Paris-Singapore

I came across tea while visiting Singapore. Upon first smell I was almost put off by the strong aroma. It was hard to pinpoint what it was but something was a little off-putting but that said there was also something intriguing. Having just gotten into tea I was hesitant to buy a quantity in case I didn’t care for it. Luckily they offer sample sizes and I brought one of those home with me.

I’ve now had three cups from the same groups of leaves – over about a two hour period. This tea has a great flavor (despite my initial smell reaction) and is very easy to drink. As the leaves are refreshed for subsequent cups the flavor mellows out quickly and now on my third cup is not assertive at all – though still pleasant.

The green tea serves as a canvas for the cherry blossoms so it is definitely not a dominate flavor component. It comes more to the forefront the longer you refresh the same leaves.

Pretty darn fantastic and tasty. I wish they sold TWG more freely in the USA. I believe there is 1 store in NYC – come to San Francisco guys!!!! Paris-Singapore was very solid, and you know it’s gonna be good when it comes in one of those fancy cloth teabags. I got this one and a few others at the Singapore Airport Lounge and snuck a few away to have when I got home. This one was probably one of my favourite of the TWG options. Very tasty and an interesting twist. Only had one cup and it was a while back so it’s hard to remember the details, I just remember that it tasted great and the presentation/quality of the tea and teabag itself was stellar. TWG’s gift set would be a perfect gift. I might buy on for myself :)

I was on a Singapore Airlines flight the first time I had this tea. I immediately fell in love with it. I love strong teas and I thought the aroma captured very well the Paris-Singapore romance. I can’t describe it any other way. I have tried other TWG blends, but my favourite by a far is the Paris-Singapore blend.

This is one of many samples I originally received from OMGsrsly and the generous MissB. It lived in neglected district of my tea cabinet for quite a while, but since I’m going to Singapore in a few weeks I thought it was high time to pull it out.

This is definitely one of those teas that doesn’t deliver when steeped up but smells amazing. Think floral cherries and candied red fruits.

Sweet and slightly bitter, the flavour goes into the dry, grassy side of the vegetal spectrum, and the cherry hazards into artificial (cough drops, candy, McDonald’s cherry sundae). Still, the tea makes me happy and nostalgic; along with genmaicha, my first looseleaf was a cherry green that tasted like this one. It reminds me of my first year in Victoria. I can’t help but like that a little.

Thank you for this sample, MissB! Your mentioning of Victoria, BC now has me reminiscing of spring there too, now. How I’d kill for a walk down Beach Drive right now!

I couldn’t tell what this was supposed to be in the bag, other than a green tea, of course. I couldn’t smell the cherry, and initially steeped, I just got dry green notes. The first couple sips were a little on the dry side, but as this begins to cool, I’m slowly starting to taste the cherry. It’s a little on the cough syrupy side, though. A specific kind of gum or candy also used to taste like it, but can’t figure it out. Cherry seems to be a difficult flavour profile to tackle in regards to tea.

Wow I love this one cooled down! what a great sample, thank you so much MissB!
Hot I just get a floral green tea. As it cools, there is a distinct menthol like sensation, which I find rather pleasant. There is also a definite drying out of the mouth that others have mentioned. Almost like I just ate a lemon, only it isn’t really sour.
Cooled, I can now taste more cherry, which is funny because I can never taste the cherry in a cherry blossom tea. This is unique, and coveted by me! Wheeeeeeeee!!!

On the meds front- accidentally took two today. Oops! but hey atleast now I know what could happen if doc increases my dose (I can’t OD, I’d need to take 5x that amount to be unsafe). Sadly though all it did was give me the jitters and a few brief moments of concentration about four hours after I took the second dose. No different than one of my “up” days. Hopefully doc will switch me to a different one when I see him next week. The waiting is killing me. Sighs.
Sorry for boring y’all. I just really needed to write.

Sipdown (135)!

I just realized that all the tea I’ve had today has been Green Tea; definitely not doing that on purpose. This one comes from MissB – she definitely sent a lot of green tea from her travels; and while it’s pushed me outside of my comfort zone, it’s been fun trying all the different blends!

I buggered this one up though; I started steeping it, and then promptly forgot so it got a really long nearly twenty minute steep. As a result, I imagine the taste is not really a shining example of how it’d normally taste. It’s quite bitter, the grassyness of the green tea cuts in very harshly, and there’s a bit of a drying mouthfeel at the end of the sip. However, I can also taste some well rounded, sweet cherry notes and some floral notes as well, so I see how this would be really good if prepared properly.

For whatever reason, cherry when paired with green tea always reminds me at least a little of bubble gum though. There must have been a kind I chewed a lot as a kid that has some cherry flavour to it but I’m not sure which; something drilled that association into me though! I think Hubba-Bubba and Bazooka Joe were my picks all the way up until like grade nine? After that, I don’t recall having a ‘Go To’ kind of bubble gum – I just bought, and still buy, whatever’s accessible and cheapest. Maybe I’ll have to revisit those brands and see if they taste like cherry to me?

But actually; all things considered this could’ve come out A LOT WORSE. Even with bitterness, it’s still pretty drinkable. That is to say, I’m totally finishing it. But, gonna hold back on rating it. I’m obviously not tasting it like I should be.

Today’s word of the day is…

Tizzy! A tizzy is “a very excited and mixed up state of mind”.

Sipdown! And thanks to MissB(?) for a sample of this tea! I’m not sure exactly what it’s flavoured with, but my first impression was that it was kind of like a gingerbread green? A bit spicy, basically. It was certainly an interesting tea to try, though probably not one I need to try again.

Another that just doesn’t work for me. I’m getting cough medicine and grass. Definitely NOT something you would want in a tea. Thank you MissB for the chance to try it but this is one I will be avoiding in the future.

Trying to catch up on ym tea drinking so that i can get my new teas in to my cupboard. I had this one a few days ago – it’s another from missB. Sadly, cherry for me either works or it doesn’t and this falls in to the “doesn’t” category. I’m ok though…more tea for everyone else to have! haha