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: Green Tea with Pomegranate - Bigelow

Type: Green
Producer: Bigelow
Origin: USA
Brewing Parameters: 3 minutes, 1 2.5g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Bleached trapezoidal paper tea bag with green tea fannings and chunks of dried fruit and flower petals
Rating: B | 86/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
This tea has a pretty good blend of ingredients: green tea, apple, hibiscus, pomegranate, rose, and a few other things. It's essentially just Bigelow's green tea (which I also have a teabag for) with extra ingredients, which I think it's pretty smart on the business end of things. As with most fruity teas, when brewed, the liquid tends to separate– the purple liquid/color of the pomegranate or apple settled at the bottom, as the rest of the tea turned a light grayish color. After brewing (and mixing it together by steeping the teabag), it became an opaque, orange-red color. The smell was sweet and fruity, with a slight hint of sticky rice in the background. As for the taste– it's less fruity than I'd expected, but still, it had a bit of sourness from the pomegranate. It's mostly mellow; I'd say that the slight grassy taste of the green comes out more than the pomegranate (unexpectedly). After the first sip, the pomegranate lingers on the tongue with the tart taste of the rosehip; it's smooth. Overall, not a bad tea at all. I'd like to try it iced.

Other Notes
Today's album is Oh Wonder's namesake debut album (Oh Wonder). If you've looked at the previous posts on this blog, I'm sure you can guess I'm into indie electronic pop. I found them through Youtube Music and I really like this album. It's a bit quiet and slow at times, but the songs are catchy and have great vocals.

As of today's review, I have tasted 199 teas and written about them on this blog. I guess in two days I'll have reached my goal, but I don't think I have any special teas to commemorate it. But, now, I either end the blog at 200 or keep going until my last day of summer on August 12. No matter how it ends, I do have a long post planned before I stop writing on this blog.

Anyway, yesterday, I mostly just went out shopping to buy college clothes and dorm stuff. I usually hate shopping– especially at the outlet mall near us, because there are so many people there and they can be dicks a lot of the time– but I'm pretty happy with what I got there.

Today, I went on a short hike with my Cal friend and my dog. Afterwards, we came back to my place and finished Over the Garden Wall (one of my favorite animated series; we watch it every Thanksgiving). I then gave the dog a bath and filled gas for the first time, which was interesting.

I also met up with one of my close friends– we took Japanese together– for the first time since school ended. We ate Korean fried chicken and picked up some art supplies for my grandma, and played video games at my place. Everytime I hang out with him, I'm more surprised at how similar we are. We've had a lot of the same experiences with girls, drugs, etc. and came to the same conclusions about them. He's attending community college but doesn't know what he wants to do in the future; once he chooses a major, I'm going to help him transfer to a university after two years. He's also dating a girl from Nevada and wants to move out and get his own place. I told him that if he ever needs a roommate for an apartment or something, I'm willing to help out if he decides to live in the North Bay. We planned to hang out a bit more before I move out, and I want to take him to football games at Cal, but I'm glad we connected again.

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: Calm Chamomile - Tazo

Type: Herbal/Tisane
Producer: Tazo
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 100°C, 5 minutes, 8 fl. oz, 1 1.6g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Bleached trapezoidal tea bag with a variety of herbs, including flower petals and grasses
Rating: B | 87/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Quick story about chamomile tea. While I was off exploring my obsession with tea, my ex only drank chamomile teas. I think that was her favorite, so I ended up calling her Cam as a nickname. It's dumb, but just something I remember from that time in my life. We started talking again, funny enough.

While she drinks a lot of chamomile, I don't at all. I don't know if it's just this tea, but I think it has a weird smell– the dry leaf is floral and sweet. The brewed tea is a very interesting color, a clear blend of olive drab green and golden yellow. It smells the same as the dry leaf, but the sweet aroma is a lot more prevalent. For some reason, it reminds me of the rooibos tea I've had a long time ago. Like you'd guess, the tea itself tastes incredibly floral. The chamomile is the main taste, lingers long after drinking, and permeates into the back of the nose. The closest flavor to this, I can think of, is any jasmine tea. It's slightly sweet, but as with most floral teas, there's a dull sourness or tanginess. Overall, it's surprisingly really good; I need to pick up more chamomile tea sometime.


Other Notes
Today's album is Forever by Mystery Skulls. I actually preordered this album on CD a long time ago; I've been a big fan of him after his first EP came out. Not much to be said– super catchy songs, great vocals. If you like electronic pop, check him out! All of his work is great.

I finally got my license today! Only 4 errors. It wasn't very eventful; we drove all the way to Vallejo, waited about an hour and a half, took the test, had brunch, and drove back home. At the DMV, a Filipino lady wanted me to tell her the course, which was a bit sketchy (and a very Filipino thing to do, heh). We got food at the Good Day Cafe, where I got french toast and my dad an omelette– it was really good and the service was great. We also saw the ferry terminal and walked through downtown Vallejo, which reminded me a lot of Sacramento. Oh, and we also almost got hit by a car that sped through a red at an intersection.

