I tried that famous Russian ivan chai first time couple of years ago and thought I had found another one to call my favorite tea. I used to(still do) love Greek shepherd’s tea(Sideritis) but it isn´t always that easy to find it in fresh quality. I don´t mind classical fermented eastern teas but as I´m sensitive to caffeine I can´t enjoy them in the evening unless I want to stay up until morning. I tryed to ferment raspberry leaves and I totally adore the taste of that tea now.
We have always gathered wild raspberry leaves and sometimes even the whole braches in springtime to make a detoxing and energizing tea. Raspberries are one of the first ones here to open it´s leaves and as it´s growing so rapidly everywhere around the island´s sandy pasture lands and on natural hugelbeds (et. sakla vallid).
Recently while I was on a forest walk I noticed something green from the distance laying on the ground. It is not that warm yet and the leaves aren´t open yet, neither it didn´t seem to be moss or plastic waste brought by last autumn´s storms. I walked towards the unknown green object and kneeled down to get a better look. It was a typical glass coffee jar, which I had found couple of time earlier too. Some Bolivian coffee jars with faded but firmly stuck lables, which don´t come off with any dishwashing liquid are still in use.
I usually start feeling sick if someone is burning cloying bitter incense in an unventilated room. I presume it is mostly due to high wood content in the incense sticks. Traditional frankincense has a nice odour in moderation but it holds too overpowering religious connotation to me.
I do like pleasant earthy scents reminding me in wintertime that there is life somewhere and it is going to be summer again filled with odours of blossoms, trees and dirt. I really need some familiar smells around me during those cold and dim months.
Metsik Aed 