Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  52Teas

Tea Description:

The traditional Mai tai is made with rum, Curaçao liqueur, and lime juice. Curaçao is a liqueur made from the peel of the laraha citrus fruit, which was developed from the Valencia orange. The liqueur is naturally colorless but is often given artificial color, commonly blue. Our Mai Tai is a blend of Yun Wu, Chun Mee and Young Hyson green teas, orange peel and organic flavors. It’s sure to put you in mind of tropical breezes. See if you can drink it without wanting to put a little umbrella in it.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

From the moment I opened the pouch of this Mai Tai Flavored Green Tea from 52Teas, my olfactory nerves have been overcome by the strong fragrance of the dry leaf of this tea.  It smells like a very STRONG Mai Tai!  I can smell the notes of rum and the powerful citrus notes.  In fact, it smells so powerful, one might become intoxicated just by taking in the aroma!

OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit.  But it does smell very much like what the name suggests.  It smells like a Mai Tai cocktail.  Once brewed, the bouquet is a little more subdued, but it still smells very much like a concoction of rum and citrus fruit … with a distinct tropical flair to it.

And it is really tasty.  I like that even though the flavors are strong, the green tea is not overpowered by the flavors of rum, liqueur, and citrus fruit.  I can taste the smooth, fresh notes of the green tea.  There is a buttery note to the tea that melds quite nicely with the rum flavors.  The citrus notes lend a nice, tangy quality to the tea.  It is sweet and a little tart.  It tastes as though the bartender accidentally poured green tea into my Mai Tai!

It is very refreshing.  I enjoyed this hot … but I liked it even better as it cooled. I refrigerated the remaining tea and let it chill a while, and that’s really the best way to enjoy this tea – iced!  It’s oh-so-yummy!

The post Mai Tai Flavored Green Tea from 52Teas appeared first on SororiTea Sisters.

I have realized that I am very much a creature of habit when it comes to tea preparation. Some would call me O.C.D while others might call it methodical. The teaware that I use is directly correlated to the type of tea that I am making. After making this realization, I began keeping a chart to see exactly what my habits are. The perceived culture of the tea seems to have a lot to do with it. Nicole Martinhttps://plus.google.com/103097147251455801975noreply@blogger.com0

Even though I have written about pesticides and tea before, I wanted to address the subject again because once again the issue is in the news with Celestial Seasonings getting busted by the same group that busted Teavana last year. The Glaucas Research Group seems to be making money by exposing publicly traded companies and selling things short. It is true that they have a not-so-hidden agenda in exposing these companies, but without having proof, they could not make much. If you read the reports, you can see that an independent testing agency in Europe did a very thorough job removing whatever doubt there might be about the motives of the Glaucas Research Group.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that there are pesticides used in commercial tea production, and that third-world countries are using some illegal ones, which are probably cheaper. The boney finger always gets pointed at China, the great polluter, with pollution in Beijing as bad as when I was a kid in Los Angeles. They give us a good run for our money when it comes to polluting the air, but let’s not forget that Africa and South America are where most exported tea is produced, not India and China, where they predominantly drink their own tea. It can all be explained in three words: cheap prices, commodity, and quantity. For the most part, bugs come in the summer. In the tropics, however, bugs are omnipresent. It’s always summer. It provides for a long growing season and an abundant yield. It is a broader truth that if you want cheap tea and cheap food, pesticides come along with the price.

How does that relate to the way we buy tea? Well, first of all, we don’t buy summer tea. I know that is an obvious one. In addition, we buy tea that is grown at a high altitude, where there are not as many bugs, we don’t buy from commercial growers, and, with a few exceptions, we buy certified organic. The truth is that the mountainous areas where we buy our tea don’t lend themselves to commercial agriculture at all. Terroir is everything in tea as well as in wine, and don’t let anyone tell you any different. The other magical thing about the tea plant in relation to terroir is that over time the plant itself develops defenses to predators as it becomes part of the local biodiversity. That is one of the functions of both caffeine and tea polyphenols.

