Golden Moon Tea
Edit CompanyPopular Teas from Golden Moon Tea
See All 70 TeasRecent Tasting Notes
I don’t know what I expected and I am not sure if I like it or not.
In my opinion it tastes like how it smells inside a Crazy Shirts store, or some of the shirts that have the special dyes (specifically the kona coffee ones). Not a bad thing! Just strange.
My wife was given this tea as a gift. She got it as loose leaf tea. I must say, it is one of the best black teas I have had. I concur with the cocoa and berry notes. I like to sample the aroma of the tea before I infuse. The aroma was a good anticipation of the flavor.
Flavors: Cherry, Cocoa
Preparation
Tea Information:
Golden Moon Tea
Loose Leaf
Black Tea
‘Rose’
Purchase: Here
Steepster Link: Here
Steep Information:
entire sample
212°F
3 min
Mesh basket strainer
Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: floral, rose, perfume, potpourri
Steeped Tea Smell: baky, toasty, hint floral
Flavor: strong floral and rose then moves to perfumy with undertones of bakey and toasty
Liquor: translucent light orange brown
Comments: Did NOT like, bleh!
Post-Steep Additives: milk and sugar
Comments: drinkable now
Blog:
https://amazonv.blogspot.com/2022/04/golden-moon-tea-loose-leaf-black-tea.html
Photos:
https://twitter.com/CircuitSwan/status/1511696421350785027
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXImDRekJ8E
https://www.tiktok.com/@circuitswan/video/7083482113940409643
Rating: 1/4 leaves
Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing
Statement of Sponsorship or Advertisement:
I purchased this product.
Disclaimer:
All my reviews are as unbiased as possible, whether I buy or receive free product. I accept no other compensation other than free product.
Flavors: Floral, Perfume, Rose
Preparation
I had this tea hot yesterday and I am drinking cold and unsweetened today.
The first thing I need to confess is that this tea sample is probably super old. My impressions of this tea may not be fair and a really fresh batch might be as spectacular as the company describes.
Having said that, it is not a bad tea. The color of the steeped tea is lovely – a very clear, crisp amber color. There is a slight nuttiness, I pick up the chestnut flavor they mention, and it is smooth with a touch of briskness and a touch of minerality.
I don’t mean this in a bad way, but I get a lot of the mineral taste we have here when you finish your drink and the ice in your glass melts and you drink the melt water. Is that a touch of iron? Like freezer frost? You guys are mostly too young to have had freezer frost!
But really every flavor here is light. It is light minerality, light nuttiness, light briskness…all adding up to a medium bodied and medium flavored tea. Most DHP I have tasted are deeper and darker in notes than this, if that helps explain this tea.
I like it, but I am not finding anything to wax poetic about. It is good, though.
Ugh, I hate that “melted ice cube”/“freezer frost” taste! No matter what I do trying to make ice (use filtered water, store ice cubes in a freezer bag, etc.) they always taste that way to me. For that reason I have to chill my tea overnight in the fridge, I can’t make “iced tea” by pouring tea over ice cubes. And I cannot add ice cubes to the “straight out of fridge” tea either. It’s like my tea somehow tastes wrong or dirty as soon as I do…
I do the same, Mastress Alita. My strategy is that I always make three teas at once, at least one that needs to go in the fridge (a few hours is enough) and one that can be enjoyed right away. Then I never go thirsty! :P
I usually always have a mason jar at the ready in the fridge. When it gets empty or close to empty, I get a new one going in the evening and strain it the next morning.
The problem of freezer frost is cured for some of us? I’m confused!
Tea-sipper: when I was a kid, all the refrigerator freezers use to get a snowy frost. It could build up quite thick. We used to put the vacuum hose on the exhaust and thaw it so we could “clean” the freezer without turning off the whole fridge. If the frost got thick enough you couldn’t fit as much food in and sometimes it would jam the door open. We would also rake our fingers through it like harvesting snow and eat the ice while the adults threatened us that we were going to get some weird food poisoning from it. As far as I know, only big chest freezers do that now, so I doubt people still eat the frost. Is that the part you were confused about?
The freezer in the fridge that came with the apartment I was in until I bought my place in 2019 definitely had the thick freezer frost layer that constantly made it hard to fit in my food. The ice smelled foul, too. I think all the appliances in that place were from the 70s…
So newer freezers don’t get that ice build up? However did they get it to stop?
Add to that the flavor of ice cubes frozen in those metal trays with a lever opener poured into sweaty aluminum tumblers… (In retrospect, this might be why I always drank out of the garden hose at grandma’s house!)
