2168 Tasting Notes
This was a treat from Eelong…luscious thick leaves that were at least half a hamster long (no, I don’t know why I chose that unit of measurement, but that was my first impression and I’m sticking with it!)
I neither measured nor steeped scientifically or precisely, but this was a very forgiving tea anyway. Had the gentle graininess of honey wheat bread, and although I was likely influenced by the “purple” in the moniker, the fruitiness I detected was grapey. A lovely serving of toast and jelly to accompany me out the door.
We jokingly call Revolution varieties Truck Stop Teas because we first found them at the local Flying J/Denny’s and were surprised to see such a sophisticated selection rather than food service grade stuff.
Revolution has made this one deliberately fruity and peachy. I have often compared the flavor of good oolongs to Juicy Fruit chewing gum, but this one is so sweet, I’d call it Fruit Stripe Gum flavor — you know, the 30 seconds of flavor you get until it goes away. Very tasty and pleasant.
This, however, does not make the husband cut. Way too fruity. His oolongs must be toasty and oversteeped enough to bite your tongue. So far, his only consistent request is for inexpensive Bigelow bagged oolong. Eh, I tried.
Elsewhere, a friend of mine has been posting “daily joys” as a reminder that there is still joy to be found when you ponder it. Mine yesterday was a few hours of bona fide sunshine to walk in and watching neighbors try to pose their six-week-old husky pups for a photo session. I’ll be watching for yours.
Daily joys! Yesterday I made myself tear away from news and take pictures of tiny, tiny weeds blooming in the yard. It felt so good!
My husband is working non-stop since last Friday to prepare quarantine facilities at the military base. So it stays on my mind a lot. I am working on the whole “keep calm and have a cuppa!”
Many of my music students have opted to cancel, so I have more time on my hands, too. but it will all pass!
Daily joys? Does it count I was productive and did few pages of my semester thesis?
Drank some few nice teas?
Did not went mad?
Actually the last one was toughest one. As everybody else is working from home, there is not much space to study. Moreover I felt like I am nanny of the house. Do cleaning up, vacuum the carpet in the living room, bring some food, cook – like I am having a holiday, but I am not!
Productivity and a clean house—definitely!
I repaired a new coworker’s bicycle Wednesday. Thursday I don’t remember anything. Friday night I read a long and loving email from ashmanra (yours is in the making, gmathis). Between yesterday and today, I slept 16 hours. Today, I wrote a letter that needed to be written for months.
Sunday—one laundry basket full of teaching supplies that had been blocking my hall closet for (ahem, a while) now somewhat sorted and dealt with, although I still zigzag at that particular spot even though there is nothing to zigzag around.
Monday morning—-SUNSHINE!!!!!!!!!! I was running out of yellow clothes.
Wednesday serendipity: on my route to work (yep, still here)—two young deer standing in a fence row next to a field of Bradford pear trees in full white bloom.
That must be wonderful view gmathis. Kind of I envy you :)
We’re right on the borderline between prairie and the Ozark foothills. Ten miles north and west you get flat pastures and wheatfields; Ten miles south and east you get gentle, rolling mountains which should be covered with dogwood flowers in a couple of weeks.
My work setup isn’t favorable for anything that requires attention, so I never do green teas there unless they are bagged. This is a viable option. It’s toasty rather than spinach-y and seems to be pretty forgiving on time and water temp. Perfect for this purpose.
Eldest loved the green mint one but it was discontinued. She has a gift for falling in love with about-to-be-discontinued teas.
Ditto, but amend that to “about-to-be continued ANYTHING!” Tea, erasable highlighters, cookies, pizza sauce… Our Natural Grocers still has a few of these steep by Bigelow varieties. I’ll have to see if I’ve reviewed the Dandelion Peach. It’s tasty.
It could be the sheer delight of putting my feet up in the sunshine after a high-intensity adventure with kids (more on that in a minute), but my first sip of this novel tea made me go “ah-h-h-h-h!” with eye-rolling pleasure. Sweet strawberries and cream, even without adding milk. Separately, I’m not getting the rum or coconut, but together, this is sweet, creamy, fruity magic. Flavor holds up reasonably for a second steep as well. I’m putting this on my “next trip” list in a larger quantity.
End of tea review. Adventure time:
Eleven kids, four adults, five breakfast casseroles, one coffee cake, 35 dirty dishes, three boxes of plastic gloves entirely used because “these are getting slimy,” one dead battery on the church van and an accidental triggering of the burglar alarm at the homeless shelter. My little team was on sausage-browning patrol. Your heart would grow three sizes like the grinch watching these kids doing grown-up sized acts of service. Mine’s about to bust.
Orange-ly juicily lemony, with ginger that warms your throat all the way down. This has steadily climbed up my list of evening favorites, especially when I’m in need of a little coddling.
Nothing new to say about this, other than you can tell it’s spring because my tastebuds are craving fruit teas. A decent blend, gently sweet rather than syrupy. Not sure what base was used, but it complements the flavoring well. Light enough in strength you can drink in the evening and still make it to sleep reasonably on time.
Due to the hibiscus in the mix, I couldn’t detect anything specifically blackberry-y or blueberry-y when I had a cup of this; however, it wasn’t too tart to be enjoyable. Just fruity with a little tang. I plan to use the rest of my little box when it’s iced tea season.
Sounds like a plan! Hibby is best iced and sweet to me!
I have a curriculum writing project on the docket about a missionary surgeon in Ghana. She says that in those parts, hibiscus tea is very common, often laced with lime juice, spices, and hot pepper. Further research ahead, but I can just see me steeping a batch and daring a bunch of 11-year-olds to taste it!
Hmm, the hot pepper throws me off!
Unfortnately, our missionary interviewee didn’t provide an actual recipe, and my first dig didn’t unearth anything. Will keep at it.
Oh, delumptious day of sunshine! First morning-to-evening day with sun and mild temps since…well, ever. To celebrate, we did a breakfast date at First Watch (carrot cake pancakes) and Walmart (when you’ve been married 34 1/2 years, it doesn’t take much to qualify as a date).
I made a pot of this Keemun Congou before we left, took a travel mug along, reheated some when I got home for writing inspiration, and threw the rest in the fridge to cool me down after some housework. Each iteration was woodily sweet, and after nearly a full day of recycling, was still pleasantly drinkable. A good all-day tea.
I haven’t had much purple tea but what I did try was fruity. Sounds like you got a good one!