Tonsillitis!!
I know, it's wonderful. And over my boyfriend's birthday too. One night at his house turned into three when I was too sick to trek home, and I commandeered his air-conditioned room while exiling him to the stuffy guest room so I could keep my fever in check. After two days of hermitage (his father is going through chemotherapy, so I had to avoid the rest of his family for fear of infecting them) I was finally able to drive myself home this morning. When I finally arrived home, my throat was aching dryly and all I wanted, despite the horrific temperature and worse humidity, was a cup of hot tea.
That's when I turned to my new pack of Black Celebration tea from My SpecialTea. I bought at Mars New York, a Zakka store in the Mistuwa plaza when I went the other day. It smelled rich and spicy, a quality I'm always a sucker for when it comes to tea, so I bought a bag. At $10 for 15 servings, it was a nice price for loose tea, which I always have a problem locating in my area anyway. It's really a beautiful tea; it has orange peel, dried papaya, and cornflowers blended in with it, among other things, which really make it very visually appealing.
Unfortunately, the brewed tea was not exactly what I was hoping for. Don't get me wrong, it was light and refreshing and very tasty, but I had expected something with more depth of flavor- something more like a chai. I tasted it after steeping about two or three minutes (as recommended on the bag), five minutes (as personal experience dictates best for loose black teas), and ten minutes (as a last resort), and the tea really didn't get any deeper or darker. Mixed with honey, the light, flowery tea was very tasty and wonderful on my sore throat, and when I let it get cool to simulate an iced application it was even more soothing. I suppose it was just my expectations that prevented me from enjoying it as much as I could have.All in all, I'd give the tea a 4/5 because I prefer my spiced teas spicier. This is just my own nitpicking, though: I'm sure anyone else would love this tea, and I definitely recommend it!
Also, the Lumpy Loves You giveaway is now officially CLOSED! Thank you all for participating! The winner will be announced later this week.
Sometimes teas are so disappointing, despite all the things in them and how tasty they look (I would have a hard time not picking out the papaya in that tea and eating it XD). I have a few teas that always just end up tasting like hot, watered down fruit juice, which is pretty much my least favorite thing ever.
ReplyDeleteI hope you're feeling better soon!
ooh i love tea, but hot fruit juice does the same trick :3
ReplyDeleteI second Miss Caro-chan, I would eat that papaya too! It looks so cute and tasty, like those caramellised fruit chunks in nice granola.
ReplyDeleteSadly fruit teas always tend to smell better than they taste... I know the woe, even if I do tend to buy my go-to brand anyway just because it's pink. (Well... pink tea. Come on, pink tea!)
I hope you feel better soon! I suffered from awful tonsillitis that not even antibiotics would cure for over a year and had them out last September which was one of the most painful things I ever experienced but since then I have never had a single sore throat!!
ReplyDeleteI hope you feel better soon. I had tonsillitis once and it really sucked. Get lots of rest! Also I totally have the same tea cups and pot. *smile*
ReplyDeleteUgh, it must be going around. I just got out of the ER with it last night. I hope you're feeling back up to par soon :)
ReplyDelete<3
Raelynn