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Had a bit too much to drink last night at a party I helped throw, and then had to get up super early this morning to make it to my volunteer shift. Factor in menstrual cramps, walking through the freezing morning cold to get to my job, party clean up duty, a ton of catch-up homework I have to do, and an nerve wracking interview this afternoon, today just might be the worst day ever. So, I heated up a cup of chai, hoping it would make things a little better….and, I didn’t even get to drink it because I had to go and clean up after the party. I just got back, and now I have a cold cup of chai sitting on my desk. Sadness. Well, it still tastes okay, but it’s not quite hitting the spot. The spices are coming through surprisingly well, considering I only steeped it for 3 minutes and used a lot of milk. Lots of cinnamon. It doesn’t seem as special as I remember it being. At least it’s a lot better than that Adagio Aries blend monstrosity.

I have to wonder…am I losing my taste for chai?

Oh hai, Adagio tea! Sorry for not visiting recently, I’ve been really busy with school and have been spending most of my time at my friend matcha’s house. Anyway, how’s it going? Oh hey, so, since I have so much of you, I think I’m going to use a little more than a teaspoon this time. Is that okay? Gosh, I hate treating you this way….it’s not like I want to get rid of you or anything…it’s just that we need some time apart, you know? I just feel like you’re suffocating me whenever I look over to the cupboard and see you sitting there, glaring at me. I think having a little room to expand and unfurl and steep will be good for both of us.

Anyway, I’ve thought maybe I’d turn the temperature down a little, since there’s so much of you in the basket. Oh my gosh, no I am not calling you fat! Aww, now you’re being all sweet to me…thanks Valentines. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to call you a tin of ground up cardboard disguised as tea. I’m so glad you’re not all bitter over that either. You’re style seems so different at this temperature…you’re kind of fruity, kind of clean even. Wow, this temperature really suits you! Maybe this won’t be the end of our relationship, after all…

Edit: Wait, duh Shanti, there’s some residual milk in my cup that I forgot about. No wonder this is so much smoother and less bitter than I remember. Sigh. I thought you were different…

Ricky, you’re going to hate me…in addition to all of that Adagio stuff, I now have three bags of Mandarin Matcha, a huge 4 oz bag of Matcha from Mighty Leaf, and a huge bag of Matcha Latte/Frappe mix from ML. :O [Note: I’m not bragging about this…I’m complaining about how much of a freaking dummy I am to have bought so much extra tea!]

I have to say, I’m pleasantly surprised by this tea! First of all, it foams! Well, I know, most matcha foams, but I had gotten used to the Mandarin Matcha which unfortunately doesn’t foam no matter how long/powerfully you whisk it. [Mandarin Matcha is still tasty, though! I hope 52teas adds it to their restock list]. Anyway, I prepared this usucha (thin) style: 1 1/2 large scoops in 4 ounces of water.

The tea is pretty darn good for something so cheap! It’s not particularly bitter, although it’s not very sweet either. Very easy to drink down, and not powdery, even after being set down for a little while. Rewhisking easily made another thick layer of foam, which is nice.

So, how does it taste? Unfortunately, not like much. I’m getting mostly bitter greens, and a hint of the sea. Not a lot of sweet or savory action going on. Sometimes that’s okay, though, especially when you’re just looking for a caffeine fix!

I don’t know how to describe this…it’s like roasty flowers, but in a good way. I’m not getting honey from this, sadly. Or maybe it’s just that I’ve had other teas that tasted a lot more like honey than this one without meaning to. But anyway, even though I can’t quite pick out the individual flavors in this, but it’s good. Finish the whole cup off in less than a minute good. Keeping my mind off the huge stack of readings I have to do by tomorrow good.

Oh wait. Shoot. Did I just lose The Game?

Today was my first time trying matcha as a drink. I was a little disappointed with the color of the tea—dark, olive green, instead of radioactive looking—but I gave it a pass since it’s blended with pulverized dried orange. I prepared it very thin and weak, just so I could get a feel for what matcha is like. Didn’t taste bitter at all to me. It seemed sweet, and maybe the littlest bit sour/astringent/bitter. I couldn’t get it to froth (I didn’t use much matcha) and my water was too cool, I think. The cup was powdery and unblended as well. I’m leaving the rating off until I can try non-flavored matcha and can prepare this better.

Oh, I am loving this tea. White, green, sugary, peach…fresh, simple, clean, sweet. I accidentally let this cool down and it was delicious…the first iced tea I’ve had luck with! I swear, it has the same taste as those peach ring candies! I’m really pleased with this sample and will be buying it full size!

After all these posts on EB today, I thought I’d pull this out of the tea box. Tried it with honey this time, and it is fab.

Eponymous tea! I’ve been looking forward to drinking, er, Shanti, for some time now. Ick, this feels weird, referring to it as “Shanti”. I know the Jessicas and Elizabeths and Jennifers of the world are used to this, but I’ve never met another Shanti before in my life, so this is exciting. Maybe I should take a page out of the GOP’s playbook and start referring us as “Shanti the Person” and “Shanti the Tea”? Or perhaps “Shantea”?

Mmm, these leaves smell mysterious and opaque. I know opaque isn’t a smell, but bear with me. You know how colors like lavender and periwinkle are always opaque and milky looking? Well, if that opaque quality had a smell, it’d smell like Shantea. It’s a very cozy, comforting smell.

Whoa. The smell coming from the liquor is smoky. Kind of like cigarettes, to be honest. And under the cigarette smoke, there’s the—OMFG I JUST SNORTED TEA UP MY NOSE. Well, that’s a first. Ow!

Where was I? Oh yeah. Smells like smoke and just barely like some kind of salted vegetable. Sipping now…Smoke! Smoke smoke smoke! There’s quiet a bit of bitterness, but it’s a good bitter. A drinkable bitter. A dull, non-astringent bitter. It fits in with the smoke nicely, and I think the tea would taste worse if it wasn’t there. The smoky, dull, opaqueness of the tea is actually making me a little sleepy. The more I sip on this, the more I taste sweet grass and hay. And gasoline, maybe. And, wow, now I’m getting flashbacks of the smell of the farms along the highway in my rural hometown in central California. It doesn’t even taste like smoke to me anymore, it tastes like driving home. And now I’m feeling all nostalgic and homesick and want to take a nap. Thanks a lot, Shantea.

This brewed up very light. The liquor smells like honey, rather than “fruit and freshly cut grass” to me. The tea tastes mild and like fruit and honey. This is definitely a sweet rather than savory green tea. I might have over steeped it (strong setting on the Zarafina), as it tasted a little astringent to me. Second steep of the same leaves was even more astringent/bitter, with no sweet fruit or honey taste. Overall, the first steep wasn’t bad, but it’s not something I would repurchase full-size. Next time I’ll try a shorter steep time.