It’s Day 18!
Last week, I had a dreadful cold. I’m still in the process of “getting over it,” not really sick anymore, but still coughing up a lot of that congestion that’s trapped in the lungs. Not fun.
As I confessed in the review below, I actually “drank ahead” with this advent calendar. And after going through that horrible cold, I’m glad I did, because otherwise there would have been several days without reviews being posted! I was just too sick to be reviewing teas and my taste buds were not operating at optimum levels.
I’m glad to be feeling better and I hope that everyone else out there is feeling fine – it’s a bad time to be caught feeling under the weather!
For today’s artistic inspiration, I chose this cute little mini clipboard that was altered with a Christmas theme. It was created by Liane Ceglar for one of the 12 Days of Christmas swaps I was in. (The photo isn’t great, but, it’s still such a wonderful little gift that I wanted to feature it!)
It’s another of those gifts that may not have been intended to be an ornament, but, I turned it into one. I love it and it looks great on my tree of altered art! Thank you Liane!
Hibiscus
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Teanzo 1856
Tea Description:
Hibiscus flowers are high in vitamin C, and recent studies suggest that hibiscus supports cardiovascular health. Hibiscus tea has been consumed for centuries for its health benefits. This herbal tea is delicious and steeps to a gorgeous pink color. The tart flavor of hibiscus is balanced by adding a sweetener. Perfect for entertaining. Garnish this herbal tea with a sprig of fresh mint. This herbal tea is caffeine free.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
OK, so I admit it. I checked to see what the teas are in this Advent Calendar ahead of time. I kind of have to so that I can write the review in enough time to publish on the day that they correspond with the calendar. Yeah, I guess I’m cheating, but hey, I’ve rationalized my behavior because I’m doing it for you, my readers.
And when I saw that 100% pure, not-part-of-a-blend hibiscus was one of the tisanes in this box, I think I may have screamed out loud. And not a happy, excited scream. More like a mortified scream of horror.
Since that time, a few things have happened. First, I started plotting. Hmm … what if I just don’t post anything for the 18th day? Maybe say there was some glitch in the system and the review was lost forevermore. No. I’m sure that someone who knows more about computers than I do (they wouldn’t be hard to find) would challenge this claim. What if I just refuse? I could just protest. NO HIBISCUS!
Then, something else happened: I got sick. I came down with a terrible cold. And even though hibiscus isn’t my favorite thing, I do know that it’s loaded with Vitamin C and every time I consume something with lots of vitamin C while I’m sick, well, I feel better for a while.
So, I thought, hey, maybe it will work with the hibiscus. What have I got to lose? I mean, it won’t kill me to drink a cup of hibiscus, will it?
Well, it might. I mean, I could be deathly allergic to pure hibiscus and I might die if I drink this stuff. But, I’m thinking I’m not deathly allergic to hibiscus since I’ve had quite a few tisanes with hibiscus in it. And confession time: I’ve never actually had a cup of pure hibiscus tisane. Yep. It’s true.
So, I figured, it’s time to try this stuff that I’ve been cursing for so many years.
To steep the hibiscus, I used my Kati Tumbler (again!) and poured the contents of packet number 18 into the basket. I heated the water to 195°F and let it steep for 4 minutes. Usually, I’ll let a tisane steep for 5 – 10 minutes, but since this is pure hibiscus, I decided to go conservative and only steep for 4 minutes.
Of course, I didn’t think to actually try this when my taste buds were kind of out of whack because of my cold. That would have been THE time to try this, right? But, I didn’t think about it then. Now, I’m still dealing with a sore throat (actually, it’s more of a dry, irritated throat from coughing) and a weakened immune system and a tired and achy body, but my taste buds are in working order.
How do I know?
Tart! Yeah. I even added a teaspoon of raw sugar to this and yep, still tart. The sugar did tame the tartness down a bit though. I found that it’s also a lot more tart when it’s hot than as it cools. It becomes more “berry-like” when it starts to cool down and there are some fruity notes that are actually quite agreeable!
So, as it turns out, I’m not deathly allergic of hibiscus, I’m just more afraid of it than anything. It’s not that horrible. It has a nice berry taste and it does have health benefits. I do recommend keeping the steep time to a minimum because even at 4 minutes, some texture does develop here (the longer you steep hibiscus, the more syrupy the liquid becomes). I think 4 minutes is as far as I’d go, and you still are getting a really strong, hibiscus-y flavor (it is, after all, hibiscus).
