168 Tasting Notes

81
drank Happiness by Lupicia
168 tasting notes

Mmm, the bag and the brewed tea smell fruity.

I taste fruit punch! And apricot. It’s a little sweet and rather fun. I can see why they call it Happiness!

I had to look up what kind of tea it was, cause this is another Lupicia sample bag, and all it said was 8508 Happiness, lol.

This would probably be lovely iced as well.

Flavors: Apricot, Fruit Punch, Fruity, Sweet

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
Mastress Alita

This one tasted like a fruity white wine to me, I really liked it! I’ve only made one tea order this year around my birthday from Lupicia, and got some of this in that order.

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79

This was a sample from a Lupicia order. The bag didn’t smell like much.

I don’t know if it’s because Darjeeling teas are used so much in breakfast blends, but this reminds me a bit of a breakfast tea. It’s a little astringent with citrus notes, very mild, compared to what I was expecting anyway.

Flavors: Astringent, Citrus

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 2 min, 30 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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92
drank Akina high-grade matcha by Ikkyu
168 tasting notes

I don’t remember where I bought this. The bag has “Ichigo Trading and Travel Company” on the front and “Ikkyu” on the back, each with a different website that lists this tea. It was made in March 2019 and should have been consumed the same year, even sealed. I whisked 3 grams into 100ml of 175 F water.

It has a mild bitterness with grassy notes. It’s really good. It’s like the flavor of green tea, but bolder and more mild at the same time. There’s a bit of sweetness to it also.

I also tried adding some to a smoothie with frozen bananas and strawberries and fresh kiwi. This was my first time trying matcha in a smoothie, and it’s amazing. I’ll have to find some cheaper matcha for smoothies!

Flavors: Bitter, Grass, Green, Sweet

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 g 3 OZ / 100 ML
Mastress Alita

My go-to is Mizuba Tea Co.‘s culinary matcha (since I’m only using it for smoothies, I don’t see the point is higher-grade matcha). I rarely taste the matcha in my smoothies with the other stuff, but love the gentle caffeine boost first thing in the morning by adding it to my breakfast smoothies.

Todd

Ah nice, I’ll look into Mizuba, thanks. LOL, I just noticed the “Ichigo Trading and Travel Company” sticker on the front is a partial sticker covering up the “Ikkyu” logo. So it looks like I made the right choice.

Lexie Aleah

I also use Mizuba (:

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84
drank Mermaid by 52teas
168 tasting notes

If you like piña coladas, and getting sung to a rocky death by sirens…

The brewed tea smells fruity. This tastes very tropical, fruity, and a little sweet. The blending balance is excellent, as I’ve come to expect from 52teas. Thanks!

Flavors: Coconut, Fruity, Pineapple, Sweet

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 2 min, 0 sec 3 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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82
drank Jingle Bells by Lupicia
168 tasting notes

I got this as a sampler with some other Lupicia teas. Oh wow, it’s like a grape Martinelli’s sparkling cider! It also has a candy flavor. I can see why they call it Jingle Bells, has a fun, holiday vibe.

There’s not much else to say about it, pretty simple and fun flavor combination.

Flavors: Candy, Grapes

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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63

This was a freebie with a Bird & Blend order.

The brewed tea smells like nice holiday spices. Wow, there are a lot of flavors vying for my attention here. It’s kind of like a mulled wine flavor. I’m hit with a wine/fruit punch kind of flavor with some rooibos, then lots of spices I can’t seem to pick out individually beyond the cinnamon.

Beyond the cinnamon, I don’t understand the name. It doesn’t taste at all like bread or a bun to me.

Flavors: Cinnamon, Fruity, Red Wine, Rooibos

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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66

I got this as a freebie, probably at some tea festival or another. I did a count of my teas today and got 117, but I could be a bit off. Like, some of my Bird and Blend teas I have multiple bags of the same flavor. So I’m probably a little off. But anyway, I decided to start sipping down some of my samples.

This came as a single tea bag in a bag. I read the instructions and steeped it in boiling water, covered, for 15 minutes. The turmeric really stands out, and the ginger hides behind it somewhat faintly. I don’t know what meadowsweet tastes like, but I only pick out these two flavors. It’s mildly spicy, but not as spicy as some turmeric teas I’ve had.

Okay, I read about meadowsweet, and it has a minty flavor, and now I pick up a tiny minty note at the end of the sip. Interestingly, it contains aspirin and was the first source of it.

This is pretty good, could actually use more turmeric flavor.

Flavors: Ginger, Mint, Spices

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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89

Based on Sara’s tasting note, I bought 100 grams of this stuff. I estimated the “2-3 grams per liter” down to 1 gram in 12 oz of water. The main flavor is sweetness, with saccharin, floral, and bitter notes towards the end of the sip. I would say it’s “very sweet,” but still falls short of discovering “too sweet,” which is something I have only heard of, and have never tasted. I shall try brewing it stronger next time. It would also be worth trying as a sweetener in a sweet tea, as Sara has done.

Oh. Oh. Amazing. I tried it with 5 grams of leaf in 12 ounces of water, and… my face is puckering up! Is it too much of the other flavors, or is this actually too sweet? I can drink it, but whoa. I think it is too sweet. Thank you, Yunomi, for this experience. It’s amazing.

Flavors: Bitter, Floral, Sweet

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 1 g 12 OZ / 354 ML
Mastress Alita

I couldn’t even drink 2g in 12 ounces of water without getting sick feeling from it. I can handle maybe a single leaf in a cup that small, but I kinda gave up on trying to do the small cups and now I just make it in 1L like their instructions say… 2g to 1L, AND brewed with a strong black tea like Yorkshire Gold. The cold brew sweetened black tea is quite nice.

Todd

Note: This stuff can be resteeped lots of times and keeps giving out sweetness. It’s crazy.

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79

My temporary job offers bottled drinks and snacks for free. They were low on beverages towards the end of the day. I’m not often a fan of jasmine tea, but I settled for this.

Oh wow, they got just the right amount of jasmine flavor in this, and probably a high-quality source. Jasmine often tastes perfumey to me in teas, but not in this one. The jasmine flavor comes out near the end of the sip, and right at the end of the sip, it’s almost rosy. Good job, Teas’ Tea! I looked at the bottle for more info, and I am not surprised it’s an Ito En brand. I love their Oi Ocha!

Flavors: Floral, Jasmine, Rose

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Bio

I have enjoyed various teas most of my life, but have recently started exploring higher-end teas. Still, plain houjicha (loose-leaf or bagged) makes me feel like I’m in Japan.

Location

Boulder Creek CA

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