16384 Tasting Notes
Cold Brew!
Easy access to iced tea at work has definitely slowed down the rate at which I’m making cold brewed tea at home, and this is a perfect example of that because I forgot that it was in the fridge and let it steep for over three days.
So, let me just start by saying that while this was still drinkable and tasty, it was also very very strong. Lots of caramel, a surprising degree of saltyness lingering on the back of my tongue in the finish/aftertaste and weirdly enough some anise undertones!? That last flavour MUST be a result of the long steep time, ‘cause I don’t think I’ve ever thought of this tea as anise flavoured/licorice-y before.
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPbiklLnDQo&list=PLDcnymzs18LWbmCFUlZie7VsxQ_FIF0_y&index=110
Iced tea, with honey and sliced up Meyer Lemon.
This is so drastically different tasting as an iced tea; it still has that sort of artichoke-y taste to it, but mostly is a very delicate kind of grassy flavour with some underlying sweetness from the honey and a bit of brightness and acidity in the top note from the added in Meyer Lemon. That lemon taste gets stronger too the longer it sits in the cup until it winds up being around 60/40 compared to the green tea itself. For that reason, I’d recommend drinking quickly so that the lemon doesn’t overtake the green tea because when it features more as a short burst in the top note the pairing is REALLY lovely and hella refreshing.
Simple cooking this time.
Just made a bowl of boiled brussel sprouts and cauliflower naturally smoked with some Lapsang Souchong. It was really simple to do; I just filled a couple of tea filters (the DT ones with the draw string) with some LS and tossed that in the pot while the veggies were cooking and let that naturally smoke them. Fair warning, it DOES fill your whole kitchen with the smell of smoke and your brother WILL freak out and come running up from the basement thinking there’s a fire, and that will be awkward.
Taste wise, it’s a light smoke flavour compared to the aroma it gives off while cooking but it IS present and it is a really nice compliment to the veggies. Definitely something I’d want to eat again – though perhaps when no one else is home to freak out.
Cracked open this package of matcha this morning!
I’ve been putting off trying this one until I finish off more of my other matcha, but I have an idea for a dish that would use matcha in it, and a gut feeling that this matcha is going to compliment it the most. So, before I go using the matcha in the dish I wanted to try it straight first to get an idea of the actual flavour of it.
Honestly, I kind of expected this to just be a sweeter matcha and to an extent I guess it is that. However, the ‘honey’ note really does come through as distinctly honey in addition to this just being sweet. Not too sweet though, mind you. Oddly, I think the finish is a little bitter too – but I know that’s not from my over leafing or using water that was too high of a temperature. A bit of bitterness kind of works with the sweetness though; it helps keep it from being cloying.
Apart from that, there’s the obvious grassyness and some floral undertone. Pretty smooth, and definitely enjoyable…
Yes, I think this will work beautifully for what I have in mind…
More tea infused cooking.
This time around, the meal was Buffalo Milk Mozzarella pasta with a Supreme Pekoe infused cheese sauce with lemon pepper, served with a side of hibiscus slaw.
The sauce was pretty subtle overall; this kind of pasta is really creamy/buttery and the sauce itself is too – basically lots of creamy cheese, a slight nuttiness since the base for the sauce was cashew milk, and some maltyness from the black tea. Also, it’s a tiny bit salty. On its own, this dish might feel a little too creamy/buttery and one note even with the tea infusion. That’s what the hibiscus slaw is for though, the acidity/tangyness provides much needed contrast from the pasta dish, and by switching back and forth from main dish to side dish you get to experience the transition from buttery mouthfeel to very bright flavour to tons of acid mellow out by butter (and repeat) over and over again. Mmm!
Only complaint is that I got my flour proportions a little bit off making the sauce, and so it was quite thick. That’s something I’ll need to tweak next time I do a sauce from scratch; but I like the challenge of teaching myself to cook and learning to adapt to these kinds of things. Were it not for the thrill I get from coming up with new tea infused dishes I probably wouldn’t do these kinds of meals as often, and learn these different cooking skills.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Cranberry Purifier and vanilla/cinnamon infused brown sugar simple syrup drizzled over some fresh sliced Asian Pear! Check it out:
- Used my Flavour Bible to come up with pairings for this one
- Treated the Asian Pear like a Gala Apple for this pairing
- AKA sweet but more mellow compared to other apples
- Apple + Cinnamon + Cranberry = Flavour trio
- It’s a combo of the sweet, tart, and spice: well balanced
- Plus apple and brown sugar/vanilla are ALSO pairings
- Worked very well; super tasty! Just a hint tart, mostly sweet with warming cinnamon
Plus if nothing else, it just looks REALLY pretty.
It’s back!
