Today was date day! Ben and I tend to go out once a week on his day off, which also happens to be game day (not a coincidence) but he got two days off this week meaning we got to spread things out. Makes me happy because the sum of outings on Thursday (other than gaming) would be to my doctor, blech. So, we went to an Ethiopian buffet and walked around River Market, which I found out today is at the very end of the main bus line. Now that I know both a Chinese market and a farmer’s market is at the end, I foresee many adventures in my future, maybe yours truly will get over her silly phobia of taking the bus solo!
So, today we are going back to the beginning, by that I mean Adagio Teas! They were the first company I ordered from (really kickstarting my love of tea to full blown obsession…at the time I was apprehensive about buying online because I wanted to sniff the tea first, an apprehension that very quickly went away) and the first tea I reviewed on the blog, back before it was a tea blog and was just a me rambling blog. Even though I have since branched out massively, I still have a great love for Adagio, it is much like a homecoming. Today is all about Rooibos Tea, the legume from South Africa whose leaves make a delightfully red colored cup of tea! The aroma of the little red leaves is sweet and woody, exactly the way I expect Rooibos to smell! I do not drink it unblended nearly enough, which is tragic because I love the stuff. There are also notes of caramel, a touch of honey, the tiniest hint of pepper and much to my surprise and ending hint of pie crust, which is fun!
Giving the leaves a steeping (yay they didn’t fall out of my steeping basket, tiny Rooibos leaves tend to do that) the aroma that wafts out of the leaves is sweet and woody, like caramel and dried sticks with a little bit of straw. The liquid is very similar, notes of wood and caramel, but with the addition of honey and just a tiny touch metallic.
Onto the sipping! When I logged this tea in my notebook (a grand total of like three days ago) I was feeling a bit queasy, I found out when I was recovering from an ulcer that Rooibos is great for nausea, apparently it has anti-spasmodic properties, so that is probably why. Sure enough drinking the cup settled my stomach, as it has many times in the past, so yay for that! The taste is very typical Rooibos, it starts caramel woody sweet and has a dry finish, though I have found that brewing the tea at just under boiling will make it less dry and more sweet, so if you are someone who dislikes that dryness there is a little tip. I love the woody aspects of rooibos, the closest wood I could compare them too is dry reeds, and yes I know what that tastes like, I am a weirdo. Unlike most Rooibos, this one has a tiny hint of smokiness at the finish, making me wonder what a smoke roasted Rooibos is like. Ah, it was good to have a Rooibos again, must not let myself run out again in the future!
For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2015/02/adagio-teas-rooibos-tea-tea-review.html
I didn’t know that about Rooibos. I am not a fan, but could certainly drink it when queasy.
rooibos…. bleh :(