Epicurean Delights
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Sipdown no. 3 of 2019 (no. 491 total). Two-serving packet.
Here I am scraping for sipdowns and then I go and do a mega emergency order from Lupicia.
Could the rest of you companies please not close anytime soon? Thanks!
Meanwhile, this is a pretty nice accompaniment to breakfast, though I think it was better when consumed without food. Food distracts from the various flavors.
I must remember to thank my colleague for this next week!
At least a year ago, a colleague at work handed me a packet that had this in it. I never found the right time to give it a try, and so when I was looking around for a sipdown candidate I thought I’d do this because it looked like it was a single serving.
Actually, it has two tea bags, and enough chai spices to evenly split between two servings. So it will be a great sipdown candidate for the NEXT time.
This tea is interesting in a lot of different ways. First, it appears to be a white label with my company’s name on it in front of Epicurean Delights. I’m not sure exactly who Epicurean Delights is, but I think it may be a catering company in our area.
Second, the tea is in two bags, the mesh pyramid kind not the paper kind, and the spices are packed separately. Two large sticks of cinnamon, about four cardamom pods, about the same number of cloves, and two very odd looking things I can’t identify. They look like carved cinnamon — they’re the same color, but they don’t smell like cinnamon. They don’t smell like anything, really. But they look like flowers.
I finally figured out this was star anise. Thank you, Google!
Third, this isn’t at all what I expected. I expected strong spices, but this is really subtle with the chai spices and quite nice. I put half the spices in with the teabag in 195F water. I was planning to take the teabag out, but I left it in and the tea never turned bitter. I mostly taste the cinnamon and cloves along with a buttery green oolong, though there is a “freshness” that cools the tongue and that may be the anise.
The chai spices do sort of subdue the floral aspect to the point of disappearance, though.
It’s a pretty, light yellow clear color, and in a clear glass it is really enjoyable (or as No. 2 would say, “satisfying”) to look at the whole spices in among the bagged leaves.
Definitely a one of a kind experience, and it gets points for being better than expected and for being lovely to look at.
Flavors: Cinnamon, Clove
LUPICIA, NOOOOOOOOOO… QQ
What are you planning to order?
I ordered a ton last night. I got 5 packets each of the teas I’d rated above 90 except for Jingle Bells. They were out of that in loose leaf so I bought a set of teabags. Then I bought one or 2 each of the teas I’d rated in the 80s with a couple of exceptions that I omitted because I wasn’t sure my rating reflects my current tastes, and a couple of new ones that sounded appetizing but that I hadn’t tried. I also bought a matcha bowl to replace the one that No. 2 dropped the other day.
Wow, 5 each! Now I’m rethinking my 2 packets… I guess they are sealed, so they should last a long while.
I live in a very naturally cool, dry, area, so tea storage isn’t a big problem for me. I generally don’t notice a huge drop off in taste even with older teas. Sometimes they even get better!