Culinary Teas

This tea is delicious warm – you can clearly taste the black tea, but there’s also a mild blueberry flavor, and a sweetened creamy vanilla flavor. Its also pretty good cold, but the flavors get stronger. The blueberry is sweeter, the cream is milkier, and the tea flavor is more pronounced and a bit bitter. The good news is that the bitterness tastes great with the sweet and creamy taste of the tea. Just lovely.

Even worse cold. This one is destined for the trash.

The hibiscus scent is very strong from this brewed cup, as is the flavor. You can clearly taste the fruit, especially from the red berry and lemon, but the hibiscus leaves a somewhat heavy floral taste there that makes everything else taste just a little off. Sadly, the tea is a bit bitter, even with sweetener added, and even through the best filter I’ve ever used, there are floaties in the bottom of the cup. Maybe its better iced…

A really great way to get going on those days when I’m feeling like I’d rather sleep. This definitely has some invigorating qualities to it.

This tastes rich and toasty, reminiscent of a cup of coffee but better because yerba mate doesn’t leave me feeling sick a few hours after drinking it the way coffee does. A very satisfying cuppa. I added about a half a teaspoon of turbinado sugar and it enhances the warm, roast-y qualities of this tisane.

A really good mate!

Thanks, Darby, for trading for some of this! The description says dark chocolate, but my pouch of tea definitely had white chocolate and NO dark chocolate… huh. But there was a big ol cherry in my infuser, so it’s definitely cherry. Sadly, not much of a cherry flavor or a chocolate flavor. (There was oily stuff at the top of my cup though.. I’m guessing the melted chocolate chips.) The black tea flavor is pretty good though, so it’s worth it to drink it just for that. And at LEAST it doesn’t have that terrible fake cherry-cough-syrup flavor!

Azzrian Thanks for this one!

This certainly SMELLS like Wild Blackberries!

The taste is that of blackberries AND the greenery…leaves and stems! It is a bit bitter but nothing I can’t handle.

Be cautious not to over infuse

The black tea base is fairly strong considering all the flavoring in addition to the base.

Thanks for this one, Azzrian

This smells even sweeter than other Toffee-Type Teas I have tried…perhaps it’s because it’s notably Butterscotch/Caramel Toffee? Not sure…but the aroma is pretty wonderful!

This only ‘brews’ up to a medium brown in color and it IS a mellower black tea base on the tongue.

I find the taste of this pleasing but it’s not overly intense. It’s very buttery-butterscotch and the caramel flavor is present as well. It’s sweet and creamy and buttery. This has a dreamy and creamy lingering aftertaste but it’s not the morning kick I needed as it’s not overly bold or intense.

Still pretty yummy, tho!

Thank you LiberTEAS for this nice sample!

There are some very interesting characteristics with this tea. Plenty of mixture in the dry leaves, even noticed some smaller broken green colored leaves – looked like an oolong.

Now to the fragrance of the infusion. Immediately, there was a familiarity with the flavor and boldness of this brew. It was more intimate and brought me to my southern coastal roots. It wasn’t the cinnamon brown colored liquid that spoke faintly, then more pronounced between each sip. It was the aroma and the salty oceanic presence that drew me in the most. There was a medium astringency, however this wasn’t the most noticeable of all note.

Warning: This next reference will seem odd and over-dramatic.

I am not kidding when I say that there was the taste of – steamed crabs! There, I said it. Get over it! :) Yes, there’s a few very strange people that will drink a tea and compare it to a decapod crustacean, more specifically – Callinectes sapidus, better known as the blue crab. And yes, I’m strange. Now, before you chalk me as a complete idiot, let me make the connection of where I’m coming from on a taste standpoint.

There is a certain strange sweetness and almost indescribable flavor that one discovers while consuming the body meat (not claws) of a freshly stewed blue crab. Look up Crab Etoffee and you will be headed the right direction in understanding my experience. I had to add sugar and milk to test how this taste held up to the additions and found it added a creamy, buttery depth to this broth, I mean brew.

I found that you could taste more of the black tea if you help the liquid a moment longer on the tongue. This was definitely a nice experience, although I simply wasn’t in the right mood for this particular tea. I was searching more for a bold treat, even an option to make a chai-like drink. This tea didn’t quite match my mood this time. Maybe better luck next time. It was good nonetheless.

I got this one from Darby
The dry notes smell of caramel only. Once steeped it tastes mainly like a black with the slightest hint o caramel. I added some honey to try and save it, I got more of a caramel taste after that but was still missing the creme brule part. Additionally I added a bit of milk, and there comes the creme brule flavour, so good. Although it has now lost the caramel flavour.
It seems that I have had to add hobey and milk to many teas lately.

I added a stick of cinnamon and a few cloves to this before I took my brother to night class. (currently waiting in the lobby for it to end). The adding of the spices really added to and awakened this tea’s potential. It really taste like pumkin pie minus the crust. And oh the creaminess…. (K^>)

Story Time: Ok ever since I heard that The Who was going to be playing in Orlando I have been wanting to get tickets. At this point though I am determined to get the two floor seats that are available. I have been selling off all my old college books and other stuff on Craigslist; which is going pretty well.

On a tea note I was going to get a Brown Betty teapot, but getting those tickets is the priority now. Also I want to thank Verdant Tea’s for making individual sample sizes of their tea. I have been wanting to try their tea for so long now, but lacked the funds. Now I just need to find a good Gaiwan to test them in.

Tea Time
I got this awesome sample in a tea trade with Will Work For Tea.

