Wednesday TeaDay 3/18/09 Touched by tea?

[geeber1]

just brewed up some Harney's Apple Cinnamon tea. I like it- bought it for the wife for Christmas and it didn't go over well at all, so now it's back in my cabinet.

Off to pick the kiddo up from school and relax the rest of the day. Oh Victoria, did I mention I was on vacation this week?

Yeah, sure, rub it in Omega!

[Victoria]

just brewed up some Harney's Apple Cinnamon tea. I like it- bought it for the wife for Christmas and it didn't go over well at all, so now it's back in my cabinet.

Off to pick the kiddo up from school and relax the rest of the day. Oh Victoria, did I mention I was on vacation this week?

Shhhhhh!!!

At work having more of the Organic Flecked Gold Green tea from yesterday ... not bad.

[olivierco]

Kanro gyokuro this evening.

[danibob]

I voted 10%. I guess that would be from handling the teaware while brewing and sipping.

Yutaka Midori right now. Trying to finish up what I bought back in Jan so it doesn't go stale. I increased the leaf amount of my brew and I enjoy it a lot more that way. Off to brew my third cup!

[Dreamer]

Ok, this is getting harder! I said 30%...visuals (I said 30% yesterday too) and texture are big for me. I love the feel of a warm mug on a cold morning (someone else already said this)...that is the reason I couldn't stay away from tea when having issues with caffeine! I love how a chawan feels in my hands (how do I join the "chawan fondlers" support group). I have some newer cups that are such a thin smooth porcelain that they are a joy at my lips...when I pointed this out to my family they just looked at me like my train had run just a bit farther off the tracks!

I am really enjoying reading all the answers here today (lots of texture!)

My tea buddy today made us some rosie rooibos delightful-ness...I had it iced; it was so refreshing.

This afternoon I'm having a sencha...not sure what, I found it forgotten in a canister. The color is a bit yellow-ish and the flavor is only ok...I don't know if this is because it was forgotten or if this is the reason it was forgotten

I just thought of something...I'm headed out of town till Monday...I will miss the polls on the other senses. That's great; I was in danger of having my percentages add up to more than 100! What a relief...with a degree in math, I would have gotten some sort of brain bend trying to make it all work out!

Happy, happy,
Dreamer

[Intuit]

Visuals, smell, taste, yes. Hearing would be a stretch, too.

Touch, nadda. My teaware doesn't get stroked (nor do I fondle my tea leaves, new or spent).

A minor caveat: a warm or cold cup in hand can be most welcome at certain times but that pertains just as well to a bold microbrew or hot cider, hence my narrowly defined choice.

Green tea and sencha about to be in the cup.

My cup is raised in salute to OmegaPD, who finally has some well-deserved time off this week!

[Geekgirl]

These are difficult questions to answer, because any single sense can result in 100% enjoyment FAIL, but in a successful session, each sense contributes a small part. For instance, I have a chawan that I dislike enough (both visually and due to tactile considerations,) that if I used it, the session would be completely unenjoyable. (Time to sell that thing. Bah.)

If a tea tastes bad, all other senses could be appeased, but the session would be 100% fail. If the taste is wonderful but the smell is horrible, then smell becomes 100% the defining factor of that session... etc, etc. I know, I know, over thinking. That's what I do!

[Chip]

I am really enjoying reading all the answers here today (lots of texture!)

I just thought of something...I'm headed out of town till Monday...I will miss the polls on the other senses. That's great; I was in danger of having my percentages add up to more than 100! What a relief...with a degree in math, I would have gotten some sort of brain bend trying to make it all work out!

It is interesting and enjoyable reading the many different perspectives just about every day.

Good news Dreamer, the TD topics will likely still be available for you to catch up when you return.

Sencha Uji Teabag from O-Cha to finish the TeaDay. These bags are really amazing. Lots of good sencha flavor. SweeTea concurs.

I need to pan fire some genmai and mugi which I have been out of for well over a week.

[kymidwife]

10% might be too high, but 0% is too low... so 10 got my vote. I figure the enjoyment of the warmth of a hot cup, the lightness of a thin gaiwan, and the mouth-feel of various teas is worth 10%.

Speaking of a thin gaiwan, the lovely yellow gaiwan from Victoria now resides in my kitchen... perfect size, exactly what I needed. I love it!

In my cup all day was Sakura Sencha from Den's... a big hit at the office. And tonight, some Darjeeling #1 is delicious as always.

Those of you interested in flavored teas, particularly Adagio's Signature Blends, keep an eye out in the Signature Blends forum for some forthcoming information on a new Box Pass event... stay tuned!

Happy Tea Day,

Sarah

[brad4419]

0% for me. The only touch I could think of is the feel of a cup or mug but for me its more looks than touch. The first thing I thought about with touch is being burnt but thats not very often and is a bad experience I avoid.


Green chai this morning and lemon balm in my cup this evening.

[Cinnamon Kitty]

Probably around 20% for me. I am definitely a tactile person and a fidget, so having interesting textures on my tea ware is definitely a decent part of my overall enjoyment. I love feeling the warmth of the freshly brewed tea through the sides of my cups. My favorite cup has an awesome feel to it, with minor flaws and flecks from the glazing that are just fun to run my fingers over. Plus, the feeling of the teas in my mouth is rather nice too.

I finally finished off one 8oz tin of Adagio's Chestnut tea this morning. It is still awesome and I have 8oz left to tide me over for a bit yet. I think this is the only tea so far where I ended up with an entire pound of it. This evening, I had some fuka-midori sencha, but I still haven't gotten the brewing parameters satisfactory yet.

[sp1key]

I voted for 20% but this question depends on what tea you're drinking, for me puerh. Therefore I always touch the tea cake when breaking off the cake, feel its degree of compression, dry crispy or moist leaves etc

Then again brewing with a gaiwan, its all part of the art

I've started to enjoy burning my fingers when using a gaiwan--it seems part of the ritual.

From my understanding if you use a high grade gaiwan, your fingers wont tend to feel 'burn' as much

[JP]

I view touch as holding things, such as cups and other items. It is not that a big of a factor in tea enjoyment.

[silvermage2000]

I would say between 0 and 10 percent.

[Herb_Master]

Coming to tea after a lifetime drinking wine, I would have to say 20%, for me the texture in the mouth is definitely an important criterium.

The silky velvety viscous feel of a top grade Tie Kwan Yin (to mention just one tea and one (compound) texture) marks it apart from inferior offerings.

The throat catching aftertaste includes both flavours and textures.

Most of the flavour is down to aroma just accessed via the back of the mouth instead of the front of the nose. I would have to say that texture is almost as important as taste (Salt, sweet, sour, bitter and umami) so
20+ Texture, 30- Taste and 50+- Smell