#tea blogging

[tea-offical]

I can die happy now that I’ve made the world’s most beautiful London Fog

[apoostrotea]

You guys might see this art on Yunnan Sourcing soon ~ I wonder what kind of tea it will accompany!

[kieren-fucking-walker]

Hey folks! I set up a tinyletter for tea ramblings because starting a blog about it seemed a tad overwhelming, and my tea notebook keeps being neglected because it's only me that sees it.

So if you'd like to sign up to receive probably monthly (but maybe more often) email newsletters about my tea thoughts, you can do that here.

[bmwiid]

NEW Tea!

Tea Blog!

Today I picked up a sale tea that I’ve never tried before, called Ti Ora. It looks really posh, comes in a white sealed bag and the teabags are like little plastic (but not plastic, 100% compostable) pyramid bags:

 I got this one - Summer Fruits & New Zealand Apple.... wait... it’s blended in Germany. This legit had me laughing. Taste of New Zealand! Made in Germany. 

Ingredients are: Hibiscus, Rosehips, Natural Flavors, Licorice, New Zealand Apple Pieces, Strawberry pieces, Marigold and Peach pieces.

Right away the rosehips and hibiscus are for colour - really a nice red. Smells DELISH. 

It’s both a hot and cold tea - I don’t think I’ll be trying it cold any time soon, but it suggests that you steep it then put ice in it for like 20 mins. 

The hot steep time is 3 to 5 minutes, I respect that. 

So. Flavour. First sip is the smell mostly, really lovely and fruity and everything I would like in a tea. 

2nd sip: This is super fruity. Like, out of all the teas I’ve had before, this one is the one that hits the most FRUIT notes - in fact, I’d say this one actually would be super LOVELY cold. It’s very peachy and strawberry, the apple is a little bit subtle but is present, and there are no licorice hints that I can taste? I honestly see it a LOT in teas where I’m not getting the taste of licorice. I wonder if it’s put in teas for different reasons that aren’t tea? 

I’m floored by this tea. The bag looks so cool? and the bits IN the bag are waaaay more like loose tea in that they swell up and get all chunky. 

I have one argument about this tea. It’s expensive. All the other teas I buy are either shops own (v. cheap) or Twinings (£2-ish) or Pukka (£2.50-ish) for 20 bags. This is £2+ for 15 bags. Thats... okay so it’s not like SUPER expensive but it’s only 15 bags for a higher price point. I can see why though, looking at the tea in the little bag thing, it LOOKS higher quali-tea. (hahaha, I’m on a lot of painkillers) 

This is a top Three Tea. I cannot tell what would be the best of these three at this point. 

Rhunbarb and Custard by Asda

Caramel Rooibos by Sainsburys

Summer Fruits & New Zealand Apple by Ti Ora

[sobforsirius]

Help! Can you tell me how to make a proper British tea?

why of course

step 1. boil the kettle (pour in only the amount of water you need let’s not waste and leave the poor unfortunate soul go goes to boil the kettle after you with tepid water and force them to make the decision of whether to reboil, or wastefully pour away this liquid and refill. )

step 2. whilst kettle is boiling place a tea bag in your mug (these may be English breakfast/afternoon, Irish breakfast, Yorkshire tea. note NOT EARL GREY)

step 3. right after kettle has boilt, pour the boiling water over the tea bags, filling the mug

step 4. leave to steep/brew/mash/mull/whatever other colloquialism your part of the country uses for approx. 2-5 mins depending on how you like the strength of your tea. you may occasionally stir or squeeze the tea bag against the side of the tea to get optimum tea flavour.

(step 5 and 6 are interchangeable, if you are an absolute heathen)

step 5. remove the tea bag and deposit it in the tea bag receptacle that is a regular in many British house holds, because going straight to the the bin is just too much effort, right?

step 6. milk. milk is not optional though brew novices may tell you otherwise. it also DOES NOT GO IN FIRST because they leaves the tea bag in cold milk??? revolting. (the only exception to that rule is when you are drinking out of a teacup and proper etiquette dictates one should pour the milk in beforehand. this is because the landed gentry of yesteryear would drink out of fine bone china, and the milk went in first to prevent cracking and damage. now, unless you are 67th in line to the throne and you have siblings called Araminta, Fenton and Tarquin, assume you are just drinking out of the common or garden mug and therefore, do not need to protect the £1 mug you brought from ikea so have no excuse)  pour in as much milk as you see fit(but dont go overboard like the tragic fate of the tea lost in the Boston harbour by American revolutionaries; white tea = not good, luke warm, strange mixture) if you are unsure, there are always useful cuppa colour charts to measure your tea against. take care when pouring your milk as a few drops can be the difference between a milky brew, a classic and a builders. perhaps if you are unfamiliar with these concepts, do some background research before engaging in these difficult activities. 

optional step 7. add sugar. if you’re weak and also still a child or little old lady with a sweet tooth.step 8. stir it all together. don’t go crazy, take the teaspoon that one day someone in the household decided would be used only for tea, that is permanently slightly stained from years of use, and stir that tea. (one should also note that when drinking out of a teacup, it is advised to stir the tea using an back and fourth motion, as opposed to the home grown circular motion as this prevents embarrassing spillages in front of the judging eyes of the aristocracy that have no doubt invited you for a splendid high tea in their country manor)

[apoostrotea]

Jiang Po Ni Clay “Persimmon” Teapot | Yunnan Sourcing

Christmas came early! Just received this YS teapot on the same day as my tea ware from King Tea Mall. I’ll make another post for the other haul later, as there’s much more.

A lot bigger and very different than my other teapots. This clay, as Yunnan Sourcing describes, is different from regular Yixing and a mix of a few different types of mud found in the area. A few things I notice right away are the roughness of the clay, especially inside the pot, and how it feels thinner than my other pots. Also, it’s adorable. When cleaned prior to its first use, you could hear the sizzle of air bubbles escaping the pot while the boiling water was poured onto it. Right away, it’s quite absorbent. YS recommends using this pot with oolong and thus I am. Upon first use, I was surprised to find how hard it is to handle. The handle is a bit too small for me to fit my finger comfortably through (I don’t have big hands), and makes pouring shaky. Additionally, the pour is not clean, with tea easily escaping from the lid and under the leaf decorations. You lose a bit of tea this way. This is despite YS saying on their site that the fit is tight on the lid and the pour is smooth. Kind of bothersome, but doesn’t completely outweigh the benefits of this pot. It’s got a cute shape, good volume, affordable price, and is very porous. Plus, since I had a gift card I’m happy with this. Given the different clay type, I’m also interested to see how it will continue to grow with my oolong drinking habits.

Writing up that next post on my King Tea Mall order. It’s longer and I have class, so it might not happen today.

[apoostrotea]

Colored Species | Mandala Tea | Oolong Tea

Look at those leaves!

Oh boy, I haven’t had a lightly oxidized oolong in forever. This one is super vegetal, wet leaf smells like freshly steamed veggies and rice, very umami. The flavor and color changes a lot with every steep. From a somewhat floral brussel sprouts taste with a light yellow color, to a neon green thick umami bomb. Bummer, this isn’t my favorite flavor profile, but for those who like this profile I recommend giving it a try. It’s probably the most well rounded I’ve found in that category, and of course, huge leaves. Mandala Tea rarely misses with these oolongs, but I certainly prefer those higher oxidized and roasted oolongs.

My plans for the weekend include me watching anime with my neighbors, and playing a bit of Dark Souls.

★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