Matcha Outlet

Thanks Sil and VariaTEA! This was an awesome (early) birthday present! Seriously; I opened the birthday package I got today from VariaTEA and this was all I could smell – even through the tin foil! Mmm! Bananas!

It’s, of course, the first one I tried out and the first tea I made for myself today – whisked into cold milk. It tastes exactly like it smells – and that’s banana medicine (the best kind of medicine; I feel for my brother who never got to have it because he’s highly allergic to penicillin) or those marshmallow-y banana candies.

I may have gotten a bit too excited though, heh…

I chugged the whole 12 oz. of it in about two minute and the felt immediately full and bloated. Too much yummy banana! I’ll try to be more patient with future cups.

(Banana Cheesecake, anyone? YES!)

Sipdown (121)!

Finishing off an older matcha; and it’s a good feeling! This is the first of the 30g packages I got what feels like ages ago that’s being sipped down – and it just means I’m that much closer to the next RLT order. And, there will be another; there’s enough I want to restock and that I’m curious about. I just need to make room first is all.

I had sushi for supper today while drinking this whisked in milk; it was a very ‘Westernized’ Japanese themed meal, and I sipped my matcha milk out of a Spiderman mug and ate my sushi with a fork. Definitely was a nice pairing of flavours, though. This isn’t one that I plan on restocking; I just found that it wasn’t consistently good for me – and when I want something really sweet and creamy coconut matcha is just easier to turn to overall, and mixes better with the other matcha flavours I’ve got in my cupboard.

I think I pulled this one out because I had Chawans on the mind…

Sad news tea friends; I was supposed to be getting that gorgeous Persimmons Chawan from Rikyu that I’ve been eyeing for months for my birthday – when my Dad was here we ordered it, and it came through as accepted! Hooray – right!? Except, they contacted him today and they don’t actually have it anymore – so now I have to pick another one. And, there are several others I’m interested in, but I’m just crushed I can’t get the one I really wanted.

The company suggested two different Persimmons themed ones, but they don’t even come close to grazing the beauty of the one I originally wanted, let alone touching it. The art/glaze work on each one respectfully looks juvenile – my ten year old sister could probably have painted it.

Anyway, these are my second and third choices – depending on what they’ve got in stock:

http://www.rikyucha.com/item/list2/104031/ (Choice #2)
http://www.rikyucha.com/item/list2/151551/ (Choice #3)

I’d be more than happy with either – and I’d kind of feel bad if my Dad got me the waves one; I mean, I’d love it but it’s about double the price of the one I originally wanted. So, if I do get one of these it’s likely going to be Choice #3. I definitely love the colouring and design of that one (and there are actually three others in the same style, but with different images of the ‘poet’) – the only reason I didn’t have it higher on the list is that I kind of dislike the base – though it may just be the angle of the main picture, because it looks fine in the others.

I slept a lot yesterday. From like 5PM to Midnight, and then from around 2AM to 9:30. It’s a good thing I start late today though; I slept through my alarm clock by nearly 3 hours!

I’m losing my voice guys; badly. Work today is gonna be interesting. I’m just picturing myself croaking at the customers while bagging their fruit; “Excuse me sir, is it alright if I put your condoms with the pineapple?”. The rule is bag similar things together; but we all know those two are linked ;)

Anyway; tasting note: I mixed like two tsp. of this in a cup of coconut yogurt because doesn’t Coconut Cheesecake sound good? But, it tasted really off – super grassy/vegetal with weird yogurt tang and the colour/consistency reminded me of gross sewage slime. I had a seriously difficult getting any of it down; my gag reflex was working overtime.

But in all honesty, despite the grassy/vegetal taste from the matcha, I know this is a me thing and not a tea thing; I’ve always had a deep hatred for yogurt in any form but “Frozen Yogurt”. The texture/consistancy and taste always makes me gag and feel sick; especially vanilla yogurt (for whatever reason). So, you might be asking yourself why, then, I even own yogurt. But I’ve been trying to eat better lately so, since I don’t eat any meat, I’ve been adding yogurt into my daily smoothie to get more B12 into my system. I mean, I do eat eggs and drink milk; but not enough to meet the daily recommended minimum…

I thought by adding matcha I’d make the yogurt more palatable and could have it straight; but nope! Not doing that again…

Cold shaken in milk, because I was really late leaving for work. Something about this tasted off to me and I’m thinking, in my groggy “early morning state” I may have severely screwed up the amount of leaf I used but that might not be it. I don’t know.

