sTEAp Shoppe

From StarFevre a while ago!  Thanks so much.  This was actually on my wishlist long ago from one of my favorite tea shops I was only able to try a couple of teas from (LIKE CINNAMON SWIRL BREAD!!  I wish I had stocked up.)  I can tell you right now, I love any tea that leaves those little specks of vanilla on the rim of the mug.   This is a black tea with cranberries, jasmine, and… hibiscus.  At the top of the mug I’m definitely tasting vanilla.  But then the hibiscus takes over… I wish it wasn’t there, as usual… Just cranberries and vanilla would have been fine!  I’m not sure if this was ever at any point flavored with any other type of berry?  No other tasting notes for this tea, so I guess I’ll never know.  I like this now, would have loved it even more fresh. Sipdown next time!
Steep #1  // 1 1/2 teaspoons for full mug // 19 minutes after boiling  // 2 minute steep
Steep #2  // just boiled //  5 minute steep
2020 Sipdowns: 45 (Bird & Blend – Mascarpone & Sour Cherry)

Nice white tea with hay notes

Thank you to lolainred for the introduction to a new-to-me tea company! This tea was quite lovely: a warm blend of spices well-balanced with sweet citrus and a hint of chocolate lingering in the background. It was the perfect afternoon pick-me-up today!

I hope everyone celebrating has a lovely Thanksgiving!
Thanks so much for this one, DigniTea! The last to review from the lovely tea package you sent a while back. I used all of my sample was probably around two teaspoons. This is supposed to be a mix of white and black teas with cocoa nibs and vanilla but I really only see ONE piece of white tea… it’s probably just my sample. Really though, it’s kind of exactly what I wanted it to taste like. It DOES seem like an old timey milkshake (not like I exactly know what those are like)… the only thing lacking is a nice thickness to the tea like a milkshake has. It’s like vanilla icecream that chocolate was added to! I like it better that it was mostly black tea. Always love those crunchy vanilla beans in my teeth too. Somehow the second cup was very similar to the first steep even though it was steeped very different.
Steep #1 // 2 tsps. // 20 min after boiling // 3 min
Steep #2 // couple minutes after boiling // 4 min

10/10 sipdowns until 1,500 tasting notes!

Small Big Traveling Tea Box

I can’t say that this tea really strikes me as a Green Apple Tea… It tastes more like a green tea with the slightest flavoring of apple. So maybe green tea with apple is a bit more of an apt name. This tea is alright, just not what I was expecting.

Yum. This is pretty good. I THINK that I was responsible for a lack in flavour by underleafing a bit, thus rendering me SLIGHTLY disappointed when my expectations met up with reality…but….I still enjoyed this enough to decide that I’m going to order 2 and possibly 4 oz of it for my American relatives to bring me this summer. 4oz would mean never having to worry about using too much leaf ;)

Many thanks to Miss B for the sample!

ETA I’m on steep3, it’s 11pm….I can’t believe I’m about to say this but I wish there was more obvious pu’erh-ness to this! I wish it brewed up darker, richer, bolder. Maybe it’s because I underleafed, but I added more leaves to each subsequent steep! I guess I would just like to taste the base even more. If it was darker, I feel like I would get away with adding milk, as is I’m not sure.

Finishing off a sample in ATTB. This is really nice! It makes me think of the green tea they often serve in sushi restaurants, but there is more to it than that, it’s heartier too. There is a hint of cinnamon and popped rice. It isn’t quite savory, but almost. I’m not really getting any hints of maple, but the bottom of the bag isn’t always the most accurate representation of a tea either. I would like to cross paths with this tea again some day.

Thank you DigniTea! I really want to try all of Steap Shoppe’s blends… I’m definitely ordering the amazing Cinnamon Swirl Bread at some point! This sounds like a well thought out blend, but sadly it looks like it isn’t for sale on the site anymore.

Steep #1 // 5 mins after boiling // 3-4 min
A teaspoon and a half and my sample is gone! (“Good” says my cupboard.) This cup was exactly as I expected.. but a little less dark chocolate and more like milk chocolate thanks to the kukicha that I find has a creamy flavor somehow. It isn’t a very dark cup, but I seem to like it more than others here on Steepster. I’m wondering why it is rated so low! I like the combination of ingredients. It’s a nice balance. I can taste the vanilla, chocolate, espresso.

