Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Super5's Darmstadt Ink

The best Super5 ink I have tried, yet!

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of DavidsTea's Peanut Butter Cup Fruit Infusion

Today, we have a literal and figurative treat for you! DavidsTea's Peanut Butter Cup is a fruit infusion (no tea!) that will be released as a part of their Fall Collection on August 26, 2015. Built from Ink and Tea received a sample of this tisane from a DavidsTea promotion, and we are excited to be sharing our thoughts with you prior to its official release!

Opening the package, the smell nearly overwhelms the senses. Peanut butter cup is exactly what the smell embodies. Of interesting note is that the ingredients do not list peanuts! The blend contains almonds (as well as a number of chocolate-y ingredients), and it has some artificial flavoring (which might be peanut-related), but there are no actual peanuts. Yet, I love peanut butter, and this definitely smells like it. If one inhales deeply and closely contemplates the aromas, almonds are noticeable, but the combination of ingredients is rather spot-on to replicate the aroma of a peanut butter cup. I feel as though I could rave for a very long time about the smell. Suffice it to say, if you enjoy peanut butter cups (chocolate outside, delicious peanut butter inside), the aroma of this fruit infusion will be amazing.

I steeped my 5g sample in 12 ounces of water for 4 minutes, wanting to go for the low end of the time spectrum (they recommend 4-7 minutes). The resulting brew is an interesting color (see the picture below) with a smell of warm, roasted nut and some cocoa. Interesting, too, how the aroma differs to what seems like a great degree from dry leaf to infused drink. Eagerly, I await it to cool to a drinkable temperature.

The wait is worth it. Sweet, nutty, and delectable, my only regret is that I did not steep it longer. I feel as though this an herbal blend made better by long steep times. The cocoa does not overwhelm the flavor but goes well with the nuttiness. Interestingly, the nut flavors taste like sweet, roasted peanuts on the beginning and then more like almonds on the finish. A sweet, nutty aftertaste lingers on the tongue. The experience with this herbal blend nicely encompasses aroma and flavor together, which I really appreciate. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this fruit infusion a 97/100.




Photo credit to Built from Ink and Tea.
DavidsTea's Peanut Butter Cup will be available online and in stores on August 26, 2015.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.
Text is copyright 2015, Built from Ink and Tea.

Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Super5's Australia Ink

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of Adagio Teas' Pu Erh Tahiti Tea

My reactions upon opening the package of Pu Erh Tahiti from Adagio Teas and smelling it: "Mmmm, tropical...whoah! Earthy!" Reviewing this tea with a friend, we both had very different reactions to the smell of the dry leaves...one of us enjoyed it, the other loathed it. Yet both of us agreed that it was an intriguing mixture of flavors, for a tea, and looked forward to actually tasting it.

The tropic aspects of Adagio Teas' Pu Erh Tahiti come from a mixture of dried coconut, coconut flavor, mango pieces, and papaya flavor. For color, Adagio has added marigold flowers, and to add a touch of sweetness, apple pieces have been included. The base tea is of course pu'erh.

In my twelve ounce mug, just-boiled water and a tablespoon and a half of tea come together for five minutes to steep this cup of tea. The end result smells...well, it smells like earthy-fruit. The mango and papaya are very prominent, but their aromas have been darkened by the dark, wet smell of pu'erh. I cannot say I would ever have thought to mix these, but it seems to work (at least from the aroma). The flavors seem muddled, like the blend is too much of a mix of different things, which slightly work against each other. The aftertaste clearly carries the fruit, but with the initial sip I roll the tea around my tongue, and fruits jump out every once in a while, yet the coconut and pu'erh seem to meld into light-yet-earthy notes that do not emphasis the best of either of the components.

I also tried brewing this tea and putting it over ice. The fruit still carries most of the flavor, and the pu'erh is even less noticeable. I would rate this tea an 81/100 on my personal enjoyment scale. In some ways, I like it, and I will certainly keep drinking it and experimenting with different brewings, yet I do not think I would re-order it, and I am on the edge of not necessarily having liked it. Withdrawing the coconut might help. Alternately, I would have used another black tea, instead of pu'erh.

Photo credit to Built from Ink and Tea.
Adagio Teas Pu Erh Tahiti is available from their website, here.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.
Text is copyright 2015, Built from Ink and Tea.

Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Super5's Dublin Ink

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of Crimson Lotus Tea's 2012 Nannuo Shan Shou Pu'erh

While the leaves themselves play a huge role in the flavors one receives from pu'erh, a large impact is also felt from the conditions under which the tea is stored. This pu'erh in particular, after having been stored in Kunming, was brought back to the United States and stored by the folks at Crimson Lotus Tea in their Seattle facility. Their methodologies involve storing the tea in such a way that it interacts with the natural Seattle environment, the air being allowed to flow over the aging pu'erh, yet having the humidity carefully controlled in an optimal manner for pu'erh storage.