I did share some with Bobbi, but I could tell she didn’t like it much either. Oh well.

Mixed 50/50 with Tiramisu matcha. Was a pretty tasty, although more Tiramisu dominant, cup. You can read more on that here:

http://steepster.com/roswellstrange/posts/266442#likes

Whisked this one into cold milk to have with breakfast at midnight; Cheesecake Matcha with a stack of blueberry pancakes and Saskatoon berry syrup! I saw the syrup at the grocery store, and I couldn’t resist. Saskatoon Berry anything is amazing.

Fucking amazing stuff.

But yeah, this was really on point and the perfect thing to drink with my breakfast. It was rich, creamy and very authentic tasting. And I did a really good job whisking it up, too! Lots of amazing milk froth.

Last night was interesting though; Tre’s friend Adam slept over and crashed on our floor which I image was not comfortable. He and Tre did a volunteer cooking thinger today for extra credit at Siast (or something like that; I wasn’t paying great attention) and because it started so early it was easier for him to sleep here. It was fine though; Tre wanted me to give up my couch, but I wouldn’t so they worked it out instead.

I just remember falling asleep though while they were talking in Tre’s room (couldn’t hear what they were saying, not that I cared though) and then very briefly waking up and hearing Adam say “Burger Sliders” super crystal clear. What was the context? And what a weird thing to just hear. But I’m sure it happened…

Cracked open the 30g package of this that I bought for myself; basic grade, distinctive level flavouring. To field test it 1/2 tsp. was whisked into a cup of cold milk and, honestly, it was really rather unremarkable. That’s maybe a touch foreboding/worrisome. Hopefully it was just an off cup and the whole 30g wont be like that…

Sorta sipdown? But it really doesn’t count.

I made this one last night cold shaken into a bottle of “Milk 2 Go” vanilla milk, and it used up the last of the cheesecake matcha I got long ago from Courtney, but I still have an unopened 30g package of this from my matcha order to go through. Hooray!

I drank it while watching Big Brother with Tre (it was a good episode!). It was pretty good, but really, really sweet. Yeah, the cheesecake flavour came through but with the sugary vanilla flavour already there it became just a touch extreme. I don’t think I’ll be doing Cheesecake/Vanilla milk again; the cheesecake is better in just plain old regular people milk.

The vanilla milk is weird; some flavours work really well, and don’t taste overly sweet AT ALL, like Pineapple (and Pear, which I’m drinking now and will review in a second) but others are so cloying. Tiramisu and Cookies & Cream are both ones that became hard core sugar bombs; this one was close to that level, but not quite there.

Side note: while we were watching BB last night I had the weirdest uncontrollable tremor in my right hand all episode; my hand was like violently shaking, which was a little concerning to both Tre and I. It stopped shortly before the episode ended though, and hasn’t picked up since. I’m wondering if I should be concerned, or whether it was maybe more of a caffeine thing? Since I’d been drinking black tea, guayusa, and matcha all day on top of pop (Mountain Dew!). Though, normally I can do that with no weird shaking…

“Supper” tonight was Peaches & Cream oatmeal (didn’t feel like cooking, and can’t afford take out until payday on Thursday) – but I wanted to switch it up a little bit so I added in a tsp. of this matcha. I thought “Peaches & Cream Cheesecake” sounded pretty tasty!

Not gonna lie; it looked vile. It had the same colour and consistency (especially with the little peach chunks) of vomit and that made the first few bites a little hard to stomach/enjoy. But after a little bit I adjusted and was able to really enjoy this one! I definitely could taste the cheesecake flavouring but it didn’t overshadow the other flavours of the oatmeal which I love.

Maybe I’ll try this again with other matcha flavours… White chocolate perhaps?

Mixed 1/4 tsp. of this and 1/4 tsp. of Brazilian Acai together in cold milk for a cup of “Berry Cheesecake” matcha this morning. You can read more about it here:

http://steepster.com/roswellstrange/posts/235367#likes

It was good, and I recommend it!

