Please note that all blog posts before 8 April 2007 were automatically imported from LiveJournal. To see the comments and any LiveJournal-specific extras such as polls and user icons, please find the source posting at http://brianenigma.livejournal.com/2006/04/So about half of the females on my LJ friends-list seem to go crazy at various points on time over the perfumes from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. I did not quite get it, but I now think I know how they feel, only in the realm of tea.
Today my samplers and infusers came from Adagio. Mainly, I peeked at the site because both Diggnation and Ctrl-Alt-Chicken have deals through them and I want to support the podcast and IP-TV show. I quickly fell in. Now I am the proud owner of two most excellent infusers (one for home and one for work) that actually do a great job at infusing without leaving bits of leaves in the water (like the two little spoons that chomp together do.) I’m also about half-way through a really nice (~100 page) book about the history, types, and preparation of tea.
Of course, I got a few samplers. I just finished drinking Ctrl-Alt-Chicken’s Jasmine Suite no. 12 and have some genmai cha lined up next. The other little tea tins I picked up are dragonwell, green anji, pi lo chun, sencha premier, sencha overture, genmai cha, and green pekoe. Previously, I was aware of a few small differences in green tea blends: plain ol’ green, green and jasmine, green and spearmint, and green with rice. I knew that there were various types of greens, but never put much more thought into it. The order also contained a couple of jasmine blooms, which are not only tasty, but very pretty. Each one starts as a little spherical green bulb that you put in your hot water. The bulb consists of green tea leaves wrapped around a jasmine bloom, all sewn together. You get to watch it open and “bloom” as it steeps.
Anyway, my next order will probably contain the next Ctrl-Alt-Chicken sponsored tea as well as some rooibos, which look quite interesting, and some more genmai cha (which really does smell like green tea and rice krispies.)
“A complete renovation of the Western mindset on tea may seem like a long shot, but remember this: there once was a time when your choice of coffee ranged from Folgers to Sanka.”
