Vienna. It is so large that 7,000 people worship there on Christmas Eve.
It is also one of the most lovely and fascinating places I have ever been. I felt like I could've spent forever there and still not absorbed enough of the beauty and holiness that is present.
Today's tea is The Tea Table's 9 Bend Black Dragon. Isn't that a great name? It is indeed black, with a few gold touches to intensify it. It had a lot of twigs, which surprised me. The dry smell immediately made me think of our Chinese restaurant, which is really good and not what you'd expect to find in a town of 1,900.
As it brewed I couldn't pin down the scents - there were hints of woodiness, Chinese restaurant tea, a little fish, that warm steamy smell of a clean laundromat, a touch of leather and earth.
The taste was equally hard to pin down, combining all of the above and ending on the sides of my tounge with a cross between a sour or bitter note. Not unpleasant, just a little fillip. It is a good fresh tea with, obviously, many nuances. This would be a good tea to offset a sweet or to have with Chinese food. I think it would overwhelm Thai food.
It is not to my liking and I won't get it again. I do need to say that except for Lapsang Souchong, I am not a great fan of Chinese black teas. I like how they smell, so wonderously exotic, but their taste is rarely for me. I keep trying them, but so far, have not had a lot of success. I do, however, like many of their greens and some oolongs.
I just found a really interesting site - http://www.buy-loose-tea.com/ It's purpose is, of course, to encourage people to buy loose teas. It does this by having lots of pictures comparing all the kinds of loose teas and sources for them. It does NOT sell tea, but will direct you to a particular site that does. Check it out.
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