Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Herbal
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Very small, dark orange-red pieces of rooibos (they look like small needles and wood chips)
Color: Bright orange; clear
Smell: The sweet smell of the caramel is certainly the most dominant (making it hard to notice other smells)
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this tea was pretty enjoyable. The taste was more balanced than the smell (which is only caramel); in fact, I think the rum was stronger than the caramel. Surprisingly, it wasn't very sweet (as in, straight sugar), but rather, it had a little bit of bitterness and tart. However, it still tastes a lot like a nice, creamy caramel with a strong butterscotch flavor. As for the medicinal taste of rooibos, it was still there but not that noticeable. Overall, it's a nice herbal tea (good before bed), but it mostly just tastes like all of Lupicia's caramel flavored teas (I'd suggest English Caramel over this, actually).
It's much better with sweetener (I used honey), but I wouldn't suggest it with milk (the taste kind of gets melded together, and it's not that pleasant). The honey did bring out the caramel flavor, though.
Other notes:
Today, I got the wood cut for the project. My plan now (for the rest of spring break) is:
Next 2 days- make the map + cut out the tracks
Day 3+- buy + build the stuff for movement
By end of break (Monday) - build the box and set the map inside the box
Until it's due, I'll just be working on the writing and when the tanks come I'll finish building it.
Other than that, I just played the video games with one of my friends (first time in a while, and it was pretty fun). Can't wait for tomorrow's tea, though!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Cookie
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Monday, March 30, 2015
Day 65: Golden Osmanthus
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: Brewing gongfu style (gaiwan) today, since it's unflavored oolong and there's actually a decent amount
Leaf Appearance: Dark and light green/brown rolled oolong
Color: Light orange-yellow; clear
Smell: Roasted, a little rice-like
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, there were actually much more leaves in this tea bag than I was expecting (I used my smaller/4 oz gaiwan, and I realized that there were too many leaves by the time I started brewing). Anyway, it still turned out pretty well. It certainly tasted how it smelled- roasted, with a little bit of rice (like genmaicha). There was a bit of nuttiness and some floral notes, which gave the tea a bit of sourness in the aftertaste. It was very smooth with little to no astringency. Overall, it's a very light tasting oolong (apparently it's a darker oolong, according to some other reviewers), with a similar flavor profile to some green teas. Certainly one of the better oolongs I've had in this project.
Other notes:
Well, I barely got anything done today (mostly just stayed inside and such). I did finish reading To Kill a Mockingbird, watched the finale of Aldnoah.Zero S2 (it was okay, kinda rushed though), and got my math homework done. I also bought the stuff to make the box/crate for my history project- the moving tank one- so I'll start that tomorrow.
Oh, also, I sort of asked my friend out to lunch? I kind of mentioned that it was sort of because of the science fair stuff, and I instantly regretted it. It went okay, I guess, but shit, I should've thought it through more than I did.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Caramel and Rum
Type: Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: Brewing gongfu style (gaiwan) today, since it's unflavored oolong and there's actually a decent amount
Leaf Appearance: Dark and light green/brown rolled oolong
Color: Light orange-yellow; clear
Smell: Roasted, a little rice-like
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, there were actually much more leaves in this tea bag than I was expecting (I used my smaller/4 oz gaiwan, and I realized that there were too many leaves by the time I started brewing). Anyway, it still turned out pretty well. It certainly tasted how it smelled- roasted, with a little bit of rice (like genmaicha). There was a bit of nuttiness and some floral notes, which gave the tea a bit of sourness in the aftertaste. It was very smooth with little to no astringency. Overall, it's a very light tasting oolong (apparently it's a darker oolong, according to some other reviewers), with a similar flavor profile to some green teas. Certainly one of the better oolongs I've had in this project.
Other notes:
Well, I barely got anything done today (mostly just stayed inside and such). I did finish reading To Kill a Mockingbird, watched the finale of Aldnoah.Zero S2 (it was okay, kinda rushed though), and got my math homework done. I also bought the stuff to make the box/crate for my history project- the moving tank one- so I'll start that tomorrow.
Oh, also, I sort of asked my friend out to lunch? I kind of mentioned that it was sort of because of the science fair stuff, and I instantly regretted it. It went okay, I guess, but shit, I should've thought it through more than I did.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Caramel and Rum
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Day 64: Afternoon Tea
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up curled black leaves with pieces of drab, olive green leaves scattered throughout
Color: Golden orange; clear
Smell: Earthy and a tiny bit malty; I'd say the smell of the darjeeling is more prevalent than the assam, but they're rounded out by each other.
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Yet another short post, since I'm going to SoCal right now and I'm sure I won't get home until past midnight. Anyway, I think the tea's okay. The darjeeling is much stronger than the assam, creating a sort of an earthy, fruity taste. The assam's taste doesn't come in until the aftertaste, where you can notice the malty, creaminess of the tea. It's rather sweet on its own, but it wouldn't hurt to add, say, sugar or honey. There's no astringency or bitterness and the tea is quite smooth (it has a certain texture). It's a good every day tea, but since I'm not such a fan of darjeeling (I like assam more, and since this tastes mostly like the darjeeling), I wouldn't buy it.
Other notes:
Nothing really today (morning post). I did take another melatonin pill last night, and I slept really well (tip: use an alarm clock, since I ended up sleeping in yesterday and felt groggy as hell. I do feel great today, though). I did try most of the teas I bought, and man, they're actually really good. 37 more days, and I'll get to reviewing those. See you guys tomorrow!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Golden Osmanthus
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up curled black leaves with pieces of drab, olive green leaves scattered throughout
Color: Golden orange; clear
Smell: Earthy and a tiny bit malty; I'd say the smell of the darjeeling is more prevalent than the assam, but they're rounded out by each other.
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Yet another short post, since I'm going to SoCal right now and I'm sure I won't get home until past midnight. Anyway, I think the tea's okay. The darjeeling is much stronger than the assam, creating a sort of an earthy, fruity taste. The assam's taste doesn't come in until the aftertaste, where you can notice the malty, creaminess of the tea. It's rather sweet on its own, but it wouldn't hurt to add, say, sugar or honey. There's no astringency or bitterness and the tea is quite smooth (it has a certain texture). It's a good every day tea, but since I'm not such a fan of darjeeling (I like assam more, and since this tastes mostly like the darjeeling), I wouldn't buy it.
Other notes:
Nothing really today (morning post). I did take another melatonin pill last night, and I slept really well (tip: use an alarm clock, since I ended up sleeping in yesterday and felt groggy as hell. I do feel great today, though). I did try most of the teas I bought, and man, they're actually really good. 37 more days, and I'll get to reviewing those. See you guys tomorrow!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Golden Osmanthus
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Day 63: Keemun Queen's Hope
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark black, rolled/needle like leaves; they're a decent size, considering that they're not too broken up
Color: Medium-light copper; clear
Smell: Similar to puerh (a little fishy, earthy) with some hints of mint
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Gonna be a short review again today, since I've had a bunch of tea before this, and I have to make some new tea for my family (see below). Also, I think reviewing a tea with only 1 cup is actually a better way for taste testing, since it forces me to pay more attention.
After smelling, I thought that this would taste a lot like a puerh, but after tasting, I was moderately surprised. While it does have the fishy smell, it's more tangy and brothy than puerh. The earthy taste is relatively the same, if not less than the average puerh. There's little astringency and is very smooth; it doesn't leave any dry taste in the mouth, and has a very nice (in my opinion) texture. I don't really drink keemun tea that often and I'm not sure if it's right to compare it to puerh, so probably take this review with a grain of salt. Overall, however, I like it and would finish the whole pot (if I didn't have to use the pot right now for chai, heh).
Other notes:
Well, sleep wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Got a good 12 hours in (which is good and bad- it's a lot of sleep, which means I woke up super groggy), and only woke up 2-3 times. I'll try another pill in a couple days, since I'm going to SoCal and I'll get home super late.
In other news, today I went to San Francisco and picked up a couple of teas and a large gaiwan. Here's the haul:
From Red Blossom Tea Co.:
Chai (black, with a lychee flavored base)
Pi lo chun (green)
Monkey picked tieguanyin (oolong)
From Vital Tea Leaf:
Blue People Ginseng Oolong
Gaiwan
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Afternoon Tea
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark black, rolled/needle like leaves; they're a decent size, considering that they're not too broken up
Color: Medium-light copper; clear
Smell: Similar to puerh (a little fishy, earthy) with some hints of mint
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Gonna be a short review again today, since I've had a bunch of tea before this, and I have to make some new tea for my family (see below). Also, I think reviewing a tea with only 1 cup is actually a better way for taste testing, since it forces me to pay more attention.
After smelling, I thought that this would taste a lot like a puerh, but after tasting, I was moderately surprised. While it does have the fishy smell, it's more tangy and brothy than puerh. The earthy taste is relatively the same, if not less than the average puerh. There's little astringency and is very smooth; it doesn't leave any dry taste in the mouth, and has a very nice (in my opinion) texture. I don't really drink keemun tea that often and I'm not sure if it's right to compare it to puerh, so probably take this review with a grain of salt. Overall, however, I like it and would finish the whole pot (if I didn't have to use the pot right now for chai, heh).
Other notes:
Well, sleep wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Got a good 12 hours in (which is good and bad- it's a lot of sleep, which means I woke up super groggy), and only woke up 2-3 times. I'll try another pill in a couple days, since I'm going to SoCal and I'll get home super late.
In other news, today I went to San Francisco and picked up a couple of teas and a large gaiwan. Here's the haul:
From Red Blossom Tea Co.:
Chai (black, with a lychee flavored base)
Pi lo chun (green)
Monkey picked tieguanyin (oolong)
From Vital Tea Leaf:
Blue People Ginseng Oolong
Gaiwan
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Afternoon Tea
Friday, March 27, 2015
Day 62: Tokio
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up dark green leaves with long, rolled yellow flower petals
Color: Light golden yellow; clear
Smell: Sweet, floral, and fruity (like very sweet strawberries); however, the smell isn't that strong
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Today's review is going to be a bit short since I only have 2 cups worth of tea (family wanted some), and I'm going to bed early. The first thing I thought when I drank this is that it's already way better than yesterday's; while the berry flavor is a bit more subtle, it actually tastes realistic and blends well with the green tea. It's still sweet, but there is a tiny bit of a sour taste reminiscent of somewhat ripe (it's not super sweet yet) berries. There's little to no astringency, and it goes down smooth. After drinking, the berry taste lingers in your mouth, which isn't bad- it's actually very pleasant. Overall, it's a good tea (and I would drink it if someone gave it to me), but I think there's better fruity/berry teas out there.
Other notes:
Wooooo, spring break! Before I forget, here's my checklist for next week:
1. History: build that moving WW2 model of Kursk
2. AP Bio: finish a dissection write up, begin studying for the final
3. English: read TKAM and finish all of those screenplays I started reading
4. Extracurriculars: get a resume written, start research (electricity, bioreactors, etc.), practice for a piano recital
5. Others: RELAX WOO
Also, I'm going to begin taking melatonin pills (3 mg, maybe once every 3 days) to try and adjust my sleep schedule from 1 am - 6 am to 10/11 pm - ???. I have a feeling this will either end up super well or I will have super scary lucid dreams (because I'm starting off with a relatively high dosage). Let's see how this goes!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Keemun Queen's Hope
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up dark green leaves with long, rolled yellow flower petals
Color: Light golden yellow; clear
Smell: Sweet, floral, and fruity (like very sweet strawberries); however, the smell isn't that strong
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Today's review is going to be a bit short since I only have 2 cups worth of tea (family wanted some), and I'm going to bed early. The first thing I thought when I drank this is that it's already way better than yesterday's; while the berry flavor is a bit more subtle, it actually tastes realistic and blends well with the green tea. It's still sweet, but there is a tiny bit of a sour taste reminiscent of somewhat ripe (it's not super sweet yet) berries. There's little to no astringency, and it goes down smooth. After drinking, the berry taste lingers in your mouth, which isn't bad- it's actually very pleasant. Overall, it's a good tea (and I would drink it if someone gave it to me), but I think there's better fruity/berry teas out there.
