768 Tasting Notes
Another of my recent What-Cha order. I don’t believe I’ve had a Darjeeling yet, so I was interested to try one. This is a great morning cup!
The dry leaf is a Black, brown, and green, smallish. The brewed tea is a light amber color. The flavor is mild and smooth. With my lack of a sense of smell, I don’t taste much, but I can kind of get the hint of the spice taste at the end of the sip. I don’t know if this one is a representation of all Darjeelings, but I really like it. No bitterness, no astringency, but it isn’t a flat tasting tea. It has a definite flavor. Glad I ordered 50 grams of this instead of a 10 gram sample size.
Flavors: Smooth, Spicy
Preparation
I received my order from What-Cha today! After several reather bad days, it was really nice to have something like this to perk me up. And it’s cold and blustery out there, more like November than March, so tea is just want I wanted.
I decided to try this one first. It is the sample Alistair sent along, and he noted this is a new tea. It was harvested less than a month ago, on Feb 14 in Bihar India.
It’s malty, and rich, and bracing. This would be the sort of tea you want in the morning, to wake you up. I get a little bit of bitter at the end of the sip. I might try my next cup with a dollop of maple syrup. If you like a robust tea with lots of flavor and malt, i think you will love this one.
Edited to Add: Re-steeped. It’s even better! I also made toffee chip cookies and ate them fresh out of the oven, with the toffee soft and gooey. This tea is an absolutely perfect drink with these cookies. It’s a little smoother, still flavorful but the slight bitterness at the end of the sip is gone. Wonder if I over leafed it or over steeped it the first time? Upping my rating from 75 to 80.
Flavors: Malt
Preparation
Today was not my best day. In fact, you might say it sucked. The day job was a nightmare. Well, no, not that bad. More like a bad dream. Then the rental office informed me they would be bringing not one, not two, but THREE different prospective renters in during the day. After my niece’s visit this weekend, the place really is a mess. And because I work with private health information, my work computer must be shut down if anyone is there. That means I don’t get paid for these three visits.
I might have cried when I hung up the phone. A little bit. But I didn’t punch my fist through the wall, which was a very valid option 2.
What do you do when you are soooo stressed you can’t even function? That’s right, Keep Calm and Drink Tea. Maybe scream every bad word you know in the silence of your mind. (8 years of military service; I know a LOT of bad words.) I decided to not mess around with good teas and went for a great one. Minted Minkey. It’s good for what ails ya.
Aww I’m so sorry about everything happening right now. That’s good that the office informed you at least. Mine has been bringing people in to view my place anytime they freaking want without warning, so I feel like I’m being held hostage. But regardless, that is horrible how it is affecting your job in that way.
Ack!! I thought they had to notify you in advance. I guess I should count my blessings!
When I signed a form putting in my notice, included it was a disclaimer agreeing to allow them to show my place anytime befween 10am and 7pm. The catch is you can’t move out unless you sign the form. Like what? Talk about a crafty way of circumventing the law.
I’m sorry you had such a stressful day Maddy!
Fjellrev, I’m pretty sure most places (provinces, states) they are required to give you 24 hours written notice before entering or showing your apartment.
I had a terribly traumatic experience where my landlord decided to sell the building, lied to us about it and then one day I woke up with a real estate agent and random people in my bedroom. I have rarely been so angry in my life and I still get jumpy when I hear people outside my door.
Seriously, you do not have to put up with that shite. Call residential tenancies if you need help.
OMG D: All of your stories are awful. :( Maddy and Fjellrev, I hope things go better for both of you.
It’s going to get better. I don’t do stress well, and I tend to bleed all over when I get frazzled. 8 more days! Just 8 more days and the move will be done. No more people walking through my space!
This was one of my DAVID’s samples. I’ve never had mate. I’m not exactly sure what I think of it. It’s not bitter or sour, so I should like it. But really, it tastes kind of like a wet field that was mowed and now the hay is molding. I can’t get around that. I guess I don’t like it. Clearly others do, though, so make your own decision. :)
Preparation
Looking for a little energy this morning. Work hasn’t gone so well today, and I begin packing for my move tonight. But all I want to so is SLEEP! I haven’t had this one lately, so I thought I’d give it a try.
It used to be a favorite, but I didn’t enjoy it as much today. It wasn’t horrible, but a little off. Might be my mood? Or maybe it’s the frustration of all the hoops I have to jump through to be approved for time off for surgery. Is it too late to back out? I don’t really want surgery.
Sigh. Maybe I’ll dig out that sample of mate from David’s. Must have more energy to get throuogh this day!
