Chi of Tea

Extremely strong scents of vanilla and caramel upon opening the package. Once brewed, it was a lovely golden brown in hue. The tastes were as I was led to expect from the initial scents – almost like a roasted vanilla with strong caramel undertones. Sugar would make this tea far too sweet for my taste – I don’t think it is needed at all. This would make an excellent tea to infuse with cream for a creme brulee.

Also, it is flavorful warm as well as cold.

Valentine’s made this an easy choice of after-dinner tea.

The hearts are adorable, and the tea is very tasty. It’s robust and earthy and tasted like a strong black to me. It was a bit heavy after a large meal, but good with dessert.

Very, very nice & Smooth – a highly enjoyable black tea.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Chi of Tea’s Artisan Heart Shaped Mini Pu-Erh’s are super adorable and cute. The miniature hearts are approximately the diameter of a US quarter, and composed of dry tea leaves tightly compressed into heart shapes. Overall the taste is strong and earthy, a bit like a brisk black tea plus a little sweetness and a distinct smoke and camphor aroma which lends it an appealing character. If you enjoy strong black teas, this would be a great introductory pu-erh tea to try. For pics and full review: http://www.leafjoy.com/2011/02/review-artisan-heart-shaped-mini-pu-erh-chi-of-tea/

Very smooth, not as astringent as other teas of this type that I have tasted. Lovely scent of vanilla and cream with the bergamot leaving floral citrus notes in the throat.

Unfortunately this tea scalded my right side and arm last night when my cat decided his catnip toy must be on the ledge of the bathtub where this was resting as I soaked. But, I was able to move beyond that after the pain subsided and pour another cup. This was really nice. The Nilgiri is lovely though I didn’t get a very strong chocolate flavour; if I hadn’t known it was supposed to be there I probably wouldn’t have guessed it. But it made a bold but smooth and enjoyable cup.

Creamy vanilla taste, with a nice bold black tasting base. This was a nice way to wake up this morning. It made the kitchen smell wonderful too!

This is the last of the samples I received. I must say – I am impressed with these teas! All three have been so good!
I love pu-erh, but I’ve never tried flavored (or blended?) pu-erh before, so I am not sure I have anything to compare with. However, comparison or not, I am greatly enjoying this cup of tea. The orange is prominent, and in harmony with the chrysanthemum which is clearly present as well. The pu-erh base is lighter than I had expected, but that is a good thing, because the earthy pu erh flavor might have overwhelmed this wonderful orange. As it is, the puerh is subtle and pleasing.

I believe I am going to enjoy another couple of cups/infusions of this.

I’m a huge fan of pu-erh. I haven’t been a fan of flavored, especially fruit flavored ones in the past, such as teavanas strawberry slender that they served me once when I asked for pu-erh.. ugh. It was the worst tea I’ve ever had. I do, however, trust Robert ‘s taste for turning me onto pu-erh in the first place so I was interested to try this. I’m only on my first steep, but it’s a delightfully interesting blend of flavors. I think the orange and the pu-erh really work together in this.

Lovely! The bergamot scent off the dry leaves was quite sharp so I was surprised at how creamy this was. I think the Oolong base is perfect for an Earl Grey.

Wow! The smell was so good, I could have eaten the leaves with a spoon. Exactly cream and vanilla. The black base is gentle, and the vanilla really shines. This tea reminds me of these little vanilla creme pastries sold at a little bakery near my home. Delicious. Made it with soy milk and a touch of sweetener, second infusion with no additives – both were good.

Trying my last sample from Chi of Tea this morning. A very nice aroma out of the package. Produces a nice amber liquor. Good vanilla flavor. A nice tea!

This was the first sample that I tried from Chi of Tea. I am very fond of Pu-Erh tea and find them to be a treat. I would say for some that Pu-Erh might be an acquired taste. I love it though and would drink it just about everyday. So opening up my samples I gravitated towards this one first. The aroma of the leaves are very rich and cacao like. Which in my experience is the first good sign. First steep: Oh yeah! there’s the dark robust earthy dark as coffee like brew that I love.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM6yGcu2Xh8&feature=related
And yes the Ink Spots is the true version of this song…..sorry to The King Sisters. Yes an amazing first cup. Reminds me of my favorite Imperial Pu-Erh from Dr. Tea. In my experience with Pu-Erhs after second steep is when it starts to go “orange” and takes on the mushroom like flavor. I’m very impressed that it took me four steeps to get there with this tea. I think this is a fabulous Pu-Erh and I will be sure to order more.

So this is my first experience with an ayurvedic blend so I was excited to try it with my samples from Chi of Tea. I swear yesterday was like Christmas again with my samples, my sweetea package, and another order coming. When I opened up the sample the aroma was invigorating. It reminded me being in a natural food store. I brewed it up and it was quite tasty I could definitely pick out the cardamon, licorice root, sambuca, and the fennel together. The tea almost reminded me of some of the traditional medicinals tisanes, like Gypsy cold care. Only much more potent. I really like this one a lot.

This came as a sample in my order. I am scared of any tea that mentions ginger, but I could smell this through the little sample bag and it smelled INCREDIBLE. Wow. It smells like fresh toasted coconut, not just like coconut flavouring.

And, I can taste the ginger in this. But it really works! The coconut makes it creamy and sweet and the ginger cuts through that a bit making for a really nice balance.Very tropical. I can’t believe I may have found a tea with ginger that I’d actually choose to drink.

The orange scent is really strong, which I apprecaited. I couldn’t pick out the chrysanthemum, but the cup did have extra depth. I found this pu-erh almost a little too strong for my tastes.

Not a bad cup, but not my cup of tea.

This is pretty nice – a good flavored tea. Comes out really caramel-y. The aroma was intense, and the flavor didn’t disappoint. Smooth and flavorful.

I want to crawl into my cup of this tea. It’s creamy, deep, rich, and mesmerizing. I made it to drink while I packed and cleaned up, but it’s made me sit down to savour it.

Wow, this is lovely.

I wasn’t sure on my first few sips, or even while making it. My boyfriend and I both independently concluded that it smelled like coffee in the bag, and neither of us is a coffee drinker. But the sweet yet earthy vanilla scent convinced me to try this one first.

I added milk and it’s very rich. Creamy, a hint of caramel, and the nicest vanilla flavour I’ve tasted in a tea. I think this will be a re-order.

We’ve decided it smells like Pralines and Cream and tastes like a really nice homemade ice cream.