3226 Tasting Notes

This sample is a surprise gift that came in the mail from White Antlers last week!

I was really surprised that I had to add this one to the site as I could have sworn I had seen it reviewed before.

The sample package says this is spring harvest white tea buds. The buds were fat and absolutely covered in downy white trichomes. The cha he looks like it is holding miniature fat and fuzzy pea pods!

Ashman joined me for this gong fu session and I asked him to describe the smell of the leaves after they had warmed in a preheated gaiwan. He said cedar. Actually he said, “What is hamster bedding?” And I said “cedar” and he said “that’s it.” Ha ha!

The steeped tea is quite different from the aroma of the buds. The description on the package says floral and fruity but I definitely felt it the other way around. My first impression was intense fruitiness, and the floral came after and was more subtle. Ashman said he liked the aroma of the wet leaves and steeped tea much better than the dry warmed leaves.

The first two steeps were very much alike, but the third must have oversteeped or something because you could smell the astringency before you sipped. It did have a lot of briskness but it forgave my negligence by rewarding us with a nice rising sweetness after the swallow.

White tea is Ashman’s favorite, so many thanks to White Antlers for the sample!

derk

White Antlers has been on my mind a lot lately. I hope she is well!

ashmanra

derk: She had breakthrough Delta variant of Covid but is back home now! Doing better but still recovering.

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It was ridiculously hot here – heat index of 104F one day – and then we had a few blissful days that were cooler, and a couple of nights in the upper 60’s! It was a little rainy and after the dreadful heat it really felt like great tea drinking weather. And for some reason, this particular tea was calling my name loudly.

It had a bit more ginger than I like the first time I tried it so I just removed a few pieces of the ginger to get it to the heat level I like. And it was FANTASTIC. I felt like I had been transported to the best part of cool fall weather. I actually drank it several times over the course of the two cooler days we had.

Since the ginger heat was reduced, there was no need to make it as a latte. I added no milk or sugar and it was just bliss. The warmth was just right, the fruity berry flavor was spot on, and it was excellent plain when I was waiting for my students and again later in the evening when I had it with dessert.

I am pretty surprised I enjoyed it so much since I really am not a chai lover and usually make such blends as lattes. I can’t wait for another cool day to have it again!

gmathis

Yum. Somehow I missed that one in the CG lineup. It sounds lovely!

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drank Strawberry by Lupicia
3226 tasting notes

This is a sip down, and one I do not plan to replace. It is good, people that I have served it to have liked it, but I still get that weird aroma from it.

For the last two pots I made of this, I used two tsps of Strawberry and added one of Vanilla Comoro by Harney and Sons. I liked it better that way.

Shae

Oh I have both of these! I’ll have to try this combo.

ashmanra

I hope you like it, Shae!

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drank Fluffy Bunny Tails by Cuppa Geek
3226 tasting notes

I made this yesterday, I think. Sweet tea is seriously 1,000 times better on day two or even day three of sitting in the fridge. This isn’t cold steeped, it is made hot and sweetened and then chilled.

I am glad I made it ahead of time because I needed a major attitude adjustment tonight and after stewing all day and feeling frustrated by the heat and humidity on top of the mood, I wanted something that would taste like self care. This did.

It was light and sweet and playful, unlike my mood today. Existential crises need a big, cold glass of Fluffy Bunny. Maybe I will have a third glass…

This carafe is a sipdown, too.

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drank Strawberry by Lupicia
3226 tasting notes

I swear I thought I had reviewed my most recent batch of this. Well, here we go.

Once again, this smells like delicious strawberry…and then a deep, musky smell that is very unappealing to me. I had to say it, but it is really putrid on that bottom note of the sniff.

I had Ashman smell it without telling him why and he said it smelled like strawberry candy BUT…there was something else darker than he didn’t recognize.

I served this not long ago to a friend and they simply remarked on lovely strawberry aroma and flavor. And that from someone who is extremely sensitive to smells and I won’t even burn a candle on the same day she is coming.

So once steeped it is very good. It still isn’t as good as Carol so today I made one little change. I dripped just a few drops of homemade vanilla extract on the leaves before steeping. I swear I didn’t taste the vanilla but I do think the tea was smoother that way. I didn’t know about Frasier when I bought this one, and eldest daughter gave me Frasier for Mother’s Day.

In order of preference of Lupicia strawberry teas tasted so far, I go with Carol as my top choice, Frasier second, and this one a decent third.

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Having this for breakfast with an English muffin this morning. I started the day with watering the garden because it was still only in the 70’s and we are supposed to hit 91F later. Watering means carrying a five gallon bucket (35ish pounds) of water from the rain barrels to the garden…about eight trips usually does it. Then there was scrubbing the small garbage can and vacuuming in preparation for the day. So even though I wasn’t broiling hot, I wanted something light and lovely instead of my usual black tea.

