Review: Royal Alwazah Tea (Swan Brand) - Finlays

Type: Black
Producer: Finlays
Origin: Sri Lanka
Brewing Parameters: 5 minutes, 100°C, 1 teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Tall trapezoidal, bleached white teabag with black tea fannings
Rating: A- | 90/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
So, 200th tea today! The tea itself probably doesn't seem that special, but I think it has some good memories associated with it. I picked this one up during the California We the People state competition; our team has a tradition of going to Disneyland at this time, so we were in Anaheim after winning first place. The rooms were really nice– they had a kitchen, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms. I was with the guys I was cool with on the team; they're all kind of nerdy, but were chill and easy to room with. I remember one of them spent the entire night talking to his girlfriend on the phone (a conversation that wasn't going that well) and another one staying up past 1 or 2 AM on reddit and reading comics. As for the team it's kind of weird; I found it left behind in a container in the kitchen cupboard. I know I probably shouldn't trust random teabags I find in hotel rooms, but hey, I'm going to college. Time to take chances! That same night we stayed in that hotel, I hung out with the rest of the team playing video games until midnight, and was invited to come with some random girls to their room while in the elevator (I politely declined). This tea just feels a bit symbolic for me, especially considering I've changed so much since I've started writing this blog. Here's to a great senior year, and an even better four years at Cal.

Apparently, this is a popular Arabic tea. The producer has a very in depth website, which is great for me, since the packaging itself is relatively bare. Brewing per the instructions makes the tea come out very strong and dark; I'd say it looked like a cup of coffee, a very dark opaque brown, without the smell. The aroma was similar to English Breakfast, with its earthiness. However, it was definitely more sweet. For some reason, it reminds me of spices and cola, with all of its sweetness. Despite its color, the taste was surprisingly not too bitter or too strong. It's a very rich and savory tea; it's earthy, like the smell, and malty, with a little bit of coffee notes in the background. I thought it tasted like chai, without the milk or kick from spice. Like most black teas of this type, it gets a bit sour and leaves somewhat of a waxy feeling in the mouth, and had a slight bit of astringency. However, it was still a lot better than I expected (I thought it would be essentially the same as English or Irish breakfast, or maybe even Lipton), and I think it'd be great with milk and maybe a bit of sweetener. I'd definitely buy the loose leaf if I could ever find it in an international store.


Other Notes
Today's album is Twin Cinema by the New Pornographers. This album is interesting since it has a nice balance of indie rock and folksy stuff. I've liked the song Streets of Fire by them for a while now, after hearing it on an art stream a few years ago, and I finally bought the album on CD when I found it at Half-Price Books yesterday. More on that below.

Yesterday seemed like one of those quintessential summer vacation days, and I'm so happy it happened. My Cal friend wanted to hang out and get boba since she's going backpacking for the next few days and won't have access to social media. I picked her up, along with my unitmate, and we went to the Asian grocery store for drinks. We hung out there for a while, talking, and when we finished, we explored a bit for snacks. Without any plans, really, I drove them to Half Price Books where we spent most of the time there looking through music; my Cal friend and I both have interesting music tastes, mostly indie. HPB surprisingly has a really good selection of CDs and vinyl, mostly used, and when we found Twin Cinema, we immediately chose to buy it to listen in the car. We had a quick stop at the thrift store before we drove back to drop off my unitmate at her house.

Once she was gone, it was evening and the sun was setting. We played the CD and drove around town with the windows down, and we went to a park that my friends and I have gone a few times to smoke. I brought her up to a big hill that overlooks the city, where you can see a ridge, hills, trees, and a farm, and we watched the sunset together and talked. We were there until it got dark; the moonlight illuminated a lot of the trail and we enjoyed the summer breeze. There was a meteor that passed by, too. It was getting late, but we walked through the park together and played on a big metal slide and some swings for a while. Getting back to the car, we had to run through a couple of sprinklers, but after that, I drove her home. It's been a long time since I've had one of these days, but I'm glad I had one before I go to Berkeley, and I'm glad I spent it with her.

Review: Lemon Lift - Bigelow

Type: Black
Producer: Bigelow
Origin: USA
Brewing Parameters: 2 minutes, 1 2.3g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Bleached trapezoidal tea bag with mostly black tea fannings
Rating: C | 75/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
So, I was supposed to review a different tea today. I was at a law firm and I grabbed some teabags, in particular a darjeeling. I lost it; either, I misplaced it or it fell out of my pocket, so here we are now.  After brewing, this tea came out a very dark brown color. It actually had a lot more oil on the surface than any tea recently; a ring formed around the top of the cup because of that. The smell wasn't what I expected. It smelled like baked goods, sweet and with cinnamon and lemon. As for the actual taste, it was surprisingly close to the smell. It's not sour, or lemony really, but instead a bit more bitter. It's definitely astringent, too. The taste is subdued and earthy, with a bit of sour from the lemon. It becomes sweet for a while, but the bitterness lingers on the tongue long after and dries the throat. Overall, it's a pretty bland tea. It's not terrible, but it's not very good.


Other Notes
Today's album is Everywhere Else by little xs for eyes. I already mentioned them previously, but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that I checked out their work again. When I did the last time, they only had released their EP. This is their second full length album and I like it as much as the EP (the reason why I started listening to them in the first place).

As I mentioned in the last post, I got my license, so I drove my unitmate and my Cal friend to the Great Mall. It was an easy day; we played at the arcade, did some shopping for my dad's birthday gift, ate at the food court, watched Spiderman: Homecoming (really good– wasn't expecting that), and got some boba in town before heading back home. As much as I love arcades, I forgot how expensive Dave and Buster's is, and how badly maintained a few of the machines are. It's a good place for claw machines and new releases, though. Did I mention: in middle school, I used to be obsessed with claw machines. I stopped after my closet was filled with stuffed animal prizes, and now I think they're pretty easy to win if the machine isn't rigged; it's a good skill to have if I ever go on dates. Afterwards, my Cal friend and I came back to my house and we watched some of Over the Garden Wall before I drove her back to her home. I stayed up late to work on a research essay, which, admittedly, I'm currently procrastinating on.

Today was the second summer session for next year's We the People teams. It went pretty well; once again, my school's team had the least attendance. My job this time was to judge an alumni panel and then to judge some groups from next year's team. Compared to the questions asked by the actual judges there, I'm surprised at how rusty I am– I felt like I couldn't contribute much in terms of good questions and feedback. We went with some people from another school (not our rival school), and my unit called me out on finessing one of them (I was not). Once again, I was the only guy there, and she sat next to me so I talked to her. We took the BART together and I added her on Snapchat. Just being friendly. Not finessing, my unit. After that, I went home and, since it's my dad's birthday, we went out to eat at an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue.

Review: Constant Comment - Bigelow

Type: Black
Producer: Bigelow
Origin: USA
Brewing Parameters: 2 minutes, 1 2g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Paper trapezoidal teabag with black tea fannings and chunks of orange rind
Rating: C | 77/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Short review today, and probably for the rest of the teabag reviews– there isn't enough to really write about since I'm drinking a single mug/brew of the tea.

