Daylon R Thomas already adequately described this tea but I love this tea, too, so I wanna talk about it.
So here I am drinking it the night before my GRE exam. I’ll probably have it tomorrow morning, too.
Tonight, I’ve gone western. 1tsp/8oz/205F. First steep was 3 minutes, second was whoops I forgot. Third will be a deliberate whoopsy because you can’t overbrew this tea.
This tea is straightforward and ridiculously easy to chug once it cools off. No astringency or bitterness with a light mouthfeel. Aroma and taste is sweet vanilla and rock sugar with roasted pears and sweet apples. Because of its flavor profile, I enjoy it most during mornings on campus when the fog is rolling through or at night at home…when the fog is rolling through. I enjoy this tea any time of day, really.
My preferred method of brewing this, though, is in my clay gaiwan, with 5 grams of leaf to 100mL. It nullifies the barely there funk that’s present in western and it amplifies the sweetness. My glob. Smell the bottom of the cup, people. And it steeps forever but I don’t have time for that tonight.
I recently gifted a coffee-drinking friend with an encyclopedia of loose teas. He was most stoked about this one, What-Cha’s sticky rice oolong and Whispering Pines’ Ancient Spirit but he’s really excited about tea in general (I’m sending him another encyclopedia of loose tea next week). I think I have a convert. Good for newbies and experienced alike. Also regarding converts, my manfriend/lifepartner/whatever swore off coffee for this week. He texted me today saying ‘I need better tea at work.’ Finally he’s tired of the Trader Joe’s Irish Breakfast. So I packed some of this for him to try out grandpa-style.
Woot. I’m happy and calm. This is derk signing out. Nanu nanu.
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Always so excited to find a convert… my coworkers are incredibly atalwart and always say “I don’t like tea!” which perplexes me since… every tea tastes different. They never want to take up my offers for a prepared cuppa when they traverse through the cataloging dungeon here at the library on their way to the coffee pot in the breakroom. Quite sad.
He said the amber gaba oolong saved his ass today. I kinda want to send him on a ride with some crazy sheng.
You could leave some teas and simple instruction close to the coffee pot. Somebody will eventually get curious and hide in the bathroom to drink it.
Victory! The Ancient Spirit was one of my Whispering Pines favorites was well.
Always so excited to find a convert… my coworkers are incredibly atalwart and always say “I don’t like tea!” which perplexes me since… every tea tastes different. They never want to take up my offers for a prepared cuppa when they traverse through the cataloging dungeon here at the library on their way to the coffee pot in the breakroom. Quite sad.
He said the amber gaba oolong saved his ass today. I kinda want to send him on a ride with some crazy sheng.
You could leave some teas and simple instruction close to the coffee pot. Somebody will eventually get curious and hide in the bathroom to drink it.
Victory! The Ancient Spirit was one of my Whispering Pines favorites was well.