Yesterday, we had lunch with our AP Gov teacher at a Thai restaurant. It was nice; we talked about college, a lot about competition civics, and what's happened to us over the summer. To be honest, our government teacher felt a lot more like our coach than our actual competition civics coach (whom he called more of an advisor, which I agree with). I learned a lot in his class and spent a lot of time in his room. I'll miss it. Afterwards, we went to the mall and I bought my dad a jacket from Uniqlo for his birthday, and we got boba and went home. I haven't done that much work lately, which probably isn't that smart since I have an essay due Sunday and a testimony written for another competition civics summer session on Saturday.

Tomorrow, I go with my unitmate and Cal friend to the mall to hang out, play games at the arcade, and watch a movie. It's probably not the best thing to do with those deadlines looming over my head, but hell, it's summer and I want to have fun.

Review: Passion - Tazo

Type: Herbal/Tisane
Producer: Tazo
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 100°C, 5 minutes, 8 fl. oz, 1 2.8g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Bleached trapezoidal tea bag with small chunks of various spices, grasses, and herbs
Rating: C+ | 78/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
I forgot the story where I got this tea bag, but I'm pretty sure I mentioned in one of the previous Tazo reviews. The liquid for this tea came out a very deep purple and red color, like a red wine or sangria. For some reason, most fruity tisanes have this color and tend to stain whatever they land on– in this case, I think it's because there's been fruit juice added to the tea. As for the smell, it's very fruity (pomegranate) that's somewhat soapy and sweet. The taste is a lot more sour than I expected. It's very tart, similar to lemon juice; but, like lemon juice, it becomes slightly sweet at the end of the drink. I can taste some citrus and grape flavors, along with the rose hip (most likely the source of the sour) and passionfruit. It's mostly smooth, but the sourness made my throat feel a little dry after drinking. This would be much more better as an iced tea, but it seems a bit one-dimensional and similar to some other fruity herbal teas, especially those by Tazo.

Other Notes
Today's album is the Pyre Original Soundtrack by Darren Korb. I've been a big fan of Supergiant Games, and although I haven't bought Pyre yet, I'm already loving this soundtrack. Bastion and Transistor were amazing too– the vocal tracks are some of the best songs I've heard in games yet. I'm planning to attend MAGWest to see Darren Korb live.

So, I got my phone repaired yesterday, walked in the morning with my Cal friend (gave her a teddy bear, too, for making some art for me), and had lunch with a girl I dated for one day in middle school. She's been my lab partner in science classes for the past two years, and after her sister passed from cancer (seriously– fuck cancer), she's been worried about school and her family. I haven't seen her for a while since my AP Biology teacher's funeral, but we've been snapchatting and texting each other throughout summer. She seems a lot happier now and I'm glad for that; she's heading off to UC Santa Cruz and I think she'll do great there. I promised her that we'll keep in touch and that I'll make sure she'll go to medical school. I also got my roommate assignment! It's the guy I roomed with during the Regent's overnight host program, which is pretty awesome (what are the chances?). He's a global studies major from LA, and seemed pretty chill when I met him. I feel like he's kind of needy– he asked for the right bed specifically– and is wealthy, considering he travels a lot, but I think we'll get along. Online, he's very nice, and in person, I thought he was kind of awkward/quiet but very chill. He's also very clean and neat, which is great.

Today has just been a work day. Just did the usual schedule– woke up, exercised, practiced handwriting, cooked, worked on this review, did summer class stuff, and so on. I hate staying indoors all the time, but it's hard when you have nothing else to do and all of your friends are out travelling. To be honest, I can see why drugs are such a big problem in my town and in suburban America in general; there's nothing to do unless you have a car and money. Tomorrow I'm having lunch with the unit, Cal friend, and one of our teachers, so that's exciting. I'm probably going to spend the rest of this day finishing homework and practicing driving.

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: Plantation Mint - Bigelow

Type: Blend (Black and Herbal)
Producer: Bigelow
Origin: USA
Brewing Parameters: 2 minutes, 1 1.9g teabag (recommended)
Appearance: Trapezoidal paper tea bag with black tea fannings and spearmint dust
Rating: B | 87/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Bigelow is the standard in office and hotel teas. Along with Tazo, you can find these in big display stands with a large variety of flavors. Today's tea is from my Cal friend, who picked this particular blend up at her work (tutoring) with a number of other flavors. Surprisingly, I'm almost near 200 reviews now– this should be number 195, and I have a lot more tea bags to go through. I feel like it's kind of a cop out to end on these teas, but tea is expensive and I want to save some money.

Anyway, after brewing this tea, the liquid came out a dark brown. It's interesting; I feel like you usually find mint on its own as a tisane or brewed with a weaker tea, like a green. However, this came out pretty good. The liquid obviously smelled like spearmint or spearmint gum. The taste was a lot more minty than I expected, considering the base. If you didn't tell me, I'd say this was just a spearmint tisane with no tea at all. It definitely has the slightly sour flavor and cooling sensation of the mint that is characteristic of spearmint, but it also has a nuanced sweetness and a little bitter, earthy flavor from the base. Overall, I thought this tea was very enjoyable. It's not too different from just a regular spearmint tea, but I think the black tea base makes it a bit more subdued.