Other notes:
Wooooo, spring break! Before I forget, here's my checklist for next week:
1. History: build that moving WW2 model of Kursk
2. AP Bio: finish a dissection write up, begin studying for the final
3. English: read TKAM and finish all of those screenplays I started reading
4. Extracurriculars: get a resume written, start research (electricity, bioreactors, etc.), practice for a piano recital
5. Others: RELAX WOO
Also, I'm going to begin taking melatonin pills (3 mg, maybe once every 3 days) to try and adjust my sleep schedule from 1 am - 6 am to 10/11 pm - ???. I have a feeling this will either end up super well or I will have super scary lucid dreams (because I'm starting off with a relatively high dosage). Let's see how this goes!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Keemun Queen's Hope
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Day 61: Apple and Berry
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium-small, (relatively) light green tea leaves with chunks of dried apple, and bright red flower petals (?)
Color: Bright yellow-green or golden; clear
Smell: Fruity (guess like what fruit it smells like- that's right, it's mostly apples) and floral
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 6.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this tea was surprisingly disappointing. While it does smell nice, there is very little taste. While drinking it, I could really only taste a very strong sweetness- it wasn't fruity or anything, but it was just sweet. This sweetness, combined with a very weak berry taste, made it taste somewhat like sugar water mixed with a drop of raspberry juice. As for the apple, I could only notice it in the aftertaste, where it lingered long after drinking. It also made my throat feel a bit irritated after drinking, and my mouth feel very dry. It's a good flavor combination on paper, but it just isn't blended well in this tea (tastes too artificial and weak, and the tea base is of admittedly low quality). If you want a good apple tea, get Tsugaru Green- I think it's much more flavorful than this one.
Other notes:
Well, today has been pretty shitty. I didn't finish the math test even though I knew how to do all of the problems, mostly because the long division/multiplication took all of my time. What's even worse is that the other classes could use calculators (not us), and the guy next to me (the one that kept taking my paper) used his calculator on the whole test. Then, in English, I said something super stupid in front of the whole class (in short, there's a reason why I don't take art). I know it's dumb to be worrying about this crap (to the point where I'm about to physically throw up), but knowing that makes me feel worse because really, the only thing that I have is my grades (science fair is done and we can't continue until we have funding, fencing club hasn't met in the past few weeks, just pretty much all of my extracurriculars are on hold now). It doesn't help that I was up until 2 AM last night studying for the test. It's just that everyone has had super high expectations for me since elementary school, and I feel like if I don't reach their standards, I'm going to be a failure.
Anyway, this is a great way to start spring break, huh? I guess it's not so bad though, since I know I'll probably get over it after a while and that this is a terrible reason to hate myself, especially since some of my friends are having a crappier day than me. Also, thanks to my friend, I now have another life rule:
While you do need help from others for many things in life, you will also encounter many obstacles you will have to figure out on your own, and in doing so, will make the experience all the more meaningful.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Tokio
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium-small, (relatively) light green tea leaves with chunks of dried apple, and bright red flower petals (?)
Color: Bright yellow-green or golden; clear
Smell: Fruity (guess like what fruit it smells like- that's right, it's mostly apples) and floral
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 6.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this tea was surprisingly disappointing. While it does smell nice, there is very little taste. While drinking it, I could really only taste a very strong sweetness- it wasn't fruity or anything, but it was just sweet. This sweetness, combined with a very weak berry taste, made it taste somewhat like sugar water mixed with a drop of raspberry juice. As for the apple, I could only notice it in the aftertaste, where it lingered long after drinking. It also made my throat feel a bit irritated after drinking, and my mouth feel very dry. It's a good flavor combination on paper, but it just isn't blended well in this tea (tastes too artificial and weak, and the tea base is of admittedly low quality). If you want a good apple tea, get Tsugaru Green- I think it's much more flavorful than this one.
Other notes:
Well, today has been pretty shitty. I didn't finish the math test even though I knew how to do all of the problems, mostly because the long division/multiplication took all of my time. What's even worse is that the other classes could use calculators (not us), and the guy next to me (the one that kept taking my paper) used his calculator on the whole test. Then, in English, I said something super stupid in front of the whole class (in short, there's a reason why I don't take art). I know it's dumb to be worrying about this crap (to the point where I'm about to physically throw up), but knowing that makes me feel worse because really, the only thing that I have is my grades (science fair is done and we can't continue until we have funding, fencing club hasn't met in the past few weeks, just pretty much all of my extracurriculars are on hold now). It doesn't help that I was up until 2 AM last night studying for the test. It's just that everyone has had super high expectations for me since elementary school, and I feel like if I don't reach their standards, I'm going to be a failure.
Anyway, this is a great way to start spring break, huh? I guess it's not so bad though, since I know I'll probably get over it after a while and that this is a terrible reason to hate myself, especially since some of my friends are having a crappier day than me. Also, thanks to my friend, I now have another life rule:
While you do need help from others for many things in life, you will also encounter many obstacles you will have to figure out on your own, and in doing so, will make the experience all the more meaningful.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Tokio
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Day 60: Ginger Tea
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Blend (Black and Herbal)
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small CTC black tea with relatively large chunks of dried ginger
Color: Dark copper/very dark red; clear (but so dark that it's hard to see through)
Smell: Mainly ginger and its spice, with the earthy and caramel notes of the black tea (assam)
Recommended with/as: As is, milk (?), sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this tea isn't what I expected. Even though the smell of the ginger overpowers the tea base, you can barely taste it in the tea. Mainly however, it tastes like an assam- earthy, malty, and a little bit creamy. I can sort of notice the ginger (mainly its spice/kick), but it's overwhelmed by the taste of the tea base. Overall, its smooth, very strong, and would make for a nice breakfast tea. However, it's a bit basic (it's literally just black tea with chunks of ginger added, nothing else); personally, I would just go with a plain assam instead. It did make for a good studying tea though!
Lupicia suggested the tea with milk, but since I used all of my milk yesterday for the latte, I couldn't try it. However, I imagine it would be better with milk because of the strong black tea taste, and it might actually bring out the taste of the ginger a little bit more.
Other notes:
Oh hey, 60 days in and I officially finished one of the 9 boxes! (If you didn't know, the book of tea is split up into 9 boxes, each with 11/12 tea bags each. The reason why this happened so late into the project is that I've been using a randomizer and picking a tea from a random box each day).
Other than that, nothing much today other than my grade for math might actually be salvaged! We got our grades from the last tests (not the one from yesterday), and I got a 92.5 and 95, so now my quarter grade is 92%. As long as I don't screw up the test tomorrow, I should be golden. I'll just leave it at that, since I have to go study for that test (I think this is actually the first time I've had a pretty good study schedule going for math for the past few days- about an hour or 2 each day, with problems from 2 different textbooks, timed).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Apple and Berry
Type: Blend (Black and Herbal)
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small CTC black tea with relatively large chunks of dried ginger
Color: Dark copper/very dark red; clear (but so dark that it's hard to see through)
Smell: Mainly ginger and its spice, with the earthy and caramel notes of the black tea (assam)
Recommended with/as: As is, milk (?), sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this tea isn't what I expected. Even though the smell of the ginger overpowers the tea base, you can barely taste it in the tea. Mainly however, it tastes like an assam- earthy, malty, and a little bit creamy. I can sort of notice the ginger (mainly its spice/kick), but it's overwhelmed by the taste of the tea base. Overall, its smooth, very strong, and would make for a nice breakfast tea. However, it's a bit basic (it's literally just black tea with chunks of ginger added, nothing else); personally, I would just go with a plain assam instead. It did make for a good studying tea though!
Lupicia suggested the tea with milk, but since I used all of my milk yesterday for the latte, I couldn't try it. However, I imagine it would be better with milk because of the strong black tea taste, and it might actually bring out the taste of the ginger a little bit more.
Other notes:
Oh hey, 60 days in and I officially finished one of the 9 boxes! (If you didn't know, the book of tea is split up into 9 boxes, each with 11/12 tea bags each. The reason why this happened so late into the project is that I've been using a randomizer and picking a tea from a random box each day).
Other than that, nothing much today other than my grade for math might actually be salvaged! We got our grades from the last tests (not the one from yesterday), and I got a 92.5 and 95, so now my quarter grade is 92%. As long as I don't screw up the test tomorrow, I should be golden. I'll just leave it at that, since I have to go study for that test (I think this is actually the first time I've had a pretty good study schedule going for math for the past few days- about an hour or 2 each day, with problems from 2 different textbooks, timed).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Apple and Berry
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Day 59: Chai Bag Cinnamon
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: Made a latte this time (since my sister wanted one), so I did this:
1. Boiled water + milk (no actual measurements, sorry)
2. Added leaves
3. Brewed for about 7-10 minutes
4. Strained into a tea pot
5. Added sweetener (honey or dulce de leche)
6. Served it out
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown, very small CTC black tea with various spices added
Color: Light caramel brown; milky (so it's not clear, duh)
Smell: A bit earthy, definitely milky, with the spices and cinnamon being the most dominant smell
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Oh man, I think this is my favorite chai blend out of all of the ones in the box. The cinnamon is smooth, blends well with the spice of chai, and is amazing with milk. The tea base is strong and the spices add a nice kick to the tea, but it has a bit of a natural sweetness that makes it very pleasing. It's balanced very well- other reviewers say the cinnamon is too strong, but for me, it was relatively equal with the other tastes. This might be because I used a tea bag to brew a full litre, but I don't think it should change that much with more leaf. Overall, it's one of my favorite milk teas now, but that may just be because I got better at brewing chai lattes. However, I'm pretty disappointed since I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to wait a long time before the randomizer picks another chai bag.
Other notes:
Well, I guess my math grade is screwed for this quarter since I'm pretty sure my group did terrible on the group test. We didn't even finish, and we actually spent most of the time arguing- the guy next to me kept taking my paper from me while I was in the middle of a problem and spent most of the time doing the bonus instead of the actual problems, and the guy in front of me didn't do the problems we told him to do. The girl in the group did pretty well (we ended up catching each others mistakes), but she got super frustrated by the end.
I'm taking this as a wake up call because I'm almost certain that I'm going to end the quarter with a B (a few tests aren't online and I have exactly a 90% right now). So, my plans for next quarter, aka in 2 weeks, is to get my shit together in math (practice my speed), go to afterschool tutoring with the teacher, petition the tea club to the vice principal, and get a job (my team decided to continue research through next year, but we don't have the funds). Let's see how that goes!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ginger Tea
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: Made a latte this time (since my sister wanted one), so I did this:
1. Boiled water + milk (no actual measurements, sorry)
2. Added leaves
3. Brewed for about 7-10 minutes
4. Strained into a tea pot
5. Added sweetener (honey or dulce de leche)
6. Served it out
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown, very small CTC black tea with various spices added
Color: Light caramel brown; milky (so it's not clear, duh)
Smell: A bit earthy, definitely milky, with the spices and cinnamon being the most dominant smell
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Oh man, I think this is my favorite chai blend out of all of the ones in the box. The cinnamon is smooth, blends well with the spice of chai, and is amazing with milk. The tea base is strong and the spices add a nice kick to the tea, but it has a bit of a natural sweetness that makes it very pleasing. It's balanced very well- other reviewers say the cinnamon is too strong, but for me, it was relatively equal with the other tastes. This might be because I used a tea bag to brew a full litre, but I don't think it should change that much with more leaf. Overall, it's one of my favorite milk teas now, but that may just be because I got better at brewing chai lattes. However, I'm pretty disappointed since I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to wait a long time before the randomizer picks another chai bag.
Other notes:
Well, I guess my math grade is screwed for this quarter since I'm pretty sure my group did terrible on the group test. We didn't even finish, and we actually spent most of the time arguing- the guy next to me kept taking my paper from me while I was in the middle of a problem and spent most of the time doing the bonus instead of the actual problems, and the guy in front of me didn't do the problems we told him to do. The girl in the group did pretty well (we ended up catching each others mistakes), but she got super frustrated by the end.
