The Tea Spot

Bolder Breakfast was one of the first teas I tried in an effort to wean myself from coffee. This is a nice robust cup that stands up to a little sweetener and milk but is not bitter or astringent at all. The black and pu-erh teas compliment the chocolate and vanillaesque mallow petals but still retain their “teaishness”. The tea is quite nice black but a little sweetener and milk make it taste like a woodsy Yohoo drink. This is a yummy cup that even non-tea drinkers will enjoy.

This is a tea I’ve had laying around a long time. Don’t know when I got it. Might as well try it. The leaves in the bag don’t smell like anything special, just normal black tea. Brewing this in my gaiwan as usual.

1st Steep: I notice some flowers and mountain air in the flavor.

2nd Steep: A lot of astringency appears. Mountain air gets more intense. Lots of dry mouth left behind

Nothing changed beyond this. Not awful but can’t recommend. Lots of better options out there.

Tasty! A nice heaping amount of ginger and cinnamon in this bad boy, and surprisingly sweet on its own.

Day two of my tea advent has yielded this blend, which I’ve had before. I remember it as being heavy, and that’s what I got here again as well. I like all the flavor parts separately, but I feel it a bit unbalanced, too bold. But it was fun to try it again, like re-reading a book.

My final cup of this, and I have managed to over steep it.
Ugh.
Its a perfectly respectable spice blend, with a touch of orange to it, but I’ve found it a little too heavy to bring it back into cupboard rotation. And its decidedly a one season tea, and that tea is winter. It would feel wrong to drink it in the warm weather.
So, a sipdown! Wahoo!

Rain! Yaaay!
I have no idea how many more rainy mornings we have on the horizon, so its time for some spicy tea.
In my sipdown mania I am looking forward to having this particular blend done. Its nice, but it doesn’t move me, and I’d like to spend more time with the teas that move me.

Gack, I over steeped this today and it turned out bitter. Gack!

I am not sure how it is only Tuesday. I mean, the week has been packed, work-wise, and I feel like I could use another long weekend.
Sigh.
In the mean time, tea!
This blend is an inoffensive thing- I don’t dislike it, but it never properly pulls me out of my stupor to make me pay attention to it.

I’m coming to the conclusion that this tea is not entirely balanced. Its just a bit too heavy, all together.
The orange should lighten the spice, but somehow it makes it more dense, adds another layer of heaviness to this blend.
Its not unenjoyable, but it lacks balance.

This morning was not the soothing thrum of rain, but rather the howl of wind. Ugh. Much less poetic.
I had this as my breakfast tea, and I am still a bit torn. I think its generally pretty good, but not inspired. It wont move to a permanent spot in the cupboard, but its a nice spice and orange tea.

This is a very rich cup of tea. The spices, the orange, they fill up every sip.
The trouble is I’m still not sure about the balance of the flavors. Maybe? The orange and spice play well together some sips, but sometimes the spice bullies the orange into the background, where it fares less well.
Hmmmm. Many more cups of this to come, and to wonder over.

I tried my first cup of this today. Its an interesting blend, with lapsang, spices, and a touch of orange.
I like all of these things individually, but I’m not entirely convinced that they are blending as well as I hoped they would.
Fortunatly I’ve got tons of this, and can play around with it.

I probably overleafed this cup, but it was that or have two slightly underleafed cups, and I live boldly. What can I say.
This is a sipdown! I don’t really like chocolate teas, but the addition of the cherry keeps it from being too cloying.
Still, this tea falls squarely into the camp of “I liked trying it, but I’m not going to buy it again.”
Sipdown!

This mornings cuppa, and there is just too much chocolate in this particular brewing.
I just never can figure out chocolate teas….

I don’t think I’m ever going to really like chocolate teas- something just doesnt click for me, but this has got enough juicy cherry flavor that it balances it nicely.
Sweet without being cloying, its one of the better chocolate teas I’ve ever had.

Because I love a theme, I decided that my cup today should be this one- what could be more Valentines-y than chocolate and cherries?
I am not particularly interested in chocolate teas, they so rarely work for me. But this was a gift, and I think they’ve done a good job balancing the chocolate notes with the lush and juicy cherry.
Thematic, and not a bad cuppa!

Backlogged from the weekend.
Chocolate tea has never been my favorite. I love chocolate, I love tea, but I just can’t find the blend that really works for me. I don’t buy chocolate teas anymore, but this one was a gift.
My pot of this was more chocolat-y than cherry-ish, which is too bad. I feel if the cherry takes the fore then it might balance better. Fingers crossed

This tea was a gift from a family member, along with other teas and a beautiful pair of tea cups.
I’m not always enthusiastic about chocolate teas. Too often they are watery, pale imitations, and never really touch the glory that is chocolate. But this is the best way to try chocolate teas, by recommendation and gift!
First cup was fairly nice, I must say. Not a fully rich chocolate, but the base is nice, and the cherry note was very pleasant. I am looking forward to trying even more of this soon!

Ah! This marks three sipdowns today! Three! Have I ever done so well? No idea, I can’t say I keep a tally. I should, and occationally take it out and be impressed with myself.
That means, unless I have miscalculated grotesquely, that I am now at 40 teas. 40 teas and no more in my cupboard. I have my Black Friday goal hit. I can now do my Black Friday tea shopping with an easier confidence, and more available cupboard space.
Wahoo! I am very pleased indeed.
Oh, the tea? Not a repeater.

Drat, there is at least one cup more in this before it can be a sipdown.
No matter, I shall finish it off tomorrow.
This is not the sort of tea that you can have more than one cup of in a day. You’d be awake for the next week.
The flavors of this are very muddled, but not unpleasant. I don’t seem to be getting a dominant flavor at all, just hints of spice, maybe a flash of chocolate? Hmm.
Not a favorite. I’ll not be sorry when its all sipped down.

Nothing inspires me to try teas that I’ve been a little afraid to try like sipdown mania. Which is where we find ourselves today.
I am always wary of Yerba Mate, and I still think it won’t be my favorite tea. Its not one I ever buy for myself. But a sample of this came with a Tea Spot order a while ago, and its been totally neglected since I got it.
Well, three teas are standing between me and my black Friday goal, and nothing motivates me like goals to break into the lesser-loved teas.
I am, however, only going to be able to drink one cup of this today, even though the sample pouch easily has enough tea in it for perhaps two more cups.
Yeesh, the caffeine! If I had any more of this, I would vibrate into the stratosphere.
The flavor is a hodge podge of all sorts of things, but my general impression was that it was refreshing. Not as muddy as it could be.
Still. This is not going to become a favorite, that’s for sure.

This is a note to say the Last Jedi was awesome! I am filled with many thoughts, much joy, and a strong annoyance that the next one is not coming until 2019. EEEEEEEEK!
Oh, also this forgettable tea is now a sipdown. Ah well, another sipdown accomplished.

My goodness, but this is forgettable. That’s why I’ve drunk nearly all of it, without much in the way of logging it here.
Its warm, its somewhat rosy, and it has a pleasant enough hint of chamomile to it. Mostly its nice distracted sipping, when you are busy watching something and need a cup of tea that you can sort of forget about.

I had another cup of this last night, and I am once again unable to really report back. Its sort of a cup of nothingness. No particularly strong flavors, just an impression of something warm.
Hmm. Glad I don’t have so much of this.