10 Tasting Notes
Two steeps with a little dash of sugar. Smells delicious, but the flavour is still very mild. I let it steep too long, so this cup was a little bitter and not as pleasant as the first. Well, I was alternating between making tea and playing viola.
I really need to brew this properly someday.
Brewed a cup this morning with a splash of milk and a two teaspoons of sugar. I really should be more generous with tea leaves, I’m always too stingy with them.
It’s loose leaf tea (of questionable quality) that I bought a while ago from a grocery store, and I’m pretty sure it’s ancient. Always a gold bag, and always masala chai, it’s kind of funny.
My mom likes making this to fight something the Chinese call inflammation, translated literally it’s ‘going up in flames’. The body has a balance of five different elements, and certain foods (often spicy or fried) raises the fire element and upsets the system. Chrysanthemum is supposed to be a ‘cooling’ plant. I’m not sure how much scientific backing is in this, but I do know that homemade chrysanthemum tea is delicious. ♥ It’s just the flower heads and water brewed over low heat for a long time, simple. I had a cup this morning, chilled and with a bit of rock sugar.
I used too little tea leaves, so the flavour was very mild. I made two brews and poured them in the same cup. The first few sips had a bit of an unpleasant sharpness, but it mellowed out and disappeared after cooling a little. The jasmine smell is barely there in the bag, but the fragrance after brewing is fantastic. I’ll try it again with more leaves before making a judgement.
This was from the same generic batch as the white tea at $3.75/oz. The price seems a little low for the first grade, especially because I live in Canada, but the leaves were very young. All very small and slender, and with buds as well. I’m swaying between first and third (there’s no second grade on the site), so I’ll ask the next time I go.
Very smooth, mild flavour, and no bitterness. Just bought an ounce this afternoon, and I only had time for two brews before viola class. I didn’t pay much attention to either of them, so it’ll probably taste better with a little more care, haha. I usually prefer stronger teas, but this was nice. It feels wonderful in the mouth, and it has such a pretty pale golden colour.
The store I visited had white, jasmine, dragonwell, and oolong in four giant, clear jars. They were labelled generically, and each was at $3.75/oz. It’s a little sketch, must say. I’m pretty sure it’s the ‘Fine White Tea (Bai Hao Yin Zhen)’, though. All buds, but with the stems, so it’s a step lower than Super-Fine.