I'm taking this as a wake up call because I'm almost certain that I'm going to end the quarter with a B (a few tests aren't online and I have exactly a 90% right now). So, my plans for next quarter, aka in 2 weeks, is to get my shit together in math (practice my speed), go to afterschool tutoring with the teacher, petition the tea club to the vice principal, and get a job (my team decided to continue research through next year, but we don't have the funds). Let's see how that goes!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ginger Tea
Monday, March 23, 2015
Day 58: Honeybush
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Herbal
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark red and orange rooibos leaves; they look like small woodchips
Color: Golden red-orange; when it was pouring, it was actually pink and clear
Smell: Sort of like menthol/cough syrup with some berries; there's also a tiny bit of honey (listed in the description), but it's not very strong
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I actually really enjoy this rooibos. I'm used to unflavored rooibos having the cough syrup/medicinal taste (that I mentioned in previous reviews), but this one isn't that bad. It still does have that taste, but its pretty light in relation to the other flavors. Surprisingly, this has a bit of a brothy taste, with some fruit notes that a tangy aftertaste. It's smooth (as expected of an herbal tea) and ends (like stated in the description,) cleanly. It's one of the most complex rooibos I've tasted so far, and I ended up finishing the whole pot, which I don't do that often.
Other notes:
Gonna skip on writing a long notes section today since I have a math test tomorrow. AP bio test was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be, though! (Oh, and also, a friend forced me to take the Myers-Briggs personality test and apparently I'm a ISTJ inspector instead of a INTJ mastermind now, so there's that).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Chai Bag Cinnamon
Type: Herbal
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark red and orange rooibos leaves; they look like small woodchips
Color: Golden red-orange; when it was pouring, it was actually pink and clear
Smell: Sort of like menthol/cough syrup with some berries; there's also a tiny bit of honey (listed in the description), but it's not very strong
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I actually really enjoy this rooibos. I'm used to unflavored rooibos having the cough syrup/medicinal taste (that I mentioned in previous reviews), but this one isn't that bad. It still does have that taste, but its pretty light in relation to the other flavors. Surprisingly, this has a bit of a brothy taste, with some fruit notes that a tangy aftertaste. It's smooth (as expected of an herbal tea) and ends (like stated in the description,) cleanly. It's one of the most complex rooibos I've tasted so far, and I ended up finishing the whole pot, which I don't do that often.
Other notes:
Gonna skip on writing a long notes section today since I have a math test tomorrow. AP bio test was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be, though! (Oh, and also, a friend forced me to take the Myers-Briggs personality test and apparently I'm a ISTJ inspector instead of a INTJ mastermind now, so there's that).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Chai Bag Cinnamon
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Day 57: Milk Caramel
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Houjicha
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Drab yellow-green broken-up leaves, with twigs and bits of almond
Color: Golden brown; clear
Smell: Sweet and milky; I can sort of smell the caramel along with a bit of saltiness, but for some reason, there isn't much of a roasted smell (which is characteristic of houjicha)
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener, milk
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, despite the name and what I expected, this houjicha is much lighter than I thought. Like most houjichas, I expected this to taste and smell very roasty, but it isn't; it's not bad per se, but it's just not what I was expecting. Rather, it tastes very much like caramel with a bit of nuttiness and a very little bit of roasty taste. It's creamy and smooth, but not very sweet or strong. There's little astringency, and with milk, it's pretty decent, but it's relatively the same. It's good, but I actually prefer an unflavored houjicha more.
Other notes:
Wooo, we won second place in our category! No special awards though. I think we're set on continuing the project next year, but we might drop one of our teammates (since he hasn't really contributed much). I'll let you know tomorrow since I have an AP bio test and I'm too tired to keep writing/studying.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Honeybush
Type: Flavored Houjicha
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Drab yellow-green broken-up leaves, with twigs and bits of almond
Color: Golden brown; clear
Smell: Sweet and milky; I can sort of smell the caramel along with a bit of saltiness, but for some reason, there isn't much of a roasted smell (which is characteristic of houjicha)
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener, milk
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, despite the name and what I expected, this houjicha is much lighter than I thought. Like most houjichas, I expected this to taste and smell very roasty, but it isn't; it's not bad per se, but it's just not what I was expecting. Rather, it tastes very much like caramel with a bit of nuttiness and a very little bit of roasty taste. It's creamy and smooth, but not very sweet or strong. There's little astringency, and with milk, it's pretty decent, but it's relatively the same. It's good, but I actually prefer an unflavored houjicha more.
Other notes:
Wooo, we won second place in our category! No special awards though. I think we're set on continuing the project next year, but we might drop one of our teammates (since he hasn't really contributed much). I'll let you know tomorrow since I have an AP bio test and I'm too tired to keep writing/studying.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Honeybush
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Day 56: Bravissimo!
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Blend (Black/Green)
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium small, dark green tea leaves with long, yellow or purple flower petals added; however, I don't see any of the black tea leaves listed in the description
Color: Bright yellow; clear
Smell: Fruity and sweet, like tropical fruits
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Holy crap, I can actually really taste this tea! Not like before, where the taste was kind of meh, but now this is actually pretty flavorful.
Mainly, it tastes very floral, with a bit of a tart taste (probably roses). While it does taste a lot like flowers, the green tea is still noticeable. It has a bit of a grassy taste that complements the flower taste well, but is mostly dwarfed by the flower taste. There are some fruit flavors that mostly make up the aftertaste, which is somewhat similar to apples. It's not astringent, but leaves the mouth/throat a little bit dry after drinking. Overall, its a nice, light tea, but I wouldn't drink it every day. Mainly, I'm just happy that my taste is actually coming back.
Other notes:
Well, for the first time, I think I missed a day (this is publishing past midnight today, I fell asleep during the review and woke up at exactly midnight). But that's okay! The science fair was super tiring and interesting, since we got called back for round 2 and had to talk to judges for 4-6 hours about the project. I'll give more updates tomorrow since I'm going back to sleep, but uh, pretty much: 1. the group of judges from the physics category told us that everything we believed about electricity is wrong, and 2. chevron talked to us, so we're hoping something will come from that. Awards is tomorrow, so let's see what comes from that.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Milk Caramel
Type: Flavored Blend (Black/Green)
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium small, dark green tea leaves with long, yellow or purple flower petals added; however, I don't see any of the black tea leaves listed in the description
Color: Bright yellow; clear
Smell: Fruity and sweet, like tropical fruits
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Holy crap, I can actually really taste this tea! Not like before, where the taste was kind of meh, but now this is actually pretty flavorful.
Mainly, it tastes very floral, with a bit of a tart taste (probably roses). While it does taste a lot like flowers, the green tea is still noticeable. It has a bit of a grassy taste that complements the flower taste well, but is mostly dwarfed by the flower taste. There are some fruit flavors that mostly make up the aftertaste, which is somewhat similar to apples. It's not astringent, but leaves the mouth/throat a little bit dry after drinking. Overall, its a nice, light tea, but I wouldn't drink it every day. Mainly, I'm just happy that my taste is actually coming back.
Other notes:
Well, for the first time, I think I missed a day (this is publishing past midnight today, I fell asleep during the review and woke up at exactly midnight). But that's okay! The science fair was super tiring and interesting, since we got called back for round 2 and had to talk to judges for 4-6 hours about the project. I'll give more updates tomorrow since I'm going back to sleep, but uh, pretty much: 1. the group of judges from the physics category told us that everything we believed about electricity is wrong, and 2. chevron talked to us, so we're hoping something will come from that. Awards is tomorrow, so let's see what comes from that.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Milk Caramel
Friday, March 20, 2015
Day 55: Assam Calcutta Auction
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up black/dark brown leaves
Color: Dark golden orange (dark, but not as dark as yesterday); clear
Smell: (man, my smelling still isn't that good yet) Sort of earthy and malty; its mostly just a standard assam
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Alright, so since I ended up taking a nap before this review and woke up at 11:30, I'll rush through the review. For some reason, on this assam, I'm not getting the usual malty, characteristic black tea taste. Rather, I'm getting sort of a tangy taste with some earthiness, but that's it. It's pretty smooth and has little astringency, but it just tastes too light for me to tell anything. It could just be that I just woke up (and I'm super tired), so I can't really taste, the water I used, my sick (just a runny nose now and some coughing) or just the tea. It's better with milk and honey, though. I might come back to this if I can get more.
Other notes:
Oh man, got the science fair tomorrow. The only problem is that one of my groupmates left their logbooks at home (guess who it is- it's the one who's been forgetting to do all of his work), so we might lose points on that. Hopefully we won't, but the judges wanted a book from everyone participating. I haven't practiced my interview/pitch though, but I know my stuff and the sample questions are relatively easy. Wish me luck!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Bravissimo!
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up black/dark brown leaves
Color: Dark golden orange (dark, but not as dark as yesterday); clear
Smell: (man, my smelling still isn't that good yet) Sort of earthy and malty; its mostly just a standard assam
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Alright, so since I ended up taking a nap before this review and woke up at 11:30, I'll rush through the review. For some reason, on this assam, I'm not getting the usual malty, characteristic black tea taste. Rather, I'm getting sort of a tangy taste with some earthiness, but that's it. It's pretty smooth and has little astringency, but it just tastes too light for me to tell anything. It could just be that I just woke up (and I'm super tired), so I can't really taste, the water I used, my sick (just a runny nose now and some coughing) or just the tea. It's better with milk and honey, though. I might come back to this if I can get more.
Other notes:
Oh man, got the science fair tomorrow. The only problem is that one of my groupmates left their logbooks at home (guess who it is- it's the one who's been forgetting to do all of his work), so we might lose points on that. Hopefully we won't, but the judges wanted a book from everyone participating. I haven't practiced my interview/pitch though, but I know my stuff and the sample questions are relatively easy. Wish me luck!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Bravissimo!
Thursday, March 19, 2015
Day 54: Hapjan Purbat BOP (CTC)
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark brown CTC leaves; I guess they sort of look like fish food pellets
Color: Dark red/orange; it's clear, but it's so dark that it's hard to see through it
Smell: Typical of most Indian black teas- earthy, with a bit of spice
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this is a pretty good CTC tea. With nothing added, there's a strong fruit flavor (which was mentioned in the description), which makes it a bit sweet and tart. It's somewhat like grapes or plums. It pairs well with the earthy, malty taste of the tea, and makes the tea somewhat complex, at least for a CTC. There's not much astringency and it's pretty smooth, but it does have a bit of denseness that leaves a texture in the mouth. It's great with milk and honey, and the strength of the tea makes it good for breakfast. I like it, but I'd say that it's a bit similar to most CTCs (it's one of the better ones I've had, though!).
Other notes:
Well, I've been working on the board today (it's in progress at the time of this post), did homework, set up the plan for the science fair, and practiced the interview questions.
There was one really interesting thing I did today, to say the least. In Japanese class, my friend and I laid out the whole plot for an anime featuring people from our class and us, and needless to say it's super ridiculous. I'm not going to write it out (but I might in the future. It might make a good prompt, heh), but if I could describe it in a few words: harem anime in which a group of government contracted mercenaries stop an organized band of rapists. It's great.
Also, I'm still sort of sick.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Assam Calcutta Auction
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark brown CTC leaves; I guess they sort of look like fish food pellets
Color: Dark red/orange; it's clear, but it's so dark that it's hard to see through it
Smell: Typical of most Indian black teas- earthy, with a bit of spice
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this is a pretty good CTC tea. With nothing added, there's a strong fruit flavor (which was mentioned in the description), which makes it a bit sweet and tart. It's somewhat like grapes or plums. It pairs well with the earthy, malty taste of the tea, and makes the tea somewhat complex, at least for a CTC. There's not much astringency and it's pretty smooth, but it does have a bit of denseness that leaves a texture in the mouth. It's great with milk and honey, and the strength of the tea makes it good for breakfast. I like it, but I'd say that it's a bit similar to most CTCs (it's one of the better ones I've had, though!).
Other notes:
Well, I've been working on the board today (it's in progress at the time of this post), did homework, set up the plan for the science fair, and practiced the interview questions.
There was one really interesting thing I did today, to say the least. In Japanese class, my friend and I laid out the whole plot for an anime featuring people from our class and us, and needless to say it's super ridiculous. I'm not going to write it out (but I might in the future. It might make a good prompt, heh), but if I could describe it in a few words: harem anime in which a group of government contracted mercenaries stop an organized band of rapists. It's great.
