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From the TTB
It smells like banana, both the dry leaf and in the cup. The first few sips were like banana cream pie. As it cooled I got more of the dark chocolate bittersweet taste lingering. Not tasting the licorice, which is probably a good thing because I’m not sure it would go well with the banana and chocolate flavors. I do like this blend the banana stay at the tip of my tongue and the chocolate lingers in the back.

The tea box is here! So many teas to choose from I don’t know where to start. I initially brewed this for 3 minutes and didn’t like the result, so put the leaf back in my cup for another few minutes. It helped a lot, and now as it has cooled the caramel flavor is coming out. Not a whole lot of apple here, maybe as an aftertaste? I’m not sure how to rate this tea, as a flavored tea I’m sure it would be nice with some sugar or honey, but I rarely put in sweetener so maybe this one’s not for me.

The tea smells very lemony in the bag and tastes very lemony in the cup. In fact all I taste is lemon, no ginger, no underlying black tea base. As it cools, there is a faint spicy ginger note coming through, but there is so much lemon, it’s hard to distinguish the ginger. I’ll probably end up blending this with another tea to tame the lemon taste.

My first attempt at brewing this tea wasn’t so memorable, but today I must have used a bit more leaf and hit the sweet spot. After brewing for three minutes and letting it mellow while covered for several more, I get to drink smooth dark chocolate with a hint of caramel. There is just enough of a bitter chocolate aftertaste to keep this interesting, but it’s all creamy smoothness up front. If my next cup from this bag is as good as this, I may have found another yummy daily drinker!

I brewed quite a strong cup, and my first few sips tasted metallic and robust. As the tea mellowed in my cup, I got fruity and floral notes, a well rounded and interesting cup. The second steeping was smoother and not quite as flavorful, this might be a one steep tea for me. Overall I like this tea, it’s enjoyable to drink, but I’m not sure I’d buy more for daily drinking, and it’s not complex enough for a special occasion tea.

This is a solidly drinkable black tea, not complex, not astringent. I enjoyed this cup, the first steeping was stronger than the second. I got a coppery, metallic tang while it was very hot and more cinnamon notes as it cooled. As this is not a strong black tea, I might reach for it in the afternoon, for a soothing cup where I don’t expect too much and am pleasantly surprised at the drinkablility of this tea.

I wouldn’t call this a smooth cup of tea, the Assam in this blend gives it quite the metallic aftertaste. But this is quite drinkable, the Darjeeling in the blend smooths out the rough edges of the Assam. I’m not sure I’d like either tea on its own but together it works. It’s not very complex, just coppery and astringent with a pleasant finish. I’m not sure I’d buy this again, but will do my best to sip down this bag.

Well I sipped down this whole bag of tea, so I figured it deserved a tasting note. The last cup from the bag was just as gingery as the first, and I did enjoy the spicyness of this cup. That being said, the clove note of the Chai was dominant as well, and rather competed with the ginger note. By this last sipdown cup I concluded I don’t like my ginger mixed with a chai, if I need the two mixed, I can do that myself. I’d rather have a ginger or ginger/citrus tea.

The dry leaf smells a bit fruity but the tea brewed up to a light and slightly sweet cup. It was more complex than I expected and the first cup in the pot had an astringent aftertaste. As it cooled down I could detect lingering cinnamon notes. I enjoyed this tea more as I drank each cup from the pot. I can’t remember if I have ever had tea from Tanzania, but I’d purchase this one again.

The tea smelled very peppery in the bag and smelled very peppery in the cup. Unfortunately this meant the tea was very peppery and I didn’t taste any fruit or blueberry notes. I might try less leaf or a cold brew , but it seemed the pepper was just a bit overwhelming in this blend.