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The dry leaf of this tea is so pretty! You have the almonds, the white tea leaves and little pops of pink here and there. After this tea has steeped, I smell a tart yet sugary sweet lemon dessert… perhaps a cookie or a cake? It’s pretty amazing how delicious this smells. I’m loving the balance between the tart lemon and sweet dessert – this one smells just perfect!

Sipping… lemon is one of the first things I taste. It’s bright, sweet and a little more mellow than I was expecting. I’m surprised because I’m not tasting any macaron, almond or desserty flavors. I suppose you could say that the lemon is desserty in itself, but I feel like there should be something more since the scent is so amazing. I really want the nice creamy, cakey, almond flavors everyone else is tasting!

I feel like I would drink this again in the future purely for the lemon flavor, but I wish that I could bring out more of the macaron notes to make it more special. Thank you so much to Stacy for including this in my most recent order!

This tea sounded like a great choice from Nina’s Paris. It has rooibos, strawberries and cream & is a part of their fun star sign collection. Even though I’m a Sagittarius, I felt like I would enjoy this blend much more than that one.. so Taurus, don’t let me down!
The scent of this tea reminded me of a dollhouse… and before you think I’m crazy, understand that I mean that it smells like craft wood and strawberry scented dolls. (Well, no.. that doesn’t make me sound any less crazy now that I think about it)

Sipping… I taste a rather even balance between the rooibos and the strawberry. The strawberry is interesting because it’s not artificial strawberry, but it’s also not an obvious natural strawberry. It’s a bit of a generalized sweetness.. more like a candy? Maybe it’s like a very faint strawberry bubble gum? I rather like this blend and appreciate it more as it cools because it becomes more creamy. I think that I would also order this tea in the future as it’s very unique and celebrates the rooibos flavor with soft strawberries. Thank you so much, Laurent for sharing this sample with me!

The scent of this tea is a mix of apples, cinnamon and a bit of that “baked good” smell. The bakery scent mixes well with that of the black tea base. I can’t tell the difference between the two. I’m a little concerned that the tea base might take over when it comes to the actual taste and that the actual apple cinnamon coffeecake flavor will be lost.

Sipping… there is something in this that reminds me of the Simpson & Vail almond sugar cookie blend. I first taste a bit of the black tea which turns into that “bakery” flavor. The cinnamon seems to be woven in nicely – it’s not too strong or weak, but is definitely present throughout. My first sip was mostly cinnamon and apple – now it’s a little bit harder for the apple to come through. It’s there, though, if you look for it… not artificial, but like a nice fresh slice. A part of me wants to say that this is the almond sugar cookie blend without a whole lot of almond, but there is something that I can’t quite identify that makes it just a little bit different. To me, this doesn’t really taste like apple cinnamon coffeecake, but it is tasty and original. I can’t remember who sent this tea to me.. I’m just terrible at remembering some of these older teas I have left to try. So thank you so much to that person who sent this to me in a swap!

I’m always worried about teas when they have mixed bases. I worry that I’ll end up ruining the cup somehow. It’s not so much the tea itself, but more of the potential mistakes that I could make. Luckily, I didn’t ruin this cup! It’s very sweet, with soft notes of toasted rice. It reminds me a little bit of the marshmallow treat genmaicha blend, only this one is much smoother, but lacks that nice creamy note. I pick up more on the green tea than the black, but I feel like the black comes in to add a little bit of astringency. Oh no…. where’s the tea? I seem to have finished this cup a little too quickly. I hate when that happens.. You’re enjoying a tea and then poof! You’ve hit the bottom of the mug. Well, I suppose that means that it’s a tasty tea! I would buy this in the future. Big thank you to Laurent for a sample of this tea!

This tea smells like other roasted oolongs I’ve had before – seaweed, burnt wood, tree bark. I’m not crazy about roasted oolongs, but the tasting notes sounded promising for this one.

Sipping… this one is pretty bland for me. I hate to write this because I am finishing the cup, but it’s mostly a roasted, rather vegetal flavor that I’m tasting. It’s not so toasty that it has a smoky or burnt flavor, thankfully. The finish reminds me of salt water. The salt actually lingers on the tongue long after you’ve finished the sip. Curious. I wish that this were more eventful for me although I’m happy to have tried it.

