Naked Strawberry Green Tea

Jeez this one requires a low temp. I steeped it for just 2 minutes and it’s bitter. Water temp was probably around 180, and it’s bitter and sad.

I went to take my trash outside to let this cool for a little bit and got talking to the one and only neighbor I actually have ever spoken to, only to find out he is moving back to Colorado . I wish I saw people around here more often, I guess it doesn’t help that I am gone all the time on weekends? But it was nice to talk to someone and waste time while I await UPS to bring my Adagio delivery and I can leave …for the weekend.

Anyway. thank you for this bag, TeaEqualsBliss! I just wish I used a lower temperature on it, because I like how there are some floral notes with the strawberry. And even after all the bitterness, I can feel the tartness of a berry on my tongue.

I have another bag from this company, can’t remember where I got it, but I may also give it a try while I’m waiting forever. I think it’s just a tisane though so I can’t mess it up!

I upped the steeping time by a minute and I can taste that the fruit flavour is stronger – though it’s still more of an orange-strawberry flavour than just straight-up strawberry. However, there’s also a note of bitterness creeping in – not surprising since 4 minutes is a lot even for a hardy green tea. Maybe I’ll reduce the water temperature next time.

Well. It would appear that my Kusmi package in Limbo is definitely lost for good. The danish post people have given up finding it (I filled out a form for them to search for it) and are now recommending that I contact Kusmi and have them start a search from that end. In spite of the fact that I explained very carefully how the package had been delivered to a package pick up place in Copenhagen by mistake and had become lost while being forwarded from Copenhagen to the place where I actually live. So I’m not sure what they think Kusmi will be able to do about it in France! Especially considering that the tracking number from their end says ‘Delivered’ as of the mis-delivery in Copenhagen by people who can’t apparently read numbers OR city names… (seriously, it’s not even close!!!)

At any rate, I think we can definitely say by now that that particular package is NOT going to show up. I shall notify Kusmi of all this, of course, and if they want to start a search from their or if they can’t help me otherwise, I don’t really care at this point. I’ve lost two packages at the same time this winter and it’s only a stroke of luck that one of them wasn’t the boyfriend’s christmas present. I’ve run out of patience with this now and I’ll just go and buy the things that I wanted that I can get at the shop I discovered recently where they have a big selection. They’ve got almost all of the things I had tried ordering from France. I’m NOT, however, saying I wouldn’t shop at Kusmi’s site again though. It’s not their fault the danish postal workers are apparently useless and careless.

Just… I’ll make those purchases next month, I think, seeing as I happened to find myself on amazon.co.uk yesterday and ACCIDENTALLY did Something Expensive…

Obviously this development (although not one that was at all unexpected) leaves me in some bad need of comfort, so I’m turning towards the third of the four things Jillian gifted me with for christmas. I’m actually combining two purposes here. One, of course, is to try out the tea that Jillian sent me, the other to see if green with strawberry is something I want to try from Kusmi when I stock up on that next month anyway. (I shall be doing Something Expensive!)

I rather like strawberry in tea, but I’ve only had it as blacks. It’s a little hard for me off the top of my head to imagine strawberry in green. Odd really, because I have no trouble with other fruits that I can think of at the moment. Just strawberry. I’ve seen Kusmi tins with strawberry green and I’ve cast them some long and pondering glances, but I’ve never actually given it a try. Somehow I’ve always lost my nerve, either because I had a difficult time imagining it, or because green wasn’t at all what I was looking for.

Jillian has now facilitated me with a solution to this problem. If I like this bag, I shall give Kusmi a chance. If I don’t like it, I can stop considering it. Simple. Jillian, it seems, can read my thoughts and guess my needs. That would be quite a feat even if she didn’t live on the opposite side of the planet.

So I’ve made me a cup of this now, and the aroma is a bit funny. It’s very fruity sweet and the green underneath is somehow only making it more so. It doesn’t give it any counter-points the way a black can do, or a dark oolong for that matter. (If any of those I shared it with still have something left of the raspberry oolong, go take a sniff at those leaves. I think you’ll see what I mean). This is just sweet on sweet which makes it smell rather a bit like strawberry flavoured sweeties. Or bubblegum. Just without being blatantly synthetic.

The flavour is very fruity! It’s easy to recognise strawberry here and there are lots of them. Maybe a bit of orange blossom as well, but nothing I would really want to put money on. The strawberries are especially coming out in the first few sips. As the tea cools a little more the green base seems to come out more. Not sure what sort of green it is, but to me it tastes a bit chinese. It’s got a yellow sort of flavour (not like yellow tea, which is something entirely different, but like the colour yellow) whereas japanese greens to me tend to be bit more like a darker green coloured flavour. This is kind pale green/yellow-ish in flavour. Somewhat buttery and a little bit grassy, but none of them overwhelming. It’s followed by that funny, almost minty aftertaste that I especially got in chinese greens too where the inside of my mouth actually feels a bit chilled.

Yes, a flavour can too have a colour. No, not all flavours have one, but some do.

The initial impression given by the aroma wasn’t really all that trust inducing, but I’ve found that it actually works a lot better in flavour than in aroma. I should have liked to see it in a good japanese sencha, but we can’t have everything. As it is, it’s actually really very nice, and yes, I am going to try the one from Kusmi.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this tea to try!

It smells yummy! My first sip – before any additions are made – it was a little weak in taste. But I found that a tiny drizzle of agave nectar really perked the flavor right up. The strawberry and orange make a delightful combination. I can even taste notes of jasmine in there. Delightful. One of the nicest strawberry teas I’ve encountered! I like this one very much!

A fun one from Jillian! Thanks girl!

Dry – this sort of smells like Strawberry Licorice

Wet – smells like strawberries and green tea! SURPRISE! LOL j/k

It tastes like green tea with strawberry and as a slight peppered-buttered veggies after taste mixed with strawberry.I can pick up the floral notes fading in and out thru-out the sip, too!

This isn’t very strong green tea wise or flavoring wise but it tastes pretty good regardless!

I’ve been at work less than two hours, and things are insane. Thank goodness it’s Friday, because I don’t think I could survive more than one day of this.

Then again, Monday looms on the horizon already.

Drinking my last bag of this today for (hopefully) a gentle, calming caffeine boost.

I raise my cup to you, and wish you a Happy Friday!