So, this tea is another one of the teas I got from my Cal friend. I think I've had this tea at least once before, but I've forgotten its taste long ago. It says it has orange and spice in it, and I'm a big fan of orange teas (and orange chocolate, too– I've had a lot of that lately). After brewing this tea with 90°C water, it came out a deep, ruby-amber color. It smelled sweet; somewhat like the perfume of a potpourri, with a light orange scent. Although I brewed it for the recommended two minutes, it tasted a lot more bitter than I expected. I'm not sure if the temperature was too high, or if it's just the tea, but it definitely had the astringency and bitterness of an overbrewed tea. The other tastes, however, are very earthy. The orange is mostly in the background, giving the tea a slightly fruity and sour taste. You can't taste the spices until the end, where they leave a very vague aftertaste. It tastes exactly as it smells. Overall, it's not bad, but it's not great. If I had more teabags, I'd give it another chance because it feels like it's more bitter than it should be.

Other Notes
Today's album is Pink Season: The Prophecy by Filthy Frank. Surprisingly, Filthy Frank (or Joji) makes some pretty good rap and electronic music. I've been a fan of 88rising, an Asian producer, that he's been working with, so I was pretty excited when this EP came out. Best song is Fried Noodles (Getter Remix) in my opinion.

Yesterday was interesting. Biked with my dad in the morning the usual thirty mile route, and in the evening, went with my unitmate to get some food. Afterwards, we went to a concert my friend was putting on, which was surprisingly better than I expected for some small, local rock bands. We played a lot of cornhole, too, before going to get some soft serve. I'm a bit bummed since I dropped my phone (or it was knocked out my hand, not really sure) and the screen cracked pretty badly. I'm getting it repaired tomorrow, but it's a bit expensive– $75– and I haven't been able to get shifts at work. The pay for my internship also doesn't come in until next month, so I'm just going to have to eat the cost. I need to figure out my finances in college; I want to be able to follow a strict budget to save money, especially since I won't have an income for a while.

Today was fun, though! I went with my dad to Berkeley and we hiked quite a bit. Went up Panoramic Way to the lower Fire Trail, then the Botanical Garden, and then Big C. From the BART station, it's about 7-8 miles, and it's very steep, so I'm really sore right now. On the way, I did realize, though, that I made the best choice for college for me(in the whole Cal vs UCLA debate I've had with myself). I love the beauty of the nature around Cal (since I'm interested in environmental science, it's probably best I didn't choose to go to downtown LA), the nice people, the fact that there's access to so much stuff through public transit, the professors, the nerdiness and weirdness, and so much other stuff. It sucks that we're known for being so politically charged/liberal, which makes everything very tense in this political climate and people judgy, but that's expected to come from Cal's historical reputation. Anyways, since I love Southern and cajun food, we went to Angeline's Louisiana Kitchen for lunch and we shared one plate of fried chicken and one plate of fried catfish, with mashed sweet potatoes and hush puppies. Before we left, our waitress gave us a free order of beignets since someone canceled their order. Now, I'm writing this review.

This week, as I've mentioned before, is going to be a busy one. I have lunches with friends and teachers, another competition civics session in San Francisco, an essay due, shopping for college, my driving test, and so on. I really want to work at the ice cream shop to get money, but at the same time, I kind of have a lot on my plate and there's a lot of competition for open shifts– too many workers and not enough shifts. It's weird; I don't want summer to end, but I'm excited for college, but I don't want to start that transition in my life, and I don't want my friends to move, and I don't want the stress, but I'm gonna have to face it at one point, and on and on.

Review: Honey Tea - Love from Minnesota

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Love from Minnesota
Origin: Sri Lanka
Brewing Parameters: 90°C, 250mL water, 2.2g teabag, 5 min.
Appearance: Small, rectangular paper tea bag with small black fannings
Rating: B | 84/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
So, I was supposed to review a different tea today, but my parents just got back from Minnesota and they brought this back. There's actually less information on the packaging for this tea than the ones from Taiwan; all I could really find was the name of the company (with a very cheesy and touristy logo), name of the tea, and location of production. The brewing parameters above, therefore, are what I'm choosing to do for myself.

The honey smell for this tea is very apprarent. It's in the loose leaf and the brewed liquid. I'm not versed enough in honey to figure out the flower its from, but it's very concentrated. If you've cooked with honey, or made honey candy before, you'd know the smell– it's very strong. As for the actual tea, it brewed a dark ruby color. It tastes very fruity (like berries) with notes of chocolate. I don't taste any strong honey flavors, but I think it adds a natural sweetness which is subtle, but there. There's only a slight bitter taste and some astringency after drinking, and a sour flavor lingers on the tongue. Overall, I'm pleasantly surprised at how good this tea is. It's a bit pricy; apparently it was around $5 for only 15 tea bags. I'd like to try it with milk, but it doesn't need extra sweetener.


Other Notes
Today's album isn't exactly an album. It's D.R.A.M's NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert, which is pretty good. I found it through Chance the Rapper's Tiny Desk Concert (recommend that one too!). Generally, I've only really heard D.R.A.M. at parties or dances, but I'm actually very surprised how good of a singer he is. He reminds me of a few soul singers. The version of Broccoli he sings in this concert is great– much different than the album version.

After my parents left on Wednesday to go visit my sister in Minnesota, I've been very busy. I graduated the Justice Academy that day; the group speech went well (i.e. not great), but apparently I spoke well enough that I was asked to give a testimonial of the program for the press team. Afterwards, I got lunch with my friends at a Thai place and went home.

From Thursday to Sunday, I've either been getting high or drunk each day, and I regret it so much. On Friday, I hung out with one of my guy friends for the first time this summer (as I mentioned previously, I've been hanging out with girls exclusively) and of course, he wanted to smoke. It was fun seeing him again, since we grew up together and haven't met since school ended, but I remembered why I don't like hanging out with him too often: every time we hang out he wants to get high and tries to pressure everyone into it. After that, I cooked dinner with that friend that's also going to Cal and we watched Moonrise Kingdom (great movie, I loved it).

Then, on Saturday, I went to San Francisco to present a We the People testimony for next year's teams with my unitmate and a few friends from other schools. It went well; I'm a bit disappointed in the team from my school, though, since they were the last group to arrive and came in the smallest numbers. They're good at speaking, but I feel like the other teams have more motivation and potential than ours. After the workshops were over, the people hosting the event brought us to lunch at the Irish Bank and after, we went to get milk tea. I spent the rest of the evening with one of the people from the other schools (same unit as that girl I liked). We watched Antz and Hot Fuzz, had a few beers and a shot, and ate some of the birthday cheesecake I baked for her.

After she left, my guy friends called me up randomly to ask if they wanted to hang out (at around 10 pm), and I said yes since I haven't seen one of them in a while. I ended up regretting it. In short, they were high and smoked throughout the night, and we got In N Out, played Mario Kart, and watched videos we made as kids. It was fun, but again, my problem is that the only thing my guy friends want to do when we hang out is get high. It sounds more judgy than I wish it does, but they seem a lot more and more like stereotypical douchy fratboys.

