Twenty Cups of Tea

Market Day in front of the town hall in Durlach, Germany. My many greats grandfather emigrated from here in 1750.

My friend Leon, who is a well-known rosarian in NYS, is also a middle school teacher. He does something with his homeroom kids that I think is wonderful. He likes a cup of tea to start his school day and his kids asked if they could have some, too. Now all the kids have brought in mugs from home and have a cup of tea before starting the day. It's a time for community building, relaxation and just a good time. Isn't that a great idea?

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I am still trying to recover my bird feeders from the bear. I am trying them in big pots filled with grave, sand and water. So far, so good. Now if I could just convince Mr. Ernesto Poosey-Kat to quit jumping up for birds, we'd be in business.

Gardening is going slowly. We only have about 4 inches of heavy clay topsoil over gravel. Oooh, hear the gardeners swear! The builder, who is a very nice man, keeps telling me that the gravel will turn to soil as the roots work it. In about a 1,000 years. He is not a gardener. Obviously

I had the sample from the Tea Table of their Yunnan Superior Golden Tips today - all buds and first leaves, all golden, very attractive. It smelled of floral, earth and spice notes.However, in the cup it was just ok, with nothing special to it. I am fairly sure this was last years, which was not a really good Yunnan year. However, their Tsarina Blend was quite good.

Sun After Rain

A platter about 21 inches in diameter, made from one piece of
alabaster. Again, the Vienna State Museum.


I guess the whole East Coast really got a storm yesterday! The wind howled and the rain fell in sheets. Cats and dogs even. The Susquehanna is about 2-3 feet higher than it was on Wed. In fact, I think it rose perhaps another foot in just the two hours from when I left until I came home today - that's a lot of water! Today, however, the sun is once again out and the meadow on the other side of our spinney is shining gold. With the gray tree trunks in front and some bright orange leaves, it is quite a tapestry.


My very kind tea friend, Gingko, from Life in Teacup, sent me some samples, which arrived today, oh happy day. The first one I spyed was Yunnan Golden Bud and that is as far as I got, as Yunnan is my uber-favorite. And there were lots of golden buds, nice big fat, crinkly ones. I immediately set water to boil and opened the packet and had a good big sniff. What a nice fresh, spicy, almost lemony smell. I almost sneezed! I brewed it for 3 minutes, but I don't think that was enough, as it seemed a bit weak. However, as it cooled, more of that lovely woodsy, spicy Yunnan taste came through. It is a lovely golden brown. Then I did something I don't usually do with black teas, I rebrewed the leaves. I used half as much water and brewed it for six minutes. My, this is good. There aren't a lot of nuances, but it seems to have acquired a depth it didn't have the first time around, a fuller, more grounded earthiness.


As good as this is, this is not the Yunnan of a few years ago. It is a muted shadow of those great teas. This is not surprising, as the weather in Yunnan was not conducive to a top crop this year, as it was in many parts of the tea producing world. It is easy for us to forget that tea is an herbal crop and subject to things like weather. Those of us who are gardeners know what it is to lose a crop to drought or bugs or an early or late frost.

A Lazy Tea Day

The Aar valley in Kanton Berne, Switzerland

I know I said I was going to fiddle with the Silver Leaf Tea from a few days ago, but the weather has turned cold and nasty and I really, really want some Yunnan Gold from Adagio.

When I am tasting tea, I feel I have to work at catching all the nuances of color, flavor, appearence, and brew parameters to give an adequate review and today I just don't have it. We have been seriously unpacking all morning, which means many decisions about where to put things and my brain is yelling "No more, I'll burst", so I am turning to an old friend.

I may even do as all the cats are doing - take a nap. They of course, had to run out first thing theis morning to see if there was possibly any vole they hadn't caught yet, when they , in turn, got caught in the down pour. Such cries of distress and abandonment! Such bedragglement! But after much drying and licking, they are all tightly curled in warm mounds - on MY bed. Maybe I'll just use the recliner. Cats!

Going for the Gold

Ballenberg - the balcksmith's forge and inn

I let the Indigo Dreams from Madam Potts cool and it was delicious! More of the Jasmine came out - a winner every which way!


I discovered that I have two types of Yunnan tea from Adagio. One is Golden Yunnan, the other, Yunnan Gold. I think the former is now Golden Monkey. I didn't buy them that long ago, maybe in the late summer/early fall. Since I had the two I thought I would compare them.

Both of these teas are beautiful. Golden as their names imply. The GY is more gold and has less dust and bits of leaves. However, there is a very fine very golden dust on the underside of the top. Both have big somewhat fat leaves and buds. They smelled similar - like Yunnan, of course. The Y G was winey and smelled like an old house. Not unpleasant or moldy, just one that had been lived in a lot. To me, it was quite pleasant, reminding me of my grandmother's or great-aunt's houses. I guess where there had been a lot of good cooking. The G Y was also winey, lighter and more like a winery, in the room where the wooden casks of wine are stored. I brewed them both for 3.5 minutes with boiling water, using about 1.5 teaspoons per cup because the leaves are so big.

The YG brewed up darker and more intense with somewhat more depth of flavor. There was more of the slightly peppery flavor of Yunnan. However, the G Y seemed more complex, setting off more parts of my mouth with flavor. There was more nuttiness, more leather and wine barrel in it. Both were quite smooth and I would be hard-pressed to choose between them. I generally go for the most gold, as I usually like those Yunnans best. Here, there really isn't enough difference. As a side note, they both went very ,very well with a ham salad sandwich.


I am sure that those with a better palate would be able to discern many more differences and layers of flavor than I. I like to think I represent the average drinker of good loose teas. I really admire those with super palates and wish I had one, but there I am, along with most of us, I would guess.


Today's mail brought me a new book from Amazon – Mary Lou and Robert Heiss's newest – The Tea Enthusiasts Handbook: A Guide to the World's Best Teas. It was $11.55 plus shipping. I haven't had a chance to look at it, but I am eager to, as their last book was excellent. This is quite different, more along the lines of Harney's book.