Adagio Teas and More

Near the end of March a representative from Adagio Teas contacted me about tasting some of their 'first flush' oolong teas from Darjeeling, India. The two teas I received are part of their Masters collection.  The link to read about them is: masters-teas.com.  

The package arrived on April 9th, but I've been so busy making molded chocolates I haven't had a chance to begin sampling/tasting until today.  

Both teas are from the Rohini Tea Estate, and were harvested in February of this year. The tea leaves were produced by hand with outdoor withering and minimal oxidation.  Below is Debi, one of the pluckers at the Rohini Tea Estate.

[Photo courtesy of Master-Teas.com]

I decided to begin with the Rohini First Oolong.   The description on the tea package read, "A very early Darjeeling First Flush oolong.  Aromatic, with fruity notes of pear and lingering lily-of-the-valley and pear blossom.  A soft, smooth, and light bodied tea."

The dry leaves were long and curly without an earthy or grassy smell.

I steeped the tea at 180 degrees [love my Breville electric kettle with temperature settings] for three minutes.  

It produced a light golden color, and the steeped leaves expanded significantly in size.

Since this was a special tea, I decided to enjoy it from a fine bone china teacup [Shelley] instead of drinking it from the mug.

A little research revealed first flush teas usually contain more nutrients, antioxidants and caffeine.  The early spring leaves are usually more delicate, tender, lighter, fresher, and more floral with mild astringency.

I found the first sips of the hot infusion to have a mild vegetal taste, but as the tea began to cool, the flavor profile changed with the vegetal taste fading into the background and the fruity pear taste coming forward.  I personally didn't taste any floral notes.  I liked the second infusion even better than the first because the vegetal taste was almost undetected.

I will sample the other tea in a day or two and write a review on it soon.  Thanks Ashley and Adagio Teas for letting me sample some of your quality teas.

Today has been a crazy day here in Southeastern Michigan - snow flurries off and on all day, with a high of only 36 degrees.  Fortunately the ground is warm and none of the snow is sticking.

My son, Steve, called and wanted to go to lunch with my hubby and me today, so we went to a place that's been around a long time, but a first for hubby and me - Fuddruckers.  Ever heard of it?  They specialize in burgers.

About a month ago, Steve started a new tradition with his dad and me - a weekly lunch together.  He said he'd been watching the decline of his in-laws [who are a few years older than us] and realized how quickly time passes.  He decided he wanted to enjoy quality time with us now while we're still healthy so he doesn't have any regrets later when our health - be it physical or mental - imposes restrictions.  

We always see him at church functions, and of course at family events [birthdays, holidays, etc.] but these lunch dates have been so enjoyable.  Life in ministry is busy and demanding, so I don't know how long he'll be able to keep it going, but we're enjoying it while we can.  I recently read the most important thing you can give to aging relatives is your TIME!

Steve had a meeting with the builder of our new church today just before lunch, and he shared these photos that had just been taken.  Things are finally starting to come together.  If all goes well, we'll be in by July or August.  Hooray!  It's been a very long time coming.

I saw on Facebook this morning that Hoffman Media is coming out with two new books that I think I'm going to have to pre-order.  They'll be out in July.