Shanti Tea

This is a tea I got from TeaEqualsBliss awhile ago thank you very much. Backlogging I did like that this was cute looking and did look like horns and had a black tea smell to it. Taste wise a light black tea with abit of oolong to it. This is a good tea when you want something alittle lighter and not to wake you up. I thought this was pretty good.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for a chance to try this tea!

This is really good. I am currently on my second infusion, and I like the second infusion better than the first. More of the fruit notes present themselves in the second infusion. It is sweet with a savory note towards mid-sip, a pleasant toasty taste with hints of butter. The fruit notes here are quite delightful, like honey-drizzled apples. Yum!

SIPDOWN!

also..it really sucks when you’ve had such a crappy day that you miss reading a tasting note that says don’t over steep it! soooo yeaaah.. steeped this for 3 mins and it’s a little on the astringent side. however if i ignore that initial taste, i can spot the delicious tea that this would be if i hadn’t goofed on the brewing sigh There’s a malty creaminess to this tea that screams DELICIOUS!

Thanks to kittenna for letting me try this…even if i did screw it up.

25/28 sipdowns

i think this one came to me from missB this wasn’t quite drinkable for me today – something about the floral notes just turned me right off it. I’ve had it before though and didn’t mind it for a floral oolong so maybe just an off day today

Ok so I tried this again as a cold brew on a white thinking that might help. Not so much. I it don’t like floral teas. I’m SURE there is someone out there who would love this tea but it is not for me. At least I can say I gave it a fair shot and drop it into my trade box. Yes…I now have a box of teas I need to get around to trading lol

AMODA TEA Sampler

So this is one of the 3 teas in the October 2012 Tasting Box from Amoda Tea. I opted to try this one first because I generally dislike floral tea and I’d already had an oolong tonight. Opening this tea bag I was intrigued because it wasn’t overly floral. The citrus cut through the floral notes to leave behind a really nice scent. I was a little more hopeful that I’d like the steeped tea.

Upon steeping the tea, the colour is a really nice mellow gold colour. The scent however, has lost the citrusey notes and smells like a green floral tea :( The taste?

Well given that I dislike floral teas more than i dislike oolongs, I’d say this is a pretty decent tea. lol I likely won’t drink much more of it because of the floral taste, but the citrus in the tea gives it a unique taste, that I’ve never experienced before. There isn’t a heavy aftertaste of flowers either, so that helps. Overall, not a bad little tea.

Drinking this hot but I think it would be better cold.The orange and apple mesh together but the apricot is a bit stronger than that and the hibiscus is even stronger. The hibiscus level throws it off for me – it’s not bad but I would have loved to try it SANS the dread hibiscus.

Backlog:

This is a really interesting tea. It starts out smooth and sweet, but by mid-sip, you get that sharp bite! Interesting contrast! It really enlivens the palate.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/04/04/green-elephant-tea-from-shanti-tea/

Backlog:

A delightful flavored green tea where the green tea comes out first and foremost. That is to say that this is a green tea that’s been flavored, not an overly flavored green tea. I can taste the green tea here!

Lovely vegetative tones that are not sharp, Smooth, sweet, grassy note, with a hint of rose and hint of citrus. Overall, a very nice cuppa.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/03/21/midnight-magic-green-tea-from-shanti-tea/

Backlog:

Yummy!

I like the Irish Cream flavor here, At first I thought this might be another Irish Breakfast with a vanilla cream note (I love those as well) but I was happily surprised to find that this has delightful, subtle Irish Cream Liqueur notes. Very nice.

Strong, malty, and delicious tea base (don’t oversteep it as it may result in a bitter cup). Very enjoyable.

Backlog:

Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this tisane to try.

this is a very minty cuppa – so minty that it nearly overpowers the rooibos flavor which, in my opinion, is not a bad thing because I prefer the taste of mint over the taste of rooibos. There is a hint of “something” in the background … slightly nutty and sweet, but, not a strong, distinguished flavor.

A really nice tisane, here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/03/10/dragon-mint-rooibos-blend-from-shanti-tea/

0.75 tbsp used for 375 ml

Jasmine flavour present. Slight vegetal green tea tone. Orange flavour is present.

Thanks to Sil for sharing this with me!

Backlog:

I enjoyed this chai tisane … it was spicy and sweet, and I loved the way the basil notes of the tulsi came through and highlighted the spices. Hints of mint gave this a very refreshing taste. The best part for me was the licorice tones from the fennel. A really nice chai with which to unwind.

Here is my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/02/10/tulsi-india-chai-from-shanti-tea-2/

Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this tisane. It is making a wonderful ‘good night’ tisane for me. Sweet, delicious, basil notes, herbaceous … and a light lemon-y note. I am kind of wishing there was a tad more lemon to this. It’s more like a sweet, creamy hint of lemon from the lemongrass, and I think that a stronger lemon note would be nice.