This is a horrible thing for me to say, but I am soooo glad my niece has gone home. I love that child. I just love peace and quiet more! I am exhausted, so I brewed a pot of this. I guess it’s my go-to tea when I want something I know I like that doesn’t cost too much.
The manuscript is sent off to the beta readers, so I have no writing or revising to do for at least 10 days. Which is good, because all this week I’m packing for the move on Saturday. That’s why tonight is so sweet. I am out of things I HAVE to do! (well, not really, but hush!) So I had an enjoyable hour sipping tea and working on my afghan. Boy, I want more hours like that!
In the evening I want a smooth, mild tea with low caffeine. I decided to go with this one tonight. It’s been a long day. Not a bad one, really, just busy. I am accustomed to having my space and my time to myself. Entertaining my niece isn’t really hard. I sewed her a skirt this morning, then took her to see Cinderella, then we had supper at Chipotles. Then we came home and she watched a movie at top volume. I am certainly feeling frazzled, and I wanted a calming tea. This is the second time I’m made this one, and although it isn’t a top favorite, it is quite nice. I’d like to try it iced.
Dear God. My eleven year old niece is staying with me this weekend while her mother is out of town house hunting. I need caffeine this morning! Being single and childless, I am used to having everything stay the same. I mean, when I clean the kitchen, it stays pretty much clean unless I dirty it. Today there is a winter coat in the middle of the kitchen floor. One child sized boot is under the table, and the other is god knows where. I asked her and she got this blank look on her face and said “I don’t know.” She lost her phone twice in two hours. When she does have her phone, she’s on it texting her friends. She uses a different glass for each can of pop she’s had (she was supposed to have ONE) and leaves the glasses in the living room. As a treat I bought her PEEPS. (shudder. I hate those things) and she ate the entire package last night. She told me she gets up really early, so I showed her where the frozen French toast strips were and told her to help herself to breakfast in the morning. I got up at 7:30. She was dead asleep. I made tea (did I mention how badly I needed caffeine?) and took it and my laptop back to my room to let her sleep. At 8:30 she came to my room to tell me she was starving. I now have a far better understanding of my sister’s weariness. NO wonder she looks so frazzled all the time. I love my niece, but I am clearly not cut out for children.
WHY DON’T THEY COME WITH AN OFF SWITCH????!!!
Tea helps. A little.
good luck….is there a trampoline nearby? That wears them out quite well… :)
Oh man, that’s rough. And I seriously can’t imagine having a phone at that age.
She has her own laptop too! Heck, this kid has more stuff than I do!
I suspect I’m turning into one of those disagreeable old ladies that yells at kids for cutting through her yard.
Haha I think I’m becoming the same way. I keep catching myself thinking, “Wow, when I was that age…” and I’m only in my late 20s!
lol
LOL. Good luck!
I am so tired and over worked and over stressed that I was hardly able to function. So I forced myself to take a break from the second job. I had one of those moments that comes only too rarely for me. I settled into my recliner with a good book and a cup of tea. The cat jumped up and purred in my lap for a while. To me, that is a perfect evening. A good book, a cup of tea, and a cat purring in my lap.
I like white tea, but I’m not a huge fan. None the less, I ordered this one because I was looking for a good summer tea, and I love nectarines. I have to say, I really like this one!
This was nummy tonight. With my first sip I swear I caught a ghostly shadow of a juicy burst of sweet nectarine. It was probably just my imagination. I haven’t gotten it again, but even without it, the tea is smooth, sweet and light. I really hope I’ll be able to taste this one someday. Tomorrow I go to have the MRI and discuss sinus surgery with the ENT. I think I’ve decided to go for it. Being able to smell and taste my tea is a perfectly acceptable reason to have surgery.
This is one I’ll definitely try after I heal up from surgery. I bet it is delicious.
Preparation
surgery, yuck! good luck :)
Thanks, TeaBrat. I’m actually starting to look forward to it. Well, not the surgery, but the results.
Cat, tea, recliner, book, blankie….yep! Best RX ever.
(What was the book?)
I’m reading Prudence by Gail Carriger. It’s adventure\steampunk. Fun so far.
That’s a genre I haven’t experimented with yet, but would like to; sounds like a fun escape!
I can heartily recommend Gail Carriger and Meljean Brook. Excellent writers with appealing characters. Strong female leads, which is what I usually like in a story.
Castleton’s are well thought of Darjeelings. I’ll see if I have the 2nd flush of this tea to send you a bit… the differences can be amazing!
Thanks, Donkeytiara! If you do find it I’d be glad to try it. Is there something in my cupboard you might like a sample of?