While hibiscus will never be a favorite drink of mine, it isn’t a horrible drink. I’ve tasted teas and tisanes that I’ve liked a lot less. If I had other options, I wouldn’t choose to drink another pure hibiscus drink. I certainly would not buy pure hibiscus. That said, it wasn’t as horrible an experience as I thought it would be when I saw the word “HIBISCUS” on the label of the pouch marked 18 in this advent calendar from Teanzo.
The hibiscus does have some redeeming qualities. First of all, it did soothe my sore throat and I found that it did help me feel better after I drank it. (Remember, I’m dealing with a cold here!) So, it’s not all bad. And I know that there are some people who swear by this stuff. I bet kids would love it – most kids love the tart stuff – and it would be much better for them than some sugary soda or punch drink.
Sun Moon Lake Hong Yue Black Tea from T-Oolong Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: T-Oolong Tea
Tea Description:
Our Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea #18 is organic, handpicked and handcrafted. The tea is produced from Hong-Yui varietal grown in Yu-Chih township in Nantou County near the Sun Moon Lake. The steeped Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea #18 has a characteristic and attractive natural mint flavor, a delightful, complex and pleasant taste without any bitterness and a sweet and mild aftertaste. The Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea is of extremely high quality and is lovely in its rich and smooth taste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is so lovely!
This is one of those comforting types of teas – the type you want to drink while its hot, and with which you want to curl up under a big, fluffy blanket and sit in front of a roaring fire in the fireplace. And as I write this, we are experiencing one of our chilly spring days here in the Pacific Northwest, so it is quite a nice cup to enjoy today.
The website description of this tea suggests a minty flavor, and I am tasting that. It isn’t an overwhelming mint note, but it is cool and crisp and very refreshing, offering a nice contrast to the smooth, rich, malty notes of this tea. The cup is sweet, reminiscent of molasses. I notice hints of smoke in the distance, and these slight smoky tones meld beautifully with the molasses notes.
I notice that this tea is currently out of stock on the T-Oolong Tea website, and I do hope that they’ll get it in stock soon, because it’s really quite amazing. This is a tea I’d recommend to everyone. If you like tea – you’ve got to try this! It has such a rich, enjoyable flavor that I think every tea drinker will appreciate it.
ITFA Global Tea Taster’s Club, October’s Shipment, Part 4: T.T.E.S. No. 18: Ruby Black Tea
Leaf Type: Black
Produced By Yuan Shiang
For More Information, visit the Tea Farms webpage
About ITFA Global Tea Taster’s Club:
By subscribing to the Global Tea Tasters Club, you will receive tea from ITFA tea farms 6 times per year. Each time, we will select a different region to feature and as we grow in tea farm members, so will your tea experience.
Your tea will also be accompanied by info about the tea and the tea farms themselves.
To know where your tea is coming from, who has grown and produced it, to taste the difference in teas from around the world…what could be better?
Taster’s Review:
This is an incredible black tea, unlike others I’ve tasted. And that is something that I am enjoying so much about the Global Tea Taster’s Club: it offers the amazing opportunity to try teas that I probably would not have otherwise tasted, and these teas never fail to impress!
And this Ruby Black Tea is certainly impressive. It brews up incredibly dark, and the aroma of the brewed liquor is fascinating. It has a spiced tone to it that intrigues me, beckoning me to take a sip.
The tea is strong and intensely flavored. In one sip, I taste notes of earth, fruit, malt, spice and even the slightest hints of smoke. Each of these flavors meld together so well. There is a pleasing sweetness to the cup too, somewhat caramel-y as it melds with the malty tones, but I wouldn’t really characterize it as a caramel undertone in comparison to other black teas that I’ve tasted. That is to say, it’s not like a buttery caramel flavor, it is more like burnt sugar, sweet but with a hint of bitterness to it as well. There is a fair amount of astringency to the cup – not too much, but it is certainly noticeable.
This tea offers two very splendid infusions (perhaps more!), the first tasting bold and hearty, while the second is a bit smoother with more malty notes. This is a very pleasant black tea, and one that I’m very honored to have tried and to be able to recommend to others.