Day 8: Well Day 8 in my #yearoftea has brought me to the land where it all began - a Chinese Golden Monkey is #teaoftheday To be honest the milk does it no favours so I've necked it and just waiting for the second infusion which I'll take au naturel (no, that doesn't mean nekkid)
Day 9: Well better late than never here's No 9 in #yearoftea it's a White Monkey Green Tea. One story goes that it's so named because it's picked by monkeys because the trees are inaccessible. It's a good story but I'm a little sceptical - I prefer the story that it gets it's name from the fact that the downy white leaves look like monkey's paws. Either way it's a very good tipple.
Day 10: Thanks to August Moon Tea for reminding me that 10 days into my #yearoftea and I haven't had an oolong #teaoftheday ! This is Dong Ding and I've brewed it at 90° for 2.5mins
Day 11 takes us to Japan and a Genmaicha. Also known as Popcorn or Brown Rice Tea. Originally this tea was for the peasants as the rice was a filler to keep the price down. Apparently it was also used when people were fasting or to keep people going between meals. I love the mixture of 'grassiness' (is that a word...?) and nuttiness.
So Day 12 brings something completely different in my #yearoftea It's another Japanese tea called Kukicha or 'Twig Tea' and it's made from only the twigs and stems. Seriously no leaves were harmed in the making of this tea! It's a roasted one so it's got a nut-like taste but it's also got a creamy aftertaste an a natural sweetness too. This is thr first time I've tried this and I LOVE it!
Day 13: #teaoftheday is a Java Ciater Orange Pekoe
It's a fermented, or black tea, that's extremely 'sturdy'. If you like your tea with a bit of welly this should hit the spot. BTW Orange Pekoe doesn't mean flavoured, it's merely a leaf-grade.
Day 14: #teaoftheday is Malawi Thyolo. I've spent all day drinking this and still can't decide whether I like it or not. It manages to be simultaneously strong and weak (streak?) It's got the maltiness I love but for me it's missing something. I'm going to come back to it later and maybe mash it a little longer...It ticks all the other boxes: Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance, UTZ but I'm reserving judgement!
