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149 tasting notes

Whoa. Has it really been over a month since my last note? Doesn’t feel like that long ago.

Just came home from some travelling— took a short-term May abroad course about bioethics in the Netherlands for a few weeks, then went off to London on my own for another week or so. It was a wonderful experience. The history of the Netherlands and the influences it’s had on Dutch culture (a unique blend of individualism balanced with cooperation that ties in with a general theme of tolerance) is fascinating. The food was delicious, too (I fell in love with poffertjes, stroopwafels, and various rijsttafel dishes that I don’t know the names of). I’d love to go back and live there for an extended period of time, to be honest (studying bioethics there would be great).

London was just amazing. Words cannot describe how excited and stunned I was to be in the city, since there is so much history there (and just in the country in general). It’s also a really expensive city… think NYC prices numerically, then double it because of the GBP to USD conversion rate. Thank goodness for hostels (though I may try couchsurfing or AirBnB next time).

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to pick up any teas this trip (I was trying to fly hand luggage only and the cheeses I got from Gouda took up a lot of space). But I really hope to return in the future, because there are so many more museums I’d like to visit, and the rest of England and other countries of the UK as well!

Anyway, that long note was basically just to say that my status with this tea is almost a sipdown, and it’s definitely going on my repurchase list once I’m out. It’s smooth, malty, and a strong tea that isn’t at all a “yell-in-your-face” strong, but more of a firm shake of the shoulder, “hey, time to get up and meet the day” strong.

11 years ago

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Bio

I have far too many interests. Tea is one of them.

Background in bioethics, medical anthropology, and evolutionary biology with aspirations of eventually going into a medical field. I also have strong interests in theater, computer science, and food (which shouldn’t be particularly surprising).

Brewing
Brewing method is usually Western style for black teas (2-3 minutes at near-boiling), “grandpa style” for shu pu’ers and longjing, and gongfu (with a gaiwan) short steeps for sheng and shu pu’ers (two 5-second rinses, then 5, 10, 15-second steeps with a gradual increase in steep times to taste). The gaiwan is also used for oolongs though I sometimes use a brew basket if the gaiwan is occupied and I’m taking a break from pu’er.

Preferences
I enjoy black teas, pu’er, and oolongs (leaning towards aged, cliff/Wuyi, or roasted/dark), depending on my mood. I don’t usually drink green tea but do enjoy a cup every so often.

Ratings
My rating methods have changed over time and as a result, they’re very inconsistent. For the most part, as of 11 November 2014, unless a tea is exceptional in some way (either good or bad), I will refrain from leaving a numerical rating.

The final iteration of my rating system before I stopped (note: I never did get around to re-calibrating most of my older notes):
99 & 100: I will go to almost any lengths to keep this stocked in my cupboard.
90-98: I’m willing to or already do frequently repurchase this when my stock runs low.
80-89: I enjoy this tea, and I may be inclined to get more of it once I run out.
70-79: While this is a good tea, I don’t plan on having it in constant supply in my tea stash.
50-69: This might still be a good tea, but I wouldn’t get it myself.
40-49: Just tolerable enough for me to finish the cup, but I don’t think I’ll be trying it again any time soon.
Below 40: Noping the heck out of this cup/pot.

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