Over The Top

A detail of yesterday's altar.

I've not been tasting any teas this week, as I had some sort of bug, which left me with no brain and no palate. But I think I am back to as normal as I ever am. Also, I am finding it difficult to get too excited about Spring when it keeps snowing. We had some yesterday and we're due to have more tonight. I can say that most of last week's foot of snow is gone and the birds are singing from early morning until after sundown. Perhaps I should pay attention to them! I did notice that our lupines are raising tiny fans of new leaves above the ground and the bee balm seedlings are beginning to look as though they will survive.

Very much on the positive side, last week I received samples I had ordered from 3 more companies: Samovar Life, Tea Trekker and the Bamboo Tea House. Most of them are black, since my husband is really not a fan of greens and Oolongs.

I am trying Samovar's Lychee Black today. http://www.samovarlife.com/ I don't think I have ever had lychee flavored tea. The small leaves are quite dark and have a fruity, sort of citrussy aroma. The instructions on my sample say to brew the contents of the packet in 16 ounces of water for 2-5 minutes. I did 3.5, in an 18 ounce pot. As it brewed, it gave off a strong scent I didn't recognize - probably the lychee. I can only describe it as sharp. The tea is a very very dark amber and quite heavy tasting, nearly tannic, nothing like the light body, smooth, rosy, honey tasting brew the site describes. I found it nearly undrinkable, it was so strong. You know I like strong tea, but this was just awful.

Okay, a lot of the fault was mine, for following directions, instead of using common sense. The packet really contained enough for about a 5-6 cup pot. so I warn you - use your sense of how much tea is enough for your pot. I am going to write the company and tell them they need to do something about their directions, as all of their samples carry the same ones. I am going to try another one tomorrow and do what I feel is best. So stay tuned.

More Russians

A church in Sorrento, Italy, the Mary altar.

All of you Darjeeling fans may be in for some price rises. There has been a drought in some parts of Darjeeling and now some of the gardens' workers are striking for things like a living wage, better working conditions, education for their children abd health care. Apparently some of the attempted discussions to bring settlement have gotten very heated and there has been harassment of workers. Although I do like first flush Darjeeling, which is now ready to be picked, I am with the workers, who make only about $1 a day and live too far from schools and medical care. If you buy Fair Trade teas, these issues are addressed and some organic companies also are dealing with them.

Have I mention Alex Zorach's fine website http://www.ratetea.net/ ? It is a very worthwhile site, carrying some fine reviews of a wide range of teas and you can add your own if you would like. Another in somewhat the same vein is http://www.steepster.com/. There are many many blogs and review sites about tea and most of them are fun as well as informative.

Today I am in a black tea mood and I am trying Russian Style Black from the Bamboo Tea House in California. http://www.bambooteas.com/ I found their service to be very quick and they even went out of their way to make the shipping cheaper. My only quibble is there isn't much information on their site about the dirrerent teas.

The dry tea isa mix of brown and really black leaves. It smells dark, earthy winey, with some tobacco lurking in the background. I brewed it for almost 4 minutes with water just off theboil. The brewed tea is very dark, rich and fresh tasting, with maybethe very tiniest hint of smoke. The tea is very smooth and rich with a woody wine like flavor, backed up with a touch of astringency at the end. Somehow it conveys a smokey back room filled with intellectuals. (Touch of fantasy there.) I see why it is called Russian. It is not at all delicate, but just as smooth as can be. it takes milk and sweetener well.

Not A Forte of the Earl

I love this style of steeple.

I happened to be in Walmart and saw they have a selection of largish teacup and teapot planters. I have not yet sorted out all my garden ware from when we moved, so I was not tempted. I also didn't like them, which is the real reason I wasn't tempted. I am more into a mix of classic and my own version of tacky, as anyone can see who visits my house.

We just got rid of a love seat and got a new chair, so we have been spending the morning hauling furniture around. We're not done yet, but I am desperate for a cup of tea.

I decided to try more of the Tea Forte I was given, since I have had such good luck with it. I am having Earl Grey, which I love and I am always ready to try a new one. It is still that box of teabags and the bag is quite full. there isn't a lot of scent dry, but that is not surprising. However, there's not much scent wet, either. And, not too much taste, to boot. In fact, it seems like a cross between black currant and Lipton's, with the barest hint of citrus. It won't make me run right out and buy some loose.

Another note about Japanese Teas - any tea that is currently in a store or your pantry is perfectly safe, as it was here long before the radiation problem. Quite probably that will go for this year's crop as well. If you are worried, go to the New York Times website and look for their map of radiation. Most Japanese tea is grown west and south west and a bit north of Tokyo, on the big island. The reactor is on the large northern island. The same is true of Japanese restaurants. Almost all of their ingredients are purchased here, especially the ingredients in sushi or they have been here from before the reactor problem, so it is perfectly safe to eat in them.

However, we need to mention that Teavana had a voluntary recall of its peppermint tea, as there was a slight possibility that it was contaminated with salmonella. They are to be commended for doing this and if you have any you bought recently, please take it back or throw it out. It should be emphasized that no one has fallen ill from the tea.

By the Mighty Brahmaputra

A church gargoyle. I'm not sure why it is inside - perhaps to frighten
people into good behavior?