Eager to try this pu'erh, I begin my session by boiling the water and rinsing the leaves. The aromas are quite rich, yet they are more reminiscent of a strong earth smell, rather than a rich cocoa. Mushroom notes add variety to the undertones. A first steep, which lasts fifteen seconds (though they recommend a shorter time) immediately produces a dark cup. The aromas are strong, but my first taste makes me wish I had steeped it for less time. I do not mean that it tastes bad, rather it tastes fantastic, albeit somewhat strong for a first steep. Delicious, still, I let the tea flow over my tongue. The rich earthen flavors manifest the aromas I had noticed. A very, very slight touch of bitterness, like the bitterness of a high-percentage dark chocolate, teases the edge of the taste, but this may have been from steeping longer than recommended. (I use the analogy of chocolate, but this tea has no cocoa notes.) The finish leaves a clean aftertaste, and the mouthfeel is most pleasant.

Steep two lasts another fifteen seconds, getting richer and deeper even than the first. The darkness is offset by some veins of lighter flavor running throughout, like some herb notes. By no means does this tea seem as young as it is. This past weekend, I spent quite a few hours drinking a few shou pu'erh cakes from 2011, and those all tasted younger than this, having brash touches to the flavor.

At this point, I can only imagine how many more steepings this tea will provide. Thus far, I am loving the results of the Seattle storage. The depth of the tea makes for an incredibly enjoyable drink. Here are a few notes from my subsequent steepings:

• Steep 3 - 20 seconds - much like steep 2.
• Steep 4 - 20 seconds - the flavors seem broader, a bit more forest-y, with a softness that is reminiscent of moss carpeting.
• Steep 5 - 30 seconds - still delicious, very consistent flavor and color.
• Steep 6 - 30 seconds - re-noticing the rich aromas and appreciating the clarity and brightness of the tea. By now I feel wonderfully alert and clear-headed.
• Steep 7 - 45 seconds - I notice that the color has lightened, ever so slightly, despite the increased time, as has the flavor. Still, the tea persists.
• At this point, I decide to do one of my favorite parts of a pu'erh session. I take the leaves, put them in a two cup teapot, boil fresh water, and then steep them for an extended period of time in an effort to leech as much flavor from them as possible. We shall see how it tastes - tomorrow!

The folks at Crimson Lotus Tea suggest that with more aging in a humid environment, this tea will get better. Personally, I think I am going to follow their advice, because I would love to try this one again in a few years (and have some more to drink now)! On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea a 97/100, and I highly recommend Crimson Lotus Tea's 2012 Nannuo Shan Shou Pu'erh.

Photo credit to Built from Ink and Tea.
Crimson Lotus Tea 2012 Nannuo Shan Shou is available from their website, here.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.
Text is copyright 2015, Built from Ink and Tea.

Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Private Reserve Ebony Purple Ink

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of Adagio Teas' Pu Erh Hazelberry Tea

I know what you are thinking. I was thinking the same thing. I could not imagine it, either.

Pu'erh tea with fruit flavors? Being a major fan of pu'erh and rather a purist in that regard, I was first surprised, then suspicious. Why mix fruit and pu'erh? Straight pu'erh is good enough! And what is hazelberry?

I measure a teaspoon and a half for my twelve ounce mug, cover the leaves with just-boiled water and set a five minute timer. Then I start researching. The name "hazelberry" is coming from the combination of hazelnut and berry (specifically strawberry) flavors in the cup. Additionally, Adagio has added cocoa nibs and creme flavor to increase just how succulent this cup will be! Okay, this has begun to sound quite delightful. The five minutes have passed, and I remove the infuser basket from the mug. The tea has brewed a dark cup, smelling strongly of earthy pu'erh with a touch of cocoa, balanced by heavy strawberry notes. This contrasts with the aroma of the dry leaves, which were heady with pu'erh earthiness and complemented by tangy strawberry tones. The differences between dry tea leaves and the brewed tea always intrigue me.

The flavors meld in an interesting manner. Foremost among them are the pu'erh and cocoa notes, which I can appreciate (especially given that some ingredients, when blended with pu'erh, tend to overwhelm the base tea). Berries hover in the body but complement more than overtake the pu'erh. I am surprised by how much I enjoy the cup. While it is less satisfying as a cup of pu'erh than if it were not a blend (the fruit and cocoa distract from the tea base), I think it serves well as a tasty, fruity cup of tea. Definitely give Pu Erh Hazelberry a try. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate it a 90/100.


Photo credit to Built from Ink and Tea.
Adagio Teas Pu Erh Hazelberry is available from their website, here.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.
Text is copyright 2015, Built from Ink and Tea.