Ah. I’m taking another one of my birthday teas for a spin today. This one came in classy packaging: a fancy box, well-made tin with outer and inner lids, and a cool little brass handle fastened to the middle of the inner lid. When I navigated through this packaging and opened the inner lid, I was struck by a forceful sweet chocolate aroma.
The instructions said to brew this tea in “simmering” water for three minutes. I don’t know what temperature equals simmering, but I took that to mean 195 degrees.
The brewed odor also carried forth distinct sweet and chocolate characteristics. The color was a rich amber.
The flavor had sweet overtones with another hint of chocolate. The taste was also very smooth with no inkling of astringency.
I usually maximize the recommended brewing times and temperatures to pull the most flavor possible from my teas. In this instance, I followed the recommended stingy time and temperature to the letter and was pleasantly surprised by the potency of the taste.
The aftertaste was also just right. It lingered on my palate pleasantly and gently.
I like this tea a lot. Not only will I happily look forward to swilling the entire tin, but I will DEFINITELY put this selection on next year’s birthday wish list.
Flavors: Chocolate, Smooth, Sweet, Tea
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How did you fare in the hurricane, Stoo?
Hi ashmanra! We didn’t have any problems since we are about three hours from the coast. We had some gusty wind and a full day of rain but we were fine. Thanks for asking! I hope all is well with you!
I thought you were in Charleston. Our city was one of the hardest hit by flooding and it followed right on the heels of flooding a week before, but my house never lost power, just water, then a week of boil advisory. Still lots of roads washed out. The flooding was brutal.
Yes, I saw that. Sorry to hear that you got hit hard by flooding. Are things back to normal for you now? I’m in the upstate near Fort Mill.
How did you fare in the hurricane, Stoo?
Hi ashmanra! We didn’t have any problems since we are about three hours from the coast. We had some gusty wind and a full day of rain but we were fine. Thanks for asking! I hope all is well with you!
I thought you were in Charleston. Our city was one of the hardest hit by flooding and it followed right on the heels of flooding a week before, but my house never lost power, just water, then a week of boil advisory. Still lots of roads washed out. The flooding was brutal.
Yes, I saw that. Sorry to hear that you got hit hard by flooding. Are things back to normal for you now? I’m in the upstate near Fort Mill.