Other Notes
Today's album is Bang Bang by Dispatch. My Cal friend gave me a mix CD a while ago with The General as the first track. I don't think I usually listen to rock, but this is surprisingly catchy. I don't have much more to say since I'm still listening to it as I write this.

I'm finishing one busy week and it looks like I'll be going into another one. Since the last review, I've been doing the same old things– practicing handwriting, studying math, doing that online class, working out, etc. I did go last night with my Cal friend to the Japanese supermarket in San Jose where we got food and some snacks, and she gave me some art she made. The day before that, I helped my childhood friend pack up for moving– I came over at 6 pm and we were lifting stuff in and out of a truck until 2 am (and they weren't finished yet when I went home). I'm sure he's moved to Stockton already, but I told him he's always welcome to hang out with me at Berkeley. My friends and I are trying to plan a road trip to Los Angeles since I have my driving test next week, but it's hard when everyone is busy and with college stuff coming around the corner. Oh, and my ex and I started chatting a little bit again and it isn't too bad.

This weekend will be exciting. Today, I'm going to go watch Dunkirk with the family. My grandma was having some health problems last night and this morning, so hopefully she gets better soon. I was going to go to Freq.Fest.SF today, too, but the person I was going with had family things come up, so that's fine. Tomorrow, I'm going to a concert my friend is putting on, and the day after that, I'm hiking the Fire Trails at Berkeley with my dad. I feel like I need to do a lot more (instead of staying inside all the damn time) to not waste this summer, but it's hard when 1. you can't drive, 2. you're trying to save money because you're not getting work shifts, and 3. your friends are busy with their own plans or are out of town. I'm both excited for college, mainly because of meeting people and having new experiences, but at the same time, it's a bit scary (and sad) having to leave home and seeing everyone else move on.

Review: Teh Halia - Lipton

Type: Instant
Producer: Lipton
Origin: Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 180 ml hot water, 85°C, 1 packet (recommended)
Appearance: Grey and brown powder
Rating: D+ | 68/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Same story as the last Lipton instant tea I have. Instant teas don't lend themselves well to in depth reviews, so this is going to be short.

This one differs from Teh Tarik in that it has ginger added, but other than that, it's essentially the same. After mixing the powder in, the tea was a milky brown (like you'd expect), without much of a smell. The taste, at first, is sweet and has the waxy texture of powdered creamer. After that, the tea flavor becomes very strong and bitter, similar to coffee or concentrated, overbrewed black tea. Once that is gone, you can taste the ginger, which imparts a spicy feeling in the mouth. It might just be because I'm using a small amount of water (the recommended amount), but I don't like this at all– it's way too bitter, but at the same time, tastes like watered down milk. Like Teh Tarik, I'd recommend trying this with milk and iced, which might be better, but alone and prepared the way on the package, it's not great.


Other Notes
Today's album is BOOMIVERSE by Big Boi. Interesting album– it came up on my recommended list since I listen to Killer Mike, and I was surprised at how different it is. I like Kill Jill because of how weird the combination is; vocaloid and rap could better together than I thought they would. The rest of the songs are great, too. It's a weird mix of genres, with some old-style hip hop in there, which is cool.

Since after last weekend, I've been taking it slow. Two days ago, I went to my unitmate's house with my Cal friend and we watched Titanic. Yesterday, my Cal friend came over in the morning to give me a book and we hung out for a while, and in the evening, I helped another one of my friends (from my childhood/guy friend group) pack his things into storage since he's moving. Today's his last day in town, and I'm coming back later today to help them finish up. I don't know if it's who I am, or if we've just drifted apart during high school, but I just don't feel that broken up about it. I feel like I should be nostalgic or sad or bittersweet about it. It reminds me of when my ex moved last summer. I think I'm just bad at goodbyes, and it kind of sucks.

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: Zen - Tazo

Type: Blend (Green and Herbal)
Producer: Tazo
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 236 ml hot water, 80°C, 3 min. (recommended)
Appearance: Trapezoidal paper tea bag with green tea dust, lemongrass, and spearmint
Rating: 88 | B+/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
As I mentioned in a previous review, I got this tea at the California mock trial state finals when I raided the hotel's tea display. When I brewed this tea, it came out a very dark orange/amber color– the same color that mint tea usually comes out as (the spearmint here I think is the culprit). Same with the smell, it's more minty than grassy or citrusy. It actually has a very pleasant taste, too. I'd say it's a predominantly a mint tea; the first and foremost taste is spearmint. After that, it goes into a mellow, grassy flavor with a vague sweetness, and finally, it becomes sour and stays in the mouth for a few seconds. It feels like an interesting in-between for green tea and a tisane, and it's not bad at all. Overall, I like it; my only problem I have with it, but that's with all Tazo tea in general, is that the teabags are never really have any good quality leaf in them (I wonder if they sell loose leaf?).


Other Notes
Today's album is EP by little xs for eyes. Found this band through the remix album by Sounds of System Breakdown, and this has always been one of my go-tos for relaxation music. It's mainly acoustic, slow, and very chill, but from what I've heard, their new stuff has gone to a more upbeat, pop/indie/folk sound. I like it; check them out sometime.

