry!) Mostly I’ve been making pina colada-esque concoctions, but I decided to mix some of this straight into an ice cold water bottle and do the “mad shake” to try it plain, to get a sense of its flavor as a matcha on its own. Unlike the Mint Chip, this one does have that noticable grassy flavor, but it is very sweet from the sugar (not a complaint for me, I can’t handle the bitterness of matcha straight up). The coconut is coming through toward the end of the sip, more pronounced at the back of my tongue. It is more of a gentle touch than a strong hit of syrupy coconut… to be honest, I like both flavors depending on their presentation. I think the coconut adds to the sweetness/balance of the matcha in a way that makes this easy for me to drink in straight water, and normally I have to take my matcha as a latte. Perhaps on days when I just don’t have time to mix up a breakfast smoothie, I’ll just dump a bit of this in a water bottle and take it on the go since it works well this way.

Flavors: Coconut, Grass, Sweet

Preparation
Iced 2 tsp 24 OZ / 710 ML
White Antlers

I’m sorry for your loss.

mrmopar

Sorry about your loss. Just remember them in your heart.

Roswell Strange

So sorry for your loss.

gmathis

Sorry to hear. Peace and comfort to you and your mom.

tea-sipper

I imagine someone must be very strong to go through ten years of dialysis. I’m very sorry you lost your grandma.

Mastress Alita

Thanks everyone. <3 Yes, she was very strong, no one thought she’d last as long as she did doing dialysis for such a long time. I owe both my love and tea and my love of books to that lady… I remember the smell of a strong ol’ cuppa of English Breakfast and the vision of a constant pile of library books (which I would thumb through and then “tell her the story” before I could read when I was a very young child) from visits to her home as a child, and now as an adult I’m a librarian and a tea-head. Thanks, Grandma!

tea-sipper

Even more of a special Grandma then!

Martin Bednář

Accept my condolences; be strong for your mum as well yourself.

gmathis

What a beautiful memory!

Arby

I’m very sorry for your loss.

ashmanra

I am so sorry for your loss! What beautiful memories to have! I never really had a grandparent in my life but it sounds wonderful! It made me think of something I saw recently…remember what you loved about the person you missed, and then be that for others. You honor her memory very well by sharing your memory of her with us. Hugs and prayers for you and your mom.

Crowkettle

I’m so sorry for your loss. Your Grandma sounds like she was an wonderful woman!

Inkling

So sorry for your loss and that you can’t be with your loved ones in person during this difficult time. Just prayed for you!

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Comments

White Antlers

I’m sorry for your loss.

mrmopar

Sorry about your loss. Just remember them in your heart.

Roswell Strange

So sorry for your loss.

gmathis

Sorry to hear. Peace and comfort to you and your mom.

tea-sipper

I imagine someone must be very strong to go through ten years of dialysis. I’m very sorry you lost your grandma.

Mastress Alita

Thanks everyone. <3 Yes, she was very strong, no one thought she’d last as long as she did doing dialysis for such a long time. I owe both my love and tea and my love of books to that lady… I remember the smell of a strong ol’ cuppa of English Breakfast and the vision of a constant pile of library books (which I would thumb through and then “tell her the story” before I could read when I was a very young child) from visits to her home as a child, and now as an adult I’m a librarian and a tea-head. Thanks, Grandma!

tea-sipper

Even more of a special Grandma then!

Martin Bednář

Accept my condolences; be strong for your mum as well yourself.

gmathis

What a beautiful memory!

Arby

I’m very sorry for your loss.

ashmanra

I am so sorry for your loss! What beautiful memories to have! I never really had a grandparent in my life but it sounds wonderful! It made me think of something I saw recently…remember what you loved about the person you missed, and then be that for others. You honor her memory very well by sharing your memory of her with us. Hugs and prayers for you and your mom.

Crowkettle

I’m so sorry for your loss. Your Grandma sounds like she was an wonderful woman!

Inkling

So sorry for your loss and that you can’t be with your loved ones in person during this difficult time. Just prayed for you!

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Profile

Bio

Hi! I’m Sara, a middle-aged librarian living in southern Idaho, USA. I’m a big ol’ sci-fi/fantasy/anime geek that loves fandom conventions, coloring books, simulation computer games, Japanese culture, and cats. Proud genderqueer asexual (she/they) and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. I’m also a chronic migraineur. As a surprise to no one, I’m a helpless tea addict with a tea collecting and hoarding problem! (It still baffles me how much tea I can cram into my little condo!) I enjoy trying all sorts of teas… for me tea is a neverending journey!

Favorite Flavors:

I love sampling a wide variety of teas! For me the variety is what makes the hobby of tea sampling so fun! While I enjoy trying all different types of teas (pure teas, blends, tisanes), these are some flavors/ingredients I enjoy:
-Dessert/chocolate/vanilla/caramel/cream/toffee/maple
-Sweet/licorice root/stevia
-Vegetal/grassy
-Floral/lavender/rose
-Spices/chais
-Fruity
-Tropical/pineapple/coconut
-Bergamot (in moderation)
-Roasted/nutty
-Tart/tangy/hibiscus/rosehip

Disliked Flavors:

There are not many flavors or ingredients that I don’t like. These include:
-Bananas/banana flavoring
-Hemp/CBD teas
-Smoke-scented teas/heavy smoke flavors (migraine trigger)
-Perfumey teas/extremely heavy floral aromas (migraine trigger)
-Gingko biloba (migraine trigger)
-Chamomile (used in blends as a background note/paired with stronger flavors is okay)
-Extremely spicy/heated teas
-Medicinal flavors/Ginseng
-Metallic flavors
-Overly strong artificial flavorings

With the exception of bananas and migraine triggers, I’ll pretty much try any tea at least once!

Steeping Parameters:

I drink tea in a variety of ways! For hot brews, I mostly drink my teas brewed in the western style without additions, and for iced tea, I drink teas mostly brewed in the cold brew style without additions. Occassionally I’ll change that up. I use the https://octea.ndim.space/#/ app for water-to-tea ratios and use steep times to my preferences.

My Rating Scale:

90-100 – Top tier tea! These teas are among my personal favorites, and typically I like to keep them stocked in my cupboards at all times, if possible!

70-89 – These are teas that I personally found very enjoyable, but I may or may not feel inclined to keep them in stock.

50-69 – Teas that fall in this range I enjoyed, but found either average, lacking in some way, or I’ve had a similar tea that “did it better.”

21-49 – Teas in this range I didn’t enjoy, for one reason or another. I may or may not finish them off, depending on their ranking, and feel no inclination to restock them.

20-1 – Blech! My Tea Hall of Shame. These are the teas that most likely saw the bottom of my garbage can, because I’d feel guilty to pass them onto someone else.

Note that I only journal a tea once, not every time I drink a cup of it. If my opinion of a tea drastically changes since my original review, I will journal the tea again with an updated opinion and change my rating. Occassionally I revisit a tea I’ve reviewed before after a year or more has passed.

Inventory:

My Cupboard on Steepster reflects teas that I have sampled and logged for review, and is not used as an inventory for teas I currently own at the present moment. An accurate and up-to-date listing of my current tea inventory can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/xjt9ptx3 . I am open to tea trades (within the United States only!) at this time. Note that I will not trade teas that I currently have in a quantity less than 50g (samplers, 1oz packages, etc.) or any teas that are currently still sealed/unopened in my cupboard.

Contact Info:

Feel free to send me a Steepster PM, or alternatively, check the website URL section below; it goes to a contact form that will reach my personal e-mail.

Location

Idaho, United States

Website

https://teatimetuesdayreviews...

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