End of the Road with a Brebisrousse D'Argental

Yesterday ten blocks away from home was a tea event at Teance - a tea shop firmly on my vendor black list.  Overpriced bougie douchie tea vendors are dime a dozen in the Bay Area and this one is a particularly excellent example of that genre. They ripped me off with my first major beeng purchase back in 2005 and I have vowed never again to be so gullible.  Among other inflated goodies, they sell chamomile $12 for 2oz and "exceptional" mini-tuocha for $31 per 2oz.  Just imagine paying $248 a pound for shu mini-tuocha. So it follows that most of their puerh offerings are madly overpriced.  But there are no shortage of willing rich patrons in the Fourth Street shopping district.

On Saturday, for the mere pocket change of $25, you could have stood and watched wine sommeliers drink tea and wax on about the palate and food pairings. I of course wanted to go if only for entertainment purposes but due to August Austerity measures, I could not justify throwing money away.  If you read this blog and happened to attended this session yesterday-  please do give us a report.

Teance also holds a 3 day tea training course for professionals at a sum of $975 for early registration and $1275 otherwise.   As a person who's mostly self taught in tea matters- the idea of formal training is hugely appealing.  But forking over $975 for a three day or 21 hour course seems foolish. It takes the flow of time for your palate to really understand and appreciate tea.  How far can cramming get you?


I drank good teas all week but I can't seem to rub two sentences together for a review these days. Many tea bloggers come to the end of that road and it appears I also have lost interest to continue on as a tea blogger.  I may eke out with other topics at least for a while as I eat a great many delicious things which should be shared.

My current favorite edible this month is the Brebisrousse - a sheep cheese from Lyon.  The orangeness of the rind comes not from a mold bloom but from  annatto but the briney umami flavor combined with the creamy mouthfeel makes it one of the best cheese experiences I've had all year.   I couldn't be a cheese blogger because I can't excite myself to write more than two sentences on the topic. To think I persisted in 200+ posts on tea makes me think I have greatly impinged on the poor reader.