Well, my last Upton sample is green Earl Grey, which is simply Not Suited for being my morning tea, so I’m going to get started on a new project! The Great Finish Off My Adagio Samples That Have Been Taking Up Space In My Cupboard For Ages To Make Room For More Samples Project! (or TGFOMASTHBTUSIMCFATMRFMS Project for short)
Does anybody else do this thing where you end up not drinking your favorite samples all that often because you don’t want to finish them off and be left with the not so great samples? That is what has happened to Golden Monkey. I love this stuff, but the sample tin tends to sit in the back of the tea cupboard, neglected due to my miserliness. Poor Golden Monkey. This tea has a lot going on; I was thinking “smoky” when I was drinking it earlier, but reading the other notes, malty is definitely the right word.
I let this steep for a stupid long time this morning because I was distracted trying to find all the April Fool’s jokes I could before leaving for class, so the end result is extremely strong and extremely malty. Suitable for mornings, when nothing else gets through the post wake-up fog, but I was definitely wishing for more subtlety by the end of the mug.
Preparation
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This is why I don’t buy samples.
I don’t know about samples, but with tea in general, I tend to keep drinking all my favorites over and over again when I have untasted tea in the cupboard. I guess it’s like meeting the same friends you’ve known a long time and have a shared history instead of making a giant effort to start/nurture a new friendship. But, it’s a new day tomorrow and I hope to make an effort …!
If I have as-yet-untasted tea, even my most prized favorite cannot tempt me away from satisfying my curiosity =)
Ewa, I have tried two Golden Monkey Teas first one from an Adagio sampler and then the S.S. Teas Etc award winning one and I prefer the Adagio one it’s much more malty. It is strange how subjective the palate is.
Lauren- I’m with you an old favorite tea is what I go for before a untried tea. I think it’s just loyalty or something :)
I am inspired by Ewa & Jim Marks – I am currently tea-less (gasp, shocking I know) so I am going to go & pick out something totally new to try, but the betting is good that I will revert to a ‘tried & true favorite’ ere long! LOL!
But but, guys! What if you drink all of your super tasty tea and then you try your samples and they are not very good! That would be the most terrible thing ever. Trying is a separate issue though, tea that I have not tasted yet just sitting in my cupboard is driving me insane with curiosity without even trying. It’s after I’ve tried it and formed preferences that the problems start…
The Adagio Golden Monkey is the only one I’ve ever tried, but if it’s the one with more character, I’ll just stick with that.
My nightmare would be running out of the teas I love and rely on, so I’m much more likely (out of curiosity) to try something new and untested, and then if I don’t love it, get it used up and out of the way. I know that if I go back to the favorites and use them up and all I have left is the stuff I don’t like, I’ll just order more of something else and eventually end up wasting this stuff as stale.
If I truly hate something I’ll give it away or put it in the compost pile. Otherwise, I just consume it and move on.
But I think I might be weird and borderline OCD so feel free to ignore me :-)
No no no, cannot ignore you, Jim Marks – you provide too much insight about teas (not just here but on my other posts)! But I am going to go pick out something I’ve never tasted before … I’m off on a new-tea adventure!
I totally get the “drink it to get it out of the way” thing. Right now my main problem is I have so many I haven’t tasted I am feeling overwhelmed. I guess I should have a cup of tea to relax. :-)
Oh man, choice paralysis is also something I am intimately familiar with. Just close your eyes and grab something! OR formulate a list based on arbitrary criteria! mmm, lists.
Also! you can switch off! New thing, known thing, new thing, known thing. If you get too caught up in the “must try all the samples before I go back to my known tea” it starts just feeling like work.
I agree, Ewa!
This is why I don’t buy samples.
I don’t know about samples, but with tea in general, I tend to keep drinking all my favorites over and over again when I have untasted tea in the cupboard. I guess it’s like meeting the same friends you’ve known a long time and have a shared history instead of making a giant effort to start/nurture a new friendship. But, it’s a new day tomorrow and I hope to make an effort …!
If I have as-yet-untasted tea, even my most prized favorite cannot tempt me away from satisfying my curiosity =)
Ewa, I have tried two Golden Monkey Teas first one from an Adagio sampler and then the S.S. Teas Etc award winning one and I prefer the Adagio one it’s much more malty. It is strange how subjective the palate is.
Lauren- I’m with you an old favorite tea is what I go for before a untried tea. I think it’s just loyalty or something :)
I am inspired by Ewa & Jim Marks – I am currently tea-less (gasp, shocking I know) so I am going to go & pick out something totally new to try, but the betting is good that I will revert to a ‘tried & true favorite’ ere long! LOL!
But but, guys! What if you drink all of your super tasty tea and then you try your samples and they are not very good! That would be the most terrible thing ever. Trying is a separate issue though, tea that I have not tasted yet just sitting in my cupboard is driving me insane with curiosity without even trying. It’s after I’ve tried it and formed preferences that the problems start…
The Adagio Golden Monkey is the only one I’ve ever tried, but if it’s the one with more character, I’ll just stick with that.
My nightmare would be running out of the teas I love and rely on, so I’m much more likely (out of curiosity) to try something new and untested, and then if I don’t love it, get it used up and out of the way. I know that if I go back to the favorites and use them up and all I have left is the stuff I don’t like, I’ll just order more of something else and eventually end up wasting this stuff as stale.
If I truly hate something I’ll give it away or put it in the compost pile. Otherwise, I just consume it and move on.
But I think I might be weird and borderline OCD so feel free to ignore me :-)
No no no, cannot ignore you, Jim Marks – you provide too much insight about teas (not just here but on my other posts)! But I am going to go pick out something I’ve never tasted before … I’m off on a new-tea adventure!
I totally get the “drink it to get it out of the way” thing. Right now my main problem is I have so many I haven’t tasted I am feeling overwhelmed. I guess I should have a cup of tea to relax. :-)
Oh man, choice paralysis is also something I am intimately familiar with. Just close your eyes and grab something! OR formulate a list based on arbitrary criteria! mmm, lists.
Also! you can switch off! New thing, known thing, new thing, known thing. If you get too caught up in the “must try all the samples before I go back to my known tea” it starts just feeling like work.
I agree, Ewa!