Artichoke Green is a green tea from Adagio Teas, an online tea seller.
I was thinking back to when I first ordered from Adagio and remembered I did order from them a bit before I got really into loose leaf teas. I had ordered a bunch of greens, whites and chai samplers. I’m a fearless tea drinker – I ordered a lot of Adagio’s “weirder” teas, some being amazing, with others being the worst tea I’ve experienced /cough toasted sesame /cough.
But the teas I did like, I ordered quite a bit when sales came around. Artichoke Green being one of the teas I liked. Sadly, I have a pound of this tea. A freaking pound! I know now better to not order a pound, as I’m more of a variety person. Well, it was a pound, I’ve trimmed it down quite a bit by drinking it and giving it away as gifts and tea swaps.
DRY LEAF: Very VERY strong scent. Green Artichoke smells very sweet and veggie. It’s so strong, if you go in for a sniff, it hits you hard that you back off a bit. Interestingly, this tea is on the old side, but still smells and tastes the same since I’ve purchased it. Artichoke Green has a dark green leaf with a bit of yellow marigold accents.
Since I ordered a pound, my tea came in a paper bag. I had quickly moved it to a tin, clipping the instructions and taping it to my tin.
I love my IKEA tea tins.
STEEPED: Pale yellow tea with a very vegetal smell. I’m also picking up a bit of a buttery smell as well. For this steeping, I did 175F for 3 minutes.
TASTE: Light green tea taste, with a strong sweet and savory vegetal flavor. If you ever boiled artichokes, it tastes like that sweet smell that comes from the pot. The savory comes from a bit of buttery flavor. Artichoke green finishes with a sweet, tarty aftertaste. The sweetness in this tea almost resembles peach flavor. No bitterness in this tea though I’ve experienced this tea to get very grassy.
TIP: I found Artichoke Green can take a beating. I’ve oversteeped and overcooked this tea and it still performs well – it doesn’t become bitter, though it can get grassy. I usually keep this tea at work, where I don’t have a variable temperature kettle, or used it in tea travel glasses, leaving the tea to sit in the bottom of the glass until I finish it.
COMMENTS: Artichoke Green is on the weird side by name only – it be a tea some people would just pass on simply as it sounds too crazy, or adventurous types would be interested in trying. This is not a scary tea! Do not be afraid to try it!
This tea is pretty interesting to try for people who want more “flavoring” than tea taste as the sweet and savory flavor is quite strong.
