Dropping this note here because I’m fairly certain What-Cha is the origin of this tea I received from White Antlers. That was ONE BIG BALL in a sealed foil packet with Chinese script. The only English characters on the packet alerted me that what I had in my possession was Zhang Ping Shui Xian Cha. The date of the only review for this tea matches White Antlers’ timeline of teas.
So. The ball weighed almost 8g. Steeped in my generic 500mL Chinese pot… for 4 pots! That’s a lot of tea! No surprises between the aroma and taste. Carob, tangy plum, raspberry, chocolate syrup, with hints of geranium, pine, and pomelo and a licorice root type sweetness, very mineral. It was a pretty mellow 4 pots. Flavors became stronger as the tea cooled. Overall smooth and mineral, perhaps a bit of a watery body. The spent leaves look very healthy and a lot of them are sets with two leaves and a bud.
Not exactly to my tastes and I can’t pinpoint why. It does taste a lot like https://steepster.com/teas/what-cha/89012-china-fujian-zhangping-heavy-roasted-shui-xian-oolong-tea-cake but with more developed flavor and aroma. This is a black tea, the other one is an oolong. Thank you, White Antlers, for sending this my way :)
And to my American friends here, please make wise decisions for your health and your families’ this coming Thanksgiving weekend. My grandfather in Ohio passed a few nights ago due to COVID and only COVID. It is sweeping through his nursing home despite tight restrictions. My mom made it sound like he came to terms, accepting that it was his time and that he would pass soon. He was an eccentric man not a family man, a greaser type of guy, a drag car racer, a lover of Pepsi and Butterfingers. His dining room was a dancefloor and at one point he had a yellow station wagon with Bart Simpson images and quips painted on the windows — The Bart Mobile. RIP Dr. Cool.
Flavors: Chocolate, Citrus, Geranium, Licorice, Mineral, Pine, Plum, Raspberry, Smooth, Sweet, Tangy, Wood
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My condolences to you on your loss, my tea-friend! We will miss even those “not-family” family members. Be eccentric even in families have purpose. Maybe we don’t see it while they pass away, but earlier or later we will miss there is nobody “Dr. Cool.”
derk I hope there is a cool After Place for folks like your grandfather, where they can happily be their eccentric selves with no censure and much Other Worldly glee. My sympathy to the grieving folks he left behind.
I’m so sorry to hear the news, derk. If you need anything, feel free to contact me. My grandmother’s nursing home has also had an outbreak, just hoping for the best that few residents get it…
(As for me, I have the same holiday plans that I have every year… getting a bunch of Thai takeout on Wednesday and eating it, alone at home, throughout the weekend. I was social distancing before it was “the thing”).
derk, sorry to hear of your loss. Covid is very bad because quarantines are forcing us to have to lose so many people and we aren’t always allowed to see them in their last hours. I still have the same number if you need to call about anything. My prayers for your family.
I’m sorry for your loss, derk. My parents spent their final years in nursing homes. I think you must have some Dr. Cool in you.
oh no! I’m so sorry derk. I bet he was one awesome dude.
I am so sorry, derk! He does sound cool!
Hugs, friend.
Thanks y’all <3 I wish I had known him better but our lives never really crossed long enough for that to happen. Like Martin said, he did have his place in the family. Hopefully one day soon we can celebrate his life the way he requested – with much hoopla :)
My condolences to you on your loss, my tea-friend! We will miss even those “not-family” family members. Be eccentric even in families have purpose. Maybe we don’t see it while they pass away, but earlier or later we will miss there is nobody “Dr. Cool.”
derk I hope there is a cool After Place for folks like your grandfather, where they can happily be their eccentric selves with no censure and much Other Worldly glee. My sympathy to the grieving folks he left behind.
I’m so sorry to hear the news, derk. If you need anything, feel free to contact me. My grandmother’s nursing home has also had an outbreak, just hoping for the best that few residents get it…
(As for me, I have the same holiday plans that I have every year… getting a bunch of Thai takeout on Wednesday and eating it, alone at home, throughout the weekend. I was social distancing before it was “the thing”).
derk, sorry to hear of your loss. Covid is very bad because quarantines are forcing us to have to lose so many people and we aren’t always allowed to see them in their last hours. I still have the same number if you need to call about anything. My prayers for your family.
I’m sorry for your loss, derk. My parents spent their final years in nursing homes. I think you must have some Dr. Cool in you.
oh no! I’m so sorry derk. I bet he was one awesome dude.
I am so sorry, derk! He does sound cool!
Hugs, friend.
Thanks y’all <3 I wish I had known him better but our lives never really crossed long enough for that to happen. Like Martin said, he did have his place in the family. Hopefully one day soon we can celebrate his life the way he requested – with much hoopla :)