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Cooking TTB #20

This was my very last sample from the Cooking TTB, as I sent it off to The Cookie Lady today. There were so many teas in this box that I loved! Unfortunately, this wasn’t one of them. I found it to be very grassy, which is my least favorite flavor profile for green tea. There was a little bit of fruity flavor, but it didn’t really come across as fig. This isn’t something I’d ever care to drink again, but I still enjoyed the opportunity to try so many teas I had never heard of from companies I’ve never ordered from!

Cooking TTB #19

This tea had such a unique combination of flavors, I couldn’t resist trying it. But honestly, I was also a bit afraid of it. There are so many ways it could have gone wrong…too much mint, a woody flavor from the base, or an intensely tart/sour flavor from the grapefruit. But I was pleasantly surprised: this is a delicious, refreshing tea! I chose to drank it cold and I couldn’t believe how smooth and creamy the flavor was. The mint and grapefruit blend seamlessly and the base doesn’t poke through at all. This would be an amazing summer iced tea!

Cooking TTB #18

Despite the name, this didn’t taste like pomegranates to me at all! It was quite floral with a tart aftertaste that I found unpleasant. Really not a fan of this one.

Cooking TTB #17

Up to this point, all of the chocolate mint teas I’ve tried have had a rooibos base. I like this one so much better! It smells like you just melted Andes Candies into your cup and brews up to a beautiful deep chocolatey brown. The base is very smooth and provides a nice foundation for the sweet mint and chocolate flavors. My only complaint is that the mint flavor overwhelms the chocolate for me. I want to try this one with milk and see if that brings out the creaminess of the chocolate a bit more. Another keeper!

Cooking TTB #16

This is a very smooth black tea with a strong floral flavor. There was a bit of astringency at the end of the sip. Not my favorite…but there have been so many winners in this box, I really can’t complain!

Cooking TTB #15

A good lemon tea is hard to find! I’ve had way too many that were like drinking a cup of Pledge. This one was a pleasant surprise…very smooth and creamy with a nice natural-tasting lemon flavor. There is just a bit of a tart bite at the end of the sip. A very refreshing tea!

I don’t like chamomile but I love mango and I had heard good things about this tea, so I decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for me. There was a nice creamy mango flavor going on, but the pungent scent of the chamomile and the bits of pollen floating in my cup completely ruined the experience. Hopefully someone else will enjoy it more than I did!

Cooking TTB #14

This is such an interesting oolong! The leaves really do have a blueish cast and they are rolled into tight little pellets that look kind of like pebbles. The flavor is also unlike other oolongs that I’ve tried…no vegetal flavor or silky mouth feel. Instead it’s heavy on the ginseng with a lingering sweet licorice aftertaste. The re-steep was very similar. I’m glad I got to try this, but it’s not something I would reach for again.

Cooking TTB #13

This tea looks just like grass clippings, which scared me a bit! But Anlina had given it such a great review, I had to try it out. I’m so glad I did! This is quite possibly the best green tea I have ever had: smooth and buttery with lots of rich nutty flavor. I could drink this stuff all day…

Cooking TTB #12

This tea has such great reviews, I was really excited to try it! And I got even more excited when it was steeping because it smelled just like a fresh, ripe strawberry. But the flavor was a huge disappointment…very weak and watery. I’m wondering if I should have used a higher temperature or a longer steep time for this one? I followed my usual parameters for oolong, but the package actually calls for boiling water. Withholding rating until I try this again, following the directions!