Also, I'm still sort of sick.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Assam Calcutta Auction
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Day 53: Matcha Black Soybean Rice Tea
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Blend (Green/herbal; I just realized this for all of the genmaichas I've had so far, so now I gotta go back and fix that)
Brew Time & Temperature: 1 minute 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Grass-like dark green leaves (both long and broken up) with popped rice and black beans; it is all covered in light green matcha
Color: Bright, light green; clear
Smell: From what I can smell, grassy and roasted notes
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
As expected of genmaicha, there's a bit of a roasted taste from the rice, which is mixed with the grassy taste of the green tea. The matcha adds a bit of a tang to the tea, and I can't tell if it's the soybeans or the rice, but there's a bit of nuttiness too. It has a smooth texture for the most part, but it leaves the throat dry after drinking. Somewhat of a brothy taste, it's a decent tea, but is too similar to the other genmaichas I've had so far (the added beans don't really add much).
Short review today, since my sister came home and I've been doing homework/projects.
Other notes:
Nothing much today, but tomorrow is going to be fun (it's not). I couldn't get any of my math or history homework done since I went out to eat with my sister/family and got home late, so all I did was the english project (which I'm actually pretty proud of). Tomorrow though, I gotta catch up with AP Bio stuff (missed it because of my exit exams), finish the project board (didn't even start it yet and we're gonna do it in school), study for an AP bio/English/Japanese test, and finish all of the homework I didn't finish today. So, hopefully that goes decently.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Hapjan Purbat BOP (CTC)
Type: Blend (Green/herbal; I just realized this for all of the genmaichas I've had so far, so now I gotta go back and fix that)
Brew Time & Temperature: 1 minute 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Grass-like dark green leaves (both long and broken up) with popped rice and black beans; it is all covered in light green matcha
Color: Bright, light green; clear
Smell: From what I can smell, grassy and roasted notes
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
As expected of genmaicha, there's a bit of a roasted taste from the rice, which is mixed with the grassy taste of the green tea. The matcha adds a bit of a tang to the tea, and I can't tell if it's the soybeans or the rice, but there's a bit of nuttiness too. It has a smooth texture for the most part, but it leaves the throat dry after drinking. Somewhat of a brothy taste, it's a decent tea, but is too similar to the other genmaichas I've had so far (the added beans don't really add much).
Short review today, since my sister came home and I've been doing homework/projects.
Other notes:
Nothing much today, but tomorrow is going to be fun (it's not). I couldn't get any of my math or history homework done since I went out to eat with my sister/family and got home late, so all I did was the english project (which I'm actually pretty proud of). Tomorrow though, I gotta catch up with AP Bio stuff (missed it because of my exit exams), finish the project board (didn't even start it yet and we're gonna do it in school), study for an AP bio/English/Japanese test, and finish all of the homework I didn't finish today. So, hopefully that goes decently.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Hapjan Purbat BOP (CTC)
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Day 52: Decaf Momo
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up brown leaves with pieces of white/drab green leaves
Color: Golden orange; clear
Smell: Like a sweet peach- still sick, so that's all I got
Recommended with/as: As is, cold brewed, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Oh, how I wish I had this tea yesterday, especially since I actually need the caffeine to stay up today. So because of that and because I'm super tired right now, this review isn't gonna be that in depth.
So, the tea certainly does taste like peaches. It's very similar to the caffeinated version (Momo, probably looking at the review would be better than this one), but with a different texture. While it isn't as strong, it does still have the sweet (and somewhat realistic?) taste of peach. For some reason, it leaves my tongue feeling a bit fuzzy and my throat dry, but isn't bitter. If you liked Momo and need a decent night tea, go for this one. Personally, I don't really like the texture, but if you cold brewed it, I think it'd be great.
Other notes:
Man, I am super sick of being sick (heh). Like, every time I get sick, it slowly gets better over time, but then I end up having symptoms for a real long time afterwards (like now- I don't feel as shitty as I did on Friday, but I still am coughing a bit and can't smell that well). Here's a life tip: never get sick.
Anyway, today I edited and finalized the lab report, so now all we have to do is prepare for the interview and put together the board. Exit exam went fine, school is okay, and the stuff came in the mail. My sister said she's coming home tomorrow now, so I guess I have that to still look forward to. That, and an English project that's due on Thursday that I haven't started. Woooooo.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Matcha Black Soybean Rice Tea
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up brown leaves with pieces of white/drab green leaves
Color: Golden orange; clear
Smell: Like a sweet peach- still sick, so that's all I got
Recommended with/as: As is, cold brewed, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Oh, how I wish I had this tea yesterday, especially since I actually need the caffeine to stay up today. So because of that and because I'm super tired right now, this review isn't gonna be that in depth.
So, the tea certainly does taste like peaches. It's very similar to the caffeinated version (Momo, probably looking at the review would be better than this one), but with a different texture. While it isn't as strong, it does still have the sweet (and somewhat realistic?) taste of peach. For some reason, it leaves my tongue feeling a bit fuzzy and my throat dry, but isn't bitter. If you liked Momo and need a decent night tea, go for this one. Personally, I don't really like the texture, but if you cold brewed it, I think it'd be great.
Other notes:
Man, I am super sick of being sick (heh). Like, every time I get sick, it slowly gets better over time, but then I end up having symptoms for a real long time afterwards (like now- I don't feel as shitty as I did on Friday, but I still am coughing a bit and can't smell that well). Here's a life tip: never get sick.
Anyway, today I edited and finalized the lab report, so now all we have to do is prepare for the interview and put together the board. Exit exam went fine, school is okay, and the stuff came in the mail. My sister said she's coming home tomorrow now, so I guess I have that to still look forward to. That, and an English project that's due on Thursday that I haven't started. Woooooo.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Matcha Black Soybean Rice Tea
Monday, March 16, 2015
Day 51: The Au Chocolat
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown, broken up leaves with cocoa nibs added
Color: Dark copper; clear, with a light oily film on top
Smell: Strong cocoa smell (the actual beans, not something like hot cocoa- its not sweet)
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
So, I'm still sick and my taste and smell aren't what they used to be yet, but since I've already had this tea before (and it's actually pretty good!), I think I'll be fine for this review. The color is dark and the smell is very strong, but surprisingly, it doesn't taste as intense as you would expect. It does taste very much like chocolate without the sweetness; its like a strong dark chocolate, but without the bitterness. In fact, it's actually very smooth with little astringency, and mixes well with the tea base. Personally, I'm a big chocolate fan and I could drink this often, but I'd prefer if it had more to offer than only chocolate (there isn't very much else I can taste, really). However, it's great mixed with other teas. If you ever get Cookie tea from Lupicia (one of my favorites), mix it with this and you get an awesome chocolate caramel cookie flavor. Try it with milk and honey!
Other notes:
Ugh, I have no idea why, but by the time I started writing this review, I got super anxious. Like, to the point that I felt like I was about to throw up. Caffeine on an empty stomach didn't help either. It's not because I'm still sick (I still am though), but I think it's because I think I realized that I did absolutely nothing today. School went okay, but when I got home, I ended up taking a nap because the sick made me feel like shit. Then, I was late to piano practice because my mom was on the phone, and at practice, I screwed up big time. When I got home after that, I just did math homework (and didn't even finish, it's due on wednesday though), and that's absolutely it. I was waiting for my lab partners to help edit the report but, like usual, they came on super late and didn't help much (one of them did rewrite one of my sections, though. Thanks!). I wanted to work more on the science fair and English projects, but I just completely blanked out on ideas for writing and just got frustrated. It doesn't help that my asthma's been acting up lately, and I've barely been able to breathe all day.
In other news, tomorrow, I have the first of my high school exit exams, my sister is coming home from college for a bit, and my Ikiru DVD and Stereo Alchemy CDs come in the mail. Hopefully I actually get something done by then.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Decaf Momo
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown, broken up leaves with cocoa nibs added
Color: Dark copper; clear, with a light oily film on top
Smell: Strong cocoa smell (the actual beans, not something like hot cocoa- its not sweet)
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
So, I'm still sick and my taste and smell aren't what they used to be yet, but since I've already had this tea before (and it's actually pretty good!), I think I'll be fine for this review. The color is dark and the smell is very strong, but surprisingly, it doesn't taste as intense as you would expect. It does taste very much like chocolate without the sweetness; its like a strong dark chocolate, but without the bitterness. In fact, it's actually very smooth with little astringency, and mixes well with the tea base. Personally, I'm a big chocolate fan and I could drink this often, but I'd prefer if it had more to offer than only chocolate (there isn't very much else I can taste, really). However, it's great mixed with other teas. If you ever get Cookie tea from Lupicia (one of my favorites), mix it with this and you get an awesome chocolate caramel cookie flavor. Try it with milk and honey!
Other notes:
Ugh, I have no idea why, but by the time I started writing this review, I got super anxious. Like, to the point that I felt like I was about to throw up. Caffeine on an empty stomach didn't help either. It's not because I'm still sick (I still am though), but I think it's because I think I realized that I did absolutely nothing today. School went okay, but when I got home, I ended up taking a nap because the sick made me feel like shit. Then, I was late to piano practice because my mom was on the phone, and at practice, I screwed up big time. When I got home after that, I just did math homework (and didn't even finish, it's due on wednesday though), and that's absolutely it. I was waiting for my lab partners to help edit the report but, like usual, they came on super late and didn't help much (one of them did rewrite one of my sections, though. Thanks!). I wanted to work more on the science fair and English projects, but I just completely blanked out on ideas for writing and just got frustrated. It doesn't help that my asthma's been acting up lately, and I've barely been able to breathe all day.
In other news, tomorrow, I have the first of my high school exit exams, my sister is coming home from college for a bit, and my Ikiru DVD and Stereo Alchemy CDs come in the mail. Hopefully I actually get something done by then.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Decaf Momo
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Day 50: La Belle Epoque
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black blend (Darjeeling and a mix of black tea)
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Curled black tea (somewhat large leaves; might be the darjeeling), with broken up pieces of dark green leaves and what I think is CTC Assam
Color: Dark copper; clear
Smell: Guess what? I'm still sick so no smell still
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, that horrid taste I tasted yesterday is still there, but is less strong than it is before (so I think it's my sick that's doing that, since I used the same water as yesterday). I still have a stuffy nose though and coughing a tiny bit, but I guess it's still better than yesterday.
Anyway, this tea is actually stronger than I expected (I'm used to darjeeling being somewhat light, but I guess when its combined with other black tea it's very strong). There's a very strong earthy and wood taste, with very dark chocolate notes. There's a bit of that spice that's characteristic of darjeeling, but it's not that noticeable compared to the other flavors. The aftertaste is a tiny bit bitter, but it doesn't leave the dry feeling in your mouth and throat (so I'm guessing that's not the astringency). Despite the bitterness, it still goes down pretty smooth. Overall, I'd say its good as a breakfast tea (it's actually really good with milk/sweetener), but I don't really like the bitterness. I'm not sure if its the actual tea or the way I brewed it, but if its the latter, I'd say the tea would be much more enjoyable (don't brew too long, kids).
Other notes:
Oh man, half way through the 100 Days of Tea (I'm surprised I haven't taken any breaks, even when I'm sick)! To be honest, more than once I've considered stopping because it was either too late (11 PM is not a good time to be drinking a super strong black tea) or I just couldn't taste because sick. Anyway, cheers to this not ending terribly!
In other news, I spent 5 straight hours (4 PM to now, 9 PM) working on that lab report for the science fair. I'm actually pretty proud of it since I did it all on my own (guess why) and can now make graphs in excel super quick. So now, I just have to put together a board and make it look pretty before Friday, and we'll be golden for the fair. I'm hoping that I don't have much homework though (and there probably won't be much because of exit exams this week) so I can get that done and an English project. Wooo!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: The Au Chocolat
Type: Black blend (Darjeeling and a mix of black tea)
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Curled black tea (somewhat large leaves; might be the darjeeling), with broken up pieces of dark green leaves and what I think is CTC Assam
Color: Dark copper; clear
Smell: Guess what? I'm still sick so no smell still
Recommended with/as: As is, milk, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, that horrid taste I tasted yesterday is still there, but is less strong than it is before (so I think it's my sick that's doing that, since I used the same water as yesterday). I still have a stuffy nose though and coughing a tiny bit, but I guess it's still better than yesterday.
