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My review of this will not be that great because I’m stuffy and sleepy and doing my best to ignore the fact that there is still white stuff all over the ground outside. Thankfully not the 10 inches from yesterday, but still.

This is a very nice tea. I can taste the Darjeeling but it is mellowed out by the Assam so it isn’t full on Darjeeling with the sometimes sharp edges. The Assam doesn’t taste overly powerful (perhaps due to the short steep time) which makes this a solid but not overpowering tea, very nice for relaxing. Not very cardboard-y or bake-y or very bright, this is a nice, down to earth tea that is definitely good for afternoon. It’s not stout or aggressive enough to be a good morning tea but I’m not holding that against it since it isn’t supposed to be.

The tea doesn’t overly wow me just because it is nice, gentle and mellow. But it’s got a very pretty taste that makes it very easy and nice to drink. I don’t necessarily find afternoon type teas all that memorable but this one might be the exception. I think it I were a big fan of afternoon teas, this one would need a place in my pantry.
4.7g/12oz

These leaves are pretty sad. A bit broken up, lots of long twigs, a bit older looking than what I expected even for something that is admittedly a bit old. But as I poured the tea into cups, I got a nice whiff of fresh, buttery greenness. So fingers crossed.

The taste is pretty nice actually, much better than I was expecting/fearing. One of the best baozhong/pouchongs I’ve had was thick and rich, almost chewy and definitely buttery. This one isn’t that intense. But it’s floral, green, soft, tropical, fresh and very sweet.

Aside from the depressing little leaves, there’s nothing wrong with this tea. Sure, it doesn’t hit my baozhong perfection of thick, rich, make-your-mouth-water-buttery. But this is still a really good daily tea. I’m pleasantly surprised, especially based on the sad leaf. When I opened the package, I was afraid I’d have to force myself to drink through the 75g I got but now I don’t think I’ll have any trouble finding the bottom of the tin this tea is now in.

ETA: Oops, forgot to rate it. And…
2nd steep @ 2:30 – the floral has transitioned a little from light floral to a faintly spicy floral.
6g/12oz

Cocoa, earthy, a little malty, smooth and sweet. Not really sure why I ended up going with a shorter steep time this time, but I did and it is still good.
5.2g/14oz

Very much a fresh cherry smell, even has that hint of tartness to it that fresh cherries do. Usually cherry flavored things make me think of cough syrup so it’s nice to find a cherry flavored something that doesn’t even hint of that type of cherry.

The taste isn’t as tart as the smell, but it’s got a little tingle to it. Very fresh and fruity tasting. Not overpowering or fake though it is probably one of the stronger flavored Lupicia teas I’ve had. I’m not using any sugar or milk but honestly, it doesn’t need any and sugar might detract from the fresh sourness it has – again, not overly sour, just a little twinge that makes me think of fresh cherries. A very good tea from spring, I would think.

Also, we have about eight inches of snow on the ground. It’s sorta nuts. And I’m expected into work this afternoon. Not sure if that’s going to happen. Yikes.

I’m getting into the nutty solid but nectary sweet taste that a lot of white teas seem to have. This one has the nutty solid white taste but the overall taste reminds me much more of a green tea. I miss the nectar sweetness a bit but this is still really yummy and can hit the spot when I find myself craving a green.

4.5g/8oz

I have been eagerly anticipating tasting this tea but I wanted to make sure I had time to give it my full attention so I thought I’d be waiting until the weekend to try this. But now that I am snowed in, I have nothing but time! (Which means long tasting note! YAY!)

And since I have the time, I’m going to try it ‘traditional style’ (check out the “How To Brew Video” here http://shop.samovarlife.com/Samovar_Russian_Blend_Black_Tea_p/0402rubl.htm for the official word on how to do this). Directions include strawberry jam. I’m so there.

The tea smells seriously yummy. Smoky and fruity sweet- it reminds me of the Fifth of November tea I have but better because the fruit flavor isn’t raspberry. It is a blend of lychee, lapsang and breakfast blend teas (so sayeth Samovar) and I can certainly pick out the lapsang and the lychee (well, I pick out fruit – no clue as to what lychee smells or tastes like).

Three tablespoons of tea ended up being 12g exactly, so I put that in 16oz of boiling water and waited for 10 minutes, then strained and decanted it into my tea pot. Because no way am I drinking that tea made at that strength in one go.

Now, it doesn’t say how much to dilute this. I have the desire to do half and half but I think that might be a bit too wussy of me (especially since I’m going to add strawberry jam to it – okay, a strawberry spread… I have no jam). So I’ll do 8oz of tea, 4oz of boiling water. Also, no clue how much strawberry jam to add but I ended up doing about a tablespoon. Because honestly, I love strawberries. And any excuse to put them in my tea must be fully taken advantage of. And even using a small spoon, I’m physically incapable of scooping out a small amount of strawberry preserves.

