62
drank Peaches & Ginger by Harney & Sons
244 tasting notes

I am Jack’s indignation.

It’s not like I haven’t had this tea before. I have, and it was pretty good. Not great, but pretty good. Certainly worth sharing with Mum, who likes both peachy and gingery things. The last time I had this, I noted some bitterness, and I knew it was my fault for leaving the teabag in the cup as I sipped. I was certain that wouldn’t be a problem this time, since I planned to remove the bag after the tea’d steeped. Hmph. I was wrong.

I have to learn to trust my gut. A box containing black, bagged tea recommends steeping for five minutes in boiling water, and upon reading this my gut went, no, that’s asking for trouble. But I went ahead and followed the instructions anyway, and the result was a brew not too bitter to be drunk, but too bitter to be really enjoyed. This tea really does have a lovely peach flavour (I tasted and smelled a bit of ginger last time, but it wasn’t there at all this time), which was greatly marred by the bitterness. The worst part was that Mum’s a Tetley tea drinker, and every time one of “my” “fancy” teas turns out blech, there’s this only-partly-imagined accusatory glare: “My Tetley would never do this to me.” I say again, hmph. I blame H&S for the dodgy instructions, but myself for not knowing better. Next time I’m going to try a three-minute steep, and I’m going to take the tea out of the bag, put it in an infuser, and grate some fresh ginger into it. That should do the trick. (Thank goodness I have a box of this to find the right formula…)

I’m going to have to lower my rating from 75 (my “hey, this is pretty good!” range), though, to something in my “decent, but could be better with help” range, because I think it really does need help to shine.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec
Terri HarpLady

Peaches and Ginger and black tea…yummmmmmmmmmmm

Nik

One would think…! =\

Serenity

Such a challenge to brew flavored teas due to this conundrum: herbal tisanes need a lengthy steeping to let all those fruity flavors shine, yet black and green teas often need a much shorter steeping time or else the flavor isn’t ideal. What to do? I wonder if this solution would ever work: brew a peachy gingery tisane in one tea pot or cup, and then brew a cup of delicious black or green tea in another pot/cup. When they are both done, combine, and enjoy. ?

Nik

That might work, but I’m entirely too lazy to try. =) I’m really hoping the three-minute steep results in a peachy enough brew that isn’t bitter. If not, into the swap bin this goes!

Serenity

lol as I was writing my idea I was like, uhhh, no, too much work, even with tea bags! I like your idea better. : )

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Comments

Terri HarpLady

Peaches and Ginger and black tea…yummmmmmmmmmmm

Nik

One would think…! =\

Serenity

Such a challenge to brew flavored teas due to this conundrum: herbal tisanes need a lengthy steeping to let all those fruity flavors shine, yet black and green teas often need a much shorter steeping time or else the flavor isn’t ideal. What to do? I wonder if this solution would ever work: brew a peachy gingery tisane in one tea pot or cup, and then brew a cup of delicious black or green tea in another pot/cup. When they are both done, combine, and enjoy. ?

Nik

That might work, but I’m entirely too lazy to try. =) I’m really hoping the three-minute steep results in a peachy enough brew that isn’t bitter. If not, into the swap bin this goes!

Serenity

lol as I was writing my idea I was like, uhhh, no, too much work, even with tea bags! I like your idea better. : )

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Profile

Bio

2012.10.07: I hear people like to understand other people’s ratings, so here’s a loose guide:

01-29: Dear God, why.
30-49: I’ll finish this cup, I guess, but no more.
50-59: Meh.
60-69: Decent. Maybe I can blend it with something else and make it better.
70-79: Heeey, this is quite good!
80-89: I love it, but I’m not in love with it.
90-100: Permanently resident in my Happy Place.

Update: I have steeped, and it was good. =] Still a tea-ophyte, though.

This is a tea site, so I feel like “well, I’m Indian” should be enough of an introduction. Because, I mean, it’s kind of in my genes, right? But the fact of the matter is that I’m an absolute tea-ophyte.

I’ve just discovered a world beyond Celestial Seasonings. I’ve just discovered “sachets” instead of “normal” tea bags and bought my first loose tea sampler. I don’t get the whole water temperature and steep time thing yet, nor that if I want to get a yixiang tea pot, I’d need one for each type of tea. I have this infuser ball thing, but I haven’t used it yet.

Don’t cringe, but right now I’m still just boiling water and pouring it over a teabag, adding some sugar, and drinking a nice, hot cuppa. I’d like to learn more, I think, and I’d like to train my palate. I figure participating in this community is the best way to do that.

So ya. Hi!

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