Week 4/52: Favorite Toy

Week 3/52: Nap Time

Decided to use some different effects this time. I ended up actually liking it. 

Week 2/52: Portrait

Tea Review: Adagio Decaf Earl Grey

Brew Time: 3 minutes
Brew Temperature: 212F
Rating: 8/10
Label information: "Ingredients: decaf ceylon tea, orange peels, natural bergamot flavor, blue cornflowers"
Cost: $1.81 - $2.00/ounce from Adagio Teas

This tea smells fantastic - a bit sour, a bit sweet, bright and citrusy, and slightly floral. It smells like you would expect an Earl Grey to smell, with a bit of added sweetness.

When brewed, this tea is very dark. It looks rather like a cup of coffee. The scent is a bit toned down, but citrus is still definitely detectable. The flavor not as bright and citrusy as I had hoped. It's good, just not as good as I expected. It's a bit bitter, but not in a bad way. The citrus is hard to detect, and the black tea flavor is not as good as many other teas I have tried.

Overall this tea is a good choice if you want a flavored black tea without the caffeine, but it's not my favorite. I give it 8/10.

Tea Review: Adagio Irish Breakfast

Brew Time: 3 minutes
Brew Temperature: 212F
Rating: 10/10
Label information: "A hearty blend of black teas from India and Sri Lanka to get your morning off to a bright start. Ingredients: ceylon sonata tea, assam melody tea"
Cost: $1.19 - $2.00/ounce from Adagio Teas

This tea smells a bit earthy, but overall isn't very aromatic. The leaves look like your typical black tea leaves. This particular tea is a blend of ceylon and assam.

When brewed, the tea is rich and dark. I can just see the bottom of the cup. It, too, smells earthy, though not as strong, and a faint sweet scent is detectable.

This tea is mellow with a bit of earthiness. After adding milk, it gains a very slight sweetness. Unlike most other Irish Breakfast teas I have tried, this one does not have any bitterness whatsoever.

This tea is definitely my favorite morning tea. The flavor isn't so complicated that I get overwhelmed when I'm half asleep, and the scent isn't so strong that it makes me nauseous first thing in the morning. It brews quickly and packs a decent amount of caffeine.

This tea is also great when I just don't know what I want. Its flavor is uncomplicated, but very nice indeed. I give it a 10/10.

Tea Review: Adagio Chamomile

Brew Time: 6 minutes
Brew Temperature: 212F
Rating: 7.5/10
Label information: "Ingredient: Chamomile"
Cost: $3.33/ounce from Adagio Teas

This tea has a light, slightly floral, slightly sweet scent. The scent is not overpowering, and it's barely noticeable at all unless you're intentionally smelling the tea (which I do, all the time). The loose tea is gorgeous, as it is 100% chamomile flowers. The flowers are quite delicate, and bits tend to fall off in the package and during brewing. Because of this, you may want to use a paper filter or a very fine mesh tea ball to brew it in if you don't want bits floating in your tea. You can also strain them out after brewing.

I chose to use a tea ball as I don't usually mind floaty bits in my herbal teas. This is the first time I have brewed this tea in a white cup, so I was pretty impressed and surprised by the clear, bright, vibrant yellow color. I can't help but be happy just looking at the tea. It has a very, very light scent once it is brewed.

The flavor is light and barely bitter. It really doesn't have much of a flavor at all - it's rather similar to the scent  in that you have to be looking for it to appreciate it. It does have just a hint of sweetness to compliment the bitter. It is very smooth and very soothing, but be careful what you brew this tea in and drink it out of. It can take on the flavor of its container pretty easily. I brewed it in styrofoam this time around in order to get a good white background, and the flavor of styrofoam is pretty obvious. A stronger flavored tea would not pick up the styrofoam flavor as easily. For best results, brew and serve this tea in a thoroughly cleaned glass or ceramic vessel.

Overall this is a perfect night time tea. It does help me relax, but lacks a strong flavor. I give it a 7.5/10.

Tea Review: Adagio Blood Orange

Brew Time: 10 minutes

Brew Temperature: 212F

Rating: 10/10
Label information: "Deep vibrant color and sweet flavor. Hearty with a good balance of orange peel dryness and fruit juiciness. Ingredients: orange peels, rose hips, hibiscus, natural orange flavor"
Cost: $1.18 - $2.00/ounce from Adagio Teas

This tea smells just like blood oranges - sweet, a bit sour, and very fruity. I think this tea is by far the prettiest   blend pre-brewing. To be proper, it's not a tea, but rather and herbal "tea" or tisane. No matter, I will still refer to it as a tea. It is currently my favorite herbal tea.

The label suggests using one heaping teaspoon per cup and steeping for 5 to 10 minutes. I prefer to use two teaspoons per cup if I'm going to be making just one serving, and allowing it to brew for the full 10 minutes, or slightly longer.  If I'm making a single serving, I will forgo the tea ball and place the loose tea directly into my cup. Being a fruit-based herbal tea, this will not get bitter if left for too long. I will leave the tea in after brewing - I just scoop out anything that might be floating and enjoy. Making one cup can present some problems, as this is a very chunky tea blend and it's hard to be sure everything is evenly distributed in small amounts. I prefer to make this as a full pot. On this occasion, I made it in my Bodum tea press.

The tea becomes very dark red by the end of 10 minutes. It's dark enough that I cannot see to the bottom of the cup, and it's a beautiful, rich red. The scent remains fairly strong even after brewing, and since this one smells pleasant, that's a good thing. The tea itself is tangy and sweet, with just a hint of astringency. It's neither too sour nor too sweet, but perfectly balanced and fruit. It really does taste like a blood orange.

Overall, between its wonderful scent, beautiful appearance, rich color, and fantastic, balanced flavor, I give this tea/tisane a 10/10.

Week 1/52: This Is My Dog

I had intended to use Gavroche for week 1, but then Logan did this, and I couldn't resist. This is Logan in a nutshell. He's always watching me, always near me, and always involved in whatever I'm doing. While Gavroche is content to just lay next to me (or on me), Logan wants to be in the action. This is probably my new favorite photo of Logan.