Steep #2 // just boiled // quite a few minutes steep
… But then with the second cup I can see what others might not like about this blend. ANISE. It’s all licorice in the second cup, when I didn’t notice it at all in the first cup! Very odd. I don’t mind anise, but not in this blend. If I had more, I’d just end up steeping it like the first cup.

I’ve got to admit, my expectations weren’t too high with this one.

I think it’s because the only thing separating this from the Vanilla Bean Black I tried yesterday was the addition of white tea. The steeping recommendations allowed for this by steeping at a slightly lower temperature but otherwise, everything was pretty close to the same. Dry leaf smell was mostly chocolate, leaves had some of the more spindly needle like leaves I typically see in white tea.

Once it was all steeped up, I found out I was right. The milk chocolate smell is what greets you first and foremost, and while its hot at least there is the familiar hot cocoa taste and smell I’ve come to associate with chocolate sTEAp shoppe teas. The one difference here is that the addition of the white tea causes a noticeable change in texture – it is definitely thinner than the Vanilla Black.

So in a nutshell – these were good teas, albeit samey. I think I’d consider having one of them on hand as a good chocolate substitute, because they really do hold their own without additives. Probably the vanilla bean black will be my go to if/when I place another order. The chocolate flavor is very authentic, but since chocolate is rarely my dessert of choice it doesn’t make much sense to go stocking a pantry full of it!

Good thing I kept such diligent notes on my teas – taking the summer off from drinking has made my memory rather short.

But reading the note brought it back – this was the pseudo vanilla tea. The one that if you add sugar turns into chocolate. Which is problematic since I don’t really like chocolate tea.

So I was at least able to avoid bringing out the chocolate notes, though by following my prep notes I got a tea with a great texture (thanks to some milk), but with no flavor. Thick tasting water. Maybe as it cools I will get some more flavor.

And nope. Thick tasting water is all I came away with. Blech. Good thing my sample was done after this, because it is really not for me.

I did a double take when I saw the ingredient list on the sample – cacao nibs? In a vanilla tea?

I admit that annoyed me – mostly because I didn’t spot the error before I bought it. I LOVE vanilla. It’s one of my favorite things. Chocolate in tea is not one of my favorite things. I’ll admit – the White Chocolate sample I had last night was pretty good but an anomaly since chocolate teas are normally a no go. That one I’d probably get again because it managed to hold its own so well without additives, and simulate hot chocolate so perfectly.

This? Well, the dry leaf smell mostly smells of chocolate. BOO. It has me thinking wistfully about my French Vanilla black from 52teas, and reminds me that yes, I need another vanilla black staple in my cupboard.

Once its steeped up and I try a sip plain, I notice a lot of similarities in texture between this blend and the White chocolate. The cacao nibs must be used predominantly for this purpose. And while I try I few sips plain, I have to admit that vanilla is the main flavor – which surprises me. It is a smooth, sweet vanilla, more like a creamy custard. The tea itself isn’t astringent at all – I remember reading that it was Ceylon, and that works for me – ceylons are my ideal black tea. They are bright and a touch citrusy but tend to walk the balance between flavor and boldness without being too light, or too tannic.

The problem with me and this tea is that while it’s good plain, when I want a breakfast tea I usually want it with milk and sugar. I added some creamer after I got a good idea of the flavor plain and… well, I’m sure you can guess what that brought out of hiding.

Yeah, this is now a chocolate tea.

Bummer. I have a 0.5 oz. sample that I need to use but I will just remember that this one is best served plain. Texture wise it really didn’t need anything to thicken it up – I do have to give it good marks for having such a rich mouthfeel on its own- and sugar brings out the chocolate rather than vanilla notes.

Sigh – I need to read some of Angrboda’s old notes because she devoted much time and effort to finding her ideal vanilla black. And if I remember she also liked the 52Teas Vanilla black a lot so clearly she has excellent taste – or at the very least, she likes the same sort of vanilla that I do. :)

Free sample with my sTEAp shoppe order!

