159 Tasting Notes
Just shot a video of me making this, should be up next week. Layered in a wine glass.
I should have sweetened the milk, but nevertheless, a very rewarding ‘dessert tea’ having just consumed china jasmine, pai mu tan, assam and darjeeling whilst filming three episodes back to back.
The wild cherry is interesting, but for this, I think the plain and the quince are better flavours. The cherry is lost a bit in the milk.
I might add chocolate and make it into a black forest cake tea!
Preparation
Made up a batch of this yesterday afternoon.
For those not familar with it (and since only about 5 kilos have ever been sold at a guess, that’s pretty well everyone) it’s a Russian Caravan-like blend but with a fair amount of FTGFOP 2nd flush Darjeeling.
A good approximation is to buy a good quality RC and mix 4:! with a good 2nd flush Darjeeling. Or make your own RC.
So, I sat down in the late afternoon yesterday with a cup, and with the daughter of the “Jim” who the tea was blended in honour of (who is also my wife).
It was warm, there was a breeze, and it was paradise out on the deck.
Chattering parrots in the fruit trees added to the environment.
I guess drinking anything at that time was likely to work. However, the laptop battery was flat, and I was forced to make paper notes. (Kiddies, if you can’t remember the old technology of a pen and paper, look it up on the net. It’s ingenious!)
First note: CLEAN
I’d been shovelling mulch and moving rocks. Hot and thirsty as I was, the tea cut straight through.
Second Note: Smoky
Definitely a smokiness. There’s no lapsang in this mix, but the Keemun base seems to emit a hint of smoke.
Third Note: Vitality
Your tongue sparkles. This is what the darjeeling adds to the mix
Fourth Note: AAhhhhhhhhh
The lingering taste of an excellent cuppa.
Unpretentious in the extreme, this tea. I’ve created some really exciting teas, including custom heritage blends and a freaky chai for those who take it without milk, but I’m still proud of this one.
If anyone wants to create it at home and review it; I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Preparation
Heck, I would try it. It sounds delicious. Fair warning — I’ve never blended my own tea before. Disaster potential is perhaps fairly high.
Just buy a good Russian Caravan, a good Darjeeling 2nd flush, and blend by weight. 80% RC.
And enjoy!
Belnding is always fun, even if you get it wrong. We had an old Latvian guy (85yo) at the tea shop, and he lost track while he was blending on of our Earl Greys. So we sold the resulting 2kgs of whatever it was as ’ Latvian Earl Grey", It was a big hit.
Ahhh yes, time for that first tea of the day.
Even though I’m sitting at my wife’s desk creating diagrams of social enterprise models, I am supposed to be outside digging up some rock-hard ground and old grass before the horror of the day (Should be about 39degC, or about 105F) really hits and then mowing the lawn.
So, for these manly pursuits, I need a manly tea. LS it is !
I made it in Cyril, my glass teapot, to better admire its leather-brown colour (OK, so not the manliest of starts there)
But the colour is that of a leather belt, or gun holster, or saddle. Very apt.
The aroma is that of a campfire, with a real pine forest feel.Camphor and campfire, saltwater and saltbush all roll through my mouth, it’s like a camping trip in a cup.
And the taste cuts through the mouth, extinguishing the sleepless night I had, and reinvigorates me in exactly the manly way I was after.
“I’m a lumberjack and I’m OK !”
I had put down MS publisher and picked up my garden tools.
Preparation
Once again, I had this as my late night tea. And it was glorious!
4 minutes was about right.
The liquor – golden, sparkly
The aroma – like fresh barley straw
The – taste – liquid sunshine. Complex and subtle at the same time.
It was a great way to end the day. But it was 6 hours ago.
Now, I’m up and ready for something to kick my day into gear.
Preparation
Giving this another go, though I don’t expect to enjoy is too much.
Just as well.
Tanniny.
Kenyan-y with not much else
Has the aroma of a tidal creek.
I am about to take drastic action…..
I’ve added milk and sugar. It’s now passable.
There’s plenty of other teas to choose from, next time, I’ll have something else.
Preparation
Just tried this using the steam wand method but without sugar or any other sweetener.
Just doesn’t work
Preparation
what is the steam wand method?
Yeah, ditto Chris’ comment. Although I never add sweetener to chais.
I put this chai, which is my own recipe if you check it out, in about a third the normal amount of water and then let it steep.
Then I put the liquor, COLD milk and sugar in a frothing jug and steam it on the steam wand of an espresso machine.
Pour it into a cup, latte style and sprinkle with powdered cardamon, cinnamon and sugar.
@Robert, I can’t reach my stove so I do it that way too- except I microwave the mixture… unfortunately I’m very good at scortching the milk and making a huge mess…
The microwave is the natural enemy of a good cup of tea.
Microwaves were entirley invented for warming scones to have with one’s tea, and any other use is the work of the devil.
Yeah well, when you’re in a wheelchair in a home that isn’t built for one sometimes you have to make due. It’s better than having no chai at all IMO. And unfortunately mom refuses to let me use a hot plate so that’ll have to wait til I move out.
I once bought a house that had been built for someone in a wheelchair, and it taught me a fair bit.
Everything was really low, so for example, everytime i missed a light switch by hitting the wall above it, it reminded me that I was fortunate.
A microwave is a matter of choice for me, but is clearly it is essential for you and I should not be so flippant.
And I’m not average height either. I’m only 3 ft 8… which is one of the reasons I don’t walk w/ leg braces and a walker. Since I’m so short I feel safer in a chair. Especially in the winter.
Second steep on my last tasting note, about 1.5 hours later,
Enjoying this tea with a peach straight from the tree.
The peach changes the character of the tea, brings out almost an almondy taste. Either that or someone is poisoning me with cyanide. Quite a nice way to go, though.
Bless me Cyril, for I have sinned. It is eight hours since my last cup of tea.
OK, so I’ve been asleep for six of those, but that’s hardly an excuse.
I’ve decided intellectually that I do not need to sweeten this tea, even the first infusion. So Let’s see if my tastebuds agree.\… they do !
The first sip or two filled the night-dried cracks inside my mouth but soon the sweet, juicy taste and delicate fragrance filled my senses.
I love the way the flavour of this tea fills your whole mouth.
I’ll start steeping the second before I finish the first. All is as it should be.
Preparation
OK, made this as one of my famous layered rooibos lattes.
Layer of hot milk
Layer of vibrant red rooibos
Layer of froth
(I’ll shoot a videe of this soon, promise)
I like to take a few sips carefully to enjoy the full Rooibos falvour, then a quick stir and enjoy the milky goodness.
Sweet and invigorating
Preparation
where is this available?
Not sure. I bought a tea shop and found 4 kilos in a cupboard. Oh, and I’m in Australia.
The origin of the tea is Germany, where they mixed German flavourings and Cherries with South African Rooibos.
If you can’t find it; have plain rooibos and a black forest cake.
haha alright thanks for the input
Today’s mild coffee hangover is being tackled upon waking with a China Jasmine.
I brewed it in a little ceramic pot and am drinking from a Croation cup from 1914 with gold filigree patterning. I’m trying to have as delicate and refined an experience as possible.
Maybe it was posting about Darjeeling that did it, but I’m detecting a gummy/menthol flavour that I’ve not picked up before in this tea. It’s actually clearing my head.
Whatever your problems, tea is the answer! And this one makes a fine answer. Golden ambrosia, a magical medicine in a cup.
And with reference to a discussion elsewhere on Steepster, no medical insurance required!