The dry leaf smells very creamy and like pumpkin from the can with a minor sent of sour cream… interesting. It brews up a nice golden tan color too. The smell of it though is a bit odd. It smells very strongly of sour cream to me; the taste does not. ZOMG this tea is SUPER CREAMY!!! Very smooth and velvet and leaves a soft feel in the mouth. The flavor is not really a pumpkin spice, but more like a pumpkin and cream shake mixed with tea and a little pinch of spice. I can’t wait to try this with a cinnamon stick in it.

If you are a fan of TF2 you have to listen to this…. or even if your not, it is epic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbNwvQXkYrY&list=LLVE6XBMoZYemnrtOIql1QLw&feature=mh_lolz

Over all I would recommend this tea to people who want a really creamy and un-spicy pumpkin flavor

specifics
Water: 28oz
Pot: Glass
Sweetener: almost 1 tbsp in a 10oz mug
Leaf: 3 tsp

Additional notes: I’ve been drinking this ancientness because it tastes really good steeping the stove boiling method of brewing I’ve been doing. Despite never really tasting like white chocolate. But I’m enjoying the strength of the spices and black tea lately, especially on this snowy day. Almost sad to finish it! And yes, STILL boiling water on the stove but I have a new sinktop water filter on the way that will hopefully solve my chlorine water problem. Some of my oldest teas have been tasting really good lately, so that is some tea aging magic right there. I’m happy to drink some older teas before I have this water filter thing figured out. Soon!
2020 Sipdowns: 13

And in case anyone has missed it, there is a new travelling teabox started in the forums, the ‘Samurai’ TTB thanks to SkySamurai halfway starting it. More signups welcome!

Thanks to Darby for sending this as part of a trade! I figured this wasn’t JUST a chai as it is labeled since I saw a ton of black tea in it (more than spices anyway). It is also a black tea as the description above says. I have no idea why more chai isn’t mixed with black, since it seems it would make sense. But since it was mixed with black tea, the chai flavor wasn’t stronger. I couldn’t really taste the white chocolate though, and I definitely saw at least one chocolate chip go into my infuser. Not bad… I like it because it is probably the only chai/black blend I have right now!

Wow! Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for this generous sample!

This is one of the best rooibos blends I have EVER tasted! The taste is SO true – juicy, sweet, ripe and a little tart raspberry! The type that is so ripe, you will probably stain your shirt and mouth with it when you go berry picking. DELICIOUS! Is there a little bit of hibiscus in this blend? I swears on the precious that there is a perfect hint of tartness that takes this tea over the top.

Yum! No sweetener needed! No icky weird rooibos aftertaste! I am very impressed with Culinary Teas :)

I have just enough left to try it iced, but it was SO good hot that we’ll see what happens when the time comes.

Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for this deliciousness!

I’ve had two chocolate strawberry teas in a row – this one won the contest! (Although I still prefer Love Tea #7)
There is a slight sour note from the flavouring, or maybe the base, but that passes quickly and creates a nice dessert tea! Good chocolate flavour and the strawberry is strong, can’t be missed! The scent is just heavenly – I wish it came out in the taste a bit more!

For my second steep, I added a tiny pinch of rose congou – mmm much better! I love a bit of rose in my chocolate/fruit teas. I rounded it out with some vanilla and milk – very tasty!

I have been very impressed with Culinary teas for the most part! I wish the shipping to Canada wasn’t so crazy ; 3;

This tea is a massive let down and tastes like a basic black tea with absolutely nothing else added what so ever. It doesn’t even look like the tea in the photo! Bleh. Oh well.

I am a huge fan of dessert teas and of chai teas as well. Though the white chocolate flavor gets a bit lost in this tea, it’s sweet and spice flavor mix does provide for a delicious cup. I think I will play around with adding a bit more white chocolate or extra milk or even over ice to see how that effects the flavor. There is something really good here, it just needs a bit of love to bring it out more! I’ll post another note once I have mixed it up a bit.

What a dreamy romantic tea! This tea has everything that any rose tea should have. The floral scent and flavor notes are well balanced and the chocolate does not drown out the over all flavor of the black tea. A sweet lovely scented and very flavorful black tea blend.

We finished this up today. SIGH I love this tea! I love anything Tanzanian. I put this on my shopping list! So delicious for the morning!

I’m growing some chocolate mint and decided to add some of it to this tea this morning. Delicious!! The maltiness mixed in with the fresh chocolate mint was wonderful!

I crushed up 6-8 cardamom pods, 4 cloves, 1 all spice, 4-5 pieces of black pepper and a cinnamon stick and let it simmer in milk. I then added this Tanzania Organic Tea to the mix. WOW! The light creamy brown stew was delicious! I stored some in my thermos and drank the rest. I love the hint of spice in my mouth. It is tingly. I added sugar to it too. I love this blend. Favorite!!!!

I am fairly biased toward Tanzanian teas. This one is great! The tea bits look different than the usual cut up ones. They resemble small pellets. The scent is a nice, malty, sweet scent. I love this tea! This tastes exactly like the teas I’ve had there. It is a really dark brew and needs sugar and/or milk. I made this with cardamom last night as well. I need to go buy some milk! :)

I received this in a swap from Darby. White chocolate is my fav type of chocolate, so creamy so sweet, delicious.
This is definitely one spicy smelling chai, that is however the only smell I am getting. I love the white chips in it. I had to add a few more because I just knew that the few small chips wouldn’t make enough of a white chocolate difference, so I did.
Upon pouring it has a very creamy like colour ohh should be yummy.
Wow this has to be the spiciest chai I have tasted, one of the spices comes out at the front I just can’t quite place it, maybe nutmeg. It’s also creamy I think from my added white chips, although I am getting no white chocolate flavour. Perhaps a little honey would bring it out. As this tea sits and cools slightly it looses the creaminess and becomes bitter. Unfortunetly I can’t chug a hot cup of tea.