Saint-James O.P.

(been debating whether to put this one up or not … alas here it is)
warning: major digression ahead…
tl;dr: floral+wood scent, rusty taste, honey recommended.

The first smell from the bag was riddled with a note of honey and wood but the taste was actually not as floral as I expected. The liquid was a bit dry and rusty (does this even make sense? probably not…) – it felt as if the tea didn’t want to leave my mouth and was trying to cling on to my tongue for just a few more moments. The hint of bitterness in the after-taste reminds me of the doctor visits I had when I was very young – there was a dark sandalwood desk with creases like the skin of the grand canyon on a miniature map. There was the old doctor who never seemed to smile or pay any attention to his little sick and nervous patient, who wrote scribbles on thin, crisp, and semi-transparent papers that no one could understand but were somehow deemed almost sacred in the small clinic in front of his apartment. From the floor to the ceiling, two of the four walls would be covered by neatly organized cabinets with bronzed handles and tiny drawers full of crunchy Chinese herbs, dried flowers, unknown spices, and sometimes even cicada shells (like Kamaji’s boiler room from Spirited Away). Naturally, this ancient and uncomfortably bitter scent would roam through every corner of the room, making me quietly nervous and agitated. Yet when the doctor’s wife finally handed my mom a small bag of mixed Chinese medicine, I’d feel secretly relieved, knowing that the visit was over, and that I’d be better soon.

Oh but I digress…

I did not appreciate the roughness the tea left on my tongue so for the second cup I added a few drops of honey – granted, the sweetness overshadowed some of the complexity but that was nevertheless a good decision in my opinion. Honey tempered the tea and then it was just a smooth and pleasant ride down.