Kill Green

Behold here the tree, the bush, and the leaves Behold the human, that cultivates seeds Witness the withering, whining, weeping Watch how they’re chosen, select for flogging Torn, battered, broken, blood drawn out, seeping Pushed to the limit and scorched by the sun Rolling, frying, steaming, and drying Pushed and pulled between […]

Gong Fu Hot Chocolate!

Growing up, I always had hot chocolate made with milk. I actually didn’t know that people would make it using water and when I had my first experience with water based hot chocolate… I thought it was an abomination! Like, who does that? I’m not one to pick hot chocolate as a drink very often […]

The Tea That Chose Me

The past year I have been trying many samples of pu-erh. I’ve been trying to figure out what I do and don’t like and simply educate myself on what pu-erh can taste like. So far I have found that I do not like shu (cooked/ripe) pu-erh, despite my willingness to try many, I haven’t found […]

Horizontal Harmony- The Benefits of Horizontal Tea Tastings

If you are passionate about chocolate or ramen or any other kind of food or beverage you’re likely trying to eat or drink it any chance you get. It’s also likely you want to try different varieties of your favored item in order to compare and contrast them. We do this naturally, constantly comparing things, […]

Raspberry Leaf (Rubus idaeus)

Raspberry leaf is the perfect herb to begin your exploration with “gong fu herbs” The taste is surprisingly similar to a black tea. I had read this before but was a bit skeptical since I’ve had raspberry leaf many other times, yet it was always in a blend with other things so I hadn’t really […]

What Does it Mean to Free Your Gaiwan?

The concept of “Free your Gaiwan” is simply to explore infusions outside of Camellia sinensis. I came to true tea first out of my interest in other herbal infusions or tisanes. As I shared in my previous post (Free your Gaiwan (Part one) My Story) my favorite “teas” in the beginning of my tea journey […]