52teas

I have had this once before, but somehow never got around to reviewing this. I received this in a swap, with Lisbet I believe. Thanks!

It was an interesting experience. I am not very fond of smokey teas, and the scent of is tea is in your face smokey. That worried me, but as I brewed it the scent transformed from outright smokey to spicey.

First try plain was an explosion of smokey. Sweetened the smokey played down a bit, but was still a bit strong for me. Finally I added milk and… Success! I got sweet spicey roasted marshmellow goodness. I never really found the cocolate note, but I enjoyed it anyway.

All in all, it is too smokey to be something that I can see myself wanting very often. I am super happy I got to try it though. It was a fun experience.

Had this as a latte for dessert. Steeped perfectly at 6 minutes. Totally yum! I love the strawberry in this. And the chocolate. I’m very impressed with this blend. I’d say that this and the piña colada and the lemon lime cheesecake are the epitome of tasty honeybush blends. The end.

I’ve gotta learn to be careful with my honeybush/rooibos teas. After a long steep, the flavors I don’t like come out and ruin things. AFter 6-7 minutes, it starts to taste like sour wood.

Anyway, over steeping aside, this tea is nice flavored! It’s actually better than any neapolitan ice cream I’ve ever had. The strawberry was sweet and juicy and the chocolate was totally yum. I didn’t get much vanilla, but I’m betting it’s the stupid sour wood flavor that’s getting in the way. I’ll have this again soon, steeped correctly, and then we’ll see. I’m enjoying this one though. I’m glad I picked this one over the strawberry pie, though I’m sure that one’s good too. :)

I think that my taste buds are back. I can taste all the elements in this tea, and they don’t seem like they’re buffered at all. I can taste the maple and the brown sugar, and even the oatmeal … there is a creaminess to the cup that comes from the malty tones of the Assam in the blend. I can even taste the slight fruit notes to the tea as well. If they’re not 100%, I’d say that they’re certainly well on their way … and doing much better than they were a week ago, or even a day ago!

Finishing off the last that I had of this tea … I enjoyed it while I had it!

Today’s cup is much better than my first cup. I did a little tweaking with the brew time and found that with this particular tea, it came out better with 3 minutes steep time instead of my customary 2 1/2 minutes in my Breville.

This really does taste like black tea and Maple & Brown Sugar Oatmeal. I can’t say that I’m surprised, because Frank is the “Willy Wonka of Teas” but it is still rather impressive. I can’t say that I was very excited to try an oatmeal flavored tea, but, it’s actually quite tasty.

I was going to hold off on trying this today, since it’s getting late and I think I’ve had enough black tea for the day, but, in honor of 52Teas and their newly announced tea of the week, I decided to go ahead and brew this one.

This is really quite tasty. The maple is strong and I like that! The brown sugar adds a deep, molasses-y kind of taste to it that accents the maple well. The oat flavor takes a little getting used to for me, for no other reason than I’m not used to having oatmeal flavored tea. But, somehow, this all works.

I’m going to hold off on my rating until tomorrow, as I want to try it again to collect my thoughts. Today’s been a bit weird.

Sipdown! So, uh, I was nicely under 800… and then I received my swap package from whatshesaid as well as a lovely tea-containing thank-you from Lala… (you guys are both awesome!) er… so… with this sipdown, I’m back at 801. Ahahaha. Oh well, that is to be short-lived. I don’t think there are any sipdowns from sending my half of the swap out, but I of course have tons of other things to sipdown in the meantime!

Well, cleverly I did remember that had intended to brew this up a bit more strongly this time (ok, it was a total fluke, but whatever), and the results are definitely better. Even though this tea is from my very first swap EVER!!!! with momo, this is kind of tasty! It tastes mostly like a cranberry-flavoured rooibos to me, but although I’d prefer a honeybush base, the rooibos isn’t too bad here. I’m not sure, however, that cranberry is my favourite flavour in tea, so I probably wouldn’t pick this up again if it was to reappear.

Since I’m awake at a silly hour and intend to go back to sleep (yeah, I’ve actually already slept for 6h, woot!) and I wanted tea, I decided a rooibos was my best bet. It was a toss-up between some Tropical Tea Co. samples and this one, but for whatever reason, the berries won out!

The dry tea smells fruity and a bit tart (probably because of the giant cranberry), and I’m getting a touch of “rooibos” smell.

Steeped, I can definitely tell it’s a rooibos. There’s that almost-mintiness, and maybe a hint of fruit flavour. Only just realized that I steeped a cup’s worth in a >1 cup mug… oops.

