Saturday Morning Tea

Good morning, dear tea friends! It’s wonderful to be back sharing another cup of tea with you!

It’s a humid, rainy morning in my little corner of the world, the kind of day where the air is thick and steamy. On days like this, I’ve always enjoyed a rich China Keemun tea in my cup. As you can see from the leaf above, I chose a Keemun Mao Feng for my morning tea.

This tea was grown in Qimen County in China’s Anhui province. Established in the year 766 during the Tang Dynasty, this county got its name from nearby Mount Qi. Keemun tea is named after this well known tea-growing region, pronounced Chee-men.

You can see how the long, wiry Mao Feng (“Fur Peak”) leaf was twisted during its processing.

I steeped the leaf for 5 minutes in boiling point (212F) water. This tea is so smooth that you could probably steep it longer, if you wanted to.

The tea liquor is the color of glowing embers and imparts a rich, earthy aroma as I lift the lid of my glass teapot.

The flavor is thick and stout with notes of earth and smoke and cocoa. Hints of dark honey and red wine linger on in the finish. This is quite a yummy selection!

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer. See you in two weeks!

Saturday Morning Tea

Jun6

Good morning, dear tea friends! On this cool, overcast morning, I’m enjoying another Pre-Chingming tea in my cup, an Oolong called Fenghuang Dan Cong. This tea has been plucked from centuries old “single trunk” tea trees in China’s Guangdong province, rather than from cultivated tea bushes. Also know as Phoenix Oolong, this is a venerable tea indeed.

I steeped the large, twisted leaves for 4 minutes in 190F water.

A sweet, fruity aroma wafted up from my glass teapot as I removed the infuser. The wet leaf smells like peaches and lemon. Mmmmm…

The long leaves stayed twisted even after steeping. They lightened up to an olive green from the dark brown color of the dry leaf.

The light golden tea liquor has a fruity flavor, like fresh juicy apricots and peaches. There’s a slight vegetal note with a silky smoothness that lasts into the finish.

On the oxidation scale, I think this Oolong falls between the more oxidized chestnut/woody Oolongs and the less oxidized fragrant, floral Oolongs. It would be a great choice for multiple steepings, if you like to do that.

I’m off to my granddaughter’s softball game this morning. Watching the little ones play and have so much fun gives me great joy.

See you in 2 weeks. Enjoy your tea!

Saturday Morning Tea

May23

Good morning, dear tea friends! It’s a glorious spring day today, and I enjoyed sitting outside in the morning sunshine sipping my tea. In my cup is a Pre-Chingming tea from China, a green tea called Pre-Chingming Green Needle Organic. As I’ve shared with you before, Pre-Chingming teas are harvested before the festival of Qingming (Chingming), usually celebrated on the 15th day from the Spring Equinox. Any teas harvested before that date are referred to as Pre-Chingming teas. In other words, harvested in very early spring. This tea is aptly named as the leaves do look like long, thin needles. I steeped the leaves for 3 minutes in 180F water. The tea liquor is a beautiful spring green color. The aroma is sweet and lightly vegetal, like a whisper of sweet baby peas. The flavor is complex, meaning there are multiple layers of flavor notes that intermingle in a very pleasing way. I taste light sweet corn as well as a faint fruity hint, like apricot. The liquor is smooth and leaves a buttery feeling on my tongue. There’s a quick tang in the finish. A lovely tea to slowly sip and enjoy on a beautiful spring morning. I wish everyone a great Memorial Day weekend filled with lots of relaxation and fun. See you in two weeks!

Saturday Morning Tea

Mar21

Good morning, dear tea friends! Happy Spring to everyone in the northern hemisphere as we celebrated (finally!) the arrival of the Spring Equinox yesterday. The Equinoxes come twice a year, a time when the light and the dark are equally balanced. We’re now entering a time when the days will be longer than the nights, always welcome after a long, dark, snowy winter here in New England. Unfortunately, we still have glaciers of snow everywhere but those glaciers are slowly but surely receding to reveal peeks of dirt and grass at their edges. Now all we need are some spots of colorful crocus to liven up the dingy gray and brown landscape!

On to tea… I chose a China black tea today. It’s called Keemun Ji Hong Top Grade Organic, an impressive name, for sure. The long, brown leaves have a crimped appearance, as if each leaf was carefully pleated like the pleats on a little girl’s frock.

I steeped the leaves for 4 minutes in boiling point (212F) water. It’s amazing how the dark brown color quickly turned that distinctive red during steeping. Hence the name for China black teas – “red tea” or “hong cha.”

The leaves kept their “crepe paper” look even after steeping.

The aroma is fragrant with a whisper of orchid and a stronger note of cocoa.

The flavor is rich, velvety smooth and medium-bodied with notes of cocoa, stone fruit, and just a hint of sweet smoke. The tea liquor fills my mouth with a thick, solid presence, what’s called a “full mouth feel.”

This tea would stand up well to additions, like milk and sweetener. That said, as it cools, a lovely sweetness, like sweet wine, comes out. I recommend trying it plain first so you can discern and enjoy the many facets of its flavor.

Oh dear, I’m gazing out my window at gently falling snowflakes. Despite what the calendar says, winter isn’t ready to let go quite yet.

Until we meet again, enjoy many delicious cuppas!

Saturday Morning Tea

Feb21

Good morning, dear tea friends! I feel like I’m living in the arctic tundra these days with towering walls of snow and sharp icicles dripping from house eaves like the jagged teeth of the abominable snow monster. Our world is frozen, and we bravely venture outside, wrapped in a multitude of layers, moving gingerly across icy walkways and parking lots. At the grocery store the other day, I had to drive around a jaw dropping mound of snow at least 20 feet tall. Oh dear, will spring ever come?

I chose a light, fresh tea from China for my morning cuppa today. It’s a yellow tea, called Huang Ya Imperial Yellow Tea.

How does yellow tea differ from green tea, you might be wondering. From what I’ve researched and read, it is processed very similarly yet varies in the heating/firing steps, which results in a little more oxidation of the leaf. These steps are more time consuming than green tea processing in that the leaves are lightly fried in a pan and then wrapped in some sort of thick cloth. They’re then stored in a darkened room over a number of days and brought out periodically to be reheated/fried in a pan. It produces a tea that tastes more like a white tea than a green tea. Such an art form.

I steeped the leaves for 3 minutes in 180F water.

As you can see, the long, twisted dry leaf sets relax into gently arching shapes after steeping. What a beautiful leaf.

This tea was used as an Imperial Tribute tea in China throughout many dynasties there.

The golden apple-colored tea liquor has a fresh apricot/peach fragrance with floral undertones.

The flavor has those same fresh, juicy apricot/peachy notes with a vegetal whisper and a nuance of tangerine brightness. The finish lingers with a golden raisin sweetness. A truly lovely cup of tea, mmmmm…

We’re expecting warmer temperatures tomorrow, creeping up towards a balmy 40 degrees. Maybe we can get a little melting before we’re plunged into the deep freeze again.

See you in two weeks!