761 Tasting Notes

82

I made this iced tonight. I had a friend coming over for supper and thought I’d offer something to drink besides water and soda pop. I’ve only had this hot before so I wasn’t sure how it would turn out iced. Normally, I don’t really enjoy spicy teas iced, but I liked it! Refreshing. A nice change from coke and mountain dew. I was really trying hard to kick my soda habit and was doing pretty well until about a month ago. This should help me clib back on the wagon.

Preparation
Iced

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It was cool enough this morning to enjoy a cup of tea and I picked this one. I don’t have too much left!! Yikes. This remains one of my favorite black teas. Strong enough for breakfast, but not bitter or overpowering. I think this one will stay in my cupboard all the time.

It has been almost 6 weeks since surgery and I’m still not breathing well or smelling anything . Of course I’m disappointed but I’m not any worse off than I was before surgery. Except for my finances. Surgery was about $9,000, of which I am responsible for $1722. Too bad you don’t get a refund if it doesn’t work. I see the ENT on June 1 for my final post-op appointment. I’m harboring a teensy sliver of hope that I will be able to breathe and smell, but it’s not very likely. I need to remind myself that there are worse things than not being able to smell the cat’s litterbox.

OMGsrsly

:( That really sucks. Fingers crossed, though!

carol who

Hang on to that sliver of hope! You can’t ever really tell what’s going to happen. I hope it gets better. :D

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90

I’ve loved this tea for the past 20 years. Even before I was a tea lover I loved this tea. Naturally sweet, spicy, warm and comforting, this is the perfect evening tea. It steeps very quickly, and I prefer a weaker tea. This one is just about perfect in a minute, and I usually get two or even steeps from one bag. Even that short steep produces a rich, flavorful cup. When I say spicy, I mean, it tastes like liquid cinnamon red hots. Yum!

Preparation
1 min, 0 sec

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95
drank Santa's Secret by DAVIDsTEA
761 tasting notes

It’s cold out there today. Windy. And it snowed. IN the middle of May. Not unheard of, but … Sigh. Sounds like time for a hot Christmas tea to me. I’m back in the editing cave tonight. The file I was sent last night was the WRONG ONE. So I get to start over. Boy am I ever glad I stayed up until 2:00 am working on it. I’m supposed to have this back to my editor tomorrow night. hysterical laughter Actually, except for the extraordinary series of unfortunate events, the editing is really good.

Thank God for tea. I love writing, and actually like working edits, but it is work, and tea gets a girl through.

ashmanra

I had to check to see where you live. I worked in the yard for three hours and thought I was going to have a heat stroke. I didn’t know there was any cool air. Anywhere. Ever. In the whole world.

Maddy Barone

North Dakota has lovely weather. And you know what they say: if you don’t like it, wait a day. It’ll change.

Nightshifter

Sounds like my kind of life! We are thinking of moving to Nebraska later this year. I love the upper Midwest and I totally had Santa’s Secret this week even though it was almost 90 degrees in GA. :)

gmathis

The problem with editing—at least for me—is actually seeing what should be corrected, instead of superimposing what I think I wrote.

Maddy Barone

What I like about editing is having a fresh pair of eyes point out what can be improved. You know what I mean, gmathis. After you’ve written, read, re-written, reviewed, revised, and re-read, it’s like you don’t even see what’s actually on the page anymore. You see what’s in your head! And I really like being shown where the story is weak. I don’t always like the process of re-writing, but I’m glad to put out the best book I can.

Maddy Barone

Nightshifter and Ashmanra, I couldn’t bear to live down south! I hate humidity. Hate, hate, hate it! In my army days I was stationed at Ft. Jackson SC and Ft Sam Houston in San Antonio TX, and let me tell you, I’ll take -50 windchills over 90 degrees and 90% humidity any day!

gmathis

You and I do a different kind of writing, but it’s quite pleasant to commiserate with someone else goes through the same process! (I’ve been at it a while, but it took some time to learn not to hiss and bush up my neck fur when an editor cut up my beloved manuscript and asked for changes. So bravo for you!) Hope it’s going well.

OMGsrsly

That is so frustrating! I hope it goes super great tonight, and that you enjoy your teas. :)

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80

It’s cooled down enough for me to enjoy some hot tea. Brewed up a cup of this to help me get through the edits. I really enjoy this one. Still no sense of smell, but I can almost taste the raspberry. Maybe. Anyway, I really like this one.