Anyway, this tea is actually stronger than I expected (I'm used to darjeeling being somewhat light, but I guess when its combined with other black tea it's very strong). There's a very strong earthy and wood taste, with very dark chocolate notes. There's a bit of that spice that's characteristic of darjeeling, but it's not that noticeable compared to the other flavors. The aftertaste is a tiny bit bitter, but it doesn't leave the dry feeling in your mouth and throat (so I'm guessing that's not the astringency). Despite the bitterness, it still goes down pretty smooth. Overall, I'd say its good as a breakfast tea (it's actually really good with milk/sweetener), but I don't really like the bitterness. I'm not sure if its the actual tea or the way I brewed it, but if its the latter, I'd say the tea would be much more enjoyable (don't brew too long, kids).
Other notes:
Oh man, half way through the 100 Days of Tea (I'm surprised I haven't taken any breaks, even when I'm sick)! To be honest, more than once I've considered stopping because it was either too late (11 PM is not a good time to be drinking a super strong black tea) or I just couldn't taste because sick. Anyway, cheers to this not ending terribly!
In other news, I spent 5 straight hours (4 PM to now, 9 PM) working on that lab report for the science fair. I'm actually pretty proud of it since I did it all on my own (guess why) and can now make graphs in excel super quick. So now, I just have to put together a board and make it look pretty before Friday, and we'll be golden for the fair. I'm hoping that I don't have much homework though (and there probably won't be much because of exit exams this week) so I can get that done and an English project. Wooo!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: The Au Chocolat
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Day 49: Mountain Grape Oolong
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark green rolled oolong leaves; a lot of them are broken up, and there are rose petals (?) added
Color: Light yellow; clear
Smell: Still sick, so I can't really tell
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Alright, so I'm feeling sort of better now, BUT something tastes wrong with the tea. I'm pretty sure it's not the actual tea leaves because I've tried this tea before and as of yet, I've had no fruit tea that tastes this bad. I'm guessing its either my sick or the water (my boiler is full of calcium and falling apart, and I've been using tap water), but I can't know for sure until I'm done being sick. Overall, it just tastes not very pleasant (like that taste in your mouth when you wake up after not brushing!).
As for what I could taste, I only noticed a very light sour note (which was probably the grapes). There was little astringency with a bit of a chewy (?) texture, but that was mostly it. I'll just rate it what I thought the last time I had it, which was a couple months ago. If I remember correctly, it's a decent flavored oolong, but not Lupicia's best.
Other notes:
Today, I mostly just worked on science fair stuff. I bought a project board, construction paper, glue (all that jazz), and medicine. The abstract of the project was due today and I ended up having to wait half of the day for my lab partners to edit it (I turned it in just before writing this). Other than that though, there wasn't much. My throat and nose aren't as bad as yesterday, and I did more homework, but that's it. I'm going to start a project for history soon (gonna build a model of the Battle of Kursk!), and since that's going to take a lot of woodwork and planning, I'll give updates on it. Hopefully tomorrow's tea doesn't taste as bad.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: La Belle Epoque
Type: Flavored Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, dark green rolled oolong leaves; a lot of them are broken up, and there are rose petals (?) added
Color: Light yellow; clear
Smell: Still sick, so I can't really tell
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Alright, so I'm feeling sort of better now, BUT something tastes wrong with the tea. I'm pretty sure it's not the actual tea leaves because I've tried this tea before and as of yet, I've had no fruit tea that tastes this bad. I'm guessing its either my sick or the water (my boiler is full of calcium and falling apart, and I've been using tap water), but I can't know for sure until I'm done being sick. Overall, it just tastes not very pleasant (like that taste in your mouth when you wake up after not brushing!).
As for what I could taste, I only noticed a very light sour note (which was probably the grapes). There was little astringency with a bit of a chewy (?) texture, but that was mostly it. I'll just rate it what I thought the last time I had it, which was a couple months ago. If I remember correctly, it's a decent flavored oolong, but not Lupicia's best.
Other notes:
Today, I mostly just worked on science fair stuff. I bought a project board, construction paper, glue (all that jazz), and medicine. The abstract of the project was due today and I ended up having to wait half of the day for my lab partners to edit it (I turned it in just before writing this). Other than that though, there wasn't much. My throat and nose aren't as bad as yesterday, and I did more homework, but that's it. I'm going to start a project for history soon (gonna build a model of the Battle of Kursk!), and since that's going to take a lot of woodwork and planning, I'll give updates on it. Hopefully tomorrow's tea doesn't taste as bad.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: La Belle Epoque
Friday, March 13, 2015
Day 48: Keemun Special Grade
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small (not fannings), black leaves; they are curled and thin, and look somewhat like pan-fried green tea leaves
Color: Light amber; clear with a light oily film on top
Smell: I cannot smell at all today- see other notes
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
So, I'm sick again (see below for details) so this review will probably be sub-par. I also tried Vanilla again- I don't know if it was the milk or water I used, but it did not taste good at all. There was a very strong sour taste which did not mix well with the vanilla smell and semi-sweet taste. Like I said before, if you like vanilla, go for it, but I just can't get over how strong the smell is.
As for today's tea, I tried using less water than I usually do, and I think it worked. The tea has a strong tart aftertaste, with a bit of earthiness. There is a bit of a floral taste, but I don't feel the sweetness or fruitiness that some other people say they notice. There is a tiny bit of a raisin taste, however. Surprisingly, there isn't the astringency/dryness that I've been tasting in the past few days, and it's actually very smooth. It's a nice, mellow black tea without the strength that I expected. For my first unflavored keemun, I think it's a pretty good tea.
Other notes:
Damn, it turns out I am sick for sure now. My nose is either stuffy or runny all day, and I have a pretty bad sore throat. It's not as bad as my sick last time, but it's not fun either. I think this is the first time I've been sick twice in less than 3 months in a few years, actually. I'm guessing its either because of my lack of sleep lately (only 5 hours than my usual 7?) or my diet (been skipping breakfast/lunch and eating a ton of random snacks instead of actually cooking because of no time). Man, I was looking forward to tomorrow's tea too.
In other news, the science fair abstract is due tomorrow. Since it's only 250 words and a summary of everything, I'm going to start it today and spend most of tomorrow revising it. I'm hoping that my lab group will help me, but I'm doubting it.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Mountain Grape Oolong
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small (not fannings), black leaves; they are curled and thin, and look somewhat like pan-fried green tea leaves
Color: Light amber; clear with a light oily film on top
Smell: I cannot smell at all today- see other notes
Recommended with/as: As is, sweetener
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
So, I'm sick again (see below for details) so this review will probably be sub-par. I also tried Vanilla again- I don't know if it was the milk or water I used, but it did not taste good at all. There was a very strong sour taste which did not mix well with the vanilla smell and semi-sweet taste. Like I said before, if you like vanilla, go for it, but I just can't get over how strong the smell is.
As for today's tea, I tried using less water than I usually do, and I think it worked. The tea has a strong tart aftertaste, with a bit of earthiness. There is a bit of a floral taste, but I don't feel the sweetness or fruitiness that some other people say they notice. There is a tiny bit of a raisin taste, however. Surprisingly, there isn't the astringency/dryness that I've been tasting in the past few days, and it's actually very smooth. It's a nice, mellow black tea without the strength that I expected. For my first unflavored keemun, I think it's a pretty good tea.
Other notes:
Damn, it turns out I am sick for sure now. My nose is either stuffy or runny all day, and I have a pretty bad sore throat. It's not as bad as my sick last time, but it's not fun either. I think this is the first time I've been sick twice in less than 3 months in a few years, actually. I'm guessing its either because of my lack of sleep lately (only 5 hours than my usual 7?) or my diet (been skipping breakfast/lunch and eating a ton of random snacks instead of actually cooking because of no time). Man, I was looking forward to tomorrow's tea too.
In other news, the science fair abstract is due tomorrow. Since it's only 250 words and a summary of everything, I'm going to start it today and spend most of tomorrow revising it. I'm hoping that my lab group will help me, but I'm doubting it.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Mountain Grape Oolong
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Day 47: Ume Vert
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Broken up, dark green leaves; they're small, but the larger leaves look like blades of grass. There are also large white tea leaves and very small pieces of dried apricot added
Color: Bright yellow-green; clear
Smell: Fruit - somewhat similar to the other cherry tea I had earlier
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I can't tell if it's just because I'm more used to stronger tea now (because of the gaiwan), I'm just brewing the tea wrong, or I'm still sick (allergies, ugh). For the past few days, including today, the tea just tastes very plain and the smell is very weak. I tried to brew it longer to try and fix this, but it only made the tea bitter very quickly.
Anyway, despite the weak taste of the tea, I could definitely feel a fruit taste. I wouldn't be able to tell it was plum if you let me try this tea, but I could feel a tart aftertaste in my mouth. There's little astringency and its actually quite smooth and sweet. There are some notes of green apple, but as I said before, it's too weak for me to tell. Overall, it's okay, but I might need to do another tasting again.
If I keep getting a weak taste for the next few teas, I'll try using less water while brewing and see if that fixes it.
Other notes:
I feel a little bit weird saying this, but I like to believe that everyone has the potential to succeed in school (gradewise, and probably otherwise too) if they have the motivation or try to put effort into their work. However, I feel like I'm slowly losing faith in that belief. This isn't only because I see people in school every day that just don't give a shit any more, but because I feel that despite my best efforts, I'm slowly getting worse. I stay up late, have terrible sleep, and stress constantly because I want to learn or at least get better at what I'm doing. Then, when I wake up and go to school, I see and hear about people who have much more work than me but are still very well-off. Most days in math class, I spend an hour or more on the homework, but it only takes the people at my table only 15 or 20 minutes. On some tests, I do much worse than I hope even though I spend hours studying, and then one of my friends spends barely any time studying and does much better.
I just don't know. I guess life's unfair like that sometimes, but I guess I just have to go with it. One of my life rules illustrates this very well:
Despite your best efforts, you will never be the best at what you do. There will always be someone better than you, and you just have to accept that.
It sounds kind of depressing, but for me, I see it as motivating in a way. Sure, there will be someone (or even a ton of people!) better than me, but if I work hard enough, I'll eventually be able to be good enough at what I do to be better than most, and I can get closer to that person ahead of me.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Keemun Special Grade
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Broken up, dark green leaves; they're small, but the larger leaves look like blades of grass. There are also large white tea leaves and very small pieces of dried apricot added
Color: Bright yellow-green; clear
Smell: Fruit - somewhat similar to the other cherry tea I had earlier
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I can't tell if it's just because I'm more used to stronger tea now (because of the gaiwan), I'm just brewing the tea wrong, or I'm still sick (allergies, ugh). For the past few days, including today, the tea just tastes very plain and the smell is very weak. I tried to brew it longer to try and fix this, but it only made the tea bitter very quickly.
Anyway, despite the weak taste of the tea, I could definitely feel a fruit taste. I wouldn't be able to tell it was plum if you let me try this tea, but I could feel a tart aftertaste in my mouth. There's little astringency and its actually quite smooth and sweet. There are some notes of green apple, but as I said before, it's too weak for me to tell. Overall, it's okay, but I might need to do another tasting again.
If I keep getting a weak taste for the next few teas, I'll try using less water while brewing and see if that fixes it.
Other notes:
I feel a little bit weird saying this, but I like to believe that everyone has the potential to succeed in school (gradewise, and probably otherwise too) if they have the motivation or try to put effort into their work. However, I feel like I'm slowly losing faith in that belief. This isn't only because I see people in school every day that just don't give a shit any more, but because I feel that despite my best efforts, I'm slowly getting worse. I stay up late, have terrible sleep, and stress constantly because I want to learn or at least get better at what I'm doing. Then, when I wake up and go to school, I see and hear about people who have much more work than me but are still very well-off. Most days in math class, I spend an hour or more on the homework, but it only takes the people at my table only 15 or 20 minutes. On some tests, I do much worse than I hope even though I spend hours studying, and then one of my friends spends barely any time studying and does much better.
