Christmas Morning

A nice soothing, flavorful cuppa (with tupelo honey) to go my plain bagel and light cream cheese. Just the thing to ground me after reading all the storm coverage frim dc and nyc this am.

Bulk Barn. Is a wonderful terrible place that makes me want to buy ALL THE THINGS. Wonderful because I find gems like this beauty and terrible because I did not need to be spending more money on tea, much less anything else! I have a bunch coming in the mail and too much in my cupboard as is. Sighs. But how could I resist?!
Technically, I think I get a pass on this one. As it was one of the only teas on my “may be purchased while on tea buying hiatus cuz it’s so damned good and hard to find!”
Of course I gave away a third of the package in exchange for some Candy Cane Lane! a tea I’ve yet to try… and always wanted to :P
I’m kinda glad my friend dragged me to the BB. What a perfect reward for getting through my exam! (sensory development. best class ever)

Oh and my cup? Deeeeeevine. See previous note.

3tsp for 500mL water @90C, steeped 10 minutes.

I am not having the greatest tea day. Steepster keeps seeing me these tempting e-mails to join the Steepster Select program, which, of course, only ships to customers in the US. I am not in the US. My profile lists my location as, that’s right, in Canada … not in the US. I have just begged Steepster not to end me any more notes about the Select programs until they can ship to Canada. Meantime, I tried to sign on the Steepster international customer waiting list … and that’s not working.

Earlier today. one of my crutches fell over, knocking a mostly full travel mug of Christmas Morning tea onto my keyboard, my leg, and the floor.

Before the crutch knocked over the tea, I was really enjoying what I’d steeped. The cooler water let the jasmine and oolong in the blend mature and prevented any bitterness. The long steep coaxed out a lovely heavy body from the Assam and Keemun. I hadn’t planned to steep it that long; it just happened — a delightful accident. I must go make some more to soothe the irritation of repeated ‘No Select for you!’

I’ve got the bagged variety again.

This is alright as plain/unflavored black teas go. I normally prefer plain/unflavored green, but need an extra jolt to get through the afternoon. And zapping myself Crank 2 High Voltage-style isn’t an option…oh my, but I just thought of Jason Statham and my mind is lost…

ANYWAY – sorry, I’m totally boy-crazy but have a wonderful hubby who puts up with it – this tea is definitely good for a wake-up call. I taste the Assam variety, which, to me, is less malty and more bold. Usually I would put some sweetener in this to tone it down but not today, I need all the power this cuppa produces!

Prompted by ScottTeaMan’s tealog about Christmas Tea, I was reminded that I had 3 “Christmas” teas that still needed tested (since it’s snowing this morning, might as well). After not liking Upton’s Irish Breakfast at all, I thought I’d start with this one (a breakfast blend type).

This one is strong, but not bitter. Having added only a tbsp. of honey, this would probably benefit from a little milk/cream as well. I’m too much of a tea newbie to recognize the separate tea qualities, but the taste is pleasant yet complex. Not rating, other than to say that I will finish this cup (without any further additions). Not sure if would seek out more….will see.

A favorite from last year – though I still have no idea why it is called Christmas Morning. After all the amazing loose leaf teas I have had since late summer, this one doesn’t impress like it did last year, but if I was served this in a restaurant I would be very pleased. A good basic Assam with enough bite to make you notice, while the Ceylon keeps it under control. The Keemun is in the aroma and in the aftertaste. I don’t know what a Sumatra tastes like on its own and I don’t catch a glimpse of anything I don’t recognize in this. The Jasmine is so subtle I probably wouldn’t pick up on it had I not read the label. I do catch floral hints in the aroma but not in the cup. Went great with a baked chocolate wafer snack.

Ok so I missed out on this one come Christmas Morning but it’s still my Christmas holiday at the moment so at least I caught it in reasonable time.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this tea but it’s actually nice. A strong black tea packed with rich, dark flavour with a real Yunnan style black tea essence. In a way it reminds me of Yunnan Jig by Adagio. I wish I did have this on Christmas morning now.

The third in a trifecta of Christmas teas I’ve ordered from Stash Tea over the past several years (along with White Christmas & Holiday Chai). First cup steeped as stated below. At different points I sniffed the wet tea bag, and thought I smelled each tea. On the teabag wrapper the teas listed are Assam, Darjeeling, Ceylon, Keemun, Sumatra, & Jasmine. So it is possible the teabag blend is different.

The cup was rather dark and immediately I smelled the Jasmine. I also smelled Darjeeling & Ceylon notes, and possibly the Assam. It’s hard to detect everything—sometimes I feel like my nose is playing tricks on me. :// I did notice quite a bit of sweetness in the nose and thought it was the Keemun, but according to the description, “the Jasmine imparts a lingering, sweet fragrance”.

The Ceylon adds a smoothness to the flavor profile. The other noticeable flavors are Darjeeling (not too astringent), Jasmine & Assam. The Jasmine & Darjeeling especially linger on my tongue. A very smooth, and enjoyable cup, that exhibited no bitterness.

My second cup was steeped as below, but at 5:30. The cup was darker, and the aromas were still there, but to a lesser extent. I feel that some of the flavor nuances were lost with the longer steep, while it was still an enjoyable cup that showed no bitterness.

Teabags are sometimes more convenient for me during the Holidays, although the great majority of my tea drinking is enjoyed loose leaf style. I really look forward to this blend during the Holidays, and it is very well balanced and delicious! :))

Cupped: Sunday/Monday, December 11/12, 2011.

Reviewed: Monday, December 12, 2011.

ADDITIONAL NOTE*** 12/13/2011: I thought I’d add a little milk (very little), and I let the tea steep for 7 minutes. Honestly, the subtleties were lost. I could taste the tea with the milk, but it tasted only slightly better than regular tea. Sometimes I think I do things like this to my tea just to remind myself not to do it again! At some point in the future, I’m sure I’ll gently remind myself…again. :))

This is what my mom bought for me to drink at her place on Christmas, so this is what I’m drinking. It’s okay; can’t taste the jasmine, but oh well.

Got lots of tea gifts, though! I prepared this using my new Adagio UtiliTEA kettle, which I’ve wanted for forever now. Also got some Golden Monkey, Milk Oolong, Monk’s Blend, and Vanilla Rooibos, so there should be new tasting notes soon – not to mention the Rishi order that just arrived. So much tea, so little time!

I wanted jasmine tea but I also wanted black tea – enter this lovely cuppa :)