Blueberrie-zzz

An Ode to Tea, Z entry.

While my librarian heart applaudes that most folks are actually drinking their tea in alphabetical order rather than just drinking one from each letter of the alphabet for the Sipdown Challenge, with the particular way that tea fits into my schedule I need more flexibility than that, so my goal is just to hit one sipdown per letter this month (in no particular order). I’m missing Q and Z and decided to get poetically creative, so this is my “Z” tea… I figure any tea that has three z’s in the title is good enough!

I am not a fan of chamomile at all, but am surprised by how the dry leaf aroma just smells like blueberries and cream, and not the dreaded sleepy-flower. Brewed 5g grandpa-style (teabag left soaking) in 350ml 205F water. I am getting the chamomile a bit in the aroma coming off the steeped cup, but the main aroma is still the sweet blueberry scent. I was also getting this faint herbaceous sort of note beneath the blueberry, and I had to really focus on it to realize it was lavender, just much more subtle than I’m used to it (I’ve been drinking a lot of lavender lattes lately!) Berries + lavender are one of my favorite flavor combos, which I use in smoothies quite often, making it a very pleasant aroma.

Oh, I quite like this! Again, I’m mainly tasting a rich blueberry flavor, with a cream sweetness, with the end of the sip filling out with a nice lavender that is trending on the minty side. I’m actually not picking out the particular chamomile taste which I always find so unpleasant. Getting a pleasant hay/herbaceous/honey note from the green rooibos base.

This isn’t the sort of tea I would’ve ever selected for myself due to chamomile being an ingredient, but it was kindly included by Anne in a past order and I’m so glad now to have tried it! That blueberry/lavender flavor combo is exactly the sort of thing that is right up my alley!

With 630-some tasting notes logged on Steepster over almost 2 years, I can say drinking tea provides me a time for daily meditation and brings me immense pleasure. I drink a decent amount of teabags when lazy or pressed for time and don’t mind if they have added flavorings. If I’m going for loose tea, though, it’s always straight and generally unflavored.

Steepster has, through trades with other members, introduced me to some delicious flavored loose teas I would have never picked up on my accord. Dots and Loops, Butterscotch Potion and Banoffee Rum-ba come to mind. tea-sipper sent Blueberie-zzz my way a few months ago.

For some reason, I’ve retained a vivid memory of one afternoon in kindergarten daycare. It resurfaces a few times per year unprovoked. This takes me back to that day, playing with a blueberry-scented Strawberry Shortcake doll. The aroma of Blueberrie-zzz combines that day with another memory of those candy necklaces on elastic string I’d buy at the Speedway gas station on my walk home from elementary school.

The blueberry and lavender linger long in my mouth and heart. The experience makes me feel things. Perhaps it’s a longing for innocence. I could become addicted to this.

Addendum: 5 grams gave 2 full-flavored steeps

The berries in this blend are just beautiful, and I made sure to put about four in when I steeped this cup. Unfortunately, the main flavor I get is chamomile and a bit of lavender. I like chamomile, and this is a good chamomile (for some reason, a lot of bagged chamomile teas remind me of lunch meat?) I was hoping for more flavors, but the subtlety of this one is nice. For the price, I wouldn’t purchase this one again, but it is nice to have a light, reliable tea in the cupboard.

I bought a sample of this on sale with my small order a while ago. The idea of a blueberry marshmallow blend was irresistible. (It also sounded pretty close to my beloved Peachy Keen.) The blend also has chamomile, lavender, vanilla and green rooibos. I used less leaves than Anne suggested on the package — a teaspoon and a half rather than five grams. I don’t see any larger pieces of marshmallow root in the blend, which might be why there wasn’t much marshmallow flavor. I really wanted the flavor to be mostly marshmallow and blueberry, maybe a hint of lavender. But sadly, at least this serving was mostly tasting like chamomile. I know at least three blueberries went into the infuser. I could have done without the chamomile in this blend altogether. I really loved the IDEA of the flavor combination of blueberry, vanilla, marshmallow and lavender coexisting but the chamomile just takes over.
I was drinking this while trying to get lots of DVRing done and didn’t fall asleep, so not too many zzzz’s. (Also, this snow has meant the dvr hasn’t even been recording anything for THREE DAYS – NO SIGNAL TV black out… but at least I can still watch things on the dvr. ALSO, if gritty, intense, and dark comic inspired shows are your thing, Deadly Class is an amazing piece of work… I feel like all I’ve been watching now is gritty comic shows… maybe all the other genres I watch aren’t airing at the moment.)
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug // 10 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 10 minute steep

Another sipdown. Technically, today and the next week are caffeine-free days, but I’m also eager to sipdown all my older and small sample teas (most of which are caffeinated). Luckily, I found this one with enough left for one last cup.

Delicious, as always. It is like a spa in a cup, great for rainy icky days like today. :)

I had this tea last night as my entry for a “sleepytime tea” in this month’s Scavenger Hunt. And it is a sipdown. I really enjoy this as a before bedtime tea, it’s a tasty blend that is blueberry heavy. I’m not usually a big chamomile fan which is why I don’t make a lot of chamomile bends. This one works for me.