Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Bitten Leaf Tour

 A few days ago I had the opportunity to sit at this
table at Totem Tea.
The occasion was tasting of bitten teas.
You might ask, what is bitten teas and to tell you the truth
I knew what it meant when I heard it;
but I had not until recently heard that term.
It is tea leaves that have been bitten by a particular cicada.
The bite releases sugar to heal itself and changes the flavor of the tea.
I thought it was just Oriental Beauty, but it is other teas too.
Oriental Beauty has always been a favorite for it's sweetness.
 This is a bing of Bai Hao, a bitten black tea.
Another term I recently learned was bing,
which is the compressed tea you see here.
Most often we associate a bing with puerh teas,
so I was surprised to see it in this Bai Hao.
 The first two teas were black teas and then we progressed 
to two Gui Fei Oolongs.
When the first Gui Fei was set before me 
I just couldn't help it, but said "Wow".
The fragrance was amazing.
It was like smelling a bowl of honey and roses.
Yes, I brought some of that tea home with me.
Now who wouldn't want to sip honey and roses?
You can find Totem Tea at http://www.totemtea.com/
They have a cherry blossom leaf herbal tea that I have heard is
pretty awesome too.

linking to Bernideen at http://blog.bernideens.com/

8 comments:

La Tea Dah said...

What an amazing experience. You are so blessed to have such opportunities nearby. I would have loved this.

Karen @ Beatrice Euphemie said...

Oh, this sounds wonderful! Interesting about the cicadas changing the taste of the leaf. Honey and roses ......mmmmmm! Thank you for the link! x Karen

Jeanie said...

I had never heard of bitten tea but I like the concept and the slightly sweet (but not sugary, right? Just a sweetness). It sounds like a wonderful experience and I really appreciate the explanation!

Elaine, The TeaLady said...

Athanks for sharing. Now you make me want to taste these delicacies!

Rosemary said...

What a wonderful opportunity for tasting and learning! Thanks for sharing your knowledge! Bitten tea is new to me!

Bernideen said...

I loved seeing this Asian tea presentation. The pots look incredible. I love that you shared and linked this Marilyn!

Lorrie said...

You know so much about tea! I learned several new things from reading this post. Honey tea sounds amazing!

Bernideen said...

Congratulatuions Marilyn on being a special feature today on my blog! Have a great day!