Sun/Mon TeaDay 7/24-25/11 "Bitter Brew Face?"

[Chip]

Greetings TeaFriends world-wide. Please drop in and share what is in your cup throughout the day. Be sure to discuss the topic of the day.

Yesterday we discussed mountain top teas. Please continue to discuss yesterday's topic.

Today's TeaPoll and discussion topic. A fun topic, perhaps, what tea most memorably gave you "bitter brew face" ... aka it was brutally bitter. Please share!

We are looking forward to sharing this TeaDay with ... everyone. Bottoms up.

[debunix]

There once was an Assam tea from Kenya. Couldn't find any way to make it other than frighteningly bitter. And my first encounter with a now-favorite white bud sheng puerh included an overlong first steep, because I'd gotten distracted for a couple of minutes, and I had really packed the little pot. Aiyeee! It's a wonder I persevered enough to find out how much I love it.

Saturday was a bitter-free day--sencha start, midday Bao Zhong from HouDe, and ending with some Jin Guan Yin from Norbu. Mmmm.

[JBaymore]

It was a Japanese green.

A few of us happened to stop in a coffee shop in Boston called the "Wired Puppy". Not being a coffee drinker, I saw they had a decent loose tea sencha on the menu (at about $6.50 if I am remembering correctly). So that's what I ordered.

They very carefully brewed it................. with about 212F water!!!!!!!

From the taste, it would have been some good sencha if they had a clue about water temps and tea.

Moral of the story: Don't by tea in a coffee shop.

best,

...................john

[fracol]

Definitely the first time I ever brewed sencha. At the time I didn't understand Japanese green tea.

[tortoise]

Probably cheap and over-brewed gyokuro. blech.

Today I'm sampling the 15 year aged roasted Dong Ding from FLT. Good, complex tea. Has the smooth chocolatey texture of a nicely roasted TGY, but also a firm fruit-like acidity that reminds of certain kinds of coffee.

[Chip]

As a complete newb to tea 12 years ago, but instant explorer. I bought a tin of Republic of Tea (RoT) Sky Between the Branches Chinese Green http://www.republicoftea.com/sky-betwee ... /p/V00605/. I have to say, I was quite the sucker for their marketing at the time.

Following the brewing directions on the tin, calling for boiling water, yielded a bitter brew second to none ... it is amazing I did not toss the can in the trash and never try greens again.

But instead I called the customer service #. In hindsight, the woman was NOT trained in the brewing of green teas and stood by the directions on the label.

Still, I did not quit the greens, but did figure out how to brew them sans TeaChat. And obviously still love the greens.

The other most memorable one was a Darjeeling, from RoT. Again followed the directions, and again bitter to the nth degree. And again the customer service person towed the corporate line and said, "a good tea will be bitter ..."

Needless to say, I moved on from RoT ... and they are "my Teavana," both good and bad. But wait ... they have a new sencha ... I think I will passssssss ...

[Xell]

Too bad i didn't research anything on my first try. Probably it was thanks to my age i was really impatient with such stuff I don't know what it actually was, some loose leaf green tea i bought in shop back in Estonia. Bitter, only bitter, i could not feel anything else. So after spending much more than on my usual teabags i was disappointed and never tried again until i came to Japan

Drinking houjicha now, well... mostly smelling I can just sit and smell houjicha for long time while reading something. By the time i try drinking it, it's already cold

[AdamMY]

Most memorable was a Darjeeling tea I purchased at a tea shop small tea shop, over sea's. I do not know why I got it, but wow, first try at brewing it I butchered it horribly, although I forget if it was too much leaf or too long of a steep. But even when I got it under control it never really was that great of a tea.

[auhckw]

Bitter of all Bitterness new Pu that I encounter

2011 Dayi Early Spring


Brew 1 (no soak) was nice.

Brew 2 to 4 is tougher to drink from every brew (10s to 20s).

Brew 5 (soak for fun since brew 4 is already quite tough to drink) barely can swallow it.

I suspect these Olympic men drank this Pu before they took the jump

[JBaymore]

By the time i try drinking it, it's already cold

At this time of year in Japan..... cold is good.

Actually....... how does it GET cold at this time of year in Japan?

best,

...............john

[jaderabbit]

Hmmm...it was definitely some pu'er I had...but I think I've tried to erase it form memory....
Sometimes I forget that I'm brewing tea and when I finally remember to go back and drink it, the tea's gotten cold and bitter somewhat but still drinkable.

[brlarson]

It was my first sencha, Harney's sencha, brewed according to the instructions on the can. My clear impression of that tea was ``the screeech from a car in an out-of-control skid''.

[Skippyandjif]

It was Vietnamese gourd tea, which has become infamous among my friends because they didn't believe me when I told them how horrid I found it...so I passed around the box so they could sniff it, and everyone gagged. It wasn't so much bitter as just plain gross.

Today I did not have any tea that prompted me to make a grossed-out face. Hojicha for breakfast, a lot of iced green tea all day, currently sipping on some very yummy matcha.

[Chip]

Great TD, no bitter brews! Began with Miyabi from O-C with the Mrs. Next up, almost the last of Sakimidori.

And saved the last steeps of both for hot brewed iced tea this evening with a touch of honey, very refreshing!

[Chip]

TeaDay Monday will continue with this topic. Sooooo ...

Please share what is in your cup throughout the day.

Also continue to discuss Sunday's topic. As a bonus, is the memorable bitter brewed teas among the worst teas you have ever had??? Please share