Some Velvet Morning (Organic)

Too much tripel…there is such a thing.

Stomach hurts. Head’s ok. STOMACH HURTS (but that’s also thanks to other monthly events thanks so much body! u rule) and I am so thankful for Reasoned_Melody sending me some of this.

It is pretty bitter but a cup of this and a great big nap later, all I’ve got is a giant headache and I know that’s just from being dehydrated. YAY.

I’d like to try Detox now too I think, sounds more up my alley.

On the plus side I bet the bitter orange peel taste goes away if you sweeten it a little but I just wanted to stop being nauseous so badly. And it’s not like some other ~medicinal types where it tastes like a spice cabinet.

1.5 tsp for 400mL water @ 82C, steeped two minues.

This blend smelled so seductive.

And it’s not fair that I am trying this one after a really good gyokuro.

I want to like this one. It sounds so damn healthy.

But sweet adorable citrus pith, this is BITTER. Bitter, bitter, pill-dissolved-in-your-mouth bitter. And unpredicatably so: some sips are just slightly bitter, others make me scowl. I rarely sweeten teas or tisanes, but I’m gonna have to here.

I am guessing the dandelion root and orange peel are riding roughshod.

Can’t rate this fairly til I try it sweetened.

So, who had lots of fun at their NYE party last night? You guessed it. And now I have a mild hangover as a result. Nothing too terrible, mostly a bit of stomach blah, but definitely not something I wanted my normal morning black tea on. I was casting about, trying to decide what to have, and I remembered that Some Velvet Morning was somewhat of an after-party sort of tea. So here were are, together again. It actually is perfect for this morning, unassuming and gentle. I taste the citrus, and don’t have any idea what shizandra berries are supposed to taste like, so I don’t know if I’m tasting them or not. My stomach is thanking me for not subjecting it to Captain Assam. I’m glad David’s sent me this by mistake, I don’t think I’d have tried it otherwise.

This one, my friend, can be classed as a disappointment. The beau and I were interested in it for a long time, but always seemed to get something else instead. Last weekend I took the plunge and got some…For some reason, I remember having a chat with a sales clerk nearly a year ago, and they said it was similar to detox. Well, I love DT’s detox, so I was excited.

Unfortunately, that was a lie! This tea is very mild and meek, with only an orange peel flavour being discernible for me. It reminds me of Kyoto Cosmo, but with less powerful flavours. There is also another David’s Tea I’ve had that reminds me of Kyoto Cosmo, but I can’t remember which anymore. Anyway, David’s Tea, step up your game!

This tea is kind of weird. Or at least I have some weird mixed feelings about it.

This is one of my friends’ favorite tea and the other day he went completely crazy and bought like 300g or so + other teas as well. When he realized how much that was, he started feeling guilty… and so I bought a 100g tin from him. Yep. That’s how good a friend I am!

Anyway. It smelled promising because I love citrus in tea and I thought it smelled very lemony and orangey. But it’s way too bitter and medicinal for me. I’ve tried different steeping times, different water temperatures, and still every time it comes out pretty bitter. Now I even think the smell is bitter, if that even makes sense !

The thing is, though, when I feel tired and/or my tummy is upset, this is the tea I reach for. I slept about 4 or 5 hours last night and that’s why I’m drinking it right now. I’m not particularly enjoying it, but it’s the only one I felt like drinking. Weird.

Yeah, it’s bitter. Medicine is bitter though, right? I’m certainly not drinking this for pleasure, as I got it more for the detox properties, thus it is a medicinal tea for me. Not sure what I think on this one yet, but I only got 10g, so no big investment. We’ll see…

Needed this one this morning :) This time I added some agave syrup and that seemed to improve the taste for me.

This tea is smoky to start, and it slowly develops into the bitterness of the dandelion root with some citrus in the background. Maybe that does not sound like a delicious description, but I put it into the “healthy” category of teas. For me there are foods that I eat because they are scrumptious like rice crispy squares and foods that I eat because they are healthy, like carrot juice. Carrot juice is delicious to me, but in the healthy way, and it makes me feel really energized to drink it.

This tea is more like carrot juice. It is not rich, sweet and and “I am in love!” like a rice crispy square, but it feels healthy and energizing to drink. It feels good when I have had a bit too much salt, or my body feels “blah”. I drink this, then mulberry-leaf tea some afternoons and I just feel so full of well-being that it is ridiculous!

I don’t usually buy flavoured tea. I don’t know why this one caught my fancy – the dry leaves smell like chewable vitamin C tablets. Fortunately it doesn’t taste that way! I think it’s a little too herbal for me – I prefer my tea to taste like tea. Still, pleasant.

Gah, without realizing it, my kettle heated the water too much, so my first cup of this was definitely burnt. Greens, why you so delicate?

Determined since I liked what was under the burnt taste, I tried again. And this time I definitely got the brew right. It’s an interesting tea, and I loved the smell of it as I pulled the infuser and the first sips.

I’m halfway through the glass now, though, and I’m starting to get that feeling in my mouth from chewable vitamins, and that horrid fake orange taste. The tea itself is still nice, but my mouth seems to be rebelling against it. I’m going to rate it based on the tea flavour, but those unsure, beware if you don’t like a dryer mouth!