Ok, this actually tastes better than I was expecting! I’m getting berry flavours alongside the less-potent-than-I-thought rooibos, which I would really prefer not to taste. It is kind of weak though, but that’s to be expected (and rather unfortunate, since I like my teas strong). If I use my imagination, I can taste the blackberry in this cup (there was a huge whole blackberry), but the cranberry isn’t terribly apparent, probably because there were only a couple teeny pieces this time. I expect my next cup will be the reverse, as I saved the large cranberry and a small blackberry chunk for it.

I’ll have to try it stronger next time, and although this isn’t a tea I would have picked up myself, I’m happy to tick off another of 52teas offerings in my tealog! Thanks for the sample, Amanda!

I’ve been wanting to try this, thank you so much Emilie for sending me enough to really experiment a bit with it before I commit to a pouch of my own.

I LOVED how it smelled the moment I opened my mailbox. It was a bit like tropical bubblegum through the envelope, and then I couldn’t resist it so I’m up late.
Again.

I always let honeybush teas steep as long as I can, so this probably went a good 10 minutes. Hot, I don’t like it. I was going to be sad because there are so many tasting notes raving about this tea, so I decided to let it cool a bit more then poured it into a glass with some coconut milk and a couple ice cubes.

Now this is muuuuuuch better! It’s mostly coconut to me over everything else, but the pineapple flavor adds a good fruity sweetness. I’m not really getting rum, but that’s okay with me because it’s good as it is.

Not my favorite though, but that’s more to do with how much other tea I have that I’d rather drink before I buy more at this point. Maybe someday!

Made another cup of this. For some reason, this time around I was able to detect stronger notes of chocolate. Added some half and half to it, which really brought out the chocolate, but dulled the malty flavour a bit. I’m going to increase the rating on this.

I drank this a few days ago but forgot to log it at the time. I was busy studying for a bio exam at the time and didn’t really pay much attention to the flavour as I normally would. The leaves smelled amazing, though— very chocolate-y. I could almost taste the chocolate malt milkshake in my mouth.

Anyway, I have no idea how to brew mate. I read somewhere about splashing it with cold water before putting in the hot water, to preserve the minerals, so I did just that, waited a few minutes, and then proceeded to add boiling water.

The aroma was still very, very nice, though I couldn’t pick up as much of the chocolate as I was expecting, after having smelled the dry leaves. Oh well. I took my first sip and could detect a hint of chocolate, along with something that I think is what mate tastes like. I don’t remember much else about this mate, since I was engrossed in my biology textbook for the remainder of the cup.

This tea was a bit of a letdown after the high expectations I had of it after smelling the dry leaves, but overall, I still enjoyed it. Also, it’s quite likely that I didn’t brew the mate properly/am not used to how flavoured mate tastes. In any case, I do plan on trying this again in the near future. Hopefully I’ll be able to pay more attention to the flavouring by then.

Because chocolate mint tea is a flavour I enjoy, I stocked up on two pouches. I agree with other reviews that it is more mint with a whiff of cacao nibs. I don’t hate it but wanted more chocolate. I definitely recommend trying this; a lovely choice for people who like subtlety in flavoured tea.

I finally purchased some honeybush blends from 52teas because of that promo code. I had barely the restraint to stop myself as it is. The promo just broke through my self-control. hah! Now I DEFINITELY have more tea than I need. More so than before.

Mint chocolate has long been a favorite flavor combo of my, much to my husband’s dismay. He seems to think that mint is vile except in toothpaste. Weird guy. Lucky for me though because it’s the only flavor of chocolate I can leave around the house and take my time to savor without worrying that it’s going to be gone the moment I turn my back. :D

This tea definitely delivers on the promised flavor too! Peppermint and dark chocolate pairs wonderfully here. Both take on a prominent role, though the mint is easier to find. The chocolate’s darker flavor tried to meld with the honeybush, but doesn’t succeed. Like the Grasshopper honeybush, I sort hoped for a creamier mouthfeel. Maybe some added chocolate chips would have done the job. I am grateful that it wasn’t added though since it would only be extra weight when I can easily add my own chips to the brew. Next time… :)

I think I may try this as a latte at some point. It tastes great as it is though.

Still good as remembered. Wondering if I should make it an alternative to Irish coffee with addition of whiskey.

Not a in-you-face butterscotch flavour when I put my nose in the mug but it is there as I sip. Personally I don’t think the black tea base is strong enough to take milk but I tend to not add anything to black tea. This tea can take long brewing time and not be bitter.

Backlog from sometime in January.

This really hit the spot when I had it – for some reason I had been avoiding it, but it was perfect in a travel mug. No need for milk or anything, just had it straight, and quite enjoyed it. Good balance of smoke, chocolate, and base tea.

So I’ve been craving a smoky tea for days now. I keep thinking of brewing up some more of my Verdant reserve lapsang souchong, but I don’t have much of it left…. (Ok, I should just brew it up before it loses flavour!)

