The Tea Spot

Ooh. Y’all. I’m probably going to come back to this in a year and think I was an uncultured swine, but this smells like something… isn’t right. It tastes okay, I can taste the rice flavors but I think it’s the rice that makes the smell. Now that I’m drinking it I actually kind of like the taste? It’s sort of nutty and a really beautiful light green color. I’m going to set a reminder to come back and try this one again in like 3-4 weeks.

This was from TreeGal a while ago!  Thanks so much!  It’s actually in a package that looks like it contains a teabag but it’s actually a surprising amount of loose leaf!  This could have been enough for a teapot… but into a teabag it went, and into a big mug it went.  This seemed like it would be my thing. The ingredients are lovely and the name sounded like I would fragrantly be drifted off to sleep on this blustery night.  Sadly, there is a flavor note here that seems odd — like licorice —  and I can’t tell where it’s coming from.   But it kind of takes away from what should be a lovely blend of flavors.  I can’t even smell these bright rose petals.  Maybe it’s just an unusual flavored chamomile, when usually I wouldn’t have a problem with chamomile. I really wish this tasted like a great mix of these four ingredients: chamomile, rose, fennel and lemon verbena. And I also can have no idea how old this tea is… Oh well, it was worth trying one serving anyway!
Steep #1 // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3-4 min

Not bad at all. Nothing stands out to me uniquely enough to order more – - this was a sample satchet sent with another order - but it’s a pleasant, strong tea.

I brewed it longer than 5 minutes, and it’s still not bitter. I had a sample tea bag. It’s smooth and the chocolate touch is nice and subtle, not artificial. It’s not a BAD tea, and it has flavor - but there is something of substance missing, some strength or oomph in the sip. While not bad, it’s forgetable, especially for a breakfast tea steeped 5 minutes minimum.

I’m not a regular sipper of Darjeeling, I’ve had some I didn’t enjoy as much. To me this one seems fuller and silky, a small undertaste that’s pleasant but I can’t pinpoint exactly. It’s not rich or potent, but it’s pleasant. I don’t think it’s something I would purchase another container of, but it’s a nice cup of tea for this Sunday afternoon and I can’t find complaints about it. Earthy and comforting.

Finally! I sample for affordable lapsang souchongs often. This is the closest I’ve found for a replacement for the strong and enjoyable Zen’s tea life from Canada. Drank two cups of this tonight, absolutely delicious. very smokey. I can finally stop my hunt again.

Better than I thought. since I’m sick, the pepper and nettles helped open throat and stimulates. I wasn’t sure on the turmeric taste but it was blended and nicely yellow. Drank hot and it didn’t need any sugar or additives.

Samurai TTB #19

Not going to rate this, as I got distracted and MASSIVELY over-brewed it this morning. A splash of milk saved it from being undrinkable, but I definitely didn’t get to try it at its best. Totally my own fault!

Brewed the recommended seven minutes. Beautiful tea with a pleasant smell…but the taste took me by surprise. Sour notes and almost citrusy. Has strong lemon type flavor, although it has no lemon. Definitely a pucker inducing face expression. I drank hot, don’t think it’d be better cold. The color brewed is a deep purple, it’s a shame I didn’t like the tea taste.

This tea is really fruity, sweet and tart in a way that I enjoy. The fruity/tart/sweet-ness doesn’t come out so much in taste though, more aroma. The black tea is very mild and tastes slightly earthy and like unsweet honey to me. It’s nice overall but seems too mild. The website says it should be dark red in color, but all I’m getting is a dull orange. I wonder if maybe I need to use more tea and steep longer than they suggest? I don’t know, will try again!

Really good black/pu-erh blend! Just wanted to make a note to myself to remember I like it. I’m a big fan of the orange-vanilla combination :)
Watching Joe Biden start to speak now – hoping it goes well!