I always thought that, in college, I wanted to be someone who goes out to parties and gets drunk and does all that stuff. But, after this weekend, and comparing it to my different friend groups, I don't think that it's for me. I don't know if it's because I've drifted apart from my old friend group (the guys), or what, but I just don't find the same enjoyment they do in smoking, skateboarding, freestyle rapping, or BMXing. I don't enjoy getting high as a kite, or drunk off my ass, or having intimate relationships with girls only for sex. I like doing what I do with the friends I made this year– cooking dinner together, going out for food, watching movies, hanging out together, and only occasionally, having a few beers or some weed. Doing bad stuff is nice in moderation, and when it isn't the only thing you do with your friends. I can't handle doing it every day like some of my friends do, nor do I want to. I guess it's good that I'm figuring this stuff out now; as much as I tell people to embrace who they are and do what they love (especially for college applications), I've struggled with coming to terms with my identity. It's hard, man, and I hope I figure it out in college.

Review: English Breakfast - Organa

Type: Black
Producer: Organa
Origin: Tanzania
Brewing Parameters: 90-100°C, one 4.8 g bag, 3-5 min., 12 oz. water
Appearance: A circular, paper/cloth tea bag ("pod") with small CTC black leaves
Rating: C+| 78/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Now that I'm done with my loose leaf tea backlog, I can finally get to all of the tea bags I've been meaning to review. As with my previous teabag reviews, these are going to be a bit shorter because they usually can only be brewed once in small amounts; there isn't enough leaf most of the time. Before I end this blog around August 14 (Berkeley move-in date), I want to reach 200 total reviews and I think this last round of teas will bring me there. If not, well, I can always buy more tea.

The story behind this tea is a simple one. I think we were practicing in San Francisco for the national competition for We the People at some law firm, and while we were waiting to begin, they let us use their coffee and tea. Since the packaging of this tea looks very fancy, I took one bag home to review, and three or four months later, here we are. Surprisingly, there is a large amount of leaf in these pods, as they are advertised, which are similar in shape to Trader Joe's Irish Breakfast tea. One thing I thought was cool was that the bag had "This Side Down" printed on its side, which helped keep the bag submerged while brewing (pod-style teabags tend to float because of air trapped inside).

I brewed it for three minutes or so, and the liquid came out a very dark, opaque brown. It had the standard smell of English breakfast, with its brown sugar, earthy, and slightly musty aroma. It was much more coffee-like than other brands I've tried; it tasted bitter, with some sour notes and what I could best compare to soy sauce. It's not astringent, but it did leave a waxy texture on the tongue and I could taste the bitter flavor long after. It's been a while since I've drank English Breakfast, but I think I've had better than this. Bonus points for its packaging (and for being organic, if you're into that), but the verdict is that it's an average blend. I recommend drinking it with milk to mask those coffee flavors if you don't like them.

Other Notes
Today's album is the Hamilton: An American Musical soundtrack by Lin-Manuel Miranda. I know it's late, but a friend finally made me listen to it in its entirety (especially since one of the themes this year at Berkeley is Hamilton) and it's pretty good. I usually prefer to watch the actual musical, either in movie form or in a theatre, before I listen to the soundtrack; however, this stands on its own as an interesting drama on its own. It also helps to have a strong background in American history to appreciate it.

Work at the District Attorney's office isn't great. I don't think I'm cut out for an administrative office job; a lot of the work is pretty mind-numbing and repetitive. As for everything else, I've watched a few movies lately– Young Frankenstein and Moana, to name two. I'm not getting shifts at the ice cream shop, which is a pain since I'd like the extra money. I've been hanging out with people more, particularly my We the People unit, one of my best friends going to Berkeley too, and an old friend. I also went to the grad party of someone in the unit of that girl I like from the other team, which went a lot better. I met a few people and it was fun (wasn't awkward either), but for future reference, I need to remember these two things: don't sweat the small things, and confidence is not the same as having no filter. I should work on that.

Lastly, I started that online class for Berkeley. It's interesting enough, with the assigned readings and all, and gives me practice for my writing. But, as I read the responses of my peers there, I wonder; why was I chosen for the Regent's scholarship? Everyone there is amazing at writing and very intelligent, sometimes much more than I think I am. I wonder if I come off as smart as everyone else there; I also wonder if I'll be cut out for Berkeley. I guess it's a bit frightening (for lack of a better term) to think about how everyone is as hard-working, motivated, and smart as I am, but also exciting at the same time. Maybe I'll finally be average there at Berkeley, and it's a weird feeling since I've talked with friends about how I never wanted to be as distinguished as I ended up being in high school. We'll see once school starts, but if I do write about it, it'll probably be on a new blog. Thanks for reading.

Review: Taiwan Black Tea - Unknown

Type: Black
Producer: Unknown
Origin: Taiwan
Brewing Parameters: 90°C, 6g, gongfu style
Appearance: Mix of dark and light brown curled/rolled leaves of medium size
Rating: B | 83/100
# of Brews: 4

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Short review today because I'm busy and not really feeling going in depth on this one. This is one of the teas that is almost completely in Chinese except for the name (which is pretty vague on its own). Because of that, I don't really have much information to go off of and I'll just assume that it's a standard black tea.

Interestingly, the dry leaf is relatively pungent– with a smoky, malty smell. When brewed, the leaf became a bit more sour smelling, but kept the smoky notes. For some reason, I keep thinking this is fermented (smells slightly like it'd be). The liquid was a nice clear, bright orange-amber color with very quick brew times; since the leaves were loosely rolled, there was no need to brew for more than five or ten seconds. As for the taste, it's similar to the Azores Pekoe Black. It's very malty (like it smells), somewhat earthy, and ends on a sour note. It's a bit astringent, but doesn't really have an aftertaste. All in all, it's not a bad tea, but it's not great– it's average. I'd be interested in trying it with milk, just for the hell of it.


Other Notes
As I said above, busy day today. I'm taking my permit test (again), getting my suit dry cleaned for work (starting work at the Fremont DA's office on Monday!), getting some gifts for peoples' grad parties, and maybe hanging out with friends. The goal is to get my license by July, so we'll see how that goes. I also start an online class for incoming Berkeley freshmen next week, which I'm unsure if it'll be a waste of time or not, but it's two free units so I'm not really complaining.

I feel like I shouldn't work this much this summer because it's the first time I really don't have that many responsibilities, but I don't know. I wish I could travel like it a lot of my friends are doing. My ex told me a while ago that I'm probably going to be one of those people who end up constantly working their ass off and never have a social life, which kind of sucks. I'm going to try and fix that this summer and in college; it's hard since I never really had the same high school experience as a lot of my friends. Oh well.

Also, remember that girl from the other comp civics team? We were going to hang out next week, but she ended up bailing on me last night. It's been kind of on par for how our relationship has been; she says she just wants to be friends (which I'm fine with), but always just seems kind of cold to me in my opinion. I'm going to her grad party this Sunday; I don't know how that's going to go. I should really move on, but it's easier said than done. So it goes.

Review: Chocolate Chipotle - Tea Chai Te

Type: Flavored Black (Chai)
Producer: Tea Chai Te
Origin: Assam
Brewing Parameters: 2 tsp, 1 part boiling water, 2 parts heated milk, 6 min. for 8 oz. (recommended)
Appearance: A dark orange powder (chipotle, chocolate, cardamon, cinnamon, and more) with small CTC leaves and anise
Rating: A- | 91/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
First off, this tea has a ridiculous amount of powder; it seems like there's more spice than there is actual tea. It smells great, but the ratio of flavoring to leaf is something I haven't seen before. Brewing it like the caramel creme brulee chai, it came off a bit darker and a light tan/brown color. The smell is very chocolatey, with the spicy chipotle coming in second.