But I have to whine a little bit. I signed the contract for the last book in this series on April 19. Didn’t hear anything from the publisher until yesterday when I was sent the Author Checklist (think cover art, marketing strategy, etc). Then tonight I get a rather snippy email from the editorial assistant saying she and my editor had been trying to contact me for days. I was like, “Whaaaat?” I checked my spam folder. Nothing. I immediately responded saying I hadn’t received anything but I was ready to begin edits right away. Another snippy email… Anyway, long story short: final edits are due to be turned in by April 23. That is 6 days for two complete rounds of edits. I’ll be drinking a lot of tea and burning the midnight oil this week.

gmathis

Ouch! Few things are more painful than trying to be creative on a deadline! Unless it’s forcing yourself to sit in the writing chair and just….proofread….. May you have a productive week!

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90
drank Prince of Wales by Twinings
761 tasting notes

So… It’s been a month since surgery and I’m still stuffy and have no sense of smell. I’m very disappointed. Not giving up hope yet, but by now I should have been smelling. On the bright side, I haven’t been breathing through my mouth while I’m trying to sleep. So surgery has at least opened me up enough for that. I hated waking up every morning with my mouth dry and my pillow wet. So, yay for that at least!

Since I still cannot taste or smell I’m sticking with plain old reliable teas. It’s been cold and rainy for about a week, so this tea was nice this morning. Nothing fancy, just a good, mild tea with peanut butter crackers.

Ost

Hopefully the recovery is only just a little delayed and that’s all! I know how it feels when surgeries don’t work. It sucks. hugs Hope you start feeling and that your nose can start improving soon!

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95

We’re expecting snow tonight. glum face This was my mid-morning tea. Still really like this one. It’s not a weak tea, but mild and smooth. I approve! I’m just about out, so I think it will go on the Autumn Re-order List.

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80

Many thanks to beelicious for the sample!

My first steep wasn’t good. I let it go the full 5 minutes, and it was bitter. My second steep was much smoother. and milder and I enjoyed it. I’ll probably do a third and maybe a fourth steep after supper. It’s a chilly day here in Fargo (which I enjoy!) so it’s great tea drinking weather.

I didn’t get caramel or cocoa from this since I still don’t have a sense of smell. Just got back from my second post-op check up and it turns out some of the membranes in my sinuses have fused together. The doc cut them back open. Even with local anesthesia it wasn’t pleasant, and I’m really feeling it now that the numb is wearing off. However, she estimates I should regain my sense of smell by June 1. So, I’m saving the second bag of this tea for June!

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 15 sec

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95
drank Santa's Secret by DAVIDsTEA
761 tasting notes

This was my tea with breakfast. I keep hoping I’ll be able to taste it, but so far nothing. At least the soapy taste has gone away. I think I was misled about the time required for surgery recovery. I thought by now I would be completely well, but I’m still experiencing pain. Yesterday it was bad enough that I took the last two hours off work. I guess I need to be patient and take it easy.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 15 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
Lindsay

Hope you feel better soon!

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79

I had this one before bed lsat night. The teabag was convenient, and the tea was nice. I really like a good peppermnt herbal tea. I’m not sure how this one stacks up to other mint teas. This one is nice because of the individually wrapped bags which make it easy to carry in your purse or keep in your work desk. As far as I can tell the flavor is good. It doesn’t stand out as a fantastic cup, but neither do I have any complaints. For a bagged tea this one is pretty nice.

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Bio

I love cats. I love alone time. I love sitting indoors on a cold winter night with a book or my knitting while drinking tea. I don’t have a sense of smell, so many of the more subtle flavors of tea escape me. Two of the things I CAN taste are bitter and sour, so any tea that has even a slightly bitter taste is nasty for me. And what others might perceive as pleasant tartness may be horribly sour for me.

I’m also a writer. I love writing, and a mug of hot tea helps me get through the hours sitting in front of the computer. Although I’m a comparatively new tea drinker, I’m jumping in feet first. Feel free to recommend any teas you think I might enjoy.

100-91 – Wowza! I want to keep this tea in the cupboard all the time.
75-90 – Very nice. It would be good to have this tea on hand from time to time.
60-74 – OK. Wouldn’t keep it in the cupboard, but I would drink it again.
45-59 – If a friend served this I would drink it to be polite, but it’s not really my cuppa.
Lower than 45 – Blech. It was too sour or bitter for my taste. Would not drink it again.

Location

Fargo, ND

Website

www.MaddyBarone.com

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