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Meh, not a lot of flavour. I think I’ve gone off flavoured black tea, where you rely on something other than the tea leaves themselves for the flavour. I guess over the past month my tastes have progressed to another level. Not sure what the vanilla is in here (real or imitation) but there is no oomph, just bland uninteresting. Sorry t Leaf T, but I still like your creme brûlée.

This is silver needle with jasmine. Since I could barely taste anything with the straight silver needle tea I thought the jasmine might be a nice addition. I do like my jasmine tea on the mild side so I didn’t brew it for long. The jasmine scent seems genuine (not imitation) and it tastes very nice as well – clean, delicate and mild. This tea is pretty pricey so I am not intending on buying any after my 2 samples are used up. The jasmine can be found elsewhere for cheaper such as in green tea. The silver needle here didn’t really add anything to the taste as it’s so mild in itself.

Disappointing. I was hoping the manuka would shine through but all I can taste is a strong bold Assam. Brewed it for 3 min. Will try a shorter steep and see what happens. This tastes no better than generic supermarket English breakfast tea. Why even bother with adding something to a base this strong?

My second-ever sampling of pu-erh. This is loose leaf from my current favourite tea shop – still on a gentle introduction to this kind of tea – but it’s a step up from the tea bag pu-erh I tried previously. It most definitely has the characteristic scent and taste. Makes me think of old wooden furniture, it’s earthy, mushroom-y. After this sample is finished it is probably time to step up a notch and try a pu-erh in cake form. I am still intrigued and want to see what all the fuss is about. :-) I know of at least one Asian grocer around here that sells the circular ones. No idea of the quality tho. Either that or aliexpress. :-)

Bought this from a local Asian grocery store . It is of somewhat lesser quality than my t Leaf T shop sample but also cheaper. I guess that counts if you want to drink it all day. There is some green tea dust that goes thru my teapot infuser but I can strain it again through a finer infuser that gets it out. Am thinking of adding a little of my own matcha, as with both brands the matcha is of course gone after the first steep. For the price I paid, the quality is just fine. Nice roasted popped rice taste, no bitterness.

Find this tea very pleasant to drink. Pale green with a nutty aroma/flavour from the roasted rice. Quite delicate but at the same time flavourful. Am likely to purchase more of this. Wonder how it compares to the ‘Genmaicha Japan’ (ie. without matcha).

Oh my goodness! This Big Red Robe oolong brings my tea drinking to a whole new level! Such complexity of flavour from a single ingredient. My first thoughts went from hm, this smells a bit like matcha but it looks very different, it has big dark leaves. I also thought I could detect a hint of roasted coffee or something, and a little smokiness that went away. Tasting it after an initial rinse (x2) and a 3 min steep I was blown away and immediately googled it further. I am probably making it wrong but these were the somewhat generic instructions on the sample. Except I rinsed twice not once.

Feeling like I’m finally drinking “real” tea, not flavoured something-or-other. Would love to make a whole pot of this and just sip it all day long. Hoping someone can chime in with getting the best re-steeps and best brewing method.

Left this one steeping longer than I should have. Came back to a murky brown opaque liquid which is probably from the (melted) chocolate pieces. Drank it straight without any milk or sugar. It is a strange brew. I would have loved to have loved this tea but I can only detect a slight hint of chilli (or am I imagining it?). The muddy brown liquid just looks odd, for a tea. A chilli hot chocolate would be better if they could come up with an improved recipe. I think the “Apple” just acts as a filler as the chocolate overpowers it.

Would like to see this company adding the chilli component to their “coconut rough” rooibos tea and see what happens. This is also a cocoa/carob based tea but with cocoa beans rather than chocolate pieces.

A fairly nice herbal liquorice/minty tea, though not my favourite. Besides licorice root, there is peppermint and fennel seed in this tea. There is NO anise/aniseed. My palate is very familiar with both licorice root and aniseed (they are 2 different ingredients) and I like both to be present. But that’s just my personal preference. It is recommended on the packet to use up to double the quantity that I would normally use (and I like my licorice ‘tea’ strong). There is a slightly minty aftertaste.

PS. Unlike popular belief, fennel seed and anise seed are not the same, they come from different plants. :)

A strawberry flavoured rooibos tea. Nothing spectacular, very drinkable, but I’m after that wow factor. It’s far more palatable than their “Strawberries and Cream” black flavoured tea though. Second steep – the strawberry flavour is more or less gone. I’d drink this if it was the only tea available but unsure if I’d buy more. Still, this tea is a hundred times better than Twinings strawberry fruit tea/tisane. Not that you can compare them but if I ever had to recommend a strawberry flavoured “tea” this would have to be it.

Edited to add: I find I keep coming back to this one (although now only have a teaspoonful of the sample left). I guess that means it’s got some comfort factor for me after all. Have increased my rating accordingly.