Taste Appreciation

Here I sit, waiting for my shift to begin at Sunergos, enjoying a delicious cup of Bancha. We usually serve only Sencha when it comes to straight green teas, and I must say I am happy about the switch. I can't help but wonder whether I would actually be enjoying the taste of this stuff if it weren't for my recent warding off of sweets for lent. Tea is so intricate, I assume that it is really difficult for me to really get all that it has to offer while filling my palette with excessive amounts of sugar throughout the day.

I imagined that giving up sweets would be this super difficult breaking of a habit that I wanted to continue, and believe me sometimes it has felt just like that. But mostly I feel that I am beginning to appreciate alot of flavors in everything that I eat or drink that were masked previously. I do look forward to eating a delicious bowl of ice cream or having a few samoas (as long as they are still around after lent) but I think these things will be even more enjoyable.

When I got back from Chicago I told Chris that I never wanted to put caramel, or anything else that's incredibly sweet, in my coffee again. What stemmed from that was a much longer conversation than I expected to have. It was really beneficial, I think I finally understand why I felt like that after getting back. Going to Chicago introduced me to a coffee world where the norm was not to put additives into the cup to conform it to your current tastes, but to conform your tastes to enjoy everything it had to offer. I had become so accustomed to mocha shakes, caramel lattes, and white mochas that I missed that idea entirely. Now I will admit that my opinion was pretty harsh when I got back, but I still generally feel the same way. I do still enjoy caramel lattes and other sugary drinks occasionally, but my mind puts them in different categories than an artisan roasted cup of Ethiopian Sidamo or Guatemala.