#VacationTea
So, we got to Winnipeg yesterday afternoon – and literally the first thing that we did was go shopping at Cornelia Bean! I’ve tried several teas from this store before, the majority of them passed along to me by Dexter. From what I can recall, most were in the range of average to very good so I was excited to actually get to check out the store in person.
I think, all in all, I ended up getting eight different teas that were actually Cornelia Bean ‘branded’ and then one of the Algonquin Tea Co. herbal blends they were carrying as part of a partnership. It was a really nice experience though! The atmosphere of the store is really nice and relaxing, and I feel like with the large table/desk in the center of the store that it’s the kind of place one could easily hunker down in for an afternoon to get some studying done in a quiet, peaceful environment with good lighting and accompanying tea! The best part, in my opinion, was just the conversation I had with the woman working at the desk who, though I’m not 100% sure, I believe was the owner. She was very sweet – and after my Dad very awkwardly/proudly boasted that I was a certified Sommelier we ended up having a really nice conversation about the TAC certification program – in particular the extent to which the program discusses tisanes/herbs in general. We also talked very briefly about the terroir similarities of Nepalese teas and Indian teas, such as Darjeeling – since the two countries share a border/are so close geographically. It was just a super positive experience in general!
As I was smelling away at the different teas, I stumbled upon this one. Though I’ve never had Spirulina tea, I’ve had several different things with Spirulina in them before and honestly I’ve always quite liked them. To be fair, I don’t know exactly what it takes like on its own though. I know a lot of people aren’t fans of the flavour though; I’ve just never experienced any unpleasantness myself. When I saw this one, I was intrigued by the smell though and I pondered aloud what it looked like visually when brewed because it DOES have that really distinct blue-green kind of hue.
The lady we were talking with (I really wish I had caught her name!) offered to make me a cup, and I happily took her up on the offer! I ended up trying it just as we were checking out, and I took like three sips and then apologized to her for having to make her do more work – ‘cause I 100% wanted to grab some of this to take home with me! It was actually so, so good! It’s hard to describe it; it tasted eerily familiar in flavour but also completely unique/different.
The descriptor I finally settled on, about halfway through finishing the cup, was “Apple Pie, but if you made it with crab apples”. It was sweet and tart, with warm cinnamon notes like what you’d get in baked apples/pie crust. It has more going for it other than that though – particularly a lemony quality alongside that sort of crab apple tartness. I wish I could isolate the taste of the spirulina – I just don’t think it’s gonna happen, though. I still think there’s another mystery flavour in here than contributed to the wonderful flavour – but without a complete ingredients list I can’t be sure.
Anyway, definitely not something I expected to pick up – but one I’m happy I got to try in the moment and decide on. It was good! Plus, it’s nice having another mate option!!!
I miss Dexter. If you are in touch, please prod her into making a guest appearance or two.
Sounds like you are having a splendid time away, Ms. Strange. Hurray for vacations!