Reading some reviews for this tea, people say that it's very spicy. I didn't get that; while it is somewhat spicy, the milk does a good job of masking it. The main flavor is a creamy chocolate with cinnamon. Like most other chais, the spice stays in your throat after drinking and comes out when you breathe. Overall, surprisingly good considering that I don't like spicy food that much.

Other Notes

Today's album is the unreleased Black Cab EP by Higher Brothers. I haven't listened to the entire thing (obviously because it's not out yet), but I found them through 88rising/Yaeji. Although I can't speak/understand Chinese, all of the songs currently out are actually pretty good. Beats are nice, they can rap really well, and some of them are pretty damn funny. My favorite song is 7-11.

I also got back from the UCLA weekend. I came in there with the idea that the chances of me going to Cal over UCLA is 90-10, but coming back, it's now 50-50. I have an amazing squad from there and we all text each other and have a ton of pictures. I love the campus/location, food, and people there, but the issues are that: 1. I don't have Regents, 2. it's pretty far from home (and my parents would have to drive 6-8 hours to get there), and 3. I'm unsure about the academics. I love Cal because I've been to it so often and know it so well, but my main issue is the people and competition; everyone at LA seems so happy and friendly, which is a vibe I don't get at Cal. I'm personally leading towards LA because I feel like undergrad should be about the experience and not the academics, but my parents are pissed about it. I have a week to decide, so we'll see, probably when I get back from DC.

Review: Caramel Creme Brulee - Tea Chai Te

Type: Flavored Black (Chai)
Producer: Tea Chai Te
Origin: Ceylon
Brewing Parameters: 2 tsp, 1 part boiling water, 2 parts heated milk, 6 min. for 8 oz. (recommended)
Appearance: Small, broken up black leaves with a few twigs
Rating: A- | 90/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Quick review today because I have a ton of work to do. This tea smells amazing– very aromatic, but not too artificial– but for some reason, it's marketed as a chai. I see it more as a flavored black tea, because from looking at the tea, it's just leaves; I'm pretty sure chai usually has spices mixed in.

Anyway, although it's a flavored black in my opinion, I brewed it like a chai according to their instructions (3-4g instead of 2 heaping teaspoons, 4 oz water with 8 oz milk and temperatures aren't exact). After brewing, the liquid was a sort of gray-light brown with a strong caramel-vanilla scent. I didn't add any sweetener, but the milk and the flavoring of the tea is already pretty sweet on its own. There is a light cinnamon/spice taste, but it tastes mostly how it smells– like caramel and vanilla. It's very smooth, and with the milk, it's not bitter at all. Overall, if you like flavored teas, go for this; I like it. I can see it used as a cooking ingredient, and since it's pretty sweet on its own, you can make this in bulk and serve it pretty easily without having to figure out sugar/sweetener ratios.

Other Notes

Today's album is the Sophtware Slump by Grandaddy. I've heard Grandaddy before (AM 180 is my jam), but lately I've been on a binge of their albums after hearing a few songs from this album. Their style changes a lot, but this is a good concept album.

As I said above, a lot of work to do today. I've been pretty lazy over break, but now with the UCLA trip this week, finals starting next week, and comp civics national finals next week too, I need to get my act together. I'll try to do another review of the last Portland tea (Chocolate Chipotle chai) when I get the time to, but don't expect any more posts until the end of the month. See you all later! 

Review: Hazelnut Cookie - Spice and Tea Exchange

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Spice and Tea Exchange
Origin: Ceylon
Brewing Parameters: 1 tsp, 8 oz. water,  212°F, 3 min. (recommended)
Appearance: Small, broken up and curled dark brown/black leaves
Rating: B+ | 89/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Since this is a black tea with small leaves, and since it's flavored, I'm going to be brewing this Western style today as per the recommended instructions (4g instead of a teaspoon, and a bit more than 8 oz of water though). No milk or sweetener added, but I'll probably be adding those on my own time.

First things first– this tea smells amazing dry. The hazelnut smell really comes through, with very sweet and slightly caramel undertones. Brewing it, the tea came out an opaque, dark brown color still with the sweet hazelnut smell, but also a bit of earthiness characteristic of English Breakfast tea. The flavor itself is a bit bitter (may be because of the amount of leaf), with a bit of citrus sourness and earthiness. The hazelnut cookie flavor comes after, and its sweetness helps balance the coffee-like flavor of the base. The tea does go down pretty smoothly, but it does dry the throat slightly and leaves the sour taste on your tongue.

Overall, it's less sweet than Lupicia's cookie tea, but that doesn't mean its bad. Personally, I like it; I think it'd go well with milk and honey, and it'd be good for those who enjoy coffee.

Other Notes

Today's album is Art Angels by Grimes. Not sure how I found her, but lately, this album has been my jam. I like most of the songs on this album; my favorites are Kill v. Maim, Butterfly, and Realiti (demo version). All of the music videos for this album are trippy as hell, too, which is great.

So, last night I got off of work at around 11:30 PM. It was pouring; I gave my umbrella to my grandparents, so guess who had to run through the rain home. I didn't mind, though, because I felt really good by the end. I sprinted about half of the way, and then I realized, soaking head to toe, that there's no reason for me to rush home. There's something about spring rain that doesn't make you feel cold– you're soaking, but you're still strangely warm. Since I work at an ice cream shop, I brought some that I made and I ended up just sitting on the street sidewalk and eating, listening to the rain and continuing to get soaked. It was a great experience; afterwards, it felt like everything's going to be okay for the rest of this year, college, and later. Now, let's just hope I don't get sick again after that.

Review: Earl Grey - Tea of Life

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Tea of Life (Amazon Teas)
Origin: Sri Lanka
Brewing Parameters: ~1.6 g, 100°C, 3 min.
Appearance: Small, white/bleached paper tea bags with black tea dust/fannings
Rating: B | 85/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Today's review will be a quick one, since it's just a tea bag and Earl Grey (which I consider to be a daily drink and should be gulped down quickly in the morning rush). I got this as a gift from a family friend for Christmas, and I've been drinking it ever since. While it does looks like kind of a cheap tea (nothing wrong with that), I will admit that it comes in a very nice gift tin with 50 teabags in foil packaging.

Usually, I drink this tea with a decent amount of milk and honey, but this review is going to be me drinking the tea straight. After brewing for 3 minutes (I originally planned to do 5), the color of the tea came out to be a dark amber caramel color, with the main scent being the bergamot oil (which was itself pretty standard - sweet, citrusy, slightly floral). The flavor itself is a bit sour, starting off with an earthy, slightly chocolate taste which transitions into the citrus of the oil. There's a vague sweetness which lingers after drinking, along with a dry sensation that grips the throat (most Earl Greys have this; I'm guessing it's the oil or the tea these producers use).

All in all, I enjoy this tea as my daily drink. Having it straight today– the first time ever, actually– made me realize that it's actually a pretty good tea, considering how sketchy the packaging/labels look (packaging itself looks nice; the labels look like its trying to be fancy but its just very low quality in general). Depending on your preferences, the tea is good either way, with or without sugar. I have no idea where you can buy this, though.