So, yesterday was my last day of work. It went the same as usual; only notable thing was that I helped an old Mexican man pick up his keys, and after we went through security, he almost accidentally grabbed my wallet instead of his. I stopped him and gave him his, but he began to talk to me in Spanish and I didn't really know how to respond (I don't speak Spanish). So, I mostly just nodded and said yeah, and wished him a good day as I walked away.

The day before that, it was my friend's grad party. Quick backstory: she's from my main friend group from freshman and sophomore year, and we took African American Literature together this year. The group broke apart around junior year; people had left in small groups before because they made new friends or started dating people, but there was a big fight and a lot of drama between my ex and this friend. The group broke after that. At the party, though, some of the group got back together and it was fun– we got in a limo and went to an Indian/Pakistani restaurant to eat. Food (samosas, curry, chicken, fish, naan, and interestingly a chocolate fountain) was amazing, and we watched a Muslim prayer. The drive home was the best part. We got glow sticks and blasted music like Bohemian Rhapsody, All Star, Panic! at the Disco, and a few others, and just had fun screwing around. Someone mentioned this at one point, and I think she was absolutely right: we're all great people, but when we were together in that group, it was just very toxic.

One thing that came up often was my ex. Apparently, she used to talk badly of almost everyone behind their backs, and there was a lot of drama over relationships (not with me, but from crushes carrying over from middle school). We don't talk anymore. We used to chat on messenger and snapchat pretty often, but she suddenly stopped one day. I was told at the grad party, though, that she had posted on her tumblr that she had said she wanted to distance herself from her ex (i.e. me) and mentioned stuff like never snapchatting your ex when you're having emotional struggles. Oh well. It's been a while since we last talked– we had a quick conversation about AP scores last week, and it felt very strained– and I guess I've moved on. It hasn't bothered me too much, but she does cross my mind sometimes.

Today, I have to enroll for my classes for Berkeley. I'm planning on taking general chemistry, intro to sociology, foundations of data science, and single variable calculus; hopefully I can get an Asian American studies class on musicals, too. I feel like it might be a lot and that I should take only three classes my first semester, but since I'm interested in double majoring in biological/environmental sciences and a social science, I have to take a lot of the boring, general classes to be able to declare before I get into the fun stuff in upper divisions. Also, I need to take breadths which forces me to take interesting classes (data science is one of those). The great thing is that, if it's too much for me, I have time to drop a class before I'm stuck. I want to get good grades in college, but I'll have to put a lot more work if I want to keep the straight As I earned in high school. My realistic goal is a 3.0, to keep my scholarship, but the dream is over a 3.5 GPA.

Tomorrow, I graduate from the justice academy and have to present a speech that we haven't necessarily practiced that much, but I feel like it'll go fine. My parents won't be able to attend since they'll be on a flight to Minnesota; I think that's good since my group isn't so polished. I'm going to spend the rest of the week relaxing and hanging out with friends, since I have the house until Sunday or Monday. On Saturday, I'll be going to San Francisco to watch the first summer session for next year's We the People teams, so that'll be fun– I'm excited since I'm going with a few friends.

Review: Teh Tarik - Lipton

Type: Instant
Producer: Lipton
Origin: Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 180 ml hot water, 85°C, one packet (recommended)
Appearance: Light brown and grayish-white powder
Rating: B- | 80/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Although it isn't what I usually review, I still consider instant tea to be some kind of tea. This particular tea is from Singapore/Malaysia, and like the teabags from earlier reviews, came across the sea in a big box with other goodies. I usually make this tea iced and with milk; my method of preparation is adding boiling water to dissolve the powder into a paste, and then mixing it with cold milk. For purposes of this review, I'll be following the instructions, however.

Interestingly, this tea is very frothy/bubbly. A layer of bubbles formed with little mixing, covering a creamy, dark brown liquid. It smelled very sweet; if you've had milk tea with a black tea base, it smells very similar to this. I think this is essentially just that. I usually make this tea with milk because I found the flavor to taste very watered down when I make it with water, but that may be because I add too much. Without milk, I found that this tea tastes very similar to milk coffee; it has that strong, somewhat bitter flavor that's earthy. It's sweet, but it also has a light sour flavor coming from the tea base. The aftertaste is the milk, which has a waxy feeling that comes from I found powdered dairy creamers. In general, I find that instant teas don't necessarily taste the best on their own– but if you change the method of preparation, it can improve it. They're generally better for a quick sugar fix or if you're lazy and want milk tea. In the realm of instant teas, however, this is one of my favorite ones. My only problem is that it's only sold overseas, so it's more of a treat than a daily drink.


Other Notes
Today's album is Vault Vol. 2 by STRFKR. As much as I love STRFKR's new albums. like Being No One, Going Nowhere, they have definitely changed their sound. It was more acoustic and folksy and now focuses more on synths, but it still is the same pop-feeling. This album was released last night, and I think it's a nice return to the albums that actually got me interested in STRFKR in the first place.

