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drank Kenyan Tinderet by DAVIDsTEA
818 tasting notes

After commenting on a post about how I don’t like CTC teas, I decided to give this one another try now that I have evolved a bit. The dry leaf looks like grapenuts, and it also kind of smells like grapenuts. Ha! I could get malty and fruity notes from the aroma. I decided to steep it for 3 minutes, instead of the recommended 4-6 minutes, at 205 degrees, instead of 208 degrees. I added my usual sugar and a splash of soymilk. Well, it was better than my previous tries. Or maybe I just have evolved to appreciate it more? Malty and a little fruity were the notes I could taste. It still was a little bitter and astringent. Maybe a 2 minute steep would be better? What a finicky tea!
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Angrboda
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I think the change in steeping time made a difference here. I’m always a little worried that I’m steeping CTC too long, and haven’t yet managed to find that perfect time that always works for me like I have with regular leaf (2 minutes in small pot, 4 minutes in large pot. Almost never fails to brew just the right strength for me.)

TastyBrew
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Funny, most CTCs taste like grapenuts to me too. And they ALL require milk and honey.

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Angrboda
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I think the change in steeping time made a difference here. I’m always a little worried that I’m steeping CTC too long, and haven’t yet managed to find that perfect time that always works for me like I have with regular leaf (2 minutes in small pot, 4 minutes in large pot. Almost never fails to brew just the right strength for me.)

TastyBrew
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Funny, most CTCs taste like grapenuts to me too. And they ALL require milk and honey.

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Another profile facelift! My tastes have changed a lot from when I first discovered loose leaf tea.

I can trace my tea journey back to October 2012, when I discovered DavidsTea. Before that, I had the occasional cup and enjoyed high tea at An Afternoon to Remember, which has since closed.

I went through a period of wanting to try all the teas, and was really into flavored teas, especially dessert blacks, but my tastes have substantially changed over time.

I still enjoy the occasional flavored black or rooibos, but I’m more into unflavored black teas right now and recently, puerh. Chinese black teas are amazing…with their notes of chocolate or sweet potato, who needs a flavored tea? I had a much steeper learning curve when it came to puerh. I used to dump out cups of puerh for tasting like leather. Now, I am really enjoying them. I think it took finding good quality puerh and steeping them gong fu style to really enjoy them.

I also, on occasion, enjoy a good oolong, white, or green tea.

Favorite tea companies right now include: Mandala, Teavivre, Butiki, Golden Moon, Lupicia, and DavidsTea (for teaware mostly).

Just a note: I don’t rate my teas numerically because my iPad doesn’t like the scroll bar. Maybe someday that will change…hint hint, steepster! ;)

P.S. My profile picture is of one of my 2 cats, Holly, who is a little princess but very photogenic, and she loves boxes, including those that bring me tea! :)

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San Francisco Bay Area

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