In June, I am going to London for a meeting of the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP) to discuss tea, pesticides, and the sustainable future. I have done some informal consulting with them about the Chinese tea industry. They have a program that teaches farm workers in China how to work safely with pesticides. I recognize the irony, but remember that the ETP is NGO funded by the major tea producers. While I think it is a great thing that they are keeping farm workers from poisoning themselves, they have ignored the possibility of reaching sustainability without chemical pesticides, something China has had in tea for 2000 years by focusing on quality, not quantity.

In recent years, the Chinese have had some shining examples of quality over quantity with their Anji Bai Cha. It is a major money-making crop that only has a spring season and pesticides are banned in its production throughout the country. Compare this to 1980 when there were only two Anji Bai Cha plants in existence. It is a good example of the dynamic nature of the Chinese tea industry. Another good example, maybe more familiar to Americans, is the case of white tea. There may not be higher standards, as in the Anji example, but Anji Bai Cha was a crop that barely existed twenty years ago and is now a very common tea. The crop was completely driven by the export market and has always fetched good prices.

Changing the agricultural model outside of China and supporting a return to it inside of China seems like a logical and tested way to sustainability in the tea industry, as is true in food production as well. It doesn’t mean an end to the commodity model, but at least adjusting to a hybrid that considers incorporating the principles of the Ethical Tea Partnership seems like another logical step. Of course, prices will go up, but everybody, including the consumer, benefits, if not financially then with better health and quality of life.

Tea for Tyrants is a brilliant concept: order tea, collect artwork, discover new music! And the idea is well executed. My tea, art, and music arrived in an appropriately sized cardboard box. The two tins of gyokuro were cushioned with biodegradable "straw" material (which I will reuse in a bird craft project for a sweet group of preschoolers). The digital download is a QR code printed on 3" x 5" card. Above the code are brewing instructions and information about the musical artist. On the reverse is the art. The card is index sized so it's perfect for cataloging.


I participated in the Tea for Tyrants Kickstarter campaign and for my level of donation I received two 2-ounce tins of Gyokuro Superior paired with music by Lovely Tyrants. Each tin contains 50 grams of tea. Gyokuro is one of my favorite types of green teas.


The perfume of the dry leaves is wonderful.  Sweet like caramel and banana bread. It reminds me of my favorite childhood ice cream: grape nuts ice cream.  (Here's a recipe for grape nuts ice cream via Serious Eats.)  The color of the steeped leaves darkens with each steep and as you lengthen the steep.  My first steep is usually 30 seconds followed by 1 minute steeps.  I prepare the gyokuro using a gaiwan.  The first steep is usually fresh tasting, like a likely steamed vegetable.  Subsequent cups taste and smell like asparagus and there's a little hint of nori.  I really like asparagus.


Thinking about ordering tea?   Try Tea for Tyrants.  The company offers several other teas: another gyokuro (Karigane), two senchas (Houjicha bancha and Fukamushi), and an organic matcha.

(As for the music, I haven't listened to it yet.  My devices and a couple of browsers are out of sync with soundcloud.  By the way, Tea for Tyrants founders, Phil Lomac and Andy Angelos, are the Lovely Tyrants.)

Oh the horror of lip marks on your teacups. But let’s face it, folks, life is messy. When your teacup gets those nasty lip marks on it that never seem to wash off and just keep building up, your life can seem even messier, bordering on total disaster. Lipstick is, of course, a culprit here, as are lip balms. But even when your lips are bare, they can…

Read the rest of the article on The English Tea Store Blog.

© 2013 A.C. Cargill photos and text

Mighty Leaf on Sale Today!

Series Note: I’ve decided to write a series that covers all our blends and what inspired them. And this is [...]

The post Lady Devotea’s Fancy (Devotea Origins Part III) appeared first on The Devotea's Tea Spouts.

Wow I am really not sure where the past few weeks went, somewhere in there I hit the Quarter of a Century Club, but was so busy getting things ready for the new job, and the move to a new place that I didn't really get to sit back and enjoy it.  In fact I have a sample of The Mandarins Tearoom 1960s Shui Xian that I had hoped to crack open and enjoy on my birthday.  Needless to say that did not

Memorial Day is coming and the ads are full of specials for grilling and picnicking.  But I am more reminded of the deeper meaning of the day.  It was set aside to remember all those soldiers who gave their lives  for our country, in one of our many, many wars.  I am firmly anti-war, but ...  The fact is many men and women have gone to war and paid horrific prices for the rest of us.  So let us remember them and say thank you.