These past few days have been incredibly busy. Thursday was fun; I took the MUNI Metro for the first time with one of my closest friends (I love her, she was on my competition civics team and we're both going to Berkeley) and we went to Golden Gate Park. We had some really good Thai food and walked around the park, near the Conservatory of Flowers and Botanical Gardens. We listened to some jazz underneath a bridge and explored the area around the De Young museum. Eventually, we found our way up a large hill that gave a good view of the park and city, and watched a few hawks and (apparently) an erotic comedy that people were acting out at the top. We talked a lot about stuff like family and our relationships with friends, and headed back to the Embarcadero where we got ice cream from the Ferry Building. The day ended with us playing games at the Musee Mechanique and exploring Pier 39 before walking home and riding BART back.

Yesterday, I had an adventure showing my friend from San Diego around San Francisco. A lot happened that day, so look at the post before this if you want an overview.

I got back very late last night, so I slept in. I was supposed to watch Spiderman: Homecoming with my friends (the first time I'd be hanging out with my guy friends this entire summer), but it didn't work out because I was too tired to wake up early and my other friend had a hair appointment. I did wake up to a number of texts and a missed call from the third friend that I told last night that I'll be sleeping in. He's one of my childhood friends, but as much as I like him, he can be kind of self-conscious; his texts today reminded me like that possessive girlfriend stereotype, which was a bit annoying. We'll reschedule it later though, and I'll be hanging out with my unitmate and my friend from earlier that's going to Cal, too, so I'm not too upset. I still have that essay to write due tomorrow evening, but once next week is over, I'll finally be able to take a break.

Review: Lemon & Ginger - Twinings

Type: Herbal/Tisane
Producer: Twinings
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 100°C, 3-4 min., 1.8g tea bag (recommended)
Appearance: Trapezoid-shaped paper tea bag with small chunks of ginger and some strands of unknown herbs
Rating: B+ | 88/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
The story behind this teabag is another short one. I think we received a box (or my parents returned with one) from Singapore or Philippines. One of my aunts included this tea in there, and I ended up taking it and drinking it often for colds, sore throats, and other ailments. Knowing that I'd review it eventually– it's been more than a year now– I put away a single tea bag for a day like today. And here we are now!

Since I threw away the box listing all of the ingredient information a long time ago, all I can really identify is the ginger. I'm guessing there might be lemongrass, but I really have no idea. After brewing for four minutes, the liquid came out a very dark, dull yellow with a bit of cloudiness. Sweet lemon was the main scent coming off of the tea, with some light notes of the ginger hiding in the back. Unlike most teas with ginger, I actually found the ginger to not be so overpowering; it's mainly a light lemon flavor that's more savory than fruity. The ginger mainly comes in as a feeling, rather than a taste. The spiciness of the ginger lingers on the tongue after the lemon taste quickly subsides, but is complemented by a subtle sweetness. It's been a while since I've had this last, but I can see why I went through the box so fast. I like it– and I think if you added honey, it'd emphasize the natural sweetness that's in this tea.


Other Notes
Today's album is Under the Western Freeway by Grandaddy. I mentioned Sophtware Slump, by the same artist, awhile ago in another review, but this is the album that got me into Grandaddy. In particular, the song AM 180 is one of my favorite songs by them; I have some fond memories associated with it. At my second California Extreme, I think, I brought my friends to the music showcase to listen to Slime Girls (the first of a few times I'd be listening to them) very late at night, around maybe 2 AM. They opened with that song, and I just remember being half-asleep, sitting down and hearing AM 180 in a tiny room that made me half-deaf after a few songs. It might have been one of the first concerts I actually wanted to go to.

Busy week. Finished at the DA's office for this week, with my last day next Monday. On the Fourth, I went to a friend's house for some food (really good ribs) and then worked at the ice cream shop, which was, you guessed it, very busy considering the holiday. Some notable things from that night were a conversation with a girl visiting from Virginia about college applications and another group of girls getting excited over my UCLA hat and talking to me thinking I went there (no looking back now about Cal, though. Trying to work on moving on from choices I've made without regrets).

My unitmate, who also works with me at the shop, called me out on flirting with them (which, admittedly, I sort of was) and says there's something about me that makes girls, but not guys, want to talk to me. Honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing but I guess she's right; I haven't done a single thing with any of my guy friends this summer. Hopefully that changes on Saturday, since I plan to watch a movie with the boys. Other things I have planned are a spontaneous trip to Golden Gate Park tomorrow (no idea what we're going to do, but that'll be fun), a tour around San Francisco with one of the people I met at UCLA on Friday, and a grad party on Sunday. After next week, I should finally be free to do more things since the Justice Academy finally ends. Still going to work at the ice cream shop, though.

Now, I've been procrastinating on an essay I need to write for my Berkeley online class. Expect a new post on Friday! My new schedule, if you haven't noticed, is a new post every two days.

Review: Wild Sweet Orange - Tazo

Type: Herbal/Tisane
Producer: Tazo
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 100°C, 5 min., 8 fl oz. water (recommended)
Appearance: Paper, trapezoid shaped tea bag with a variety of small, light-green and yellow herbs (orange peel, lemongrass, herbs, and licorice root)
Rating: C | 74/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
As for the story about this tea bag– and a few more Tazo brand teas– I picked it up during the California state mock trial competition. There was a rooming mishap, so we ended up stuck in the lobby for over three hours, during which I raided a few tea displays. It was free, the ones they offer at breakfast, so I grabbed one of each. It was a pretty fun weekend, overall. Not as memorable as competition civics, probably because I didn't have to put too much work in my position, but fun anyway.