Whisked up into the last of the milk! It only made about half a cup…

It’s Tre’s turn to buy milk next; and I’m really hoping he does so sooner rather than later, because there are so many more matchas I’m dying to enjoy – like the Mocha one from aisling of tea. This one, however, is from Courtney.

I picked it out tonight because it’s VariaTEA’s birthday!!! I just had “Birthday Cake” from DT two days ago for my birthday, so I wanted to switch it up a little – and I thought this could maybe still count as celebration tea because is is still a “cake” afterall.

Anyway, this cup was good despite being small! It whisked up really nicely, and frothed nicely for me too! Yay!

Tea soda! 1 tsp. of matcha in one can of club soda, with a pinch of sugar.

This was weird, in a kind of good way though. Cheesecake isn’t a flavour where you go “Oh yes, I want a can of Cheescake Soda!”, but I was curious (and out of milk). I will say one thing about it though, the cheesecake flavour stands out a lot more when it isn’t paired up along with something else creamy like milk.

If you have this one lying around, maybe give it a go? Just ‘cause it’s really weird.

Yummy! There was some really nice, cheesey and creamy tang in the cup I had last night which was of course in cold milk. I want to try mixing this one with other flavours…

Caramel, Banana & Cream, etc.

This is one of the more popular matchas from Red Leaf, and definitely one I was really curious about, so I was very thankful for the generous sample I received from Courtney.

I made some of this mixed up with cold milk while Tre made faces at me (it did look pretty icky, I’ll give him that much), and was surprised at how rich and creamy it made the milk. There was also a bit of a cheesey kind of “tang” – so while the cheesecake comparison wasn’t super strong or immediate, it was subtle present. I did really, really enjoy the cup of it.

I wonder what the flavouring level was on this one? Courtney, if you see this help a tea triplet out and share some info? ;)

This is a sample I wasn’t expecting from MissB.

It’s, umm… hmm. It smells lovely – baked apples. Mmm… But tasting it, it’s apple pie-ish, but it’s also a bit chemical, and I don’t think I can drink it.

:(

Sad tea story.

(1/2 tsp in 1/2 cup-ish almond milk)

Holy moly. This is a lovely flavor for almost anything. I love pineapple, and when its made with warm almond milk it could come to be a favorite. I can’t wait to see if I like all of the other flavors the lovely MissB sent me in my mystery box. Will be adding them as I try them because putting them in my cupboard hasn’t quite happened yet.

This one’s from Sil’s super matcha pack. 1 scoop, 8oz of almond milk, half a banana.

This was unfortunately not a hit with the two roommates. Roommate A said it was too sweet and then proceeded to guzzle down a huge mug of black coffee (she’s of that alliance). Roommate B said it tasted floral, almost like soap, and then asked for a cup of black coffee from Roommate A, which she added a lot of sugar to. It was a landslide win for the coffee party today.

Although I liked this more than the roommates I found it kind of sweet too. While I know what butterscotch hard candies are (roommates don’t) and I can taste it, I’m unfortunately not a fan of said candies. I think I’ll put this one aside when I’m feeling more inclined.

Free Red Leaf Sample of the month! Thanks Red Leaf for offering this program. The more flavors of matcha I try the more likely I am to place an order soon, heh.

Anyway, I made a latte out of this today with 6oz milk, 2 ice cubes, 1/2tsp match and 1tsp sugar. Actually I made double what I just said and gave half to my husband! He really liked this flavor. He lived in Brazil for a while and was able to eat a lot of fresh Acai products, so that speaks well for this matcha. For me, not being very familiar with Acai flavor (I usually have it paired with blueberry or other fruits) it is a little strange. I think I might slightly prefer my “rich berry pie” flavored matcha, but I will have to do a couple more comparisons to come to a conclusion :)

Although I’ve never tried them, I think I’d prefer a creamy vanilla baked good, or nutty flavoring to my matcha probably…rather than fruity.

