90 Tasting Notes
Mmm, what a tea and the name fits perfectly.
It’s basically a cinnamon-encrusted, roasted-to-the-point-of-caramelization sweet ‘tater. The autumnal flavor bursts out of the Ceylon richness, so you end up with a mug full of exactly what the tea promises in its description. Haul this one out along with the extra blankets and thick, woolly sweaters when the leaves start to fall. That way, you’ll have it in time for Thanksgiving and keep it around until March, to get a dose of warm harvest-y/holiday cheer from the beginning of winter to the very end.
Like the rest of Adagio’s Ceylons, comes with a huge caffeine kick comparable to coffee.
More reviews can be found on the Snooty Tea Blog at snooteablog.com.
I ordered the toasted sesame flavored tea a while ago, and frankly, I should have ordered this one instead. It’s got a barn smell in the bag that’s sure to bring a smile to the lips of any equestrians, cowboys, or 4-H-ers.
Once steeped, that aroma becomes this warm, enfolding embrace of nuttiness and savory—just like coming home.
Now, as Cogsworth said, ‘You can’t fix it if it’s not baroque.’ There is nothing baroque about this tea, therefore there is nothing that needs to be fixed. I’d call it steampunk rather than baroque, since the brassiness and sesame-salt flavor evoke rust-worn metal, gears and goggles. A distinct copper tone. Or if steampunk isn’t your thing, then this tea will seat you at a harvest feast in a modest abode, cozy with the sense of hearth and home.
More reviews can be found on the Snooty Tea Blog at snooteablog.com
It’s hard to be anything but ambivalent about this tea. I had the highest of hopes—albeit slightly misguided, since I didn’t bother reading other reviews and thought that the ‘coco’ in ‘cocomint’ stood for ‘coconut.’ The smell in the bag would lead one to believe that it’s got a wealth of chocolatey-minty goodness just waiting to be tasted, but…
Once in the mug, sweet lovers will be disappointed. The cocoa is left far, far behind in the greenyness, which itself is subtle at best. Just a touch of mint in there with it. If you prefer the natural flavor of green tea over added sweetening flavors, then this one may suit you. (Yep, a flavored tea for those who dislike flavored teas. Such a thing exists.) It’s kind of refreshing, actually.
Don’t add milk, but if you’re sore about the lack of cocoa-mintyness, then sugar it up and be content with that. This is a great spring tea otherwise, probably tastes super iced.
More reviews can be found on the Snooty Tea Blog at snooteablog.com.
This one smells great in the bag. Your nose gets tackled with a playful, ’I’m strawberry and you gotta deal with it!’ that wakes you up and leads you to expect that this flavor will be the important one in the cup.
Once steeped, however, not so much. Strawberry, you little cheater. As with the cocomint green, this tea makes for a really light cup. You hardly get much rhubarb at all except in the aftertaste—if you were expecting a sort of rhubarb pie experience, you’ll have to look elsewhere. Still, it has plenty of merit if you’re into soft, subtle greens. The flavors here are whispery little accents instead of clanging bells and whistles. So, though it may not be showy, at least this tea is honest about its tea-ness—its identi-tea. It doesn’t pretend that it’s actually rhubarb or strawberry or whatever.
More reviews can be found on the Snooty Tea Blog at snooteablog.com.
Downright aromatic in the bag. Saccharine even, as if vanilla soy milk was already added, with a snicker of lemon from the cardamom. In the cup, the liquor* is so dark that it looks like coffee, and the scent mellows out to a rich, baked goodness. Many chais have a substantial kick at the end from the ginger, but this one was smooth all the way through.
The first taste is a real treat. Although cocooned in silky black tea and clove, the rest of the spices go, “Wait, I’m still here!” There’s a significant clove base, a sort of softness on the tongue, which rides on the ginger. The only hint of cinnamon’s presence is the way it keeps everything smooth and neatly folded together. You get lemon lingering on your lips in the aftertaste–this tea really goes heavy on the cardamom. So much so, in fact, that you’d be better off calling it Black Lemon Chai instead.
Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/04/06/snooty-tea-review-uniq-teas/
Alright, a weird bag-smell. Very off-putting. There was almost an alcoholicness to the fruit, possibly the effect of the dried kiwi. While steeping, however, it smells scrumptious, and all weirdness goes away in the cup as that nutty coconut carries the brighter fruit notes.
As a drink, though? Not much to say for itself. The cherry flavor is dead silent, maybe a tone of kiwi in there, but you really have to dig to seek it out on your tongue. The coconut wins by default, but it isn’t much of a win since the overall drink is just weak, even infused at full-plus strength and steeped for far longer than recommended. The bag-smell returns in the aftertaste, too. Sadly, I wouldn’t even recommend this as a trail mix, which is a true shame because I had high hopes for this tea–two lovely fruits and sweet coconut, what could go wrong?
Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/04/06/snooty-tea-review-uniq-teas/
Definitely didn’t get “mean” from the bag. More like “whiny.”
If you’re looking for another fruity tea, or even a pronounced green, it isn’t this one. It could work if iced, so that the cool flavors of (once again) papaya, and the titular tangerine could develop more. It’s not a tropical punch to the face. Rather, it’s that quiet cousin who’s safe to sit next to at Thanksgiving because they won’t ask about your plans for grad school or the Peace Corps. A comforting tea for those who’ve had bad experiences with greens before–but it’s not going to make you want to go back and start pursuing them.
Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/04/06/snooty-tea-review-uniq-teas/
Caribbean Punch’s base of green rooibus makes this a very light tea, a fun one! “Punch” is apt indeed because that papaya really socks you in the mouth with bright tropical flavor. A tea of sun and beaches where the sand doesn’t get into your buttcrack and is never too hot to walk on. It seems to rely heavily on the papaya, which overpowers all the other flavors, but if you’re looking for a fruit-dominated concoction, then you’ll be satisfied.
Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/04/06/snooty-tea-review-uniq-teas/
I’d call this Pom-uhhhhhhh-granate White.
There was a pronounced candy smell right off the bat, predominantly cherry, which was likely the pomegranate doing that “I’m a dried fruit and smell weird” thing that we’ve gotten with mango before. This scent disintegrates with steeping.
In the cup, the dominant presence here is the white tea itself. Pomegranate comes in as a tang as the edge of the tongue but not a strong player on its own. This show isn’t “Pomegranate: The Musical” but rather “White Tea: The Musical” and you’ll have to open up the playbook to find out which middling part Pomegranate managed to score.
Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/04/06/snooty-tea-review-uniq-teas/
First impressions! Peachiness. Mango and peach are sister fruits, and here I could have sworn this was a peach-based blend by the smell alone. In fact, this particular peach smell is exactly like strep throat medicine, right down to the alcoholic astringency at its core. If I had been sniffing this stuff in a store, I’d have put it right back on the shelf.
In the cup, however, poof! For the full review, go here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/03/17/spring-break-special-teajos-mango-assam/
