Earl Grey (bag) by Tazo

Seller Description: "A traditional tea scented with the essence of bergamot."

Directions: None listed on bag

Cost: Varies per seller

Teaware: Depression Glass cup and saucer set (Hazel Atlas' Newport/Hairpin pattern)

Measured dry: 1 teabag

Water Temperature: Boiling, minus 5 minutes

Steeping Time: 3 minutes

Additives: 1tbsp Sugar in the Raw, dash milk

TAZO Earl Grey Mid-Steep

I've been steering steadily away from bagged tea, but this was a surprise addition to a swap, so I decided to give it a try. 

After my first sip, I really wish I hadn't! Either this tea is revolting or some kind of cross-contamination occurred. It's incredibly bitter, and has a seafood aftertaste. Yeah, you read that correctly - I think it's salmon. Which is wrong. So very, very wrong.

Teabag Autopsy

In an attempt to make it remotely palatable I added Sugar in the Raw and milk. Over the seafood, I can now taste elements of the Earl Grey flavors, but they just can't break free of the fish.

Since I just can't manage to drink the rest of this, I decided to open up the teabag and see if anything was remotely recognizable. As you can see... nope. It looks more like... well, as I've already grossed you out with the fish, I'll let you draw your own conclusions. Suffice it to say that I cannot identify any leaf-like structures in the... substance inside the bag. 

So, to wrap up, this was absolutely horrible. To drive that home, Mei-Mei decided to inspect it while I was busy typing. Usually she'll try to sample just about anything -not that I'll let her, but she still tries! Mei-Mei was a feral kitten when she was rescued, so she has no qualms about anything edible, drinkable, or even resembling food. This? She actually turned her nose up at it. Good decision, cat. Very good decision.

Mei-Mei

Prominent Notes: Seafood, bergamot

Aftertaste: Seafood

Overall: Dump it! Dump it now!

And yes, Mei's name is a nickname on Firefly. I believe it means "little sister" in Mandarin. She totally embodies that! Akasha's is from Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned. They were about 6-7months old when we adopted them, so we just found nerd-esque names as close as possible to the ones they'd gotten used to: ChiangMai and Acosta.