I see that Shanti Tea isn’t offering this one any longer, though, so I guess it doesn’t really matter! It’s enjoyable, regardless.

This is the last of my sample and it’s still super bitter. Not sure what I did to make it so creamy and wondeful the first time, but I guess I’ll have to knock my rating down a little because it’s so inconsistent for me. :|

I would try it again though. Because when it works, it REALLY WORKS.

I made this again today and it was too bitter. What went wrong? Maybe I used a lower temperature yesterday? :| Will try again.

My first Irish Cream! After smelling it I was pretty eager to give it a try. It’s not really an afternoon tea though – it’d be better suited as “slap-me-in-the-face-to-wake-me-up morning tea”.

I love how strong the aroma is. Malty, and creamy. When I sip it, I find it to be a little astringent, but not undrinkably so (thankfully because I can be a wimp that way). Mostly I’m getting astringent malt in each sip, with a creamy finish and some earthy notes.

I would never have bought this on my own (although I shouldn’t really let $9 shipping deter me as that’s starting to be the standard with the new US rates too) so I’m happy I was given this. I need teas to be dropped in my lap otherwise I might miss out on something wonderful.

This is the tea I should have had on St. Patrick’s Day. Oh well. Having it now, and it’s absolutely delicious. No idea if it’s irish cream flavoured, but it’s fantastic. Unlike any tea I’ve had previously, the flavouring is along the lines of nutty, but… not quite. It’s hard to describe. Base might be a CTC with lots of flavour/not too tannic. I’d really like to purchase more of this, though. I have one cup left and the temptation to hoard it is quite strong. Upping rating from 84 to 88. I’d keep this one stocked for special occasions.

On that note – not sure if it’s just me, or my tea selections, but I have been having a string of great tea days, where most if not all of the teas I drink taste absolutely fantastic. Maybe it’s from having a cold for a while? I’m not sure, but this is definitely why I drink tea, for these utterly delicious moments. (Or maybe it’s because I’ve been subjecting myself to teas where the coconut is borderline? Haha.)

ETA: Looks like it’s still available! This temptation may be too hard to resist.

ETA2: And they’re in Canada. And I can get 25g. And they have other delicious-sounding teas. It’s over. Ha.

Oh man. When steeped right, this is just delicious. It’s a touch more astringent than I would like… I should go for 1.5 minutes, but the irish cream flavour is sooooo good. I was intending to add milk and sweeten this, but opted to have a sip straight first, and I’m glad I did, if only to remind myself how tasty it is. There’s enough astringency for me to still add both, though (and I remember it tasting divine when doctored up). This will definitely be on the re-purchase list in the future.

Feeling incredibly stressed today. Thesis is progressing, but so slowly. Going to miss the deadline of next Friday. And I have so much other stuff to do as well… I need clothes for Mexico, and to pack up my stuff since I’m moving once I get home from my travels. Ugh. Can this be March again, please?

Since I enjoyed this one with milk so much a few days ago, I decided to brew up a big mug of it since I’m being indulgent and don’t particularly care if I’m drinking something that’s doctored, as long as it tastes good. Result? Delicious, though I wish it was a bit stronger. Should have left the infuser basket in longer.

Clearly overleafed this one tonight, so added milk and sweetened… delicious! The tastiness of the tea itself is not overpowered, which is really awesome. I may drink the rest of it like this.

Well… Teaequalsbliss’ note sure makes me eager to try this one! This is the second of my three teas in the March Amoda tasting box.

The tea smells like a deliciously flavoured black… ahh, screw it, I want to try it now. Please hold.

Ok. Well… this one is STRONG! Definitely astringent; I’m going to try 2.5 minutes next time. However, I’m liking the flavour. It’s malty and rich, flavoured without tasting flavoured, if that makes sense. I think it would be fabulous with a bit of milk, but that requires too much effort (i.e. going downstairs) for me to bother with right now.

In some ways, it reminds me a bit of Lupicia’s Cookie. I wonder if they have the same base tea or something. I can’t say that I know what Irish Cream tastes like, but I really am enjoying this tea. Not really getting any mintiness from it (should I be?). Yum!

ETA: Second infusion wasn’t too shabby! I’ve gotta remember to try this tea again on Sunday for St. Patrick’s Day :)

Backlog:

Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me this one.

I was kind of expecting the ginger to be over the top, but it isn’t. It is quite gentle and well balanced with the flavor of the Sencha. It is really a nice combination. It is warm and soothing but not spicy or hot. Quite lovely!

Here is my full-length review of it: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/01/25/ginger-sencha-from-shanti-tea/