29Apr2014
Pu-erh Tea, China
100-deg, 4 minutes, 2nd Brewing
The first brewing was a late afternoon treat that was as rich and dark and mysterious as you would anticipate a proper Pu-erh would offer. On the advise of a colleague with a Chinese father that claimed that the Pu-erh was much better on the fourth or fifth brewing of the same leaves, this brewing was with yesterday's tea leaves. Normally one would expect that the leaves themselves would dry completely over the course of a 16 hour sleep in the tea sieve. But in fact this morning, the tea leaves still held a semblance of moisture, albiet an oily moisture. When mixed again with boiling water the color of the water immediately went to the deep mohagony color that you would expect after a few minutes on a first brew. The result was a cup that was in fact delightfully smooth. Any bitterness that may have been in the first brewing was not evident in the second cup. Much milder in all aspects but with similar characteristics of raw earth. The only variation I notice on the typical theme is a slight nose of the freshest raw fish. In fact a second brew of Pu-erh might pair quite well with hamachi.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Monday, April 28, 2014
Monastic Morning
28Apr2014
Thé des Moines, Tibet
95-deg, 3 minutes
Served Two Cups
The scent of the dry leaves, the steeping liquid (at about 90 seconds) and even the fully soaked leaves which I seriously questioned on throwing out was phenomenal. Like the best perfume. Subtle floral and fruit on the nose. The scent of the steeped tea in the cup is a little stronger - cinnamon comes to mind. The flavor of the cup is stronger than I expected, but not at all bitter. I taste the hints of a mild english breakfast tea but with the influence of honey, cinnamon sticks, and darkened cherries. The Théophile Guide shows this as an all day tea, but this would be brilliant as a breakfast tea to accompany toasted sourdough with or without jam.
Thé des Moines, Tibet
95-deg, 3 minutes
Served Two Cups
The scent of the dry leaves, the steeping liquid (at about 90 seconds) and even the fully soaked leaves which I seriously questioned on throwing out was phenomenal. Like the best perfume. Subtle floral and fruit on the nose. The scent of the steeped tea in the cup is a little stronger - cinnamon comes to mind. The flavor of the cup is stronger than I expected, but not at all bitter. I taste the hints of a mild english breakfast tea but with the influence of honey, cinnamon sticks, and darkened cherries. The Théophile Guide shows this as an all day tea, but this would be brilliant as a breakfast tea to accompany toasted sourdough with or without jam.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Golden Popcorn
14Apr2014
Genmaicha, Japan
80-deg, 3 minutes
Bright and golden with a slight hint of green. Definitely grassy and the toasted rice is notable but not at all overbearing. Absolutely perfect with some toasted bread.
Genmaicha, Japan
80-deg, 3 minutes
Bright and golden with a slight hint of green. Definitely grassy and the toasted rice is notable but not at all overbearing. Absolutely perfect with some toasted bread.
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