I was really not expecting a free sample, but I have to admit I loved that I had a spare teabag just to use whenever. I get to do a decupboarding, and try a new tea as well!

I am not a big white chocolate fan, I’ve got to say. I much prefer the bitterness of dark chocolate – white chocolate can be overly sweet for my tastes. The smell of this was both accurate to white chocolate and not overbearing, though – perhaps because I know the tea won’t have the sugar added unless I add some.

As it steeps this reminds me of hot chocolate – regular Swiss Miss, that I remember having in the winter as a kid. I was one of those children that had hot chocolate made with water (my mind was blown when I grew up and realized you could use milk as a base instead).

Hmm – the taste is watered down hot chocolate, but that isn’t really a bad thing. This is more milk chocolate than white, and its a surprisingly accurate chocolate flavor with none of the chemical undertones that other chocolate flavored teas have. The white tea base works well here, more as a vessel for the chocolate flavor than anything I can detect on its own. And the texture is really creamy and luscious. It is hot chocolate without the sugar, and a really good alternative to that in the winter, I’d imagine.

I am impressed – which is a good thing because I have another chocolate based tea to try from the sTEAp shoppe. And I’ll keep this one around on my wishlist for the winter months – I think it will come in handy then!

Made this one again to use up the last of my sample. I added some 2% milk this time and that really seemed to bring out the cinnamon toast crunch flavour. Quite delicious. Although I am still going to maintain that I am still allergic to pu’erh. ;)

Received this one from a super secret surprise package from Dexter. This has been on my wish list for a long time but I had not yet had the chance to swap for it or put in a Steap Shoppe purchase.

This one smells super delicious, even though it is a pu’erh :P I just want to eat the dry leaf. It smells like cinnamon coffee cake. The brewed tea has a slight hint of pu’erh, but mostly smells like cinnamon french toast (yikes, why is my nose so sensitive to pu’erh; I am going to start claiming I have an allergy. That’s it – I am allergic to pu’erh).

I brewed this one up as per the recommendations from Dex on the package.

This tea is really good, but it is lacking just a little bit. I am getting a sweet cinnamon flacour, some light pastry. I feel like I am getting a bit of egg, such as with french toast. But I think it is lacking that thickness and heaviness of a real cinnamon bread. I think adding a bit of milk or creamer would help, but I am over on the couch and the milk is way over in the fridge….

I am getting just a slight hint of pu but it is tolerable, ha ha (I am allergic, you know, so I can only take it in small amounts…). This one definitely becomes more flavourful as it cools.

Thanks Dexter for so kindly seeing this one on my wishlist and sending it to me!

Generous sample from ifjuly – thank you
Perfection in a cup. I steeped it for 5min, second steep 7 min I added 1 tsp of maple syrup. The result was sticky cinnamon bun. Delicious .
I love it and going to place an order for it.

I like kukicha. Cocoa nibs enhance the flavor but I should note that I added extra nibs. Good lower caffeine option to have on hand.

I got this one through my mystery packet from MissB. I opened my mailbox today not expecting anything, but there was this cute little packet and the inside of the mail box was nicely fragrant. I’m sure my neighbor thinks I’m nuts because I was sniffing the envelope and grinning like a loon.
Soo.. this is the first one I picked out of the bunch. One was because it’s in a little clear envelope, and it JUST has enough for my very first sipdown! Woohoo! It really is only enough for a mug, but my ceramic teapot is barely larger than that. I felt like it was a nice teapot+teacups+saucers kind of day.
What was left in the baggie was looked like green leaves mixed with black leaves… the pieces are small and there was alot of dust. The dust escaped the basket filter into the pot and then into my little tea cup. Oddly this gives me a sense of nostalgia?
The dry smell is chocolately, but the brew smells like dark incense. Very intriguing. It’s not like the little yellow incense sticks you buy at the asian grocery, nor is it that incense like at the ball they carry during Mass, but I can’t really describe it as anything else. I suppose it smells kinda woody but burnt. As the smell wafts around the room though it starts smelling more and more like roasted dark chocolate.
The taste is incense to me, which is kind of weird, but after you swallow, the back of the throat taste is clean chocolate. Soo good!
The liquor is a mahogany color. You don’t get as much incense smell/taste as the cup cools down, but it doesn’t smell much like chocolate either. Still like wood. EDIT: After reading some of the other reviews, someone mentioned tobacco, and I think that’s it. It’s like cigarettes. I’m not around alot of smokers ever, but it’s definitely that type of smokey.
The mouthfeel is nice, not too dry and not too rich either. Like drinking nice warm water.
I like it, I kind of wish I had some more to play with it a bit, but I’ve got soo much new tea to try! Either way I’m happy.