Ah yes, the metal ice trays with the handle! We brought one home to show the kids when we cleaned out their grandma’s house!
I haven’t had a freezer make frost inside since the 90’s at least, tea-sipper. Maybe it is better insulation or somehow they dehumidify the air of the freezer compartment.
Wow, that is good to know ashmanra. NO MORE DEFROSTING?!?! (Can you tell older fridge and freezer here? haha)
oh wait… i’m just thinking of the pain mini-freezer and outdoor freezer. I forgot the main freezer doesn’t ever have to defrosted. But the weird ice flavor is still there.
Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: honey, pear. perfume
Steeped Tea Smell: bakey
Flavor: bakey, pear
Aftertaste: perfume, astringent
Liquor: translucent dark orange red brown
Post-Steep Additives: honey
Comments: now bakey, sweet, pear. still perfumy, less astringent
Resteep: 5 min, weak, not worth drinking
https://amazonv.blogspot.com/2021/01/golden-moon-tea-company-loose-leaf.html
Preparation
I drink tea for the flavor, not the health benefits, so this isn’t a blend I would have chosen on my own. But it was included in the Golden Moon sampler I received this summer and I finally got around to trying it today. It has a fresh, leafy flavor, mainly composed of lemon and mint with just a bit of depth from the dandelion root. Not too savory or herbaceous, which I appreciate! I don’t think I’d repurchase this one, but I won’t have a problem finishing my sample.
Flavors: Lemon, Mint
Preparation
In general, I’m not picky about my English Breakfast blends, as I usually load them with milk and drink them first thing in the morning when I’m still half-asleep. But today I’m sipping this at my desk at work, where I don’t have any milk to add, and I’m impressed by how well this stands up on its own! It’s much more complex than I would have expected, sipping in fruity and sweet but rounding out with hints of malt and smoke in the aftertaste. The flavor is robust, but still smooth with no bitterness or astringency. This Golden Moon sampler continues to impress me!
Preparation
This came in a sampler box I received as a gift. It didn’t sound like something I’d enjoy (lavender can be pretty hit and miss for me), but I decided to give it a shot. What a pleasant surprise! I don’t actually get lavender from this at all…just very fresh, natural-tasting spearmint with a hint of lemon. Very smooth and refreshing…I’m guessing it would be delicious iced!
Flavors: Lemon, Spearmint
Preparation
Whatever I’ve tried from Golden Moon has always been very high quality.
I agree! Even the ones that weren’t my favorite flavor-wise have definitely been good quality ingredients.
Aah, one of my favorite discontinued iced teas was strongly spearmint and lavender. I haven’t found a replacement and have even tossed around the idea of trying to self blend it… I may have to try this one out (and maybe add a little additional lavender if it seems weak to my liking)
The spearmint flavor on this one is really nice, so I’d definitely recommend giving it a try!
Really bright and fresh. The spearmint is super nice in this. I wish I could taste the lavender too, but it’s really just mint. It did get a little weird tasting after it had sat for a few hours, but fewer hours than it usually takes for mint teas to taste weird.
This was in the Golden Moon sampler pack I received as a hostess gift this summer. Although other teas in that assortment were really enjoyable, this one fell flat for me. The flavor is surprisingly mild (more like a lightly spiced black tea than a true chai) and not very well-balanced. Oddly, though big cardamom pods are quite prominent in the leaf, the flavor is mostly ginger and cinnamon along with the assertive and slightly bitter base tea (probably a CTC Ceylon, by the look and taste of it). Milk smooths things out, but diminishes the spices even further. It’s drinkable, but there are definitely much better chais out there!
Flavors: Bitter, Cinnamon, Ginger
Preparation
I don’t understand the logic of blending black and green tea and was worried about how this one would brew up, but I followed the directions and treated it like a black tea and it turned out fine. The mint flavor is cool and natural and the vanilla smooths it out nicely. It’s pretty good hot, but beautifully refreshing iced!
Flavors: Peppermint, Smooth, Vanilla
Preparation
I’m not generally into Darjeeling, but this one was a pleasant surprise! Definitely has those fruity notes I would expect, but it’s more full-bodied than other Darjeelings I’ve tried and has a lovely lingering sweetness in the aftertaste. I still prefer my beloved malty Chinese blacks, but this one is a nice change of pace.
Flavors: Fruity, Muscatel, Smooth, Sweet
Preparation
Yay, Steepster is finally updating again! Lots of tasting notes to catch up on. Drank this one at work on Monday. I don’t generally care for jasmine, but this one wasn’t bad. The jasmine flavor is natural and not too perfume-like and the green tea is nice and smooth with no bitterness or astringency. Still not something I’d be likely to re-purchase, but I’ll probably finish the sample I have.