So, this is May’s TOTM and honestly I’m pretty neutral feeling about that. I mean, I’ve tried it before but only once and it was a pretty average experience. So, I’m going into this revisit/tasting with a pretty open mind.
First things first, there is a LOT of strong, dominant fruit flavours going on. Obviously raspberry, which is the strongest note here. However it’s very nearly equally matched by both apple and lime. It comes together in a way that sort of forms a “fruit cocktail” type vibe? Or fruit punch, I suppose. I’m actually a little surprised just how strong the lime is, and how it manages to be sweet without packing a lot of tangyness/acidity. Overall, I don’t think this is a super tart/hibiscus heavy blend; mostly the focus IS the fruit notes. I think that’s sort of how I felt about it two years ago when I was trying this cold brewed instead of steeped hot, as well. Plus, all of the fruits are really natural and fresh tasting; no weird chemical component at all.
Also, like last time, I really don’t feel like I’m tasting much if any mint. For that reason, I’m still not TOTALLY sure it fits the “Mojito” descriptor but the flavour is REALLY good. It definitely makes me feel inspired to try making an actual tea infused cocktail with this tisane, perhaps with a sprig of fresh mint to boost that aspect of it a little bit.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Maybe my last tea of the day – not sure.
This one came in the Tea Sparrow box from VariaTea. Cracking open the package I see that while this isn’t technically a CTC grade tea it is pretty close to one; that’s fine, it just means I need to readjust my expectations a little bit.
Taste wise it’s actually pretty good. Fairly full bodied and robust with a lot of malt notes from top to body to undertones. In that way it’s pretty close to feeling a little ‘one note’ but it’s not actually quite one note because I do think there’s a molasses-y sweetness to the undertones and I thought the finish had just a whisp of this sort of stonefruit-y/dried fruit thing going on. As just a sort of generic-y ‘Orange Pekoe’ I can dig it.
I think overall maybe a forgettable black tea, but it’s not unpleasant or anything.
In my opinion, most of Murchie’s teas are fairly average and generic tasting. I do enjoy their purple varietal “Purple Majesty” (processed as a medium bodied green) and their yellow. Most of their blacks are a bit too strong for my liking and more aimed at British tastes (thick English breakfast type flavours/body) and a lot of their greens are astringent. There are a few flavoured teas that really shine as being spectacular, though.
That’s spot on, Arby! Coconut Pie was one of my first looseleaf teas though so I have a soft spot for them, even if I also find they’re mostly forgettable too :)
Gong Fu Sipdown (237)!
Finally finished this one off, and to be honest I’m kind of at a cross roads because while I definitely enjoy this tea I’m not sure if I enjoy it enough to warrant getting more of it. I’m also not sure if ultimately I enjoyed it more brewed Western or Gong Fu.
I did share this session with my mom, and one thing is for sure – she did not enjoy it. It’s not a slight towards Bitterleaf at all – this was just a tea she was set up to hate: she doesn’t like smoky teas, Pu’erh, or green tea and in a way this is kind of all of those things. So, it just wasn’t in the cards. Props to her for sticking it out through the whole session though.
Stream of consciousness notes, with excerpts from my mom!
Rinse
7 Sec/Infusion One
- Slight sweetness
- Buttery spinach/artichoke
- Some floral
- M: Moss
10 Sec/Infusion Two
- Darker liquor colour
- That smoke note I’ve learned to expect from this tea is creeping in
- Like fog or, as the case may be, smoke rolling in from a hill?
- Still vegetal/artichoke
- Finish is a wee bit odd; like ‘dentist office’?
- M: Feels like I chewed on Tylenol (I think she’s describing astringency)
12 Sec/Infusion Three
- Same but more smoky
- M: Like washing down bile with a glass of piss
15 Sec/Infusion Four
- Some reemergence of sweet notes
- Floral is totally gone now though
- Bitter melon, artichoke, green pepper
- Lots of smoke
- Pleasant astringent finish
- M: It’s getting better; autumnal
- M: Clarifies; like wet, rotting autumn leaves
20 Sec/Infusion Five
- Liquor getting slightly lighter
- Same as prior but less veggie
30 Sec/Infusion Six
- Smoother
- Possibly due to flavour deterioration
At this point we ended the session; she put in a valiant effort but eventually Mom just had to tap out. Considering her tasting notes, and how much she was struggling though I think she put up a good fight. It was nice to share the experience with her too. Plus, I really liked the tea and I think that ultimately that’s the most important part.
Sweet yummy cup of pineapple goodness.
I only made a teacup worth ’cause I was all “I just need something to sip on while I make supper” but then I finished the teacup and… a teacup worth was not enough.
Now I am sad… but my tastebuds are happy.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