Other Notes

Today's album is the Promise EP by Mark Redito. Together with the Desire album, Mark Redito's music is great for relaxing (I use it to sleep sometimes) with catchy electronic synth and vocals. It even has Sarah Bonito from Kero Kero Bonito featuring in one of the tracks! I actually went to one of Mark's concerts back in August at the DNA Lounge, and it was super fun; there were lots of people dancing and talking with each other, and in general, it felt like a family even though none of us had ever met before. Mark is a very energetic DJ, too, which contributes to the hype (there were a lot of Jollibee chants, because Filipinos).

Anyway, here's what happened recently. First, I watched Moonlight; it's a good movie– a bit slow, but I enjoyed the themes and cinematography. Second, we're entering the final 2 weeks of preparation for the We the People state competition, and I have no idea how that's going to go. We were told by a judge that we're around 80% of the way there to becoming ready, but the issue is that my unit members don't use evidence to back up their points (reasoning is great, but there's really no point to reasoning if you can't give it ethos/credibility). I ended up taking a break from my jobs for the next few weeks in order to spend most of my time practicing for comp civics; I also plan to spend less time in mock trial since I'm the journalist and have more of just a auxiliary position.

Lastly, I actually got first and $200 for that oratorical contest. I didn't plan to; since there were only 3 people competing (me and two guys from Oakland Military Institute), I was guaranteed $75. I only came to present and get paid, but now it looks like I'll be advancing to the District round this coming Saturday. For some reason, I thought a discourse meant that it'd be a conversation; the judges would pick a random topic, ask questions, and I'd answer them. I didn't know it meant that it's a full 3-5 minute speech on a randomly selected topic; I got lucky, though, when they picked the 10th Amendment (since that was the focus of an entire unit for AP Gov). Now that I know what to do for that, I can prepare better; the main criticism I got was that I need to slow down– listening to myself speak afterwards, it was ridiculously fast. Nerves are a bitch. Also, for some reason, I got a Cobra-Kai (the rival school from Karate Kid) vibe from the Oakland Military guys and their teacher, which was kind of unnerving. People want me to become a lawyer, now, too.

So, today I'll just be working on homework for AP Chem, studying for an AP Macro test, reading the Warmth of Other Suns for African American Lit, and doing more comp civics stuff. It's mostly just a work day, since yesterday was comp civics practice in SF and that speech contest. I just plan to catch up and clear my schedule so I can do more practice/studying the rest of this week, woo!

Review: Stormy Night - David's Tea

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: DAVIDsTEA
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 2.5-5 g; ~100°C; 4-7 min. (recommended)
Appearance: Thin, curled black tea leaves with chunks of chocolate and small, white pieces of dried coconut
Rating: B- | 80/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
So, this isn't my first time drinking a David's Tea tea, but I think this is my first review of one. I can see why some people say why David's Tea isn't really tea; to be honest, who would even think to put actual chocolate in tea? It's a weird combo, especially with the coconut, vanilla, and whatever else is in this. I got this tea as a gift from my sister, who picked it up during/after Halloween, since it was on sale (or a special?).

Anyway, after brewing, the tea came out a dark brown/amber color with a thin layer of oil on top (probably from the chocolate). The only smell I got from it was the coconut with a bit of sweet cinnamon. Essentially, that's what the taste is, too– slightly sweet with the taste of coconut and cinnamon. When you first sip it, it starts off with a little bitterness, followed the sweet and lightly sour taste of the coconut. It's a bit milky, and gradually dies off into the cinnamon taste, which lingers  in the mouth for a short period. I also noticed some soapy notes. It's very smooth with little astringency, but it does leave the waxy taste in the mouth.

All in all, I thought this tea was decent. It's nothing special (except maybe for what's in the tea blend), but I'd keep it as a daily drinker (which I've been doing for a while now). Personally, I'm not too keen on coconut flavored things, but it's not too bad for what it is. Try it with milk and honey/sweetener.

Other Notes

Today's album is the La La Land Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. I've already talked about how I felt about the movie in a previous post, but I ended up picking up the soundtrack after a friend recommended me to (you know, the one I watched the movie with). For some reason, the piano tracks remind me of The Apartment's soundtrack, which is nice. My favorite tracks are City of Stars, Someone in the Crowd, and Audition (The Fools Who Dream).

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. weekend! It's going to be more work, again, for me (mainly comp civics - we have about 3 weeks left until state, and we're getting to where we need to be but it's going to take a lot of effort). I also just have homework for classes and the speech for an oratorical contest about the Constitution. For fun stuff, I'm watching Moonlight today– it finally opened at a theatre near me– and yesterday, I got lunch with friends.

To be completely honest, I still think I'm going to burn out soon. Friday, I was up until 2 AM doing the work that my unit was supposed to help me with, and I ended up going to bed at like 8 PM yesterday because of the lack of sleep through the whole week. I woke up this morning feeling like I might become sick, and now I'm taking a ton of vitamins. We'll see, but hey– on the bright side of things, I'm exercising again.

Review: Palekaiko - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Crushed/rolled black and brown leaves with chunks of yellow, purple, and red flower petals
Rating: B | 84/100
# of Brews: 2

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
So, when I went to Hawaii, I bought a set of mini tins containing Lupicia's Hawaii selection. It had six teas– the ones I've reviewed for the past week– but, while I was looking through the store, I found a seventh, not in the set. I'll be reviewing that one next, which means I'll be done with the Hawaii teas very soon. After that, I just have two interesting Japanese greens, and a variety of random tea bags. As for the description of today's tea, it is said to be "a sweet-tart passion fruit flavored black tea... accented with spicy ginger." Interesting.

Just opening the foil bag containing the loose leaf could I tell that this tea was going to be different. The smell was outright weird; dry, it smelled exactly like fruity nail polish remover, but wet, it smelled like tonkatsu sauce (or worcestershire sauce). The liquid was a very bright golden color– I don't know why, considering its black tea base (I'd have expected it to be darker). Tasting it, I thought it was one of the better teas in the set. It didn't really have the spice of the ginger, but it definitely had the tart flavor of the passion fruit. The taste begins with the mellow taste of the passion fruit, with a tiny bit of chocolate. As you keep drinking, it gets slightly more and more sour until you stop; then, it gradually dies out on an aftertaste. It's relatively smooth and doesn't leave any waxy feeling in your mouth. The tea doesn't seem to have a long life, however, as the taste was pretty weak by the time of the second brew. All in all, not the worst tea, but not the best; I'd recommend it for people who aren't into very fruity teas, which make up the majority of Lupicia's Hawaii teas.

Other Notes

I took my first test in AP Chem! And.... I got a D+. To be honest, I'm not that surprised; although it's much, much less than what I aimed for, I'm not that upset (at all, really). I can't tell if its early onset senioritis or what. The thing is, I have had no formal teaching for chemistry– all I know was learned in a month out of a textbook and study guide. So, in my mind, I know jack about the subject, so I think this is a good learning experience and gives me a place to start figuring out what I need to learn to catch up. Once the tests are returned, I'm going to go to the teacher's office hours and go over what I missed, since I want to be at the same level as the rest of the class by first quarter. The funny thing, though, is that I actually got over the class average (albeit not by a large margin).

