75

Tea of ‘Second Breakfast’, but really just the second pot of the morning….

It has been a weird morning. I feel like I have just done surgery on my keyboard’s space bar. And now it is working better than having a sentence all strung together with no spaces. You would not believe all the little hinges and teeny little clips in there to hold everything in place! If my fingers were any bigger, I would have needed a good set of tweezers!

Anyway, onto the tea. I decided to give this one a go since I feel pretty well versed in a few Keemuns that I drink regularly. My references are Keemun from Fortnum & Mason and Harney & Son’s English Breakfast. So far, this one just seems a tad more bitter and slightly more smokey. Actually, it is pretty close to the F&M. This one comes in as a tea bargain at something like $3.69 for a half pound at my local Asian market. It comes in a yellow round tin. The thing that concerns me…it was produced in Aug. of 2008, and expires in Aug. of 2014. Cool that they have the production date, but a 6 year shelf life? Egads!

Steeped the usual way.

ETA: I did not finish this pot. That speaks volumes to how much I like it as the pots of tea that I love are gone very quickly. This tea has been used to add body to my Chocolate Rocket from David’s Tea at a 1:2 ratio….

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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Bio

My motto: Drink the good tea!

Tea enthusiast, trying to keep up my cardio for the zombie apocalypse. I have come to accept that I am a western brewing black tea drinker as that is where my ‘tea heart’ lies. I started on loose leaf as a way to have my dessert and not suffer the caloric issues. Once I tried it, I was hooked.

I drink what I like, which is mostly China blacks, a few traditionally scented blacks and Earl Greys, plus a flavored tea here and there. I don’t mind spending a bit on premium varieties on occasion, but an expensive tea has to deliver. My favorite places to order are Harney & Sons and Upton Tea Imports. TeaVivre is great for Chinese tea.

My ratings are pretty subjective. If it falls under 70, I may not take the time to post about it unless I had something specific to say. If it is 70-80 I like it, but I will probably not rebuy. Favorites are over 80 and up, but sometimes the less expensive or more easily obtainable version of a similar taste will win out for my cupboard space.

Usual teapot steeping method: 24 oz teapot, 3 perfect scoops of tea (4 1/2 actual tsp), freshly boiled water, 4 minutes. Lightly sweetened.

Usual mug steeping method: 15 oz mug, 1.5 perfect scoops of tea (just over 2 actual tsp), freshly boiled water, 4 minutes. Lightly sweetened.

Usual pan method: 1 1/2 cups water, 2 perfect tsp chai (3 actual tsp). Simmer for 3 minutes. Add 2/3 cup skim milk. Simmer for 2 more minutes. Strain and sweeten.

Usual pitcher method:
5 or 6 Perfect Spoons of tea (this means about 7-9 actual tsp), freshly boiled water, brewed essentially double-strong in my 24 oz teapot for 4 minutes. Fill my Fiestaware Disc pitcher (about 60 oz.) halfway with ice. Add brewed double-strong tea to the pitcher. Stir it a little and enjoy. No additions.

(*SRP is my Sample/Stash Reduction Plan starting on April 12, 2012. I got so far, but just decided it was too fussy to keep track.)

Location

Ohio

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