Memorial Day is also a day to remember family and friends who have gone before us.  I remember going with each of my grandmothers to decorate family graves.  I'm not sure I understand the point of it, but I loved the stories that were told about the 2 sisters who married 2 brothers, about the family friend my great grandmother was named for, the baby boy who died at birth and the baby left behind in a New Jersey cemetery.  There were the graves with odd headstones, and the ones where a whole family was wiped out in a diphtheria epidemic, and that of the many greats-grandfather who lived to be 91 and had 127 grandchildren when he died!  There were sad tales and funny tales, but they wove my family into my heart and made them real.

I hope your families are very real and precious and that you have someone to tell you their stories and that you, in turn, tell the next generation those same stories.  Plant some rosemary for remembrance.  I have some thyme from the cemetery where my parents and grandparents are buried - the whole place is covered with it and it smells wonderful when one walks on it.

I lift my cup today to soldiers and families and friends - may we all grow in love.  I am having some Kenyan tea from Camellia Sinensis Maison de The in Quebec, Canada, www.camellia-sinensis.com .  It is part of a tea swap.  It is called Kangaita and is both organic and fair trade.  In the packet it smells wonderful, with a deep winey aroma.  The medium sized leaves are very dark, but there is a lot of gold dust on the inner surfaces of the packet.  I am brewing it for 3.5 minutes with boiling water.  As it is brewing it has that deep wonderful fresh wash smell, coupled with old wine barrels and dark tree bark.  The liqueur is a very pretty rosy amber.

This smells so good, I can barely wait for it to cool enough to sip.  Oh, my this is wonderful tea.  It is very rich tasting, but has a light body.  There is that woodsy, earthy quality, but it is combined with something very close to caramel.  There is a pleasant, spicy note to the aftertaste.  This really is one of the best teas I have had in a while.  I am especially  pleased because  about 10 years ago, there was some wonderful Kenya tea and then there was a terrible slump and it was just awful, but this is one more proof  that Kenya's orthodox tea can stand with the best.


Wallflowers in Switzerland.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Teavivre

Tea Description:

This Organic Dragon Well Long Jing tea origins in organic tea base of Tianmu Mountain in Lin’an, Hangzhou. The organic tea base of Tianmu Mountain, has passed the organic certification of European, USA and Japan, is a significant base of planting organic dragon well and green tea. This dragon well long jing tea persists a high level in picking and producing while meeting the standard of organic certification. The tea should be picked as one bud and two leaves or three leaves in order to reach the standard. Tea workers also have excellent skills, which help keep the natural features of fresh tea leaves. Combined with the advantages of organic tea and high grade tea, this dragon well long jing tea is suitable for tea lovers of organic tea as well as dragon well green tea.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Oh how I love Teavivre!  Why?  Because they never fail to impress me with their high quality teas.  This Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea is absolutely stunning!

It tastes so deliciously sweet, smooth, and there isn’t even the slightest hint of bitterness.  It is sweet from start to finish.  It is vaguely reminiscent of tender, freshly roasted chestnuts.  The buttery smooth, sweet flavor of chestnut!  YUM!  There are also notes of savory vegetation in there too … not really grassy, or even like steamed veggies … but just that subtle touch of “green” to it.  This is the way a Dragon Well should taste!

I love the freshness of this Dragon Well and this is typical of all the teas that Teavivre offers – their teas are just so very fresh and delicious.  (Except for their pu-erhs which are aged and delicious.)  I also love that this particular selection is an organic offering.  Without having compared a conventionally grown Dragon Well versus an organically grown Dragon Well, I can’t say that there is a difference in taste between the two.  But, I know that I feel better knowing that this tea is organic.

This tea is delicious served hot, but, it’s also quite nice when chilled – which is how I’m drinking it now.  I had brewed a teapot of the tea this afternoon, and drank one cup of it hot, and then refrigerated the rest of it, and am able to enjoy a frosty glass of tasty iced tea.  While I do prefer MOST teas served hot versus iced … since the warm weather is upon us now, it’s nice to be able to enjoy this one iced.  It’s very refreshing!