I just don't know. I guess life's unfair like that sometimes, but I guess I just have to go with it. One of my life rules illustrates this very well:
Despite your best efforts, you will never be the best at what you do. There will always be someone better than you, and you just have to accept that.
It sounds kind of depressing, but for me, I see it as motivating in a way. Sure, there will be someone (or even a ton of people!) better than me, but if I work hard enough, I'll eventually be able to be good enough at what I do to be better than most, and I can get closer to that person ahead of me.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Keemun Special Grade
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Day 46: Kikeriki!
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Herbal (Lemongrass and peppermint)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Large light green leaves (grass-shaped; it's the lemongrass) and broken up regular leaves (probably the peppermint); there are some pieces of dried fruit added
Color: Very bright yellow (closer to arylide yellow from what I can see); clear
Smell: Mainly citrus; to be honest, there isn't really any smell at all, or at least it isn't very strong
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, it's almost midnight so I'll rush through this review (11:40 is when I'm starting).
It may have been the tea or the way I brewed it (the latter is more likely), but I found it to be a bit weak. The taste is citrus, mainly lemons, with a light mint taste. I guess it tastes like the herbs its made out of, but there isn't much else. I don't think there's flavoring added either (which may be a positive or a negative depending on how you see it). It's not astringent (probably because its a tisane), but makes the throat a tiny bit dry and is a little bit bitter. I can see this as a good iced tea because of its citrus taste, but there isn't much that sets this tea apart from others. You could actually probably make this on your own for much cheaper (because man, $7.50 for 50g of some garden herbs is actually kind of a rip off).
Other notes:
So, today was interesting, to say the least. I went to bed at 1 AM, woke up at 3 because somehow a bowl of water spilled all over my bed + papers, stayed up until 4 drying them with a blow dryer, went back to sleep, and then woke up at 7. The school day for the most part was uneventful, but I think I did okay on my history test and English speech. On the test, there were a surprising amount of questions on Fascist Italy (which I spent the least amount of time studying) and I couldn't focus because I was stressing out for my speech the next period. However, I do think I did relatively decently- I'm only hoping for a B this time since the timing of the test/speech/everything was terrible. In English, the speech went worse than I hoped since my partner wanted to change a bunch of stuff last minute and I stuttered more than I wanted to, but on the rubric we got a mix of 3s and 4s (which is decent, but I think we didn't deserve it). It's only 50 points so I'm not too worried, since I think the collaborative essay, which is 300 points, was actually pretty good.
Anyway, I think I'm finally done with sleeping at 1 or 2 AM since almost all of the big things are done now (AP Bio tests, history unit test, english speech, etc.); however, the science fair is still next week and the report is still going slower than expected because my partners aren't helping me with writing, and we still have a project board to make. But, I'm still relieved all of the big things for school are done for now, and when I got home today, I took a huge nap for 4 hours. Hopefully my grades don't drop down too much after this though, because the quarter ends right after (?) spring break in 2-3 weeks.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ume Vert
Type: Herbal (Lemongrass and peppermint)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Large light green leaves (grass-shaped; it's the lemongrass) and broken up regular leaves (probably the peppermint); there are some pieces of dried fruit added
Color: Very bright yellow (closer to arylide yellow from what I can see); clear
Smell: Mainly citrus; to be honest, there isn't really any smell at all, or at least it isn't very strong
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, it's almost midnight so I'll rush through this review (11:40 is when I'm starting).
It may have been the tea or the way I brewed it (the latter is more likely), but I found it to be a bit weak. The taste is citrus, mainly lemons, with a light mint taste. I guess it tastes like the herbs its made out of, but there isn't much else. I don't think there's flavoring added either (which may be a positive or a negative depending on how you see it). It's not astringent (probably because its a tisane), but makes the throat a tiny bit dry and is a little bit bitter. I can see this as a good iced tea because of its citrus taste, but there isn't much that sets this tea apart from others. You could actually probably make this on your own for much cheaper (because man, $7.50 for 50g of some garden herbs is actually kind of a rip off).
Other notes:
So, today was interesting, to say the least. I went to bed at 1 AM, woke up at 3 because somehow a bowl of water spilled all over my bed + papers, stayed up until 4 drying them with a blow dryer, went back to sleep, and then woke up at 7. The school day for the most part was uneventful, but I think I did okay on my history test and English speech. On the test, there were a surprising amount of questions on Fascist Italy (which I spent the least amount of time studying) and I couldn't focus because I was stressing out for my speech the next period. However, I do think I did relatively decently- I'm only hoping for a B this time since the timing of the test/speech/everything was terrible. In English, the speech went worse than I hoped since my partner wanted to change a bunch of stuff last minute and I stuttered more than I wanted to, but on the rubric we got a mix of 3s and 4s (which is decent, but I think we didn't deserve it). It's only 50 points so I'm not too worried, since I think the collaborative essay, which is 300 points, was actually pretty good.
Anyway, I think I'm finally done with sleeping at 1 or 2 AM since almost all of the big things are done now (AP Bio tests, history unit test, english speech, etc.); however, the science fair is still next week and the report is still going slower than expected because my partners aren't helping me with writing, and we still have a project board to make. But, I'm still relieved all of the big things for school are done for now, and when I got home today, I took a huge nap for 4 hours. Hopefully my grades don't drop down too much after this though, because the quarter ends right after (?) spring break in 2-3 weeks.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ume Vert
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Day 45: Blueberry
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up black leaves with a small amount of drab green leaves added
Color: Dark, reddish brown/orange; it's clear
Smell: Sweet blueberry smell (very realistic) with some floral notes
Recommended with/as: As is, iced, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this doesn't taste as sweet as it smells. The blueberry taste is definitely there and stays in your mouth long after drinking; while it isn't as sweet as real blueberries, it still tastes very realistic. It's very mellow (no astringency) with a bit of an earthy taste, and the flavor doesn't really have any kick to it. However, it goes down very smooth. There's also a little bit of a tart taste, but it's not that noticeable.
It might have just been the amount of tea/water I used, but I feel like this tea is very, very weak (and adding milk would lose all of the flavor). Overall, it's decent (if you like blueberry, go for it), but there just isn't enough flavor for me to enjoy.
Other notes:
Oh man I am stressing out. I have a speech on FDR tomorrow and a history test- the test I'm not so worried about, but I don't think I'm ready for the speech. Not gonna write much about that since I'm going to practice and study all night, but hopefully it goes well!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Kikeriki!
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small, broken up black leaves with a small amount of drab green leaves added
Color: Dark, reddish brown/orange; it's clear
Smell: Sweet blueberry smell (very realistic) with some floral notes
Recommended with/as: As is, iced, sweetener
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, this doesn't taste as sweet as it smells. The blueberry taste is definitely there and stays in your mouth long after drinking; while it isn't as sweet as real blueberries, it still tastes very realistic. It's very mellow (no astringency) with a bit of an earthy taste, and the flavor doesn't really have any kick to it. However, it goes down very smooth. There's also a little bit of a tart taste, but it's not that noticeable.
It might have just been the amount of tea/water I used, but I feel like this tea is very, very weak (and adding milk would lose all of the flavor). Overall, it's decent (if you like blueberry, go for it), but there just isn't enough flavor for me to enjoy.
Other notes:
Oh man I am stressing out. I have a speech on FDR tomorrow and a history test- the test I'm not so worried about, but I don't think I'm ready for the speech. Not gonna write much about that since I'm going to practice and study all night, but hopefully it goes well!
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Kikeriki!
Monday, March 9, 2015
Day 44: Paradise Green
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium-small dark green leaves with colorful flower petals added (red, pink, yellow, purple) and dried fruit
Color: Bright yellow-green; clear
Smell: Fruity, sweet, and floral; there's a large mix of fruits here, so I'll just say it smells very tropical
Recommended with/as: As is, iced, honey
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I'd suggest this tea iced, rather than hot. Hot, it has a bit of a citrus and fruit flavor, but is actually a bit sweet. There's a bit of astringency that doesn't make the tea bitter, but gives it a dry mouthfeel. However, its taste is not that strong (and I feel like brewing it longer would make it bitter, so use more leaf) and more light. I've had this tea before and I think it's decent, but now that I've tried more teas this isn't that good anymore.
Other notes:
Short review today, since I have an AP Bio test, science fair (finished experimenting, spent today compiling all of the data) stuff, and a speech to prepare for in English. Also, it's 11:30 and I have priorities over this.
Anyway, nothing much happening other than the stuff above, but it looks like I'm kind of screwed for the speech since the first group that went was really good (they did a skit). My partner doesn't want to do anything else other than a regular speech, so I have to hope that our presentation is good enough.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Blueberry
Type: Flavored Green
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Medium-small dark green leaves with colorful flower petals added (red, pink, yellow, purple) and dried fruit
Color: Bright yellow-green; clear
Smell: Fruity, sweet, and floral; there's a large mix of fruits here, so I'll just say it smells very tropical
Recommended with/as: As is, iced, honey
Rating: 7/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I'd suggest this tea iced, rather than hot. Hot, it has a bit of a citrus and fruit flavor, but is actually a bit sweet. There's a bit of astringency that doesn't make the tea bitter, but gives it a dry mouthfeel. However, its taste is not that strong (and I feel like brewing it longer would make it bitter, so use more leaf) and more light. I've had this tea before and I think it's decent, but now that I've tried more teas this isn't that good anymore.
Other notes:
Short review today, since I have an AP Bio test, science fair (finished experimenting, spent today compiling all of the data) stuff, and a speech to prepare for in English. Also, it's 11:30 and I have priorities over this.
Anyway, nothing much happening other than the stuff above, but it looks like I'm kind of screwed for the speech since the first group that went was really good (they did a skit). My partner doesn't want to do anything else other than a regular speech, so I have to hope that our presentation is good enough.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Blueberry
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Day 43: Darjeeling the Second Flush
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown and green leaves, rolled and a good size
Color: Copper (orange-brown) with a light oily film on top
Smell: Roasted with notes of wood, smoke; there's also a strong muscatel smell
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
This is going to be a short review since I got a bunch of Milk Oolong from Vital Tea Leaf in SF (go there! the owner is super nice and gives free tastings along with lessons on how to properly brew tea. It's a little pricey, but it's worth it for the experience), and my parents want me to brew it for them.
I'm surprised that this tastes extremely different from the Darjeeling I had earlier (Autumnal Darjeeling I believe). It's much less floral and more full-bodied; rather, it has a strong smoky and earthy taste. The muscatel gives the tea a nice undertone, while also giving it a bit of a tangy aftertaste. It's not bitter, though the astringency in the tea gives it a different mouthfeel and keeps your throat dry.
Overall, I like it; it's probably one of the only unflavored black teas I've had so far that I can drink on its own. I think it's better that way than with anything added (which is surprising, since I usually add milk/honey).
Other notes:
Holy jeebus that Milk Oolong was amazing. It's a bit pricey at $40 for 4 oz, but it's worth it (I think you can get it cheaper in SF Chinatown at Red Blossom Tea Co. for $30, but I couldn't check because Chinese New Year). Once I'm done with this project (57 more days to go!), I think the teas I will review for sure are Sencha Tanegashima and this Milk Oolong.
Other than that, today I pretty much just went to the SF Conservatory of Flowers (good way to study for my AP Bio test tuesday) and to Chinatown. I'm working on that essay that's due tomorrow right now, and I think I'm gonna stay up late to write an outline for a history essay and study for other classes.
Also, spring forward/daylight savings time sucks.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Paradise Green
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark brown and green leaves, rolled and a good size
Color: Copper (orange-brown) with a light oily film on top
Smell: Roasted with notes of wood, smoke; there's also a strong muscatel smell
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
This is going to be a short review since I got a bunch of Milk Oolong from Vital Tea Leaf in SF (go there! the owner is super nice and gives free tastings along with lessons on how to properly brew tea. It's a little pricey, but it's worth it for the experience), and my parents want me to brew it for them.
I'm surprised that this tastes extremely different from the Darjeeling I had earlier (Autumnal Darjeeling I believe). It's much less floral and more full-bodied; rather, it has a strong smoky and earthy taste. The muscatel gives the tea a nice undertone, while also giving it a bit of a tangy aftertaste. It's not bitter, though the astringency in the tea gives it a different mouthfeel and keeps your throat dry.
