Tea Science!
Except not, actually, science at all. But really, really awesome nevertheless. Less science and more tea indulgence. This past weekend I was hanging out with incapricious (not a new thing) and we were trying to decide which tea to make. She wished that we could make little bits of about ten different teas and try them all.
Well, I don't have tiny teacups (alas), but we decided to at least try five!
gratuitous tea porn is under the cut...
Step 1: It took quite a while to decide which five teas we'd brew, but we went for a mix of green, black, oolong, white, and rooibos. Also, the initial stickie notes I made to label the cups were highly unsatisfactory. So, I had to make a new set. Naturally. Teas: green rooibos citron - masala chai (black) - toasted nut brulee (oolong) - queen of babylon (white) - green tea & toasted rice
Step 2: Now they're steeping. Because they were different teas, they needed different steeping times. We had two timers going, and we made sure to write the times on the labels - otherwise we'd probably get it wrong. :P Well, even with all that, I sort of suspected that we'd get something wrong. But we didn't! Score.
Step 3: The teas, steeped! The range of colors were remarkable. Something about seeing the five of them all out like that was kind of mesmerizing.
Step 4: Now they're ready to drink! Some needed sugar, some needed milk, and some needed nothing! We put milk in the black & oolong, and sugar in all but the green/toasted rice.
Step 5: Well, this is just sheer tea porn. incapricious wanted to take pictures of the tea from different angles. I had no problem with this. Delayed gratification.
Step 6: More delayed gratification. And then... tea! They were all so good. I think we should have steeped the white one about 30 seconds less than we did, but other than that... fantastic! The biggest surprise for me -- the green & toasted rice. I wasn't sure what I'd think of it, but it really had a nutty, subtle flavor. They were all delicious, but also, the green rooibos citron was a big surprise for me; I didn't expect to like it as much as I did!
Okay, now who's craving a cuppa? ♥ *pours*
Well, I don't have tiny teacups (alas), but we decided to at least try five!
gratuitous tea porn is under the cut...
Step 1: It took quite a while to decide which five teas we'd brew, but we went for a mix of green, black, oolong, white, and rooibos. Also, the initial stickie notes I made to label the cups were highly unsatisfactory. So, I had to make a new set. Naturally. Teas: green rooibos citron - masala chai (black) - toasted nut brulee (oolong) - queen of babylon (white) - green tea & toasted rice
Step 2: Now they're steeping. Because they were different teas, they needed different steeping times. We had two timers going, and we made sure to write the times on the labels - otherwise we'd probably get it wrong. :P Well, even with all that, I sort of suspected that we'd get something wrong. But we didn't! Score.
Step 3: The teas, steeped! The range of colors were remarkable. Something about seeing the five of them all out like that was kind of mesmerizing.
Step 4: Now they're ready to drink! Some needed sugar, some needed milk, and some needed nothing! We put milk in the black & oolong, and sugar in all but the green/toasted rice.
Step 5: Well, this is just sheer tea porn. incapricious wanted to take pictures of the tea from different angles. I had no problem with this. Delayed gratification.
Step 6: More delayed gratification. And then... tea! They were all so good. I think we should have steeped the white one about 30 seconds less than we did, but other than that... fantastic! The biggest surprise for me -- the green & toasted rice. I wasn't sure what I'd think of it, but it really had a nutty, subtle flavor. They were all delicious, but also, the green rooibos citron was a big surprise for me; I didn't expect to like it as much as I did!
Okay, now who's craving a cuppa? ♥ *pours*