One great thing I've found about herbal teas is that they tend to be very aromatic; this tea smells strongly of oranges. The liquid brewed to be a dark orange color, and interestingly, some droplets of oil formed, floating at the top. And man, did this tea catch me off guard. I followed the instructions, and when you first sip this tea, it's very flavorful. Sour, too. The orange and citrus taste is ridiculously strong; if you've ever drank lemon juice and water, that's what it reminds me of. The next strong taste is the rose hips, but most everything else was overpowered by that orange taste. It did get sweeter as I finished more of the cup, and it does leave a sweet aftertaste in the mouth, however. Overall, I think it's a decent herbal tea, but too sour for my tastes

Other Notes
Today's album is Baby Driver (Music from the Original Motion Picture). After waiting a few months to see this movie– I love Edgar Wright's work, like Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz– I saw it in the theatres today and it was worth the wait. The soundtrack is amazing, too; I can't wait to pick up the soundtrack on CD sometime.

Past few days have been pretty chill. I went to the fair, as I mentioned in my last post, and we hit it off with them. They're nice people, but my unitmate isn't that interested (romantically) in the guy. They're fun to hang out with, though; we got dinner with them afterwards at a Mexican place, and today, we watched Baby Driver with them. The whole situation is kind of funny. My unitmate wanted to bail before the fair because she said she wasn't interested in him anymore; I talked her into giving him a chance; after two dates (technically), she's lost all interest because she thinks he's a boring guy. Hot, but not someone you could date because he doesn't start conversations and can only really talk about TV shows. So it goes.

One thing I've learned: a good way to make friends with people is to act like you've been friends with them for a long time– they tend to say it makes you seem chill.

Review: Organic Green Tea - Ito En

Type: Green (sencha leaves with matcha)
Producer: Ito En/Kirkland Signature
Origin: Japan
Brewing Parameters: 80°C, 30s, 1.5g tea bag (recommended)
Appearance: Square nylon bag with green tea fannings and matcha powder
Rating: C- | 72/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
The funny thing about this tea is that this is actually Costco branded, but produced by Ito En (so the quality isn't that bad). It's different in the fact that it has both sencha and matcha; if I had to guess, the matcha is added in order to get a deep green color. It works, too. After a short, thirty second brew, the liquid was a cloudy, dark yellowish green with some matcha visible at the bottom of the cup.

Despite the color, the smell wasn't too strong; I could get some light, grassy notes with a lemony citrus. In the taste, the sencha was the dominant flavor. It's soupy– somewhat vegetal– with a grassy sweetness that is overtaken by a long, sour note in the aftertaste. In the background, there is the signature taste of low or cooking-quality matcha, that somewhat fishy flavor. One problem I could find with this tea is that it needs to be consumed fast. The matcha in the water continues the brewing long after you take the tea bag out, so I can see it getting bitter after a while. Overall, for the price point, you're definitely getting your money's worth– especially since there are a hundred tea bags in the box. It's average, but I can see this as a good way to integrate green tea into your cooking or for making iced tea.

Other Notes
Today's album is another eternity by Purity Ring. I'm still listening to the album as I write this, so I don't have much to say, but it's good electronic music with great vocals. I think they came up as a recommended band after I started listening to Grimes, and I'm glad I found them. My favorite song so far is bodyache.

I just returned from my AP biology teacher's funeral. It was nice to see everyone there; the church was filled, I saw many of my friends and teachers, there was a lot of crying, and I finally feel some closure from it. That's all I really have to say about that. Later today, I'm going to go to the county fair with one of my unitmates, the girl from the other team, and some of her friends. It's supposed to be a date between my unitmate and this guy she likes from the other team, so that'll be exciting.

As for stuff I have planned, I still have three days at work– watched a trial about recklessly setting a fire yesterday– a speech to present, a trip to San Francisco with one of my UCLA friends, possibly a Minnesota trip, UC Berkeley homework, We the People meetings, and a few more things. I'm busier than I thought I'd be, but at least I'll be ready for college!

Review: Organic Detox Infusion - Mighty Leaf

Type: Herbal/Tisane
Producer: Mighty Leaf
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 90-100°C, 5 min., 3.3g tea bag
Appearance: Dried, broken up dull green leaves (mint and basil?) with white flower petals in a nylon bag
Rating: C | 75/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Doubly quick review today, since this is a tea bag and I'm getting ready for bed. I forgot the story of this tea bag; I'm guessing I got it with the last Mighty Leaf bag I got a long time ago, which my mom brought home from who-knows-where. Since I've had a number of drinks with a ridiculous amount of sugar earlier– milk tea from Plentea and a chai from Starbucks– I thought this would be a nice way to wind down the day.