Overall, I like it; it's probably one of the only unflavored black teas I've had so far that I can drink on its own. I think it's better that way than with anything added (which is surprising, since I usually add milk/honey).
Other notes:
Holy jeebus that Milk Oolong was amazing. It's a bit pricey at $40 for 4 oz, but it's worth it (I think you can get it cheaper in SF Chinatown at Red Blossom Tea Co. for $30, but I couldn't check because Chinese New Year). Once I'm done with this project (57 more days to go!), I think the teas I will review for sure are Sencha Tanegashima and this Milk Oolong.
Other than that, today I pretty much just went to the SF Conservatory of Flowers (good way to study for my AP Bio test tuesday) and to Chinatown. I'm working on that essay that's due tomorrow right now, and I think I'm gonna stay up late to write an outline for a history essay and study for other classes.
Also, spring forward/daylight savings time sucks.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Paradise Green
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Day 42: Ripe Mango Oolong
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark green, rolled oolong (relatively small and broken up) with small chunks of light yellow mango
Color: Light yellow (jasmine), clear
Smell: Strong, sweet mango smell with some floral notes
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Surprisingly, this tea was much lighter than I thought it would be. The mango taste is very realistic (and very sweet), but doesn't overpower the tea at all. In fact, it balances well with the green taste of the oolong, which gives this tea its floral notes. It's smooth with little astringency, and leaves a very strong aftertaste of mango in your mouth after drinking.
It's a pleasant tea, and is surprisingly close to actual mango juice.
Other notes:
I can't really think of anything that really happened today that was interesting. I finally got around to watching Sunset Boulevard (which I thought was great), bought groceries, and then just worked on homework for the rest of the day.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Darjeeling the Second Flush
Type: Flavored Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes 30 seconds, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark green, rolled oolong (relatively small and broken up) with small chunks of light yellow mango
Color: Light yellow (jasmine), clear
Smell: Strong, sweet mango smell with some floral notes
Recommended with/as: As is, iced
Rating: 8.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Surprisingly, this tea was much lighter than I thought it would be. The mango taste is very realistic (and very sweet), but doesn't overpower the tea at all. In fact, it balances well with the green taste of the oolong, which gives this tea its floral notes. It's smooth with little astringency, and leaves a very strong aftertaste of mango in your mouth after drinking.
It's a pleasant tea, and is surprisingly close to actual mango juice.
Other notes:
I can't really think of anything that really happened today that was interesting. I finally got around to watching Sunset Boulevard (which I thought was great), bought groceries, and then just worked on homework for the rest of the day.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Darjeeling the Second Flush
Friday, March 6, 2015
Day 41: Hifumi
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Green (Houjicha and rice blend)
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Very broken up light brown leaves (fannings, I think) with chunks of stems and various colored (red, white, brown) toasted grains/rice
Color: A light chestnut-brown; clear
Smell: Roasted smell characteristic of houjicha, with some smokiness and vinegar-like undertones
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Since the leaves in the tea bag were so broken up, I couldn't use the gaiwan today. Instead, I just did my regular brewing technique (However, I did use the gaiwan earlier with green tea, and that didn't go as well since leaves kept getting into the fairness cup and I scalded my fingers more than once). I've been using the gaiwan as an aroma cup though, which works surprisingly well.
This tea is essentially a roasted genmaicha. The smell is distinctively houjicha, but the taste is a mix between the two. It's not as strong as the previous houjichas I've tried, which isn't bad. There's a strong nutty taste complimented by the taste of the rice, along with a somewhat rich roasted flavor. It has little to no astringency or bitterness and is actually a bit savory. Unlike the other houjichas, however, it's a bit mild; if you wanted to, you could probably brew it for longer without making it too bitter.
Overall, it's good (and made for a nice dinner tea), but it's a bit too average tasting for me to really enjoy it.
Other notes:
Well, today there was school-mandated acceptance of other cultures. It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't scheduled when it was (in history, we had half of the usual time to write an essay today which sucked), and if we weren't forced to watch terribly made videos and answer worksheets about it. There was a rally which I enjoyed, but spending an hour watching videos that pretty much just said "everyone's special, and you shouldn't make fun of them for that!" isn't the way to get the point across to high schoolers (like really? I get the importance of the whole event and everything, but trying to teach it by forcing teachers to read off of a piece of paper, do a bunch of activities that no one wants to do, and play videos showing how privileged we are isn't the way to do it).
In other news, I also get to spend this weekend editing an essay, studying, working on that writeup, and making speeches. I had to do this interview thing today too for paid taste tests, but got denied since they wanted people who buy lunch at school (which is something I can't afford). I'm not too upset about it, but hey, they said there might be more tests in the future. I also ordered a DVD copy of Ikiru from the Criterion Collection (I like having hard copies of movies/shows I enjoy, and we might actually be able to watch it in Japanese class too) and the God of Love CD by Stereo Alchemy today, which I'm pretty excited about.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ripe Mango Oolong
Type: Green (Houjicha and rice blend)
Brew Time & Temperature: 2 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Very broken up light brown leaves (fannings, I think) with chunks of stems and various colored (red, white, brown) toasted grains/rice
Color: A light chestnut-brown; clear
Smell: Roasted smell characteristic of houjicha, with some smokiness and vinegar-like undertones
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Since the leaves in the tea bag were so broken up, I couldn't use the gaiwan today. Instead, I just did my regular brewing technique (However, I did use the gaiwan earlier with green tea, and that didn't go as well since leaves kept getting into the fairness cup and I scalded my fingers more than once). I've been using the gaiwan as an aroma cup though, which works surprisingly well.
This tea is essentially a roasted genmaicha. The smell is distinctively houjicha, but the taste is a mix between the two. It's not as strong as the previous houjichas I've tried, which isn't bad. There's a strong nutty taste complimented by the taste of the rice, along with a somewhat rich roasted flavor. It has little to no astringency or bitterness and is actually a bit savory. Unlike the other houjichas, however, it's a bit mild; if you wanted to, you could probably brew it for longer without making it too bitter.
Overall, it's good (and made for a nice dinner tea), but it's a bit too average tasting for me to really enjoy it.
Other notes:
Well, today there was school-mandated acceptance of other cultures. It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't scheduled when it was (in history, we had half of the usual time to write an essay today which sucked), and if we weren't forced to watch terribly made videos and answer worksheets about it. There was a rally which I enjoyed, but spending an hour watching videos that pretty much just said "everyone's special, and you shouldn't make fun of them for that!" isn't the way to get the point across to high schoolers (like really? I get the importance of the whole event and everything, but trying to teach it by forcing teachers to read off of a piece of paper, do a bunch of activities that no one wants to do, and play videos showing how privileged we are isn't the way to do it).
In other news, I also get to spend this weekend editing an essay, studying, working on that writeup, and making speeches. I had to do this interview thing today too for paid taste tests, but got denied since they wanted people who buy lunch at school (which is something I can't afford). I'm not too upset about it, but hey, they said there might be more tests in the future. I also ordered a DVD copy of Ikiru from the Criterion Collection (I like having hard copies of movies/shows I enjoy, and we might actually be able to watch it in Japanese class too) and the God of Love CD by Stereo Alchemy today, which I'm pretty excited about.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Ripe Mango Oolong
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Day 40: La Vie en Rose
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Herbal (Rooibos, Rose hip, Hibiscus)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark red/orange/yellow rooibos with bright lavender flower petals and dried rose petals
Color: Dark brown/copper; clear (light oily film on top, however)
Smell: Strong rose and rooibos smell (like medicine) with notes of honey
Recommended with/as: As is, honey
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
If you don't like the taste of roses or rooibos, you will not like this tea at all. The taste is predominantly rose (and is what it smells like), with the medicinal taste of rooibos as an undertone. Personally, though, I really like rose tea since it's one of the first teas that I drank semi-often. Overall, it's very floral and a bit tart, but not complex at all due to the super strong taste of the rose hips that overpowers almost everything else. I want to say more, but this is a pretty basic tea in terms of flavor.
It's good enough (better than plain rose hip tea or green tea with roses), but the rooibos taste kind of kills it for me. The name is very fitting, though, and La Vie en Rose is actually one of my favorite songs by Edith Piaf.
Other notes:
That math test went worse than expected- I finished it early (and I'm pretty confident about most of it), but there were just a few problems, namely inequalities, that I just think I messed up terribly. I really need to get better with those and the number line test, since I can get the answer but don't know what signs I should pick. The rest of the day went better, I guess, but that killed my mood for a while.
Also, I was actually able to get a decent sleep in for once (not in terms of length, but in feeling; waking up felt great)! For some reason though, I can't remember if things happen in dreams or in real life anymore and everything just seems hazy. It used to happen occasionally, but I feel like it's getting more common now, so I'm a little worried (I don't think its really affected anything like school yet, since it only happens with events or things that people tell me, rather than learning).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Hifumi
Type: Flavored Herbal (Rooibos, Rose hip, Hibiscus)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Dark red/orange/yellow rooibos with bright lavender flower petals and dried rose petals
Color: Dark brown/copper; clear (light oily film on top, however)
Smell: Strong rose and rooibos smell (like medicine) with notes of honey
Recommended with/as: As is, honey
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
If you don't like the taste of roses or rooibos, you will not like this tea at all. The taste is predominantly rose (and is what it smells like), with the medicinal taste of rooibos as an undertone. Personally, though, I really like rose tea since it's one of the first teas that I drank semi-often. Overall, it's very floral and a bit tart, but not complex at all due to the super strong taste of the rose hips that overpowers almost everything else. I want to say more, but this is a pretty basic tea in terms of flavor.
It's good enough (better than plain rose hip tea or green tea with roses), but the rooibos taste kind of kills it for me. The name is very fitting, though, and La Vie en Rose is actually one of my favorite songs by Edith Piaf.
Other notes:
That math test went worse than expected- I finished it early (and I'm pretty confident about most of it), but there were just a few problems, namely inequalities, that I just think I messed up terribly. I really need to get better with those and the number line test, since I can get the answer but don't know what signs I should pick. The rest of the day went better, I guess, but that killed my mood for a while.
Also, I was actually able to get a decent sleep in for once (not in terms of length, but in feeling; waking up felt great)! For some reason though, I can't remember if things happen in dreams or in real life anymore and everything just seems hazy. It used to happen occasionally, but I feel like it's getting more common now, so I'm a little worried (I don't think its really affected anything like school yet, since it only happens with events or things that people tell me, rather than learning).
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Hifumi
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Day 39: Jardin Sauvage
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Herbal (Rooibos)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Very colorful; red, green, and yellow rooibos with yellow and lavender flower petals and dried fruit
Color: Golden yellow (or light orange); clear
Smell: Mix of fruits (mango being the most noticeable), but it doesn't smell super sweet, as you would expect
Recommended with/as: As is, honey, iced, sugar
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I think this is one of the best rooibos I've had so far! It has a great color and smell- it looks pleasing, and the fruit smell is very realistic. As expected of rooibos, it has little astringency or bitterness, but unlike most rooibos, it doesn't have that cough syrup or medicine taste or smell. It's mellow, and the fruit flavor adds a bit of natural sweetness to the tea. The rooibos adds a bit of complex flavor that mixes well with the tropical flavor.
Didn't add anything to the tea today, since I'm too lazy to set up usual tea set stuff (see below for why), but I think it'll be good with any sweetener, or on its own- I would probably prefer it alone, actually. Really, the only gripe I have with it is that it's a bit light. It's fine as it is, but a stronger fruit flavor wouldn't hurt. Considering that it's rooibos and has no caffeine, I wouldn't mind making this a regular night tea.
Other notes:
I am super tired today, so I'm going to keep this short. Was up until 3 AM putting together that Japanese commercial (pretty much all of my editing stuff fell apart, so I had to install new ones), and I'm probably going to have to stay up late today doing AP Bio, science fair, and English speech/essay stuff. Woooooo.
