MONDAY, TeaDay 5/12/08

[Chip]

Yesterday, only 4 TeaChatters indicated they took tea to mom's on Mother's Day. 25 said that it was just a normal day. You can still vote and discuss yesterday's topic.

Welcome everyone to TeaDay. You are all invited to share what is in your cup through out the day. Half the fun is seeing what is in everyone else's cup as well. If you need to, you can reflect back on your TeaDay as well.

Today's TeaPoll and discussion topic was suggested by Galileo's Daughter who asked whether you ever throw out tea that was sooo bad...so bad that you did not want to even give it to someone else. Share your experience with really bad tea that was not fit for consumption...yikes, and what was it?

I am looking forward to seeing everyone on TeaDay!

[Salsero]

Pssssst, Matcha is hawt.

• It’s what you need on Monday.
  It’s the T in Tea Ceremony.
  A double shot of espresso is kids’ stuff compared to this green-eyed monster.

I don’t normally care for flowers from the florist. They look dead and they smell like a funeral home. But my Don Juan rose is on strike and Matcha is too hot for any flower color besides RED.

[olivierco]

Nice picture. Match is indeed hawt.

Throwing samples, yes but not a tea I actually purchased as far as I remember. I however often finish tea packages when cooking.

This morning keemun, Kaburagien sencha and now some houjicha with my lunch.

[Terrasi]

When I find bad tea I give it to friends. I know that sounds bad but sometimes they have different tastes than me and actually like them. I gave one of my friends the remainder of my green tea sampler (the first loose leaf I bought) and he loved it.

Sometimes I discover a tea only tasted bad because I brewed it wrong, so I hold onto teas and give them a few chances before I move onto stage 2, the giving.

In my cup: nothing... sad...

[ThinkingOutLoud]

Rooibos: straight in the bin. Sorry to all you rooibos lovers. Had I known you then, I would have sent it to you straight away! Recent disappointments have gone to tea friends. I hope you all are enjoying them / will enjoy them.

This morning, like an old friend in the rain that has caused a two hour school delay, Irish Breakfast.

[Trey Winston]

I guess I've been lucky so far. Never had to throw away tea.

[chrl42]

I did, numberous times. Most recently I threw away to garbage can was Xin Yang Mao Jian I bought at supermarket which was one can as expensive as a buck. Furthermore I am thinking about disposing 98' shu brick as quick as possible. This tea is so bad..with a smell like fertilizer..

[Selaphiel]

I`ve thrown tea once. It was a sencha that must have gone bad or something, it tasted like grass (which is fine) but grass that someone had pissed on (not so good). It tasted really funky so I threw it away.

Started with a Darjeeling Phuguri DJ14 "AV2" today. Palais des thes have throned this as their favorite Darjeeling first flush this year, I`m struggling a bit with accepting that. It is a very good tea, very complex aromas but personally I find their Darjeeling Risheehat DJ7 better with its extremely fruity aroma with a very slight astringency throughout plus a nice vanilla like finish, it`s the best Darjeeling I`ve had so far in my tea life (even though this is just my second season).

[Aphroditea]

So far I, too, have been lucky. There are certainly those that are not favorites and they just don't get brewed as often or used for when guests are here or whatever.

For the most part I have found that turning it into iced tea, or changing the steeping paramenters has saved the tea from the trash bin. But, we shall see, as I am embarking on a tea quest and trying LOTS of new stuff in the coming weeks.

I also seem to be an oddball in that I am perfectly happy with a tea like Earl Grey or Jasmine Rooibos or Pekoe or Puerh. I have not had shu yet, I had puerh that I was told the first steep was very similar to shu and if that is the case then I am not sure I'd like shu.....but I never say never

no cup yet....but I am thinking Ti Kwan Yin this morning

[RussianSoul]

I have poured brewed tea out into the sink on several occasions. Some TenRen oolongs and one shu from TeaSpring. I still have more leaves of these teas that I keep because I think that maybe my tastes have not developed enough yet to appreciate them, and also there is hope that they may mellow after a while.

Assam Mangalam is in my cup. Now there's a good tea!

[omegapd]

Yeah, I've thrown a few in the trash over the years- not as much as stale coffee, though.

Worst tea I ever had was a bagged Good Earth Original Blend. Described well on the box, but awful for my tastes, it was a hodge-podge of at least 15 flowers and herbs and black tea. Even a quick 3 minute brew came out like syrup. I didn't throw all of it away, though. I gave a bag or two to Victoria I was waiting to hear her impressions of it but think I scared her from trying it.

NMTC Ceylon New Vithanakanda this morning. May be the next one in the trash can. I can't figure out how to brew it without it being bitter...I mean really really bitter.

EW

[DangerInRed]

I put Yes, but there was only one that was so bad that I threw it away, even though there's kinda been more than one. The one I'm thinking of is/was hazlenut flavored and I poured out the cup after taking a sip. I haven't thrown it away yet though because...I dunno. Maybe I should try it with sugar?

Another cup I've poured out was my first taste of Pu Ehr. It smelled like a fishmarket, I couldn't get over it enough to drink more than a few sips of the stuff Thankfully it was in a situation where I only had a little and didn't have to throw any out, because I would have *watches a million TeaChat drinkers have heart attacks*

A third tea that I managed to give away was Yogi's "Cold and Flu" teabags (at least, I think that's what they were). There were too many spices and weird flavors, I couldn't take it.

[Beidao]

I use to save it until it's definitly to old and then throw it away.

So far today it's been a black day: Yunnan, Golden Yunnan, Keemun, Lapsang, and some Darjeeling bag tea that I will never have again.

[GalileosDaughter]

I have had some that I wanted to toss in the trash. I can't bear to throw tea away, yet I feel bad about foisting it on some poor unsuspecting soul, so--I have quite a few that I've pushed to the back of the cabinet.

Some (like a few greens I've tried) I suspect I will appreciate more as my knowledge of tea grows. Some, however, I suspect will remain in my cabinet unused for quite a while.

Today I have some summer Darjeeling I'm trying to use up.

[Katrina]

I have occasionally thrown tea away. If it's REALLY unpleasant I throw it. If it just isn't my favorite, I share it with friends (but I DO tell them I wasn't crazy about it.) The most recent throw away was a grapefruit scented black tea. Ugh. Awful. My brothers-in-law have been the most recent benefactors of my tea unloading.

My own blend today - ceylon, orange, cinnamon, and vanilla. Didn't come out half bad.