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| Sleeping Dragon leaves presteeping |
Relatively often, I hear about what a wonderful community we tea bloggers have. Tea obsessives go to the World Tea Expo or World Tea East and wax poetic about the generosity of the people they meet there.
Although I've met many tea shop owners here in Germany (and some in England and The United States), most of my experience with the people who populate the world of tea has been here in cyberspace. I'm not complaining. Am sure I'll make it to a trade fair at some point. Until then, I intend to continue taking advantage of the fantastic opportunities to connect with tea drinkers online.
A week or so ago, I read about a tea tasting that Courtney Powers (otherwise known as @ThePurrfectCup) was hosting where she'd be introducing several sorts of green tea. Jokingly, I said that I wish I could magically transport myself to Upstate New York and try the tea she was talking about.
Like I say, I was kidding. There was no way I was going to make it the next day to Courtney's little tea shop. But she offered the next best thing. She got my address and sent samples of the tea along. What an unexpected surprise.
I read her recent blogpost (A Green Tea Tasting) with a different perspective, because I knew that soon enough I'd be able to actually taste the tea she was describing. My plan was to actually brew up each of the teas she served and pretend I was there.
Alas, it wasn't to be. I got distracted steeping and resteeping Sleeping Dragon from Adagio Teas, and then ended up writing a tea review about it.
I'll link to the tea review when it's been published, but suffice it to say I enjoyed this tea.
Not sure why they bill it as a tea for a green tea novice, but as advertised it wasn't remotely grassy.
The best part? Well, the time that I set aside for multiple teas, I spent really focusing on just one. The last few weeks, I've been drinking tea functionally. Good tea-no question. But tea on the run. Tea for the train ride. A pot for the other musicians and me before a rehearsal.
In this case, I really gave my full attention to each steeping of this Sleeping Dragon. It was worth every minute. Even got a little tea drunk in the meantime. As a result, I think I might even sleep as well as the dragon.
Thanks Courtney.
You make me want to drink more tea.
ReplyDeleteIt's all part of my devious plot Elizabeth.
ReplyDeleteApparently, it's working.
I can level with you regarding the the tea-on-the-run stuff. I haven't been able to dip into some of my new acquisitions. Been going with the mainstays of Yunnan Gold and Oriental Beauty.
ReplyDeleteI love sleeping dragon, it's really good. It does have a nice mild flavor, like the description. I also love how the tea leaves are curled up like little sleeping dragons (hence the name). It seems that everyone who has found this tea has found it on Adagio, though I would like to know the origin of this tea (when it was created, where it comes from, etc.) I just had some today, and I know I will definitely have more of this tea in the future.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite way to brew green tea: directly in a cup or mug. Add a small amount of cold water to the leaves (I like to let the tea sit in cold water for a little bit, it helps bring out the flavor), so that the boiling water can be cooled down to about 180 degrees, then steep for 2-3 minutes, and sip. Tea time should be blissful relaxation, as it was meant to be. :)