This is one of my favorite black teas from a sampler my girlfriend got me for my anniversary. After steeping for 3 minutes, it’s like an orange tourmaline in color. Very pretty. Not what I would think of for my usual black teas, though. I like this one a lot because it’s not really bitter at all, just a little astringent. The flavor reminds me of honey (without all the sweetness) but that might just be an association! I’m not sure what makes an orange pekoe different from any other black tea, but I’m a fan of this one regardless!

Oh, and Happy Halloween! :D

Smells like and tastes like cocoa powder. That’s pretty much the only smell/taste I get though. Compared to the Emperor’s Pu-erh this one has has hardly any flavor. Drinkable, though. I just find the chocolatey-ness annoying. Might be better with creamer/sugar.

I don’t enjoy hibiscus in my tea blends and herbal blends that I intend to drink unsweetened. I do enjoy it as a sweet drink. White Antlers recommended this one, so I bought it for myself and also bought some for my eldest daughter, Superanna, who loves it even plain. She had quite a bit of it in Mexico and really enjoyed “jamaica” as it is called there, and I wanted her to be aboe to make the real deal here. She drank cranberry and cranapple juices even when she was really little, whereas I just tolerated the tartness of those.

As a sweet beverage, made as I make my iced tea, I really enjoy it. The first time I made it I kept the first steep and second steep separate. I preferred the second steep. It was a little less tart but is a beautiful, juicy red color and very satisfying level of flavor. The first steep was good but it was tart, as expected.

Today I am making a gallon by steeping four teaspoons of dried petals three times and adding to sugar and water. I will update on how it turns out!

I have tried to like this tea as I got a whole bag of it when I ordered my Tuffy tea steeper. Alas, while I do taste the black tea and maybe a bit of creamy puerh, I get a weird chocolate aftertaste. I don’t mind the cocoa addition to this breakfast blend, just don’t appreciate the artificial taste it leaves in my mouth. In my mind I compare it to the Vanilla SF herb tea that is so very simple vanilla flavor that it doesn’t try to be something else. Bolder breakfast is a chemical aftertaste in a puerh disguise.

I got a sample size of this tea when ordering the Tuffy travel steeper (which is quite nice I think, though I haven’t actually used it for travel yet. It does tend to leak tiny leaves in to the remaining brew, but is compact and easily washed so I won’t be too fussy bout floaties in my cup)
As a morning breakfast tea, its just ok. I guess I brew my normal Assams and Yunnans pretty strong, so this doesn’t stand up to my brisk morning cuppa. As an afternoon pick me up, its still just ok. I’m not sure how to describe it as generic black tea with a metalic aftertaste? I guess with a name like Shagadelic I’m expecting a bit more nutty or malty or astringent taste, and its just a bit of a muddled blend.

I wanted to like this. I really did. I love pumpkin spice, and it smells wonderful. It remind me of pumpkin bread, all toasty and warm and full of spices.

Sadly, the pleasant smell is as far as it goes. The base is way too strong and astringent, overpowering all of the spices. You get all the nice pumpkin spice flavor, but pushing it’s way front and center is the bitter, astringent base, so it’s hard to enjoy it. Steeping it for three minutes or less tones down the astringency, but at the expense of the spices as well.

And pumpkin? Forget it, it’s not even there.

The jasmine shows through more than anything, but this is a delicate and wonderfully floral tea. One of my current favorites. This is certainly a tea that you can sit back and relax with.

This isn’t bad, but it needs more body to it. It is chocolate, and it is mint, but they both feel kind of thin somehow. I might try brewing it extra strong and adding some milk to it, and see where that gets me. There’s no real complexity here, it’s pretty much exactly as advertised, except that with a term like “truffle” I expect a richness that isn’t present. It’s not bad, but not great, either.

one of my favorites, smoky, dark, rich

This is definitely nice and spicy, but I’d like a bit more actual tea in it. However, I’m so over weakly spiced chais that this was a relative delight! It does come across as a bit thin-bodied and astringent, which is why I think more tea would help. Adding milk helped with the astringency but then dulled the flavor too much.