Of Glass Teapots and Ginger Spiced Brew

Have you ever had one of these days when luck just smiles at you?  Of course you did, they happen to all of us every now and then.  Today it was my turn to have one of these days.

I walked into my favorite second hand shop and found Teaopia (now Teavana) glass teapot with infuser, completely intact.  I've been checking out different teapots for almost two years now.  Whenever I'm at my favorite second hand shops I always check the teapot and tea sets section.  I have never seen all glass teapot yet until today.  I'm so happy because I really wanted one and they are quite pricey.  Today I didn't need to worry about the price because at $2.99 it was a steal.  On the side note, there are so many things that I want and it's nice to score a steal every now and then, right?

Such wonderful turn of events simply had to be celebrated and the only way to do it was to brew something good in my new teapot.  After washing the pot carefully (oh my, this thing is so delicate, I can imagine it could shatter just by me staring at it for too long) and drying it thoroughly, it was time for the after dinner cuppa.

This had to be a special brew, possibly something I haven't had yet but wanted to try. I decided to try one of the samplers sent to me with my latest order of DAVIDsTEA: The Skinny. It's an organic oolong blend and I've been having my eye on it for a while.

The Organic Skinny Ingredients: Chinese oolong tea, Chinese pu'erh tea, ginger, eleuthero, orange peel, natural orange and ginger flavorings.

Upon tearing the sample package I was greeted with a delicious aroma reminiscent of citrus with a tiny hint of ginger. I really enjoyed that. Usually when the tea smells yummy pre-steep it is an indication of good things to come.

I steeped the tea for about 5 minutes at which point the color was beautiful shade of red, not too light and not too dark. The scent has now changed slightly. It was spicy with bigger emphasis on ginger. Taste-wise ginger was also very prominent but still not overwhelmingly so.  You have to know that I'm not a big fan of ginger in my tea (unless I need it for health reasons) and so this could have potentially been a tasting disaster.

I was pleasantly surprised. The tea was delicious in taste, very smooth and with a subtle hint of sweetness. My youngest daughter, who joined me in this sample tasting, added a tiny bit of organic cane sugar to it and she too has enjoyed his tea. It's maybe not something that I feel compelled to have a tin full in my tea cabinet but if available, I will most certainly have a cup of.

I give this tea a handsome 8/10

Till next time,

Cheers!!

Silver Needle White Tea from Teavana

I'm going to start my tea travels with the mention of my favorite white tea which is Silver Needle.  I happen to currently have the Teavana brand because that is the first and only Silver Needle that I tried.  If there are better brands, then all the better because I just adore this tea.

I first found out about the white tea and its benefits back in September 2012 and right away I wanted to score myself a package.  Back then I was still oblivious to the loose tea existence and so I began my search for the perfect cup of bagged white tea.  I bought countless boxes of bagged white tea and each time I was more disappointed than the next.  Not only the taste wasn't anything special, but also every brand of white tea I bought brewed into ugly brown liquid even though white tea supposed to have gorgeous golden color.  My white tea was looking darker than my green tea!  How could that be? Every website I checked said that the color indicates the freshness and quality of the tea and so I thought I'm simply not having any luck finding fresh, top quality white tea.  Sadly, I eventually gave up and went back to drinking green tea.

My Silver Needle Storage Tin

When in December I finally discovered Teavana, I also discovered that they carried Silver Needle which I knew was premium brand loose white tea.  I was super excited and immediately bought myself a tin full of it.  What a delight!!  The only regret I have is that I haven't done it sooner.

I store my Silver Needle in a metal tin, which is mostly white in appearance (as you can see in the picture to the left) because this is such light and delicate tea.  Although I have a fondness for glass jars and would love to stare at those beautiful tea buds whenever I'm in the kitchen, I do understand that tea leaves have specific storage guidelines and should not be exposed to several things, one of them being light.  I could always put the jar in my tea cabinet but then I couldn't stare at it anyways so for now I will keep the tin.



I love opening the tin and taking a whiff of the wonderful aroma this tea emanates.  The buds are of various sizes, some smaller, some larger and they are all covered in tiny white hair, giving the tea a bit of a silver hue.   Add to it their pointy shape and you got the name Silver Needle.  Nobody told me this... I figured it out myself... Ha!

Silver Needle before brewing

Silver Needle after brewing

I usually brew this tea for about seven minutes or so, a bit longer than the recommended five.  I find that I get more flavor this way and you cannot go wrong with that.  I don't worry about bitterness because I found that no matter what I do, this tea simply doesn't turn bitter.  Ever.

The resulting brew has a gorgeous golden color and the aroma reminds me of raw honey.  As to taste, it is very light, a bit sweet and slightly floral... maybe even a hint of honey as well.

My youngest daughter who is seven years old often asks to have a sip of this tea and when I give her the mug I usually don't get it back.  I don't add any honey or sugar to my teas so I think it speaks volumes if seven years old likes it.

On the scale of 1-10 I give this tea a full 10.  Remember, I'm not a seasoned tea critic, only an average woman who happens to like tea... but I do like this one... a lot.

Cheers!!