Flavors: Jasmine, Smooth
Preparation
A kind friend brought me a sampler box of Golden Moon tea as a hostess gift and so far this one has been my favorite of the batch! I love Earl Grey and find this to be an exceptionally good one. The base tea is flavorful yet smooth, with no bitterness or astringency, making this one of the few Earl Grey blends I enjoy without milk. The lavender and bergamot are well-balanced and not at all soapy or perfume-like. I’m a fan!
Flavors: Bergamot, Lavender, Smooth
Preparation
Found a free sample on fb for three of their most popular teas. Free shipping and 50% off additional purchases. Good deal to try something new. Nothing really to write home about. Not to chai-ee. Golden Chai from Numi is much more flavorful. Probably won’t order again.
Preparation
I have the worst luck with darjeeling – like assam I always tend to oversteep, so I kept this one on the short side of the spectrum.
It’s…mid-range. Brews up deep amber and the flavors are solid – a bit tannic, some mineral notes – but nothing that really sparks to life on the palate. This, to me, would be a mindless tea – something to drink while working or focused elsewhere since there’s nothing to really pay attention to in the cup.
(Tbh, though, if I’m going that route I’d pull an earl grey or chai first. Perhaps this would be better suited for blending with…something?)
Preparation
Additional notes: This manages to be much better when I’m using my 16-20 minutes after boiling and only steeping for 2 minutes method (first steep). No more sarsparilla notes. This is an amazing tea today! Perfect choice. Also added some cocoa powder to some dark pu-erh. Now that I’m having it again, I THINK I tried this before? And again I’m realizing when I add enough cocoa, the pu-erh tends to disappear… even if the pu-erh is very deep. So I think I prefer either cocoa or pu-erh instead of mixing them.
This is from Ost’s sale and another that I really wanted to try. So thank you Ost! I LOVE a good vanilla black tea with actual vanilla pieces. I’m loving the big vanilla pieces here. Somehow oddly enough, the first steep has a massive note of sarsaparilla even though this is stored in very nice packaging. The black tea is certainly deep enough for me but it’s hard to tell what the black tea itself tastes like with that root beer flavor! The second steep — more of those vanilla notes. And like it oddly appeared in the first cup, the sarsaparilla disappeared in the second cup. I don’t get the lower ratings for this on Steepster, maybe the older formula wasn’t as good? Also, Golden Moon has a free shipping sale for a couple days, if anyone is interested.
Steep #1 // 1 1/4 teaspoons for a full mug // 12 minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 4 minute steep
If anyone liked my Ed Harcourt rec the other day, I have two more. I’m always a little disappointed when the best of year lists come out and not many of my favorite things from the year are included. So here are two: Jonathan Wilson had an excellent album this year. Way better than annoying Father John Misty whom he sometimes works with. I could suggest songs from the album, but they’re all so different. I also loved Kimbra’s album this year. I usually am NOT listening to pop but her talent can’t be matched. If the radio isn’t playing her, they should be. All of her albums are solid. Give ‘Top of the World’ TWO listens and tell me you aren’t addicted. Or the live version of ‘Plain Gold Ring’ from the deluxe version of Vows to hear her talent. Or ‘Everlovin Ya’ for a very unique sound. Much like Jonathan Wilson, you can tell Kimbra’s musical influences are all over the place. They are true music fans.
Reddish brown in color, smokey in aroma. The flavor echos the scent, as does the color of the brew to the tea itself. I’m not a huge fan of smokey teas, so this isn’t one I plan to drink again, but it was my first rooibos. Had to try at least once!
Preparation
As I continue trying to reduce caffeine intake – or at least the “catch and release” effect of coffee – I steeped a couple of cups of this tasty Oolong today. My first impression is that Golden Moon’s Coconut Pouchong is very nice. The coconut is evident, but not overwhelming.
On further reflection, I’m reminded I’m not really a “flavored” kind of guy. I like tea for tea, coffee as coffee, and Ritz as crackers. I’ll finish this small pouch, but not right away.
Flavors: Coconut
Follow up to yesterday’s review – I tried this iced and sweetened today. It is still a big old nope for me. Oh well. Teavivre’s jasmine teas just can’t be beat and fortunately I have some on hand. This one will have to depart.
I’m sorry to say I agree about this one — I’m a huge jasmine green fan and this one just lacks oomph.
I decided to give it one last shot and have it cokd steeping now. If it isn’t palatable that way, it goes away. If it is a decent cold steep, I will drink up that way as rapidly as possible and not buy it again.