There's one thing I noticed though: my class is made up of mainly sophomores, and hearing them before the test makes me a bit disappointed. On my way to class, I passed by a group of guys who were doing some last minute study, and one of them said they'd better "pass this or pass out," which I think is just a stupid maxim. Sure, it might have been a joke, but the thing is that it's representative of a growing mindset at my school– a competitive and at many times toxic mindset in which grades and GPA come before actually learning a subject. Oh well; I'll let you guys know how my chem adventure goes.

One last thing: I turned in a new form for a schedule change, but it looks like I won't be able to switch into AP English Lit (Photography is up in the air right now, and I'm still 50/50 on leaving Ceramics). I'm not too upset since I have friends in World Lit, and the teacher's great, but just a little disappointed. I guess I've bought into the idea that I need to take as many APs as possible to get accepted into a decent college (peer pressure is great!). I'll just try and figure out a way to spin my passion for American history and ELA into my essays, even without taking AP Eng Lit; talk about my two English classes, maybe?

Review: Kuuipo - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Kenya, Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Mix of CTC and broken up rolled dark brown/black leaves, with rose petals and chunks of fruit
Rating: B | 84/100
# of Brews: 3

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Two more teas left for the Hawaii set (barring any non-Hawaii specific teas– I got a few interesting senchas that I want to review)! Today's tea is "an alluring sweet-tart guava flavored black tea with red flower petals." I don't know specifically why they chose to say "red flower petals" instead of rose petals, especially when its pretty obvious what they are, but I guess it makes it sound fancier?

Anyway, smelling the tea, I thought it was very similar to fruit snacks (Welch's?). I thought it actually smelled a bit more like cherries instead of guava, which was a bit weird. This tea suffers from the same issue that a few of the Hawaii teas– that is, the fruit smell is a bit too artificial smelling, which makes it a bit hard to discern what the actual flavor is. Brewing it, the tea had a very dark, orange-amber (more towards amber) color. The liquid was a bit closer to smelling like juice than the leaves, but it still wasn't too pleasing or realistic.

As for the taste, it was surprisingly very similar to that of yesterday. Like Anela, the texture was smooth, with the fruit flavor being the main flavor, but mellow at the same time. In short, the guava flavor lasted the longest, ending on a sharp, but short, tangy note. It stayed as an aftertaste, leaving a slight waxy texture on the tongue. This was accented by the earthy flavors of the black tea base. The one issue I have with it is that, for some reason, it had a taste somewhat similar to soap after the second brew. Overall, it's one of the better teas, but I think Anela and Hoku are still the better teas.

Other Notes
Welp, apparently, the reason why my schedule hasn't been changed is because the school office lost my request forms. So, it looks like I have to fill out a new one to switch out of World Literature (to AP English Literature) and Ceramics (to Photography). I just have a few reservations, though– I like the speed of AP classes, but I don't like the people; I just find that its too competitive for no real reason (there's the mentality that to have an A, someone else has to get a lower grade– I feel like college admissions has to do a big part). Also, Ceramics is nice, but I'm not too passionate or interested in the subject. The teacher is a great person, but he doesn't necessarily seem to be good at teaching (and even if he is, I'd rather not force myself to try and like the subject). Hopefully I get switched in,  but we'll see by next week.

Other than that, it looks like I'm pretty prepared for the AP Chem test tomorrow; in the review session in class, much of the class (at least the vocal part) didn't know some of the concepts to the same level that I'm at, so now I'm not too worried about doing that badly. Again, my goal is a B- so I can figure out my weaknesses and work with the teacher on it afterwards. That aside, I'm going to start working as a TA for my stats teacher soon, and so far I like most of my classes bar ceramics. I'll give an update on how everything goes with my next review. See you!

Review: Anela - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Medium-small, rolled brown and black leaves with whole flower buds and chunks of flower petals
Rating: B+ | 88/100
# of Brews: 3

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Quick review today since it's the first day of school. According to the brochure, this tea is "a sweetly aromatic strawberry and lychee flavored black tea." The strawberry is definitely noticeable just by smelling the dry leaf, and there's hints of tomato. I didn't really notice the lychee, on the other hand.

Interestingly, the brewed tea, darker than the others, left what appeared to be gold flakes in my teapot despite me not seeing it in the dried leaf. The color was more of a gold orange than the others, and all I could smell were the strawberries. I thought that, unlike the other teas, this wasn't too artificial; in fact, it even smelled a bit like fresh berries or an Italian soda. The taste was similar, too. The closest thing I can place it to is a strawberry Italian soda– a slight bit sour, with a touch of sweetness. There was some bitterness, probably from the tea base (which I'm guessing is a darjeeling, based on the slight green color of the leaves in the water.

All in all, I think this was one of the more enjoyable teas of the group. The fruit taste was mellow and enjoyable, and it went down pretty smooth.

Other Notes

First day of school went alright. I think my favorite classes are African American Lit, AP Gov/Macro, and Competition Civics so far. However, my schedule change didn't go through yet, so it looks like I'll be stuck in World Lit and Ceramics for a few more days (my counselor said I can get a schedule change into AP Eng Lit, but not ceramics, if I can have my entire schedule switched, so there's that. Hopefully it happens tomorrow? Ceramics to photography apparently is next week).

As for the AP Chem struggle right now, I'll be studying my ass off today and tomorrow to figure out types of chemical reactions, predicting products, and writing equations (which didn't seem too hard when I did it at home, but when we tried in class I was clueless). Stoichiometry is okay. So, I'll be working on that for the next few hours. To be honest, my goal is a B for this first test, figure out what I need to learn, go to the teacher's office hours, and then put as much effort as I can into the first quarter so I can get caught up. Wish me luck! 

Review: Hua Ki - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Very small, broken-up, rolled black leaves with chunks of fruit and purple flower petals
Rating: B | 83/100
# of Brews: 2

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Number three of the Hawaiian teas! I think for the rest of the reviews, bar one, the tea will be a flavored black tea. This one is no exception. Like yesterday (and for the rest of the black teas), I'll be brewing in the kyusu according to the brewing parameters.

Again, like most of Lupicia's flavored black teas, this has that vaguely fruity smell that is very artificial. The description only states that Hua Ki is "a tropical fruits flavored black tea... luxuriously blended with mango–" except it doesn't smell like a mango. It has the smell of tropical fruit juice, but if you didn't tell me it was mango, I wouldn't be able to guess. For some reason, it reminds me a bit of barbeque sauce, actually. Compared to yesterday's tea, the leaves were actually quite a bit smaller, with even the flower petals broken up. Also, I think yesterday's tea smelled better in general.

While I did think it smelled worse (mainly because it was just too artificial), I think it tastes much better. After brewing, the liquid came out a dark orange, clear enough to see the bottom of my cup. The mango, too, definitely came out once it brewed; the wet leaves smelled exactly of unripe mango juice (a bit sour, but still fruity). As for its flavor, it is surprisingly mellow for a black tea. The main flavor is an earthy, slightly woody taste accented by the tangy mango. It ends on a very strong chocolate note, which ends abruptly. Nothing really lingers in the mouth, but a very faint mango note stays on the breath. It made me a bit thirsty after drinking; however, it wasn't really astringent or bitter. Overall, I think this tea is good, but like yesterday's, not knock your socks off good. It doesn't seem to need any milk or sweetener to make it taste any better– in fact, I think adding any would overpower its fruit flavor.