Sipdown!! (159)

Thank you Allie for sharing this tea with me. I usually tend to shy away from citrus teas and teas that are spiced so pulling this out of the swap package, I did not anticipate enjoying it all that much. I am happy to say that sipping on it now, it is not as unpleasant as I expected. The orange flavor is present but it is more like the fruit and less like the peel as many citrus teas tend to be. Moreover, the spice profile is different than the typical cinnamon and ginger you usually find in “spiced” teas and quite balanced with the orange. There is even a breadiness that gives it a cake-like quality. It is good and I am glad I got to try it but this is not something I am a sad to see go either.

I received a sample of this from Allie in our mystery swap. Thank you for sharing!

This was a sweet apple tea. I have had quite a few apple flavored teas recently, but most have been spiced with stronger cinnamon. This was mostly apple with a hint of spice. It looks like this is a green tea base, but I didn’t get much of the tea base out of it. This was a nice cup. Thank you!

Sip down, and thanks to Sil! This cup was a little more pu-erhy than the last, probably because I let it steep longer, plus there was enough leaf left for more than one but less than two cups, so I went with the former. I still get that freshly ground cinnamon note in the forefront, and a truly baked cinnamon flavour. I also tried half and half this time. Tastes like the smell of the—I’m guessing—cinnamon raisin bread the grocery store bakery was baking whilst I was doing my shopping.

Sil, you little pu-erh pusher, you! Thanks for the sample. I’ll admit that I was a little frightened when I saw it amongst the other samples. Pu-erh usually makes my taste buds cry. But hey, this actually smells like cinnamon bread and not a barn, so let’s go!

I’m already halfway through my Nordic mug, and it’s not like I’m forcing it down either. It’s seriously like cinnamon bread! A quiet bready note behind freshly ground cinnamon and a pinch of sugar. I’ve said this about a tea before, and can’t remember which one, but this smells like my grandma’s cinnamon twists, while she’s in the midst of making them, dough and a bed of cinnamon sugar mixture.

No pu-erh weirdness. Whoa! Mind blown. Finally a pu-erh I would actually want to have around. I think Tea Desire’s Cinnamon Star is still my favourite, because it’s more like a cinnamon bun with icing, but this is actually a very close second. I’m amazed at how mellow the base is. It just lets the other notes sing.

Thank you so much, Sil!

Mind Boost Mint – Steap Shoppe – 2/10/2014

Took a break from tea for the weekend because of a vague cold-like thing that I still have but now I’m at work and I need tea. I made this without looking at the ingredients first (stupid me) and have just now realized that this has stevia in it so I’m now not expecting much. Otherwise, we’ll see. I like mint.

Well, it is a little overly sweet and the stevia taste is bleh but it’s mostly pleasing on the first sip. The mint is somewhat subdued to me by the other flavours. I think I’m picking up what must be gingko biloba but I’m not sure, never having tasted that separately before. There’s a certain earthiness that I’m not familiar with in here.

I imagine my taste buds are sort of dulled from my sort of cold and my mind is dull from the cold and lack of sleep and the aftermath of an adrenalin rush from my car accident last night (my fault, stupid mistake). I wish I didn’t have a headache.

TTBB #12

Thanks to Dexter3657 for a sample of this!

So far I’m on my 3rd steep (dare I try a 4th?), and it’s nearly as flavorful as the first, it’s actually bit creamier. I was a bit worried, this being a Pu Erh, but it’s actually really nice! I don’t think it would make me get a brick or plain Pu Erh or anything, but tasty cinnamon tea with all the benefits of Pu Erh? Yes, please.

A lot of the reviews say this is bready and I’m not sure I’m going “bread” but it definitely evokes a cinnamon pastry.

I’ll definitely need to restock this when I’m out.