I was so excited to try this. I really get psyched for eggnog during the winter holiday season. As soon as I saw it in the mail pile, I opened my sachet-sized bag and sniffed. Yep, that’s eggnog, and with nutmeg. Since I consume the real thing cold, my instinct was iced, bottled water, 1/2 tsp. I like this ratio; I could taste the eggnog and spice, as well as the matcha base. I think the creaminess works better here than it did with the bavarian cream. I tried it hot too (8oz), and it was pretty good. Also good with dream, but I think it loses a bit of spiciness.

Definitely picking up on the creamy lemon in this one. I picked it up, along with the cookies and cream while it was on sale. I doubled up on this one, since it got higher ratings, so it’s still the default, delicate flavoring with standard [green] matcha base. I wanted to really like this one, but not matter how much I tried, I get too much of an astringent, floral note that isn’t too pleasant too me, almost like soap. This matcha, however, is by no means undrinkable. I use it iced now, by mixing with a bottle of water., and take it to work. In my opinion, it is even better with a lemon or lime wedge inside, which makes the lemon overtones taste more like lemon to me. I’ve also tried it hot, with .5 tsp per 8oz hot water, slightly lower than boiling. I’ve tried various ratios of filtered to distilled water, as well as varying amounts of cream or milk, and even some sugar. I think cream or milk makes it taste a bit better, at least hot, by bringing out the richness and creaminess. Part of my problem may very well be that the matcha base has a bit of a floral astringency to me. Perhaps I should try this as a latte though, perhaps for breakfast or dessert. Usually I don’t have sweet drinks.

This one’s from Sil! It’s not bad at all as long as you like Swedish Berries or raspberry candies (jelly belly or Hasbro gummies). I do like those things, so this didn’t last long.

Wow! I can taste the sweet, and slightly sour, whip cream, as well as the strawberries. It all makes for a pretty decadent and rich breakfast smoothie (bananas and strawberries pair so perfectly). I like how easy and straightforward this one is, and will consider picking some up for myself in the future.

Thanks Sil for sending all of this matcha to this side of the country, and Fjellrev for repackaging and distributing all of it!

Big thanks to Dex for sending some of this to me. This is my very first matcha experience, and it’s one that I’ve been looking forward to.

The very first thing that I thought when I saw the packet of dry tea was how much it resembled henna powder both in color and in texture. There was a similar grass note to the scent but I was definitely getting some cheesecake like notes as well (though they didn’t smell “smooth” but “tangy” instead).

I made this with just hot water as I wanted to get a sense of the “natural” tea before making a latte. After adding the water and attempting to whisk it with a small fork (worked not too bad IMO) I found that those same scent notes carried over to the aroma of the “brewed” tea.

My first sip was very interesting, grassy and a bit sweet it did end up delivering the promised cheesecake notes, though they were quite subtle. The mouthfeel was full but a bit chalky (I’m not sure if I just didn’t whisk it enough but my partner who had tried some in Japan a number of years ago said that it was the same texture as she remembered so who knows.) I also found that the cheesecake flavor lingered for a while and actually built up in my mouth over the course of the cup. I definitely enjoyed it though I really do want to try it as a latte.

Unfortunately that’s where the good parts of my experience ended… I came down with a big headache immediately after finishing the cup (I’m prone to them so it wasn’t guaranteed to be from the tea but there’s usually at least some buildup for me.) Then my stomach decided to disagree with it as well, violently… :(

Now I’ll be the first to admit that trying a new tea type first thing in the morning on an empty stomach was probably not the best idea, but I drink tea at that time/state all the time so it never even crossed my mind. Also a little research (better late than never?) pointed to the fact that I may have used a bit too much matcha for my matcha-virgin body to handle, especially since I was having it straight. Lesson learned… Next time, I’m trying this as a latte after lunch!

second really quick matcha latte…..this is maple syrup flavouring to me. It’s not maple syrup in it’s pure form. I took a quick taste from the syrup we have here after drinking this to confirm. it IS damn tasty though, and i can see adding this to other matcha for a delicious maple taste.

Final Count: 138 (which means, dear readers that EVEN with the 13 teas i’m picking up in Florida…i’m only at 151. Not that it counts since they’re not here and my official feb month end is 138…it’s still awesome to know that what will arrive, won’t put me crazily behind in my sipdown goals for March….well at least until the BBB Box arrives lol)