This has lots and lots of lemongrass (which I usually grow and forgot to plant this year) and apple pieces, and I see some lavender flowers and a little oolong in there. The flavor is largely lemongrass forward with creamy vanilla and lavender rounding it out. The color is deep gold so there must be more oolong than I realized. I followed my usual Cuppageek protocol and made three steeps in the Kamjove, all combined to keep it evened out.

I really didn’t know if I would like this one, but I am enjoying it. It certainly does seem to be making me feel very chill and relaxed. I had waaaay too much caffeine yesterday and didn’t sleep much last night, so the relaxation is much needed.

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drank Tangerine White Tea by The Capsoul
3226 tasting notes

Sipdown!

This tea is now four years old and needed to be finished, so I imitated more or less a video I saw online where a woman in Korea recommended making green tea with cool water in the summer.

( I have also tried ice steeping once and probably will again, but it was a tea I didn’t like and hoped ice steeping it would make it palatable. It didn’t. That tea still had vicious fangs. It was a Vietnamese green that tasted like an unruly young sheng.)

This is a tea I really liked, but it needed to go and we are way too hot to drink it hot. It is miserable and we both worked outside today. I steeped all the leaves I had left for three minutes at about 160 in about half the water I thought it needed and then poured it over ice in a carafe. That was then poured into glasses with ice.

I think we actually diluted it too much. The color is nice and golden but the tangerine is super light. That could be age, though? I definitely get lots of nice, sun-warmed hay white tea flavor, so overall it was good. It was super cold and refreshing and went well with supper, so I will call it a win, plus I get shelf space and a sipdown!

Mastress Alita

Green tea is my favorite kind to cold brew. I go lighter on the leaf than most (about 5g for a straight tea and 6g for a flavored one) per 1L of water and let the leaf steep in the fridge for 8-12 hours, then strain the next day. Even really old, past-its-prime greens are decently refreshing to me that way.

ashmanra

Mastress Alita: I adore cold steeped shu puerh! Most of my cold steeps are in the fridge but I did try the ice steeping method. One article said it might take fifteen minutes – maybe on Venus? It took about three hours for the ice to melt completely. I think restaurants are using warm (room temp) water to help it along. But it was that rough Vietnamese green and boy was it sharp! I might try it again with a nice green that I enjoy, but I think I will mostly try to plan ahead and give time for it to chill!

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drank Berry Orange Fluff by Cuppa Geek
3226 tasting notes

A sad sipdown. Ashman and I both enjoyed this one, especially as iced tea. It is so light and fresh and fruity. It is super hot here right now, and this has been galloping down our gullets so fast that it is now all gone.

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drank Peach Ice Cream by Cuppa Geek
3226 tasting notes

Once again, I come on here to remove from cupboard and I had never added it to cupboard.

Was it good? It is gone quicker than most teas. First pot or two was enjoyed hot, then big, cold, sweet pitchers to beat the June heat.

Not tart, but just enough tingle to feel fruity and fresh.

Parting is such sweet sorrow…

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drank Tangerine by Basilur
3226 tasting notes

I had surprise mail from gmathis yesterday and it contained a generous sample of this tea! (Where do you get those pouches for the tea? Much nicer than what I use.)

It was drizzly and completely overcast all morning and I got up rather early, so I decided not to wait but to have this for breakfast. I have read on aromatherapy sites that orange and citrus scents are the best for battling depression and lifting mood, and today’s weather is a real mood squasher – although the slight cooling is welcome.

Oh my goodness, the dry leaves smell amazing! This was definitely the right choice for today!

The steeped tea smells equally delicious and the taste is reminiscent of Nina’s Fete de Versailles. Bright citrus but not an astringent base tea, all made lightly creamy by a hint of vanilla. This goes on the “gotta find it” list.

Thank you, gmathis!

Kawaii433

That sounds wonderful! Going to add it to my “gotta find it” list now. hehe

gmathis

Those little foil pouches were gifted to me, so I don’t have a clue.

Tiffany :)

Hmm, now I too will put this on my “gotta find it” list. gmathis where does this tea come from?

gmathis

A little hard to find on shelves; husband ordered my stock from Amazon, or you might check the Basilur website.

Martin Bednář

Or ask me and I might get it and then I could resend it to the US :)

Not sure if price-worth, though. But I can get most of the Basilur teas :)

ashmanra

Thank you for the offer, Martin! I was able to find it online and plan to order some when (if) I accomplish a little more cupboard clearing. (She says with a Harney order due to arrive today and some Teavivre still in transit…)

gmathis

Belated sourcing note—I was incorrect. My tins came from a third party seller via walmart.com.

ashmanra

Gmathis – Good to know! We finished it yesterday for breakfast!

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Bio

I am a music teacher, tutor, and former homeschool mom (25 years!) who started drinking loose leaf tea about fourteen years ago! My daughters and I have tea every day, and we are frequently joined by my students or friends for “tea time.” Now my hubby joins us, too. His tastes have evolved from Tetley with milk and sugar to mostly unadorned greens and oolongs.

We have learned so much history, geography, and culture in this journey.

My avatar is a mole in a teacup! Long story…

Location

North Carolina

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