The post Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from Teavivre appeared first on SororiTea Sisters.

Country of Origin: United States, Hawaii Leaf Appearance: dark green with some white tips, very curled and twisted Ingredients: green tea Steep time: 2 minutes Water Temperature: 175 degrees Preparation Method: ceramic teapot Liquor: very pale green Ever since tasting Hawaiian grown teas with the folks from +Tealet I have been craving Mauna Kea's green tea. I finally bit the bullet because I Nicole Martinhttps://plus.google.com/103097147251455801975noreply@blogger.com0

Drawing a simple stick figure is the extent of my artistic abilities.  Honestly, even that might be stretching it.  It’s not really a problem as I am more than willing to accept my lack of artistic ability.  But every once in a while, I’ll catch Bob Ross on PBS painting his happy little trees, making it look so easy, and I see a small glimmer of artistic salvation for me.  

A few years back, my sister and her husband attended one of those Wine and Canvas type of bars in Chicago.  You know … drink wine while an instructor walks you through a masterpiece creation.  She posted pictures on Facebook and the whole thing looked like a ton of fun.  Especially the wine part.  I immediately pulled up my “To Do” list (since I have lists for everything) and added a “Tea + Art” type of event to it.  

Why it took me a couple of years to put something like this together is beyond me, but fate led me to a gentleman by the name of Ed.  Ed teaches art classes – different media, different techniques, different hair, but in that same soothing voice as Bob Ross.  On April 17, we launched our very first “Blend and Brew” – an art + tea class at Selah {an art salon}.  The focus of our class was on creating a painting of a beautiful cherry blossom tree and sampling four green teas.  We talked about green tea-growing regions, flavor profiles, and a flurry of other tea facts – all while painting.  We even managed to chat about husbands, puppies, and past teas we’ve experienced.  The evening was so enjoyable that we have opted to host monthly “Blend and Brew” sessions.

While I still hold tight to the fact that I will never be a Monet, there is something very relaxing about having a cup of tea and painting.  I was amazed at how different all of the paintings were, even though everyone was working off the same model.  If given the chance to attend a similar event in your neck of the woods, I highly recommend it!  

Happy painting (and sipping)!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Amoda Tea

Tea Description:

This is our Mother’s Day Tea. One of the Amoda moms has been asking for a black tea “that’s not boring”. So we found one for her.

There’s 7 different black teas layered in here! Medium-body, medium-strength, full taste. There’s citrus, malt and honey and that amazing smoky character that likes to linger.

Learn more about this tea here.

Learn how to subscribe to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.

Taster’s Review:

I have wanted to try this Lord Petersham Black Tea Blend from The Devotea for a long time now – and the monthly tea tasting box from Amoda Tea made that possible for me today!  Thank you, Amoda Tea!

The Devotea maintains an active presence on Tea Trade, and that’s our home here on SororiTea Sisters too, so I’ve been hearing a lot about this tea blend.  I tried to win it back when the Devotea was hosting regular giveaways on Tea Trade, but, I never won anything.  Bummer!  I have been meaning to order from them for a while, but, every time I have funds available in my “Can Buy Tea” budget, somehow, I forget to order this!

Now I HAVE to order more of this, because this blend is FREAKING awesome!  Seriously … it’s extraordinarily good.  I know I’ve said that this tea or that tea is good, and I’ve meant it.  But, if you have room for only one black tea in your tea cupboard – this is a tea you should definitely consider as your one and only.   I’ve encountered a few “one and only” black tea blends … this tea blend is absolutely a contender for that distinction as well.

I think that Amoda Tea describes this tea well when they say that it’s medium-body, medium-strength with full-flavor.  It is all those things.  It doesn’t taste or feel too heavy or overwhelming.  It isn’t one of those “kick you in the backside” kind of teas that you would turn to on those mornings when you are too drowsy to focus.  Instead, it’s one of those teas that you drink because you LOVE tea and you want the optimal tea experience.  As I sit here and drink this, I am so astonished at how beautifully round it is.  It is completely satisfying in it’s flavor.