I can’t remember who sent this tea to me (I’m sorry.. but thank you so much!) and I’ve had it for a long time so it’s time to drink it! Its scent is buttery and leafy – perhaps a little less creamy-smelling than other milk oolongs I’ve had, but it smells yummy.

Sipping… wow, this is much more sugary than I was expecting! I’m pleasantly surprised. It’s a little creamy, perhaps not as creamy or buttery as I would have liked, but the when it’s paired with the sugar, it’s lovely… really lovely. There is a leafy flavor that sits nicely in the background, not overwhelming anything. The finish is crisp, sparkling and with a sweet mineral note.

I’m not sure why I was thinking that I wouldn’t be that impressed with this one, but this is a very nice, unique milk oolong.

I’ve had this floating around for a while and thought that it would be a good choice for this evening. Sometimes I just crave something tart and as this has hibiscus in it (even in the name), I knew it would be a good one.

Sipping… well, I’m definitely satisfied as far as needing something tart. I also like the watermelon flavor that seems to be almost as strong (but not quite) as the hibiscus. It’s not an amazing, juicy watermelon flavor, but one that’s a bit artificial and simple. There isn’t really anything special about this one… it is exactly what it says it is… watermelon and hibiscus. If you’re looking for something beyond that.. this tea wouldn’t do the job. I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy this tea, but can see it being a suitable iced tea choice during the summer.

The scent of this tea is relatively mild compared to similar teas out there. I can definitely smell a light sweetness & something that resembles bread, but there isn’t anything all that specific for my nose to pick out at the moment. Some teas slap you with a strong scent, but this one is so gentle!

Sipping… This is such a smooth tea which makes it very enjoyable to sip! It’s not creamy or silky, but smooth and mild. The main flavor that I’m picking up is sourdough bread. I also detect a mild caramel note, but my tastebuds have to look for it. This tea has a beautiful flavor, but it’s very much a whisper. You have to take time to look for the subtle flavors and I think that’s what makes this tea special. This is certainly a lovely, calm (perhaps needy) cup of tea that is begs for one’s full attention!

*A note about my second steep of this tea: I do detect some lemon notes (which could very well be the result of the “sour” character from the sourdough bread) mixed with the bready ones.. so I’m getting a something like an unfrosted, more rustic lemon loaf which is quite lovely!

Jump62359 kindly included this in her swap package to me and I can’t wait to try it as it is so interesting! The scent reminds me very much of espresso but with added caramel. Well, I suppose it’s more like those pre-made packets of instant coffee, milk powder and sugar/flavoring. I don’t think I’d be able to tell the difference if I had a cup of both in front of me. It brews an incredibly deep, dark cup with a tinge of brown around the edges.

I’m trying this plain tonight even though the addition of milk is recommended. I have to know what this tastes like without anything else! Sipping… wow, this is very different than what I expected! I think that I was preparing myself for some thick, bold coffee since I was so taken by the scent. It’s thinner than I thought it would be and it’s much more earthy. I taste a bit of sweetness and a touch of something fruity. I don’t really taste much caramel or honey in this… but more of a fluid transition between sweet, fruity and a strong sort of bitter. Quite difficult to describe! The bitter note is not sitting well with my tastebuds, unfortunately. Some milk would probably add some needed creaminess to the cup.

I’m happy to have sipped on this tonight and I love that it’s a unique caffeine-free cup, but not sure I like it enough to buy. Thank you so much, jump62359, for sharing!

I definitely smell a strong cucumber scent in the dry leaf. As I’m scooping some of the tea out, I see some odd pieces of fruit/vegetable and I’m not so sure what they are… hm. After the tea has steeped, I detect a strong mint note – fresh, as if someone has clipped some mint from the garden and draped it over the lip of my mug. The cucumber has also changed into honeydew melon now.. I certainly hope it carries over to the taste! You know how I feel about honeydew!

Sipping… this is better than I expected, I think. I do taste some sweet melon and mint. The black tea base is detectable in the front part of the sip, but is otherwise very light. The finish of this tea is where it gets a little weird. I taste something sour and a bit like some mystery vegetable. I think I’d like this tea more if it didn’t have that finish. I’ll still finish the cup, though. It could definitely be a treat iced with some added sugar. Thank you, jump62359, for sharing!