ehashman

ehashman , 14 days ago

@et_alia @mecfs @longcovid I think it's tricky and a hard line to walk because if you don't maintain some activity or at least slightly increase it, you do lose significant function via deconditioning. I have lost the ability to walk after a crash and am working on regaining that very slowly, and have improved overall looking at the past 12+ months even though I'm still not walking again. I've heard some long-time pwME advise "pace yourself, but not too much" which seemed incomprehensible at the time but now it resonates.

Get yourself to a sustainable baseline with pacing, imo, and then increase functional activity (because you want to do things you enjoy!) only so much as you can tolerate. If you crash, back it off and rest, and try again with less! Reducing activity should be judgment-free and is absolutely critical to stabilizing your energy levels, but increasing it sustainably (e.g. sitting outside for a few minutes a day, or adding a call with a friend) can be really good too.

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 1: decaf full-leaf Assam. https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/decaffeinated-assam-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00269/

The CO2 decaf process is a lot better for maintaining flavour than other means of decaffeination, but it's not perfect. I thought this tea was OK, but discovered with nearly all of these decaf options that I need to use much more tea than their caffeinated equivalents to get similar flavour.

This one tasted like a watered down, fancier Assam to me. A longer steep time left it tasting bitter, even with milk. I want something more bracing. 3/5

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 2: broken leaf Indonesian. https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/co2-decaffeinated-indonesian-black-tea/p/V00273/

This was the only tea that I felt impressed me. While this is not a blend, it reminds me of an English breakfast blend, very similar to Twinings'.

Unfortunately for me, EB is not really my thing; I'm fine to drink it, but what I really want is Irish breakfast! That tea is out of stock until June so it'll be a while until I can try it.

Even though this one isn't really my taste, I liked throwing a little in to the flavoured decaf blends to give them a little more oomph. I'm going to buy a bigger bag. 4/5

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 3: full-leaf Ceylon. https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/decaffeinated-ceylon-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00270/

This tea was, IMO, better than the Assam, but not really my cup of tea. Surprisingly complex for a decaf tea, fruity and sweet. Adding more tea to the steep improved the experience. I don't think any of these teas really hold up to resteeping.

This does not taste like a tea that appreciates a touch of milk. Don't regret the sample but probably won't buy more.

Edit: I mixed this with a little of the Indonesian and it was delicious. That was also the end of the bag with a lot of fannings; I do think the steeps are improved when the tea is crushed into smaller pieces, since decaf doesn't take well to resteeping anyways. I completely forgot I was drinking decaf. Gonna bump this one to 4.5/5

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 4: note, I skipped buying the Darjeeling https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/decaffeinated-darjeeling-organic-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00271/

I'm not a Darjeeling drinker even when they're caffeinated. I'm guessing this is the most delicate of their single-origin decaf black teas.

Now, on to the flavoured teas...

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 5: decaf Earl Grey. https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/decaffeinated-earl-grey-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00272/

I enjoyed this more than I expected. Upton stocks a variety of caffeinated Earl Grey options; my personal favourite is the "Finest Earl Grey" https://www.uptontea.com/earl-grey-tea/loose-leaf-flavored-black-tea/p/V00777/

My only complaint is that while the bergamot is punchy, the black tea flavour gets a little lost. I found throwing in an extra half tsp of the Indonesian really improves this one. I'm going to buy a bag. 4/5

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Sample 6: decaf "Masala Chai." https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/chai-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00728/

Air quotes necessary because this tea is not a masala chai. It tastes so strongly of cinnamon you'd be forgiven if you thought it was a Christmas tea. I've tried nearly every product Upton stocks with a "chai" label. Most of it is similar to this tea, but https://www.uptontea.com/chai-tea/chai-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00171/ is legitimate. This tea is not in the same league.

Rated as a chai, this earns 2/5 stars: it's at least drinkable where many others are not.

Rated as a spiced blend, this is a fun departure from the rest of the world of decaf. Honestly I think if you mixed in a little dried rose this would be delightful. I will probably buy another sample to try that out but I don't think I'll get a 100g bag. 3.5/5

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

That was the last sample I tried! I don't really like vanilla or lemon flavoured blends so I didn't purchase those; I also wasn't interested in the decaf green.

I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for their decaf Irish Breakfast blend to restock so I can try that; in the meantime, I'll try to get by on the Indonesian and Earl Grey. Or maybe I'll see what other tea suppliers stock in decaf!

A friend in the Boston area got me into Upton's teas years ago, and I think most of their business is word of mouth. If you end up buying something because of this thread, consider using my referral code? 😄​ https://uptonteaimports.zinrelo.com/ref/ELA4SFNE

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Also, a note on decaffeination: many of the big brands use dichloromethane (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dichloromethane#Toxicity) to remove the caffeine from tea. But you do not want to drink this solvent, even in trace amounts.

CO2 decaffeination is super metal---they heat CO2 until it's it's a supercritical fluid, and it (mostly) selectively removes the caffeine. It's also non-toxic. So I exclude any teas that aren't processed with CO2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decaffeination#Supercritical_CO2_process

ehashman OP , 17 days ago

Sample 7: it finally went back in stock! The decaf Irish breakfast blend. https://www.uptontea.com/decaffeinated-tea/decaffeinated-irish-breakfast-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00640/

My hopes were high so I feel a bit disappointed. It's drinkable but so far I'm liking it less than the Indonesian and the Ceylon. I'd rate this one 3/5.

One thing I've found improves nearly all the decaf teas is mixing them as a blend. The flavour is more complex and robust. I also find myself using maybe 50% more tea than I would for the caffeinated equivalent.

Well, I think that's everything I can possibly review from this one tea shop 😄 @tea

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

@ghoulpus @tea I just got a big haul of samples from Upton Tea and their Indonesian decaf is very similar to Twining's EB decaf. But I prefer Assam (more of an Irish breakfast blend) and I like the fast steep time and intense flavour from a CTC processing. But not sure it exists in decaf! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crush,_tear,_curl

ehashman OP , 2 months ago

Some folks on reddit seem to think no, but if anyone here knows otherwise please lmk! https://www.reddit.com/r/tea/comments/184hjvx/can_ctc_tea_be_decaf/

@tea