Confession.
I’ve gotten so used to my tea experiences evolving to surprise me pleasantly that it’s a pretty huge shocker when something begins to lose its hold on me.
Does this mean that I think that Jackee Muntz sucks? Niet. It is, however, different.
I’ve mentioned before that black teas do weird things to my taste buds. Sometimes they taste one way, sometimes they taste another way. On one day I might think, “WHOA, raisins?!” but on the next it might be, “Ooooh, malty.”
When I was reading people’s thoughts on keemuns [not just this one, but others as well] and they kept talking about smoky notes and woody taste and whatever, I didn’t get it. I thought that maybe I was missing something, but I didn’t really care because to me, this tea tasted like I was sucking on a caramel. Caramel was what I tasted, and that was really all I tasted, and MAN was it good.
I have no idea what happened that changed this tea for me. It could be the water. It could be that I was doing something weird with the temperature gauge and I didn’t notice. It could be that I was hitting a very specific time with my steeping and there’s something off now. It could be that when I started drinking this I was having ongoing problems with a cold of fluctuating intensity and so my tongue was out of whack. Maybe I ruptured the space-time continuum and in the warping of time I was unwittingly residing in a magic place where this tea was phenomenal. Maybe a unicorn was pooping in my strainer. I have no idea, but now, I’m tasting what all of the rest of you are talking about and I’m not nearly as much in love as I was before.
That last sentence sounded really depressing.
So, anyhow, woody, check. Smoky, check. Kind of a hint of that caramel, but because it isn’t nearly as present as before it’s become disappointing. It’s got a hint of bitterness to it as well.
What I really need to branch out and try more keemuns to get a better gauge for what I think of this one. I should probably try that one from Adagio that people keep talking about. I need the playing field to level a little bit more before I can fairly judge poor Jackee, as he’s got a lot to live up to in his former self, but for now I’m dropping the rating.
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Unicorns are jerks.
I am unsure how I feel about unicorn poop tea. I hope it would taste like a rainbow.
OF COURSE it would taste like a rainbow…everyone knows that! now i’m thinking about the “Charlie the Unicorn” youtube bit.
takgoti, maybe you have suddenly developed a super sensitive, uber palate overnight. if dear jackee can’t cut it for you anymore, i would love to swap teas with you. i can hook you up with a couple of adagio’s keemuns….and some others, of course. in the meantime, i’ll just keep hoping for my palate to mutate too.
http://pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF044-Falling_Dream.gif
I have no idea what relevance this has to your post. I just thought you’d like it.
I described Gunpowder’s appearance as “pellets from a rabbit god.” Why are we obsessed with poo-poo?
LOL I was just thinking of echoing Lena’s offer of a trade, although I suspect her tea collection is much more interesting than mine! ;)
Don’t worry that your tea tastes different from day to day. But also, don’t pay attention to what people tell you the tea tastes of. My pu-erh hasn’t been the same since my housemate told me it tastes on haddock
@sophistre Especially ones named Charlie.
@teafiend If indeed there was a unicorn pooping in it, it tasted like caramel!
LENA F. I'd love to swap teas! [My email's heather.takgotigmail.com.]
@Jillian D’oh! Later, perhaps?
@Grinnyguy Ah, I’m not sure that it’s so much worry as it is sadness. My tastes on other teas changes somewhat often, but it’s usually an improvement in some way or another. This was definitely a let down and it was pretty obvious to me what had changed. In any case, your advice is appreciated. I’ll be sure to keep it at hand in the future lest haddock attack me.
Sure, no prob. Maybe I could try some of those Samovar teas you’re always raving about without having to sell my (fictional) first-born to pay for shipping. ;P
Email is JillDragon@gmail.com
I think it is time and temp with this one. I almost always get the smoky leather taste from it but one day I made it and must have steeped it slightly differently (cooler water as I recall) and I got the caramel notes you mentioned.
@Carolyn Blerg, I really have tried just about everything I can think of in terms of messing with time and temperature, so unfortunately I think I’m past the point of advice by now. When I was getting the caramel syrup effect, I WAS brewing it at a slightly lower temperature for just under 4 minutes. The first time I tasted the caramel was with A&D’s instructions, so on this cup I decided to return to it and see if the magic hit again, but I didn’t have a ton of luck [as you can see, sigh]. So yeah, at the point I’m really too frustrated to worry about it much more. I’ve got one last ditch effort that I’m going to try with the final bit I’ve got left.
I will laugh if your last ditch effort works. With joy. But still. Laugh.
Unicorns are jerks.
I am unsure how I feel about unicorn poop tea. I hope it would taste like a rainbow.
OF COURSE it would taste like a rainbow…everyone knows that! now i’m thinking about the “Charlie the Unicorn” youtube bit.
takgoti, maybe you have suddenly developed a super sensitive, uber palate overnight. if dear jackee can’t cut it for you anymore, i would love to swap teas with you. i can hook you up with a couple of adagio’s keemuns….and some others, of course. in the meantime, i’ll just keep hoping for my palate to mutate too.
http://pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF044-Falling_Dream.gif
I have no idea what relevance this has to your post. I just thought you’d like it.
I described Gunpowder’s appearance as “pellets from a rabbit god.” Why are we obsessed with poo-poo?
LOL I was just thinking of echoing Lena’s offer of a trade, although I suspect her tea collection is much more interesting than mine! ;)
Don’t worry that your tea tastes different from day to day. But also, don’t pay attention to what people tell you the tea tastes of. My pu-erh hasn’t been the same since my housemate told me it tastes on haddock
@sophistre Especially ones named Charlie.
@teafiend If indeed there was a unicorn pooping in it, it tasted like caramel!
LENA F. I'd love to swap teas! [My email's heather.takgotigmail.com.]
@Jillian D’oh! Later, perhaps?
@Grinnyguy Ah, I’m not sure that it’s so much worry as it is sadness. My tastes on other teas changes somewhat often, but it’s usually an improvement in some way or another. This was definitely a let down and it was pretty obvious to me what had changed. In any case, your advice is appreciated. I’ll be sure to keep it at hand in the future lest haddock attack me.
Sure, no prob. Maybe I could try some of those Samovar teas you’re always raving about without having to sell my (fictional) first-born to pay for shipping. ;P
Email is JillDragon@gmail.com
I think it is time and temp with this one. I almost always get the smoky leather taste from it but one day I made it and must have steeped it slightly differently (cooler water as I recall) and I got the caramel notes you mentioned.
@Carolyn Blerg, I really have tried just about everything I can think of in terms of messing with time and temperature, so unfortunately I think I’m past the point of advice by now. When I was getting the caramel syrup effect, I WAS brewing it at a slightly lower temperature for just under 4 minutes. The first time I tasted the caramel was with A&D’s instructions, so on this cup I decided to return to it and see if the magic hit again, but I didn’t have a ton of luck [as you can see, sigh]. So yeah, at the point I’m really too frustrated to worry about it much more. I’ve got one last ditch effort that I’m going to try with the final bit I’ve got left.
I will laugh if your last ditch effort works. With joy. But still. Laugh.