Berry White

I think part of the problem with having 500 samples (thanks indigobloom) of tea in one place is that some of the flavours/smells blend together. there’s a hint of smokiness in this tea that i’m pretty sure comes from another sample of tea from Kittena And that ladies and gents is why you must be wary of canadians pushing tea out of the back of their car. haha but anyway…ignoring that, this is a really nice light tea. Not something i’d drink all the time, and something i’d probably rather enjoy iced. The colour is a wonderful purpley-red and the smell is great! Theres a tang as your first sip the tea that quickly changes to a warm subtle flavour. Not too shabby!

My tea of the morning, accompanied by an awkward tea moment:
So I feel a bit guilty taking up so much time with my extensive tea prep… even though it’s only a few minutes here and there, it does add up. Thus, I try to mitigate it as much as possible. This is why I filled up the kettle to boil and returned to my desk for a minute or two. My cubicle is close enough that I can hear the click of the kettle turning off most of the time.
Except this morning my lovely tea friend who I share much of my tea with had already poured it when I walked in! ack! a white tea…
She is a sweetheart so I really did not mind. Especially since the tea didn’t turn out bitter at all. In fact, the berry overshadowed most of the tea! it brewed up a gorgeous purple colour. Much deeper than I expected. and it smelled heavenly!!
The taste? well that was nice to. Very rich in the berryness.
Odd though, I enjoyed the first steep more than the second. Mostly because the second one was so… weak! I could definitely taste the berry, a little more tart and a whole lot lighter this time. and the white part was a little more present.

I think my love affair with white teas is over :(
There was a day when white tea was my amore. The delicate notes, the crisp dryness. I had so much love… but now?? now I don’t get it at all.
In fact, this one reminds me very much of Strawberry White from David’s tea. At one time that was my fave tea of ALL TIME! Now I haven’t had it in ages, but I strongly suspect that it would not get me a tea high at all. :moment of sadness:
Bah, I’ve fallen in love with a whole range of other teas. Can’t have it all, right?
I shan’t rate this one now. I need to try it again when the leaves are cooked up right. I know it has the potential for me to adore it… I know it does!

Tea of the afternoon…..

This is another sample I received from Indigobloom. Thank you, as I will be trying all the teas from the Spice and Tea Exchange that you sent…. I feel an order for the Coconut Oolong coming on :)…….

This one is not for me. I do like white teas, but as time progresses, I have less and less of a tolerance for hibiscus/roselle in tea unless it is incredibly light. I am really amazed at all the tea blends that include hibiscus. I do think it lighter than some in this blend, and it really is a beautiful tea, with a berry red color when brewed. Smells like a lovely berry flavor. Perhaps I should have tried a little sweetener.

Mug method, 3 minutes at about 180.

i love tea! i’m so grateful to have it in my life! i know i sound crazy! but seriously. what other simple things are this easy to enjoy?!

now don’t get angry but i did dump out a tiny little tea tin this morning. it was a tiny cup’s worth of root beer tea. my sister wouldn’t drink it and i was tired of looking at it. this Berry White tea was also in the orphan box. (box of teas my sister said she wasn’t gonna drink and mostly they were samples i’d given her cuz i wasn’t gonna drink it either hah) i drank this one again because i had never reviewed it.

[side note: i have a ‘tea purgatory’ and a ‘tea orphan box’. ‘tea purgatory is where i keep teas i don’t have room for in my cupboard yet, and ‘tea orphan box’ is where i keep the last bits of tea that i didn’t really like and don’t wanna try again but there’s just that little tad left] [oh the science of tea organization systems]

it’s very red red pink liquor. and it tastes just like that. it tastes pink. and by that i mean it tastes like it’s hibiscus trying to be a larger variety of berries. but it’s not awful. it tastes kinda festive i guess.

now off off off to mail some swaps! (and then a lame subcommittee meeting zzzz) (but don’t worry i have some watson tea for the meeting so it will be alright i bet)

This one brews so pretty. Which is so sad since it is so bitterly full of hibiscus. I tried adding twice the sugar I usually do, and still all I could taste was hibiscus with ever so slightly a hint of raspberry. Thank you for the chance to try this one Indigobloom!

This tea creates a great deep purple color with many flavors with the berries adding to the greatness.

I really liked this tea, but it doesn’t really taste at all like what I’d expect a berry blend to be. Sure, there are a lot of berries in the blend but all the heavy lifting with the taste is being done by the flavouring and it’s plum/lychee – NOT berry. You can taste it too; this is like a less floral lychee white tea with a tinnyyyy bit more depth to it. The inclusion of berries contributes a little bit, but not as much as the average person thinks they do. Dehydrated fruits just don’t work like that. So, tasty as it may be, I find the composition to be sorta deceptive.

Work tea from yesterday.

This is ok. It definitely needs precise water temp and brewing time to bring out the berry flavors and any hints of the white tea base. Overstepping results in a cup o’ hibiscus.

Good. Nothing to be overly excited about, but it’s ok.

Disclaimer: I’m far from a tea connaisseur/enthusiast. My notes are not meant to be a review for the tea community, but rather for myself so I know what to buy or not buy again (I wish there was a way to keep notes private).

Delightfully fruity and light.