Anyways, I have a pouch of this from LiberTeas, and also acquired a pouch during one of 52teas’ sales, so I figured I should try to drink it down. I don’t recall liking this tea much straight, but to me, smoke goes incredibly well with milk + sugar. In this case, heavy cream and sugar, because we happen to have cream in the fridge from some culinary experiments last week.

Aside from the fact that this is absolutely decadent due to the cream + sugar… this is perfect. Delicious smokiness. Not tasting chocolate per se, but all I was really after tonight was the smokiness.

When I got in on an Upton order a while back, I ordered both their Lapsang Souchong Dragon (??) and Baker Street Afternoon Blend, which IIRC has something smoky mixed in there. I’ll have to try them and see if either’s something I can drink straight, as having my tea doctored is not a good routine option for me (the only tea I allow that treatment with is Mayan Chocolate Chai, because it’s smoky too, and because it’s a chai).

ETA: Had an amazing second infusion too. Soooooo good. Holds up to additions so amazingly well.

So here goes my attempt to try a bunch of 52teas before ordering! This generous sample was sent to me by LiberTEAS in her big box of teas :)

The smell of the tea is majorly smoky. MAJORLY. Not unexpected, and very intriguing! I have yet to try a lapsang souchong, so am not sure what I’ll think of it.

Steeped, it’s just SMOKY smelling. So interesting. Really like liquid campfire! I wonder if it gets into your clothes the same way…?

The taste is very smoky, slightly sweet, and perhaps there’s some chocolate, but I can’t really taste it specifically.

I think this would be better if there was more chocolate. I do like the smokiness, and can see myself craving that flavour if I was in the mood, but there’s a similar flavour in the Mayan Chocolate Chai, so I think that would suffice :)

(52teas (Anne) 2022: 17)
2022 Sipdown 8/365!

Mastress Alita’s Sipdown Challenge January 2022: Tea flavoured like your favourite pie

I’m stretching a bit here to count this as being “flavoured like my favourite pie”, which I’m going to arbitrarily decide is strawberry rhubarb (but I’m not sure I have any strawberry rhubarb teas ready to sip down). I actually thought I had already sipped down this tea, as I couldn’t find it during my inventory – but found this final cup of it misplaced in a basket of miscellaneous teas in my cupboard. Unfortunately, not much flavour left. I’m not sure if this has been reblended since, but this is definitely a 5- or 6-year old version here, from one of my earliest non-kickstarter (I think?) orders. It would be nice to have a reblend at some point.

Had this a couple days ago – I may have oversteeped it a tad, but I was surprised that it tasted kind of smoky, as well as astringent, with strawberry in the background. It really tasted like it needed a pinch of sugar to just even things out, but we were rushing off so I had to finish it quickly. I definitely did not remember the smokiness from before, and it doesn’t look like others have noticed that either, so I’ll have to see whether I notice it next time. It was good, though too strong, and too astringent. Also, no cream to speak of, but astringency can kill that.

Another “I need something exciting!” tea from tonight. Annoyingly, it smelled better than it tastes, although I’m enjoying the base tea regardless (actually, I think it also tasted better warm than it does cold, which is sad because of course I’m drinking it cold). I’m just not really getting much/any strawberry or cream. Glad I rated this before, because age probably has taken a bit of a toll (or perhaps my rating is from the Frank era? I don’t know, and I’m too tired to look at my notes to check.)

This note is for the new 52teas version of the tea, which unfortunately I do not care for as much as the original. I’m not sure if the black base isn’t doing it for me or what… though I also seem to be migrating away from most flavoured teas nowadays, so maybe I’ve developed an aversion to certain flavourings. Hard to say.

Sorry guys… I’m so spammy late at night when I drink tea!

Anyways, two to go… this one’s a sipdown of a sample Azzrian sent me in our first of many swaps! I steeped the tea for a bit of a shorter time this attempt (although I meant to only give it 3 minutes, not 3.5). I think it definitely cut down on the astringency to some extent, but I really wish I has paid more attention and nicked off that additional 30 seconds, and there definitely is still a bit. Much like Blueberry Zabaglione, I don’t know what flavours aside from strawberry I’m supposed to be picking out, although I can get a bit of creaminess/custardy flavour.

If I had to choose, I think I’d go with Blueberry Zabaglione over this tea; I do like both strawberries and blueberries, but the base tea is nicer in BZ (less astringent), and the blueberry flavour is more potent and tasty, whereas the strawberry is a bit more drowned out by the base tea here. I also think that the blueberry flavour is much more authentic than the strawberry (though I like the fake flavours of both these fruits :D)

ETA: Second infusion (3.5 min) pretty light in flavour. Not a tea I will miss.