Other Notes

Last day of summer! I just made a checklist of what I should do, like cook certain meals (french toast and tonkatsu!), prepare for school, read and study, and so on. So far, I've cleaned the new room so there aren't random boxes lying everywhere, cooked french toast and my lunch for tomorrow, had a friend come over, and wrote this review. It's a bit of a lazy day. I don't know if I should do anything special, and if I should, what it should be. I'll write about it tomorrow or later this week if I do figure that out.

As for plans this school year, I guess I have quite a bit since it's senior year after all. To go on a tangent right now (because I just really want to talk about it– I can always write my plan for the year later, and these reviews are generally streams of consciousness), there's an issue I have with my school. The thing is, being from a suburban upper class school, it's come to feel like my life depends on college admissions. I don't want to worry as much as other people– mainly, the people that I go to AP classes with– but there's just so much pressure coming from my peers (and my parents, to an extent) to go to an Ivy league. Like, it seems that UCs, the schools I want to go to (and pretty selective, too), are terrible because they don't have a less than ten percent acceptance rate. Some people even have schools like Berkeley and LA as their safeties.

This mindset has put me at odds with both my classmates and myself. On one hand, there's the idea that I won't be able to get into a "good" college (by their standards) if I don't take AP Calculus, but on the other hand, I just want to take classes I'm interested in, like African American literature. The other issue too is that I want to take a STEM major in college, but my standardized tests and coursework points toward the humanities, like English and History. Classes like AP Calculus probably would help me in the long term, but the thing is I just want to enjoy my senior year. With college admissions, it's just like everything is a rich man's game. Not an average person's. It's not easy for me to have access to the opportunities that the people at my school have (namely through family connections or just money), and in order to be competitive academically, I can't do what I'm passionate in. Don't get me wrong, I love to do math and research, but I think at this point, seeing the current state of science is making me disillusioned.

I want to make a difference in the world. But the issue is that, at this point in my life, it looks like the only people that can do that are those with money to afford fancy internships at colleges, or those with family members in science. I've tried to do what I can on a budget: do science fair projects, research on my own, join free summer camps, and so on. However, for the things that do get you into the schools for the programs I want, this isn't enough. I guess we'll see.

Review: Lanikai - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Kenya
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Mix of CTC cut and broken-up, rolled dark brown leaves; there are also lavender/bluish colored flower petals, chunks of dried fruit (unsure what), and light blue rock sugar
Rating: B- | 82/100
# of Brews:  3

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Second Hawaii tea! According to the brochure, this tea is "a peach, orange and mango flavored black tea. Its sweet and fruit flavor goes well with milk." For the sake of keeping things the same during reviews, I won't be drinking with milk– but for the record, I usually drink my black teas with milk and honey. I'll also be brewing western style in a kyusu since I don't exactly own a teapot for single brewing, and the kyusu I do have has a pretty large volume.

Anyway, as this is a black tea, I don't expect this tea to last past one or two brews, especially since it is flavored and the leaves are pretty small. Brewed for two and a half minutes, the liquid came out a dark, orange-amber color– but not necessarily as dark as, say, English or Irish breakfast teas. The smell was fruity and sweet, but I couldn't really pin it down to a single smell. For some reason, all of Lupicia's fruit flavored teas have generally the same smell: a bit perfume-like with a bouquet of fruits. If I could guess, the strongest here is the mango, with some chocolate from the black tea base.

As for the flavor, it didn't taste as rough as I was expecting. Rough, as in terms of bitterness or astringency, which is the norm for many black teas. For Lanikai, it starts off with that indiscernible fruit flavor, then moves into the orange– a bit tangy and bitter, like bergamot oil– and ends with a mango aftertaste on the tongue lengthening the sour flavor. The tea leaves a sort of waxy texture on the tongue, but does not create any sort of drying sensation in the throat.

In the end, I got three brews, with the second losing most of the fruit flavor (but still having some of the black tea base), and the third having little to no taste. Lanikai is one of Lupicia's better flavored black teas– their teas seem to be either really good or really bad– but I'm not exactly crazy for it. I'd make it a daily drinker for breakfast or something or have people who are not into tea try it, but it's not really my cup of tea per se.

Other Notes

Recently, my brother came to live with us after graduating from college, and so, we ended up renovating the house. As of this review, I'm now in a new room, which is pretty nice; in this new setup, I have a big desk (not just a drawer now!), workspace underneath a bunk bed, and most of the stuff I had in my old room– just more compact. Sadly, I won't be able to sleep in this room this weekend since we're missing a mattress, but I think I'll be moving in early next week.

As for school stuff, I got my schedule, but it turns out my counselor last year messed up and didn't file my papers for changing classes. As a result, I'm taking African American Lit, World Lit, Ceramics, AP Chem, AP Gov/Macro, and Competition Civics (in that order). I've turned in the papers for a schedule change (to switch World Lit for AP English Lit and Ceramics for Photography), but it looks like I won't have the change until after the first day of school. Since this is the last weekend of summer, I have no idea what to do, either. Most of this week I've been renovating the house, and today I studied chem for most of the day. I'm excited for school, but at the same time, I'm dreading it. Here's to a successful senior year?

Expect a few more reviews coming soon. I might do multiple in a single day, but my issue is not being able to put anything in this section. Maybe I'll just write the actual reviews in one day, save it until I have something to write about in this section (e.g. on the next day), and then publish it. Who knows.

Review: Earl Grey - Trader Joe's + Ambiance

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Trader Joe's & Ambiance
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 1 tea bag, 8 oz of boiling water, 3-5 min.
Appearance: Trapezoidal, paper tea bags with black fannings; the Ambiance bag has a slight yellow tint to it (lots of bergamot oil)
Rating: Trader Joe's: B | 86/100 & Ambiance: C+ | 78/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Today's review is going to be a side-by-side comparison of two grocery store Earl Greys. Both of these have been brewed at the same temperature and time (3 minutes), with no additives, such as sugar or milk. For the past few months, each has been a daily drink, albeit at different times, so I'll try to be as unbiased as possible.

After brewing, both teas were a very deep red, amber color. I think the Ambiance Earl Grey had a much stronger fruity smell compared to the Trader Joe's– probably because it had more bergamot, as evidenced by the darker colored dry teabag. Both had the earthy smell of the black tea base, but the Trader Joe's had more of the sour, somewhat sweat-like smell that can come from the oil. In general, the Ambiance is much more sweet smelling, while the Trader Joe's is more deep. Note: If you've never tried Earl Grey, I'd say its smell is very similar to Froot Loops or other artificial fruit-flavored foods.

Anyway, as for the taste, both were a bit bitter (probably due to the amount of water and leaf; I'd recommend masking it by adding milk, or brewing for shorter time). For the Ambiance Earl Grey, the main taste is the nutty, earthy taste of the tea base, which is followed by the sharp, citrusy-sour notes of the bergamot. It's a bit bitter, but has a smooth texture– and also leaves a dry note in the throat which goes away fast. The Trader Joe's Earl Grey is a lot less intense; the main note is somewhat coffee-like, and is also followed up with a sour– but not as strong– flavor. Interestingly, it has an aftertaste much more fruity than the Ambiance, similar to orange peels. The textures are pretty similar.