I steeped this for 2 1/2 minutes in my Breville One-Touch, and this worked out perfectly.  It is not overly tannic, it isn’t bitter, it is just … divinely delicious.  A wonderfully balanced cuppa that tastes rich with its notes of sweet honey-like tones, malty goodness, and hints of earthy notes.  There is a citrus-like finish to it.  The smoky tones that Amoda Tea mentions in their description … there is just the right amount of smoke to this blend.  It doesn’t taste aggressively smoky.

This is so close to perfection – this blend – that I can’t think of a black tea blend that I like better than this one at the moment.  There might be one … but, this tastes so good that it is clouding any other opinion that I might have!

The post Lord Petersham Black Tea Blend from The Devotea appeared first on SororiTea Sisters.

Here's another article I recently wrote for The English Tea Store blog.

Does Your Tea Site Need A Makeover? By William I. Lengeman III

Back in the 70s I had some pretty fine bell bottoms, if I do say so myself, and some eye-catching silk shirts and a nice pair of platform shoes to round out any ensemble. I know fashions have a way of coming around and I don’t have any of those snappy duds anymore but even if I did I wouldn’t wear them. I’m not obsessed with my appearance but I still don’t want to be seen in public in clothes that are so outdated.

Which is to suggest that appearances do count for something. If you disagree, stop and think about what you wore to your last job interview. All of which occurred to me when I came across a tea site recently that would have been considered...

more

Cuisinart TEA-100 PerfecTemp Programmable Tea Steeper

I won this tea tumbler at the Tea Magazine tweetup at the New York Coffee and Tea Festival. Unlike most travel mugs I've used, it combines both an infuser basket and French press. I had my doubts about the design because I was concerned about oversteeping. That had always been a problem for me with press style tea makers in the past. However, the press compressed the leaves into the solid part Nicole Martinhttps://plus.google.com/103097147251455801975noreply@blogger.com0

Summer is almost here. The summer heat needs a refreshing and cooling element for those of us who cannot bear drinking anything warm or hot.Tisanes are excellent remedies for the heat and added flavor that has health benefits.This is an excellent tisanes, it cools, mildly detoxifies, aids in digestion, refreshes and enlivens.This tisanes has so much flavor from the herbs used that it does not require a sweetener however if desired a little rock sugar is an excellent healthy addition.A squeeze of lemon or lime will also add a very welcome flavor.Ingredients

• 150 grams lemongrass - pounded to release the flavor
• 5 Screwpine  leaves - tied in a knot
• 5 slices ginger - lightly bruised
• 1.8 litres water
• 40 grams rock sugar or honey rock sugar to taste

Instructions

1. In a non metalic pot, add the ingredients except rock sugar. 
2. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20-30 minutes.
3. Add rock sugar and stir until dissolved. 
4. Discard lemongrass stalks, ginger and screwpine leaves. 
5. Drink warm or chilled

(The photo is from Pan's Tea Travel webpage, explaining the green tea processing.)

Here are of Tea Nazi that I wrote two years ago.

Ok... I admit I was really blunt to call him "tea nazi", as he is by far not as harsh as the "soup nazi", and he is really a nice guy!

This spring I got "official" announcement from Pan that he is back to tea business - on part-time basis, but in some sense, more devoted than a lot of full-timers in tea world. I know a bunch of "amateur" tea people, part-timers, moonlighters, or "hobby sellers(?)". In fact, among my favorite tea friends, tea suppliers and tea "colleagues (?)", there are probably more part-timers than full-timers. Thinking of that just surprised me! I haven't had any business relation with Pan yet. But I sort of like it that he has come back to tea business on part-time basis!

Now I know it's easier than ever for foreigners to shop on taobao. So here is Pan's taobao store:
http://youjianchapu.taobao.com/search.htm?spm=a1z10.1.w28-18216832851.5.3q9noD

His store name is the same as the name of his store before he "retired" from tea business last time. It literally means "Here's a Tea Store". I think it's a lovely name!

There aren't many items yet there. And I've already asked him "would you please add more stuff in the store and make it more business-like?!"