This smells insane. Smoky, thick, sweet, tarry, sweet, fruity, syrupy, OMG. Like burnt sugar and jam on toast. Times two million. And OMG at the taste. I have no idea how to comprehend this. Sweet, tart, tarry, thick, smoky, sweet, thick. Wowza. This is nuts. Let me see if I can break this down into something that makes sense…

I start to sip and it smells dark and thick and fruity, like overripe fruit (but not rotten – just soft and on the edge of too ripe – rich). Sipping it is smooth, thick, fruity, mellow but very bold and strong. It hits the middle of my tongue and there is a tartness or sourness. Not like something has gone off but like a strawberry that is just about ripe but still has that little bit pucker taste to it. Holding it in my mouth, that’s the main taste I get with a little more heavy but really sweet tarriness at the back of my tongue. Then I swallow and it’s very silky and heavily fruit but also tarry and then right at the very end there is a strong, sweet smoky that flashes through my mouth.

The crazy thing is, it isn’t bitter. I don’t think I’d be brave enough to do this less diluted or with less preserves because the two main flavors I’m getting is the sweet fruit and holy monkeys tarry smokiness. The balance is probably a little heavier on the fruit but not by a whole lot. The tarry actually pairs and mushes together with the fruity really naturally. It’s very sweet but doesn’t feel as sweet because of that strong tarry smokiness. However, it’s very thick and rich and it feels like I’m eating a crazy rich dessert that will ultimately make my eyes roll back in my head as I overdose on richness.

Half way through my 12oz, I added a bit of milk to see what that does. Wow. Sweeter and tarrier at the same time. Maybe a little less smoky at the end? It feels a little less rich but at the same time is still pretty powerful. Like a rich chai minus the spice and plus pine and strawberry.

This is pretty different. I can’t say I’m going to drink it this way often (or maybe even ever again!) because not only am I too impatient to wait for a 10 minute steep, this is a way overpowering for me because of how thick and rich it is. Just too in my face with thickness and flavor. Wowza. Anyway, because of that, I’m holding off on rating this and going to use the rating for making this tea the ‘normal’ way. But even though this is not something I’m going to do in the future except as a novelty, I would highly suggest if you have this tea to give it a go the traditional way. It’s been quite a nifty experience!

I’m going to be so wired today. Seriously. Bouncing off the walls.

Yeah, woke up to more snow this morning. Not cool. Well, technically, it is very cool. Cold even. But yeah. I’m not impressed.

Anyway, on to tea. I will admit, I’m intrigued by CTC leaf. Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s not the good stuff – orthodox is better. And I’d agree with that. But that doesn’t mean that some CTC isn’t good. Or at the very least interestingly novel. And so I think it has a place, though perhaps just a small one, in my tea pantry.

This is only the second loose CTC I’ve had and this one, so far, is better than the Tanzania Black from The London Tea Room. I added a little sugar (1/2 teaspoon) and some milk (maybe a full teaspoon) to my 12 oz. There is a little more depth to the taste compared to the Tanzania Black – less full on, flat cardboard. This is definitely stout but also I can see the ripe fruit sweet thing Lupicia mentions in their tasting note and I think that is what adds that extra dimension to this. I don’t know if I would have gone so far as to peg it as ripe fruits, but I can connect the lighter, sweeter top note layered over the malty as perhaps being associated with juicy plums or perhaps dark berries.

I don’t think I’ll be switching my entire tea selection over to CTC any time soon or anything, but I think this is a good, interesting (for what it is), solid cup that will be good for breakfast and my work commute. Mind you, with the weather today, my commute so far ain’t happening.

After the crazy, interruptive, picky-people-filled day I had today, I wanted – no, I needed something good. Something sweet and light yet solid and grounded. Comforting. I was itching for some Downy Sprout but since I am out, I grabbed this tea. Fantastic tea was needed so urgently, I was even too impatient to wait until the water hit 175°, so I did 180° and just kept the teapot lid off.

This gave me exactly what I was looking for – dark, rich, sweet but substantial. Seriously awesome. I think I could drown in this tea and die happy. It’s only two more points but the serious awesomeness of this tea demands that I give it a 100.

3.5g/6oz

This tea smells so good. Fruity and sweet and berry-y and good. So. Freakin’. Good. Which is good because someone in the office? Yeah, making it smell bad. Good smelling things are needed. Post-brewing, I’m getting an almost caramel or burnt sugar smell. Like pound cake or graham crackers but richer. This smells like a strawberry sauce-covered dessert.

It tastes like strawberry syrup and burnt sugar. Tartly berry sweet in a dark way (not a white sugar sweet way) and very dessert-y. Rich taste even if it has a lighter body.

I do feel like I’m missing something not drinking it out of my strawberry tea cups though. Totoro isn’t always the perfect cup, I suppose.

ETA: Second steep at a lower temp (boiling water into my cup for a moment then into my ingenuiTEA so 200° maybe?) @ 4:45. More fruit, less burnt sugar. A bit softer, smoother, nice. Definitely worth the resteep.

3g/8oz

Bad day. Need good tea. Sweet, fresh and flavorful, this certainly qualifies. The extra leaf gives it a bit of pungency without adding any astringency. Mmm. Slight bump to rating because really? This is just delicious. I think this cup means that Maeda-en will be getting an order from me soon.

ETA: Second steep @ 15s. I’m getting a bit of roasty depth to it now. Really nice.

5.1g/8oz