I guess the winds of March are upon us, winds designed to begin drying the earth from all the melted snow. We have a little problem, since we still have snow. But we have sunshine and that makes up for most of it.


I saw an ad in last week's Time magazine about technology and tea. I am always pleased to see tea ads in national magazines, I think it indicates that tea-drinking is on the rise. Always good to know.


Today I am having an Assam tea. If you remember your geography, Assam is in the far Northeast of India, near Yunnan in China. The Indians and Chinese argue over whether it is Yunnan or Assam that was the birthplace of tea. However, their teas are quite different - different types of bushes and Yunnan is mountain tea, whereas Assam is a hot humid valley - that of the mighty and sacred Brahmaputra River. I hope I spelled that right. It is more of the lot I bought from the American Tea Room and is a single estate tea - Hajua Sessa STGFOPS which means Super Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe Souchong. The last 3 words refer to leaf size.


Now that we have all that under our belts, let's get to the tea. The dry leaves are a mix of colors, ranging from beige to black. They smell of dry wood in the sun. I brewed it at about 195 degrees for 3 minutes. You can't brew Assam too long or it can be very tannic and unpleasant. The liqueur is quite dark and has a somewhat malty, nutty aroma. That is also the taste. It is very smooth with just the barest touch of astringency at the end. A very easy drinking tea.

Those Wild Orange Russians

This is a towered gate in the town of Bacharach, Germany. It was used both for fortification and the storage of wine before shipment on the Rhine River.

A sunny good morning to you all! The snow is melting, the trees have shaken off their white covering and we had a really fun tea tasting yesterday. The lilac and jasmine teas were well received, but I don't think the Pu-erh and Lapsang Souchong were a great hit, other than from interest's sake. I am not surprised. The latter two generally evoke strong feelings of like or dislike, with little middle ground. For myself, I am still edging myself into liking Pu-erh, certainly not enough to be able to tell one from another or the quality of each. I like the little tuochas I got from Life In Teacup, but I don't know that that means much.

All of the teas we had I have reported on previously, but one was a surprise. This was the Jasmine Golden Yunnan. It somehow wasn't quite as mind-bogglingly superb yesterday as it was when I tried it before. I don't know if that was because it was made in a larger pot or if it was somehow diluted as part of a group. It was still very good, but I am going to have to have some more and see what's what. Such a great hardship!


Yesterday I got some tea from the American Tea Room, about which I've heard good things. Plus, they also sent me a large free sample of their new Nirvana Tea and 10% of my purchase money will go to help Japan. I am going to try their Romanov Tea, a Russian blend, as you can imagine from the name, with a trace of smoke and blood orange. They call it "a true Russian delight". It certainly smells wonderful - very rich orange. I did not pick up any smoke aroma. The leaves are quite small and a mix of brown and black. We'll see once it is brewed. It is also organic and the base tea is a Chinese black, but they don't say which one. I am following instructions and brewing it at about 195 degrees for 4 minutes. It is a very deep amber and now that it has brewed more smoke and less orange is coming out in the scent.

As always, the proof is in the tasting. I do indeed like this tea. This just the barest trace of smoke, which I don't think most people would catch and there is a pronounced orange flavor. It is woven so well into the total blend, that it seems as though you could not seperate the tea from the orange and have two good independent tastes. That tiny bit of smoke, or earthiness really grounds the whole thing. It takes cream well, which is all I ever use.

First 2011 Oolongs Are Here

The first of the new teas has arrived! Hou De Asian Art and Fine Teas has gotten the first 2001 Early Spring Oolongs from Nantou, Taiwan and if you go to their website www.houdeasianart.com you will find it on their home page. This is indeed early. They are an excellent source of very good teas and work very hard to please their customers. They also carry an extensive line of Pu-erh teas and some beautiful artworks.

No More Snow, No More Snow, No More......

A side altar in the great cathedral of Vienna, Stephansdom.


Really, this is getting to be a bit much! We have 8! - 8! inches of snow and more coming. Guys, this is NOT flurries, this is just about a snowstorm! Our hope and consolation is the warming earth and air will melt it quickly. Meanwhile, I am going to the island nation of Sri Lanka and have some Ceylon tea, dreaming of sun and sand and blue oceans. (If it weren't so late in the year I'd say the white stuff was really beautiful, the way it has coated the trees.)


Specifically I am going to the Kenilworth Estate, for their Orange Pekoe (whole leaf) Ceylon, thanks to Upton Teas. The dry leaves are a pleasant mix of brown and black, kind of crinkles and twisted. I brewed it for 3.5 minutes with boiling water. As it brewed it smelled malty, with touches of grape and earth, may be a hint of pine,, maybe a little mustard,and fresh sun-dried wash. Really, the longer I sniff it, the more different scents seem to come out. The liquor is a medium amber and bubbles nicely around the edges of my cup. This is a good sturdy cup of tea, quite malty and nutty, hazelnut, perhaps. There is a touch of astringency, but that is ok, it offsets the other, to produce a more interesting flavor. There is a touch of grape, but no mustard. Probably just as well.

Tomorrow I am doing another tea tasting for friends, so I probably won't be blogging. We are doing a few flavored or scented teas - Lilac Bouquet, Snowflake on Green Lake, Jasmine Golden Yunnan, Mini Shu Puerh Tuocha and Hu-Kwa Lapsang Souchong. Quite a spread of tastes, eh?