Pan told me that he will add more items to the taobao store, but probably not a lot and not very fast. So far, he would visit every of the production site or collection source of his teas, and he would only carry teas that don't use any pesticide. He will not do a lot of business in a short time. But he will maintain very high standards for quality and health of the teas, as always!

I think it's not hard to tell that one can hardly make a living selling tea in this way, especially in China, where there are about a few million tea sellers doing business more efficiently on lower budgets. But it may work out just fine as Pan keeps his day job, which is an interesting job anyway.

If you look for more things to see, his "tea travel" page is very cool:
http://shop58835027.taobao.com/view_page-43393581.htm?spm=a1z10.3.w3-18202084498.4.9cTPU6

And I'm sure he will add more photos and writing to this page to document his tea journey and his teas. I've already suggested him to put his writings in text format on the webpage so that non-Chinese readers could use google translate to read them. But so far photos dominate and photos tell most of the stories already!

Besides, anybody who are Chinese-English bilingual, if you are interested, please feel free to translate his writings, publish the English version online and link back to his webpage.

The Des Anges from Nina’s Paris

Tea Information:

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy: Nina’s Paris

Tea Description:

Strawberry pieces, vanilla, and strawberry flavors.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

The Des Anges from Nina’s Paris is a nice simplistic tea with subtle flavors. I can appreciate the way this tea is not over done with flavorings. I can taste the black tea base, the strawberry, and the vanilla, and none seem to be fighting with another for focus. It is a pleasant cup of tea.

I am not quite sure that it is strong enough to hold up to creamer or sweetener but I think that it would give it a nice kick and jack it up a notch. It is rather a no fuss, simple, enjoy me as I am tea. That is not to take away from the blend, but if you are looking for an in your face flavor, this isn’t it. However if you often time flavored teas too flavorful and prefer a subtle hint of flavor to your tea, then this is bang on!

This tea also is not very sweet, which is nice, a lot of flavored teas are too sweet. This taste a lot more like some fresh strawberries had been infused in the tea with a splash of vanilla flavor. I do not find the vanilla to give the tea as much of a creamy flavor and the mouthfeel is very light as well.

Overall a nice change of pace in a flavored tea.

The post The Des Anges from Nina’s Paris appeared first on SororiTea Sisters.

A snippet from Anthony Bourdain's new CNN show, Parts Unknown, in which the infamously carnivorous host visits Myanmar and feasts on a salad that includes tea leaves.

Adagio Teas - Best Tea Online

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Aiya

Tea Description:

Premium Sencha is one of the most prized Sencha teas available in Japan.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This Premium Sencha Green Tea from Aiya is easily the freshest Japanese Sencha tea I’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting!  The freshness is due to the fact that Aiya’s teas are packaged in sealed tins.  Not just a closed tin, not even just an airtight tin … but sealed … like a tin can.  You know, the kind where you pull the ring and peel back the lid.   Aiya takes the freshness of their products very seriously!

And while I might have been skeptical before popping the ring and peeling back the seal … after smelling the tea inside the tin and more importantly, after tasting it … I’m a believer!  This stuff is fresh!  The aroma smells like a combination of freshly cut grass and kelp.  Not just “freshly cut grass” but the scent of the air as I mow the lawn.  As in JUST cut grass.  That is to say, it smells very fresh.

While it smells like a cross between grass and kelp, it doesn’t taste so much like these two things.  There are grassy notes, yes, and perhaps even the faintest kelp-y note, the overall flavor is much more like steamed green veggies.   A distinct “green” taste.

It is sweet, and there is a savory quality to it too, and I’m finding this contrast to be very satisfying.  It has a brothy kind of taste and texture, and it makes for a soothing beverage.   As I continue to sip, I start to notice an astringency to the tea, it is more of a “tangy” sort of astringency rather than a drying astringency … there is almost a citrus-y quality that goes along with it.

I’m loving the complexity to this tea … each sip brings with it a new discovery.  It’s a wonderful journey in a teacup – and I expected no less from Aiya.  I’ve always been so impressed with the quality and the flavor of their teas, and they are a company I feel good about recommending to all my readers!

The post Premium Sencha Green Tea from Aiya appeared first on SororiTea Sisters.