Last Thursday at the WI we had a visit from Kirsty at ‘Teabox
Online‘ a loose leaf tea business based in
Sheffield that blend and create their own tea flavours. Now I am not a
tea drinker {am I allowed as a Brit to say that?} I don’t touch the stuff to be honest, coffee either {I like
my caffeine to come from a can} so I wasn’t sure that this would be
the best way to spend an evening, but I have to say I was, well,
surprised.
Online‘ a loose leaf tea business based in
Sheffield that blend and create their own tea flavours. Now I am not a
tea drinker {am I allowed as a Brit to say that?} I don’t touch the stuff to be honest, coffee either {I like
my caffeine to come from a can} so I wasn’t sure that this would be
the best way to spend an evening, but I have to say I was, well,
surprised.
For one Kirsty is about the sweetest person ever and ridiculously knowledgeable
about tea, I know it’s her job and all but…..So she talked us through the
history of tea, and the fact there are many myths about its origins, she talked
us through how is was grown and picked and then a little about
her company, then we got on to the bit I wasn’t looking forwards to – the
drinking.
about tea, I know it’s her job and all but…..So she talked us through the
history of tea, and the fact there are many myths about its origins, she talked
us through how is was grown and picked and then a little about
her company, then we got on to the bit I wasn’t looking forwards to – the
drinking.
 |
| how different tea is made. |
Not being a fan of the taste of tea, I wasn’t sure how this
tasting would go down, especially if I had to drink full cups of it, but thankfully, given there were over 100 of us in the
room, we just sampled little shots of tea. None of which were served with milk,
which I hear is a plus. And here are my thoughts on the tea’s we tasted;
tasting would go down, especially if I had to drink full cups of it, but thankfully, given there were over 100 of us in the
room, we just sampled little shots of tea. None of which were served with milk,
which I hear is a plus. And here are my thoughts on the tea’s we tasted;
- White – very clear, smelt tea-y, but it didn’t
have a strong tea flavour, as a result it was possibly my favourite of the
tea teas! Which, obviously, it would be, as it’s the expensive one! - Oolong – Fun name, but not so keen on the
taste. It tasted really quite tea like. Which, I find, is the man problem
with tea, the tea like flavour. - Green – I have delved into green tea before,
mostly when I have thought it was healthy and I ought to, only to find it
bitter and horrible. This one however really wasn’t that bitter, which is
to do with the amount of time it was steeped {a few minutes} and comes from
China, not Taiwan, like most green tea is. - Darjeeling – the champagne of teas – still
tasted like tea, but much, much nicer than the Oolong {I put them in my
head together as they looked more like traditional tea!}, and has a little
drying effect on the mouth. - Strawberry Punch – erm a taste sensation. Having tried what
i’d call expensive, shop bought, fruit tea’s this was a true revelation –
smelt divine and tasted just like strawberries and apples. Like a warm
cordial, but without all the sugar! - Mystery tea – Rhubarb and Custard –
A definite taste of vanilla, which I guess is the custard flavouring, and the rhubarb
came through as an after thought, but it was still pretty good, if a little
sweet for me.
And now I have to admit to having bought a tea. Yes it was the Strawberry one, but after the recommendations of one of the girls at my table I have my eye on their Mojito tea {yes, that is correct!} And now I’ve tasted a few of the ‘better’ tea-teas, I can say that honestly I’m
still not a fan of the taste, but I can appreciate what all the fuss people
make about the different types is about.
still not a fan of the taste, but I can appreciate what all the fuss people
make about the different types is about.
And as part of the WI experience Kirsty is offering a 10% discount on her site with the code ‘witen’. You should have a look because the the tea tasting experience {we did a cut down version of it I think} is also run at a cafe in Sheffield! She also ships abroad if you ask for postage rates.
Love the little chart! I love a cuppa and I love all sorts of teas but particularly the white tea kind. Saying that I'm more then happy with a cuppa Yorkshire tea i'm not overly picky!
Ooooh. can you get yorkshire tea over there or do you import? X
What a fun idea! I'm going to check if there's any local tea tasting. I'd love that!