After brewing, the liquid came out a clear orange color with a strong scent of mint. I could see some sediment at the bottom, but that may just be calcium from the hard water in my area. Like most mint-based teas/tisanes, the main taste is sour, with a cooling sensation in the mouth and throat afterwards. I can also taste some soapy, bitter flavors (I'm guessing the basil? I don't know) along with herbal, smoky notes that are similar to marijuana, especially in the back of the mouth. It's kind of spicy, too, which is interesting. I wish the packaging would give more information as to what is in this tea, but in my opinion, it's decent. I'd prefer a cleaner mint-only tea, but if you're into that detox stuff, go for this tea. Personally, I think detox tea is a gimmick; if you want to detox, just buy a tea you enjoy drinking and have that for a day.


Other Notes
Today's album is Pressure Chief by Cake. I've heard it so many times, it's one of my favorite albums at this point. I like almost every song on the album, but my favorites are Wheels, Dime, and End of the Movie. There's a nice variety on there, and the lyrics are amazing. Listen to it sometime; I have since elementary school, I think.

Happy pride! I brought one of my unit members to the parade today since it was her first-ever pride, and it was pretty fun. We made a poster saying "I show up because of Loving v. Virginia + Obergefell v. Hodges" and a lot of people in the parade liked it; I got a few hugs from that. Compared to the last time I went, there's a lot less nude people out and about (probably because it was cold today) and a lot more drunk and high people, with others selling weed out in the open to anyone who had cash. We were going to go to the Civic Center for food, too, but the line at security was way too long; instead, we went to Plentea and walked all the way to Fisherman's Wharf to have lunch at Boudin and play games at the Musee Mechanique. Like most of my arcade days, there was a lot of air hockey. After that, we stopped at the Ferry Building for ice cream and headed home. Eventful day. There was a lot of walking.

Last night, I had a bad movie night with a friend– one who I had a crush on sophomore year. Funny story about that; when I was interested in dating her, I went to one of our mutual friends to help me out. After I spent a while getting nowhere (since I was pretty shy at the time and much more socially awkward than I am now), I ended up hitting it off with our mutual friend, since we found out we could have conversations for hours on end, and we ended up dating for almost a year instead. I'm sure I've talked about that relationship on this blog before. As for the bad movie night, it was fun; I cooked dinner for her and her brother, and we watched The Room and Shaolin Soccer (the latter being a pretty funny movie– I liked it). We cuddled a bit, and her parents told us to behave ourselves when they came home and went upstairs. I don't know what she thinks about me, but we did go on a mini-golfing date (technically) earlier this summer, and we're close and comfortable with each other since we've been friends for years. She's going to Canada for college, so I guess there's the pressure of making the time left this summer count (as with all of my other friends).

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: Oriental Beauty - Unknown

Type: Oolong
Producer: Unknown
Origin: Taiwan
Brewing Parameters: 6g, 90°C, gongfu style
Appearance: Very loosely rolled leaves, brown, orange and white, connected to thin twigs
Rating: A | 93/100
# of Brews: 5

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
For the Taiwan set of reviews, I think this may be the last one; I have a few other random tea bags and powdered/instant teas, but I'll most likely make those standalone posts. Anyway, like most other teas I've reviewed in this round, I've tried this beforehand but I've only gotten around to writing about it now.

So, the producer is actually on the packaging in English for this tea, but the font is so ridiculously small that I can't read it. There are also English instructions, but they're also very basic and describe how to brew in gongfu style, so I don't have much to work off of. To make up for it, I'll just be doing what I've usually been doing: six grams, flash brews, and boiling water.

Since this is an oriental beauty, it's very fragrant; the leaves are fruity, like a honeyed citrus with apples. The liquid is similar in color to beer (a golden yellow color) and smelled the same as the wet leaf. Compared to other oriental beautys I've tried– Ten Ren's and Tea Ave's– my first response is that this tea is much sweeter. It has some earthy undertones, but the main flavor is lemon; if I had to compare it to anything, I'd say it's like diluted lemon juice. However, rather than ending on a sour note, it becomes sweeter like honey or a dark caramel. There is no astringency, and it's a very smooth drink.

Funny thing is that while I was writing this review, my grandma was peeling an orange next to me and I thought that the orange scent was coming from the tea. They're actually very similar, but an orange is just a little bit sweeter in scent. Overall, this is one of the better oriental beauties I've tried; I'd like to compare it to Tea Ave's again, but I'd need to put in another order and right now my gut says this one is better.


Other Notes

Today's album is Chillhop Essentials - Summer 2017. I found it through The Cancel, one of my favorite bands for chill, jazz hiphop beats, and it's not a bad album at all. Chillhop always makes for some good rainy day or late night work music.

Well, first week of work is done. I still don't feel like I enjoy office work particularly much, but the District Attorney's office is very relaxed and the work isn't too hard. I have some other small things to do outside of that, like an online summer class for incoming Cal freshmen, a speech about human trafficking for the program I'm interning with, reading some books (Slapstick by Vonnegut right now), and improving my handwriting. I'm also still working at the ice cream shop, which I have a shift for today. Oh, and I've been driving so I'm on track to get my license before I head off to college.

After a lot of thinking, I need to work on my confidence in college. I can get somewhat nervous around people I don't know too well sometimes. My fix for that is to get out of the house more often and hang out with people, so I can just get more comfortable socializing and conversing. I guess I'm not as bad as I think I am, but it's still a bit scary going to a new place.