Overall, I think I prefer the Trader Joe's Earl Grey more than the Ambiance. It's a lot more mellow, which can be good or bad, depending on the person. In my opinion, if you enjoy stronger teas or the taste of bergamot, go with the Ambiance, but if you don't, go with the Trader Joe's. Either way, both make for a good morning daily drink.

Other Notes

Welp, I finally finished my final big summer activity– that environmental sciences summer camp at CSU East Bay. All in all, it was enjoyable; while I didn't necessarily learn much about environmental sciences (it was introductory stuff/general), we got to network with industry professionals and learn how it is to work in water, energy, and so on. Probably the best part of the week was when we went to a regional park– Big Break– and spent the day doing water quality tests and getting rid of invasive species in the Delta. The funny thing is, since I don't have a business card, I ended up printing out my abstract and giving it to people instead.

Now that that's over, I have three weeks left in my last high school summer (weird to think about, right?). For my summer homework, I just need to study for week one tests in AP Chem and AP Gov/Macro, do writeups on the national conventions for AP Gov, make a lesson about Montesquieu (which is pretty interesting) for Comp Civics, and analyze quotes for the Comp Civics journal. It looks like a lot, but my goal is to finish it this week and spend the rest of August before school relaxing. I've also started on my application essays, the first drafts of which I think are pretty good; I've expanded on my beliefs on US History, talked about the science fair, and analyzed how my environment– with racial diversity, but not economic– has affected my academics. I'll keep up the reviews in the meantime as something to break up the tedium of writing school stuff, but that's what's been up with me the past few weeks. 

Review: Milk Tea - Ito En

Tea Info
Type: Sweetened, Canned, Black Milk Tea
Producer: Ito En
Origin/Base: Hawaii
Brewing Parameters: N/A
Appearance: N/A
Rating: B | 86/100
# of Brews: N/A

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Oh hey, first time reviewing tea in a can. I've actually had this before, and I think it's one of the better ones. Interestingly, it's a "Hawaii Exclusive" and I've only been able to find it in the Mitsuwa Marketplace in San Jose (the place where I get all of my Lupicia tea). I think I actually based a milk tea recipe I made on the flavor of this, but I don't know where I actually put it– in fact, I'll try experimenting again and post it on here today since I have nothing else to do.

Anyway, I don't really think there is much to say about this. It's not too sweet, with the earthy flavors of the black tea first and a creamy flavor afterwards. It's slightly fruity, too, probably because of the tea base. Compared to other canned milk teas I've had, this doesn't taste too watery or deathly sweet. Oh, and in all of the cans I've drank (which I admit is quite a bit), the milk isn't curdled or anything, which is nice. Overall, best milk tea in a can I've had so far.

Other Notes
First weekday of spring break! Started off with getting a diagnosis of Temporomandibular Joint Disorder, which is always fun. Apparently I'll have to start taking painkillers for a week or two.

Other than that, today I'll just be making a recipe for Royal Milk Tea, reading/finishing A Confederacy of Dunces, and studying for AP classes (also maybe the SAT Bio/Math/USH tests and the ACT). I don't really have much to do over spring break.

Review: Summer Rose - Teazillo

Tea Info
Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Teazillo
Origin/Base: Ceylon
Brewing Parameters: 2.8g, 100°C,  3-5 minutes
Appearance: Black, broken leaf base (larger than fannings) with large, pink-orange rose petals
Rating: B | 86/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
I actually got this tea a long while ago (long while as in last year, July) as a 1 oz. free sample from Teazillo. I did post a review on their site after I got it, but I never was able to review it here. It turns out I packed a small amount (~3 grams) to save in a small plastic bag, but the bag was a bit open and the tea might now be stale or have other scents mixed in (like chai). Teazillo, the company that sent me this tea, actually sent me 2 oz. in really nice metal tins, but it looks like they went under a while ago. Oh well, they had a pretty decent flavored selection.

To be honest, I think this is one of the better rose teas I've had. The tea has large rose petals with a pinkish, orange color and a very dark black tea base. It smells a bit like potpourri, but it's not too overwhelming. After brewing for three minutes, the color was a dark, coffee color. The smell was sweet and earthy, with very light floral notes.

Surprisingly, the flavor wasn't as light as I'd expected it to be (considering the tea is a year old and not stored in an airtight container). It was a bit bitter, but not as much as yesterday's. The flavor starts off with a strong, dark chocolate taste and ends with a coffee flavor. Halfway through, the rose comes in with a tart flavor, which lingers after drinking and complements the chocolate pretty well. It's mostly smooth, but also has a little bit of a drying sensation in the throat after drinking. Overall, it's a pretty good rose tea; I suggest trying it with both milk and honey, but it's also enjoyable on it's own too.

Other Notes
Well, no school today, and I got nothing to do. All I've done is watch fencing videos, read a bit of A Confederacy of Dunces (pretty good book), and eat food. I'm probably just going to catch up on homework and study for all of the tests at the end of this week. You know why? Because spring break is next week! Woo!

Review: Mango & Strawberry - Dilmah

Tea Info
Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Dilmah Australia
Origin/Base: Ceylon
Brewing Parameters: 1 tea bag, 100°C,  3-5 minutes, 220 ml H2O
Appearance: Standard white/bleached paper tea bag with black tea fannings.
Rating: C | 74/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Wow! Long time since my last review. I'm reviewing a bagged tea today because I've actually reviewed everything else, and I'm saving money for now (even though I made $700 off the science fair, I just bought a ticket to prom and a set of fencing gear for sabre fencing). This tea is from my mom, who got it in Philippines.

Both dried and brewed, this tea smells a lot like fruit rollups– you know, that sweet, artificial strawberry flavor. I can't really notice the mango at all. As for the color, the tea brewed up very dark, reddish brown in only three minutes. I followed the brewing parameters, and to be honest, it's kind of shit. It's pretty bitter, with the fruity, medicinal taste following. Again, I couldn't taste the mango at all. In the back of the tongue, there's a sort of biting tart flavor that lingers. Unlike most black teas from Ceylon, this isn't earthy or chocolatey or anything at all; it's just bitter and a bit astringent. Maybe adding some milk and honey will work?

Well, milk and honey improved it only a slight bit. Milk does a pretty good job at masking the bitter taste, and complements the artificial fruit pretty well. Overall, it's passable with milk and a decent amount of honey. I'd recommend it as a daily drink or a tea to drink with people who usually don't drink tea.

Other Notes
Welp, yesterday I broke that small tea pot I recently got– I was cleaning it, and the lid tapped the handle, and the handle just snapped off. Also, I got rejected from both SIMR and the Arthritis Foundation internships. Oh well, shit happens.

Other reviews I have coming up the pipeline are Trader Joe's English Breakfast, Irish Breakfast, and Earl Grey, Touch Organic Green Tea, Red Sun Japan Green Tea, Twinings Lemon & Ginger Tea, and a few more. All of these are bagged teas.