On another note, surprisingly the math test I took was super easy, and I'm really confident about the one tomorrow (if I could finish the test half asleep and check all of my answers, I should be good). So, let's see how that goes considering that I'm not going to get much studying done because of homework from other classes.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: La Vie en Rose
Type: Flavored Herbal (Rooibos)
Brew Time & Temperature: 4 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Very colorful; red, green, and yellow rooibos with yellow and lavender flower petals and dried fruit
Color: Golden yellow (or light orange); clear
Smell: Mix of fruits (mango being the most noticeable), but it doesn't smell super sweet, as you would expect
Recommended with/as: As is, honey, iced, sugar
Rating: 9/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I think this is one of the best rooibos I've had so far! It has a great color and smell- it looks pleasing, and the fruit smell is very realistic. As expected of rooibos, it has little astringency or bitterness, but unlike most rooibos, it doesn't have that cough syrup or medicine taste or smell. It's mellow, and the fruit flavor adds a bit of natural sweetness to the tea. The rooibos adds a bit of complex flavor that mixes well with the tropical flavor.
Didn't add anything to the tea today, since I'm too lazy to set up usual tea set stuff (see below for why), but I think it'll be good with any sweetener, or on its own- I would probably prefer it alone, actually. Really, the only gripe I have with it is that it's a bit light. It's fine as it is, but a stronger fruit flavor wouldn't hurt. Considering that it's rooibos and has no caffeine, I wouldn't mind making this a regular night tea.
Other notes:
I am super tired today, so I'm going to keep this short. Was up until 3 AM putting together that Japanese commercial (pretty much all of my editing stuff fell apart, so I had to install new ones), and I'm probably going to have to stay up late today doing AP Bio, science fair, and English speech/essay stuff. Woooooo.
On another note, surprisingly the math test I took was super easy, and I'm really confident about the one tomorrow (if I could finish the test half asleep and check all of my answers, I should be good). So, let's see how that goes considering that I'm not going to get much studying done because of homework from other classes.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: La Vie en Rose
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Day 38: Taiwan Oolong-Dongding
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: Tried brewing with a gaiwan today, so no exact measurements
Leaf Appearance: Large, dark green balled oolong leaves
Color: Light yellow/orange; clear
Smell: Roasted, somewhat like rice (comparable to houjicha, but less harsh), very light floral smell
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, today's review is mostly a way for me to practice and test out using a gaiwan. I got the travel set from Music City Tea ($22 including shipping- 2 day), and I'd say I'm pretty happy with it. It includes a gaiwan, fairness cup, 5 cups, tweezers/tongs, and 2 strainers. The only problems I have with it is that: it's a bit small (but that's expected considering the price and that it's a travel set), and the fairness cup drips a bit if you don't pour at an exact angle. It's great, otherwise!
The tea turned out to be actually pretty good, even though I'm sure I screwed up the brewing times and water temperature. It tastes and smells very similar to pan fried green tea, but is a bit sweet rather than grassy. It's light and not astringent at all (but it does have a strange mouthfeel). Overall, I think it's good, but I can't really be sure since (I think) this is my first unflavored oolong.
Other notes:
Nothing much other than we got the rest of the commercial filmed (with two days left)!!! I couldn't work on the project report though, since I have a math test tomorrow and need to get the editing/post production done. Started filming at four, finished at 6 and then started editing, and it's still going on now past 10.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Jardin Sauvage
Type: Oolong
Brew Time & Temperature: Tried brewing with a gaiwan today, so no exact measurements
Leaf Appearance: Large, dark green balled oolong leaves
Color: Light yellow/orange; clear
Smell: Roasted, somewhat like rice (comparable to houjicha, but less harsh), very light floral smell
Recommended with/as: As is
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
Well, today's review is mostly a way for me to practice and test out using a gaiwan. I got the travel set from Music City Tea ($22 including shipping- 2 day), and I'd say I'm pretty happy with it. It includes a gaiwan, fairness cup, 5 cups, tweezers/tongs, and 2 strainers. The only problems I have with it is that: it's a bit small (but that's expected considering the price and that it's a travel set), and the fairness cup drips a bit if you don't pour at an exact angle. It's great, otherwise!
The tea turned out to be actually pretty good, even though I'm sure I screwed up the brewing times and water temperature. It tastes and smells very similar to pan fried green tea, but is a bit sweet rather than grassy. It's light and not astringent at all (but it does have a strange mouthfeel). Overall, I think it's good, but I can't really be sure since (I think) this is my first unflavored oolong.
Other notes:
Nothing much other than we got the rest of the commercial filmed (with two days left)!!! I couldn't work on the project report though, since I have a math test tomorrow and need to get the editing/post production done. Started filming at four, finished at 6 and then started editing, and it's still going on now past 10.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Jardin Sauvage
Monday, March 2, 2015
Day 37: Momo
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small black leaves with pale green leaves added (peach leaves, apparently); there are also a few twigs
Color: Clear, amber
Smell: Sweet and floral, with a tiny bit of grass and fruitiness (the peach smell is very pleasing and gives the tea its sweet smell)
Recommended with/as: As is, sugar, milk, honey, iced
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
To be honest, I think this tea doesn't compare to Lupicia's other peach teas. Like their other teas, the peach is very realistic, but I think the black tea flavor overpowers it, or at the very least, weakens it. It starts off somewhat sweet with earthy and malty undertones, and finishes with a slight tanginess. There's also a bit of a floral taste that I really like (probably from the peach). However, it seems that the taste is around 60% malty black tea and 40% peach, affecting the overall taste since the tea base is just very generic.
Adding milk made it a bit worse, since it made the flavors even lighter- I could only really taste the earthiness of the black tea. If I had to compare Lupicia's peach teas to each other, I would say that their oolong is the best, followed by their green, and then the black. It's a good tea, but I didn't really like how the peach tasted with black tea (I prefer a more flavorful base for these kind of teas, or at least one that pairs well with the peach). If you prefer a milder fruit tea, I'd suggest this to you, but personally, I'd like Lupicia's peach teas to have a stronger flavor.
Other notes:
Well, I got one of my recital pieces changed from the Howl's Moving Castle theme to Schroeder's Failure. To be honest, I don't practice enough to learn all of the chords and get the muscle memory to play at the right speed. Other than that, nothing much other than a surprisingly easy math test and science fair stuff. The science fair report is due end of next week, so I gotta start working on that (and of course, my lab partners won't help with the writing). Also, I have a gaiwan set that should come in the mail tomorrow, so if I can (depends on the leaf), I'll try to use that to review greens/oolongs.
Just so I remember and have some motivation to do it, here is my plan:
This week: finish questions being addressed, list of variables, hypotheses, background research, materials lists, procedure, acknowledgments, bibliography
Next week: data analysis, conclusions, ideas for future research, abstract
Week after that: build the project board, put everything together, make a pitch, then the science fair (woo)!
I'll try to give updates on my progress for that.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Taiwan Oolong-Dongding
Type: Flavored Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Small black leaves with pale green leaves added (peach leaves, apparently); there are also a few twigs
Color: Clear, amber
Smell: Sweet and floral, with a tiny bit of grass and fruitiness (the peach smell is very pleasing and gives the tea its sweet smell)
Recommended with/as: As is, sugar, milk, honey, iced
Rating: 7.5/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
To be honest, I think this tea doesn't compare to Lupicia's other peach teas. Like their other teas, the peach is very realistic, but I think the black tea flavor overpowers it, or at the very least, weakens it. It starts off somewhat sweet with earthy and malty undertones, and finishes with a slight tanginess. There's also a bit of a floral taste that I really like (probably from the peach). However, it seems that the taste is around 60% malty black tea and 40% peach, affecting the overall taste since the tea base is just very generic.
Adding milk made it a bit worse, since it made the flavors even lighter- I could only really taste the earthiness of the black tea. If I had to compare Lupicia's peach teas to each other, I would say that their oolong is the best, followed by their green, and then the black. It's a good tea, but I didn't really like how the peach tasted with black tea (I prefer a more flavorful base for these kind of teas, or at least one that pairs well with the peach). If you prefer a milder fruit tea, I'd suggest this to you, but personally, I'd like Lupicia's peach teas to have a stronger flavor.
Other notes:
Well, I got one of my recital pieces changed from the Howl's Moving Castle theme to Schroeder's Failure. To be honest, I don't practice enough to learn all of the chords and get the muscle memory to play at the right speed. Other than that, nothing much other than a surprisingly easy math test and science fair stuff. The science fair report is due end of next week, so I gotta start working on that (and of course, my lab partners won't help with the writing). Also, I have a gaiwan set that should come in the mail tomorrow, so if I can (depends on the leaf), I'll try to use that to review greens/oolongs.
Just so I remember and have some motivation to do it, here is my plan:
This week: finish questions being addressed, list of variables, hypotheses, background research, materials lists, procedure, acknowledgments, bibliography
Next week: data analysis, conclusions, ideas for future research, abstract
Week after that: build the project board, put everything together, make a pitch, then the science fair (woo)!
I'll try to give updates on my progress for that.
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Taiwan Oolong-Dongding
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Day 36: Tea Break
Brand: Lupicia
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Curled, dark brown nilgiri tea
Color: Dark amber/copper; clear, but with an oily film on top
Smell: Earthy- similar to an assam, but less strong- and fruity
Recommended with/as: As is, sugar, milk, honey
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I was a bit surprised at the fruitiness of this tea. It smells and tastes like grapes or raisins, and is not astringent or bitter at all. Rather, it's smooth and a bit sweet, and doesn't have the strength of other Indian teas. There are some earthy notes, but the most dominant taste is the fruit. Since it's not as strong as other teas, I'd suggest this both with and without milk or sweetener (I've tried both, and I'd say they're equally good). Personally, however, I'd prefer a more full-bodied tea over this- I like it, but I usually like my unflavored black teas strong.
Other notes:
Another morning post! This will be the last one for at least a couple days or a week, I promise.
Anyway, since I haven't explained it yet, here's my rating system:
10/10: This tea is amazing, I will never have another tea as good as this one ever again
9/10: I really like this tea- if I could, I'd drink it everyday or very often for a long time
8/10: It's decent enough, and I would drink it if someone gave it to me or if I was in the right mood
7/10: Ehh, it's OK, but there's better teas out there
6/10: Once is fine, thank you
5 and below/10: I have never had a tea as undrinkable as this
And here's how I categorize teas:
Green & black teas: This is obvious
Pu-erh and oolong: I felt like these teas are different enough from a basic green/black tea that they should have their own category (especially oolong; pu-erh is debatable)
Herbal: pretty much all tisanes, including rooibos
Blend: if it contains 2 or more of the above categories, like an herbal and green blend
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Momo
Type: Black
Brew Time & Temperature: 3 minutes, boiling
Leaf Appearance: Curled, dark brown nilgiri tea
Color: Dark amber/copper; clear, but with an oily film on top
Smell: Earthy- similar to an assam, but less strong- and fruity
Recommended with/as: As is, sugar, milk, honey
Rating: 8/10
Tasting notes and thoughts:
I was a bit surprised at the fruitiness of this tea. It smells and tastes like grapes or raisins, and is not astringent or bitter at all. Rather, it's smooth and a bit sweet, and doesn't have the strength of other Indian teas. There are some earthy notes, but the most dominant taste is the fruit. Since it's not as strong as other teas, I'd suggest this both with and without milk or sweetener (I've tried both, and I'd say they're equally good). Personally, however, I'd prefer a more full-bodied tea over this- I like it, but I usually like my unflavored black teas strong.
Other notes:
Another morning post! This will be the last one for at least a couple days or a week, I promise.
Anyway, since I haven't explained it yet, here's my rating system:
10/10: This tea is amazing, I will never have another tea as good as this one ever again
9/10: I really like this tea- if I could, I'd drink it everyday or very often for a long time
8/10: It's decent enough, and I would drink it if someone gave it to me or if I was in the right mood
7/10: Ehh, it's OK, but there's better teas out there
6/10: Once is fine, thank you
5 and below/10: I have never had a tea as undrinkable as this
And here's how I categorize teas:
Green & black teas: This is obvious
Pu-erh and oolong: I felt like these teas are different enough from a basic green/black tea that they should have their own category (especially oolong; pu-erh is debatable)
Herbal: pretty much all tisanes, including rooibos
Blend: if it contains 2 or more of the above categories, like an herbal and green blend
Next on the 100 Days of Tea: Momo
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