Review: Bao Chung Oolong - Unknown

Type: Oolong
Producer: Unknown
Origin: Taiwan
Brewing Parameters: 90°C, fill 2/3rds of brewing vessel with leaf, gongfu style (recommended)
Appearance: Mix of dark and light green rolled leaves of a large size
Rating: A | 94/100
# of Brews: 5

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
I actually forgot I had this tea; I thought I only had one left to review, and when I was looking through my bag of Taiwan teas, I found this one. It's in a nice, large gift box and has a decent amount of English information on it including brewing instructions and nutritional facts. For one, this tea already wins in presentation.

After googling a bit about this tea, it's supposed to be very fragrant– and this one is no exception. Once the tea was washed, my pot had a very strong, sweet floral scent just emanating from it.
Since the leaves were loosely rolled (6 grams took up a large amount of space in my teapot), I did very fast brews, essentially just pouring the water in and pouring the tea off. The liquid came out a clear, bright yellow-gold color with a scent similar to the leaves, but with a little more caramel scent instead of floral. For the taste, it's just how it smells, with sweet notes of jasmine, honey, and very light fruit, probably cantaloupe. I also tasted a little bit of tomato, but this is more of a greener, sweet tea. It's generally smooth, with a clean aftertaste, but I can see it getting astringent if you brew at high temperatures for a long time.

I ended around maybe the fifth brew, but the tea was still going strong; the color became more golden and the flavor was similar to when I started. This is actually one of the better teas in the Taiwan set I've had– so far, the high mountain green and this one are those I've liked the most– and I can't believe I forgot about this one. Overall, it's enjoyable, following the taste of most Taiwan high mountain teas, but just a little less grassy.


Other Notes
Today's album is the Committed to the Crime EP by Chaos Chaos. Like most other people recently, I found them through their song Do You Feel It? which was in Rick and Morty a while back. They're pretty good; I recommend it.

Anyway, it's been an interesting past two days. Yesterday, I figured out my schedule for next year– history of Asian Americans through musicals seminar, chemistry, math, English, and political science– and went to the girl from the other team's grad party. I guess it wasn't a great day; it's kind of hard to socialize with people when everyone else knows each other, and I don't think I'm the best at meeting people. After staying there, giving her a gift, talking with a mutual friend, and eating, I walked a couple miles home for two hours. Thinking about it, I'm a "nice guy" in relationships and it isn't that great; it leads to some awkward situations. So, when college starts, the plan is to try to be more confident and assertive to try and make friends (and for relationships, too).

Today, I started work at the District Attorney's office. It mainly was just a lot of filing, refiling, and mundane/monotonous work, so it wasn't that interesting. It's a nice experience since it's my first office job, but from my first day, I'm not sure how I feel about it. Personally, I prefer actually getting out and moving about. I'll give it a week. Also, I'm getting better at driving, so that's fun, but right now with work, time management is what I need to work on. I'm currently watching the NBA finals right now, so I'll get back to you all after another review.

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: Preferred Taiwan Mountain Tea - Guang Ying

Type: Oolong
Producer: Guang Ying
Origin: Taiwan
Brewing Parameters: 100°C, 3 min., gongfu style (recommended); using 6 g
Appearance: Small dark green, balled oolong with visible stems/twigs
Rating: A- | 91/100
# of Brews: 5

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
In all honesty, trying to find any information in English about these teas on the boxes is like an easter egg hunt. I got lucky with this one, since the brewing info was in English, but nothing else really was. With the name, appearance, and smell, I'm going to assume this is a high altitude oolong. Since there was no water volume listed on the packaging, I'm not going to follow the recommended 3 minute brewing time; I'm doing quick 10-30 second brews only.

Interestingly, the dry leaf smelled similar to jasmine flowers, although this tea is not flavored. Like most of the high altitude oolongs I've tried, the liquid had a smell that's somewhat creamy, grassy, and sweet; it's fragrant. As for the color, it's a clear light yellow that turned only a little bit greener as the drinking session went on. The flavor itself is surprisingly floral, a bit like rose (instead of jasmine, which is what the smell would lead you to believe). It's mostly sweet (slightly milky but not ridiculously sweet like a Jin Xuan) with a very dull sour taste that lingers in the mouth as an aftertaste. The texture is smooth with little astringency. Overall, I like this tea– I wish I knew exactly what cultivar it is so I could order more online, but oh well. Looks like there's more exploring to do.

Other Notes

Today's album is Acid Rap by Chance the Rapper. Fun album; favorite songs on this album are Juice and Cocoa Butter Kisses. I'm going to remember driving with my friends to get dinner, blasting this album, and singing along during my last week of finals.

Anyway, I started working out again and I am already sore (which is telling of something). I had a regular schedule a couple of weeks ago but stopped because school got busy, but now that it's summer, I have a lot of free time. My daily to-do list has usually just been this blog, exercising, cooking, cleaning, college stuff, driver's test prep, and reading. I'm trying to get out and do stuff with people at least once a day so I'm not stuck inside all day.