Trader Nicks Tea Company

The other Star Wars tea from my subscription bonus samples!

This one is a black tea with forest fruits. Quite nice actually. The strawberry is the strongest to my tongue, but I do also taste some syrupy blueberry notes. I also get the sweet, slightly creamy roundness of the vanilla.

The only negative for me, is that the black tea base is coming off quite earthy and almost a bit musty. And those strong earthy notes do sort of overwhelm the berries a bit, and leave a lingering mustiness on my palate instead of a lingering fruity flavor. So another one that’s not quite a winner for me, but was fun to try and enjoyable for a single cup.

One of the free single-serving samples with my May subscription package. They recently released a Star Wars collection and I was happy to see it represented in my samples!

This is a nice fruity white tea. It seems like the only flavoring is blueberry, but there are several types of dried and candied fruit chunks included. I don’t feel like I specifically taste blueberry? It’s more on the light and sweet-tart side of things, closer to the pineapple, kiwi, and starfruit pieces.

It’s a very pleasant cuppa, but overall a bit generic for me, so I don’t think I would order it because of that. I did enjoy my mugful though!

A touch undecided on this blend. It’s supposed to be raspberries and blackberries, which is pretty cute for a Mickey Mouse themed blend – it’s practically his colour scheme! It is nice and jammy with some distinct raspberry notes, but the blackberry tastes more like black currant to me in a kind of “Ribena” sort of way. I like black currants a fair bit, but sometimes they read a little medicinal and I’m getting a bit of that in this cup.

I don’t really plan on placing a Trader Nick’s order an tiny soon, but this blend has quickly become one of my favourites from them so it’s something I’d definitely want more of it I were to order again. At first I thought it was a little too apple forward, but the more I drink it the more I appreciate how the apple adds a slight brightness and compliments the ginger notes, while creating balance for the cooling, herbaceous mint and the sweeter honey and vanilla elements. It strikes a balance of fruit and herbal infusion that makes it work for a lot of different kind of moods, while still staying a good functional blend for when you actually have an upset stomach.

I am blanking on what the version of a “trifecta” is for five things, but this is definitely whatever that word is…

I had a bit of an upset stomach a few nights ago so I decided I’d give this blend a try since the ingredients looked like they would be appropriately soothing. I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the tea. All four of the primary ingredients/flavours (ginger, honey, peppermint, vanilla) were very clearly discernible in taste and felt really well balanced – nothing was too strong or too weak! I do wish the tea was just a bit less apple-y because that brighter fruity note felt a smidgen out of place, but the level of sweetness and the overall heat and cooling factor of the peppermint were spot on! Plus, I did feel like it helped with the queasiness I was experiencing.

Sipdown! (16 | 138)

The second tea from my April subscription set.

It’s a pleasant enough herbal tisane, but the thyme is a bit too strong for me. It makes the whole thing taste a bit like a roast chicken, which is sort of odd LOL. Otherwise I’m mostly tasting the peppermint, and perhaps a hint of fennel.

I could see it being soothing maybe, but the thyme just makes it weird for me.

From my April subscription package!

I knew I would hate this as soon as I smelled the leaves ha ha… It smells like generic cherry lollipops, a flavor of which I am not a fan, and also roses. Why stop at one flavor I don’t enjoy when I can have two? ;)

But I figured I would steep up a small cup just to give it a chance. It’s fairly mellow, which helps a bit, but it still tastes like a cherry lollipop combined with powdery floral notes.

Definitely not for me, this will go into my rehoming box. A shame, because the label art is so pretty and I love Mary Poppins! Alas, someone else will hopefully get to enjoy the pretty packaging.

This was a free sample with my subscription. They always include a bonus single serving sample along with the two monthly blends, which I think is a nice touch.

It’s supposed to be a fruity-nutty rooibos, but it’s mostly coming off as cherry candy to me. And unfortunately, it just tastes super medicinal with the rooibos base. I think I’m getting a hint of rhubarb? But mostly just cherry cough drop and rooibos.

Fresh oranges, sweet candied cherries, amaretto. This is like the best, most “sunset tasting” cocktail straight in a cup! Strongly continues to be my favourite blend from Trader Nick’s and was a highlight of my weekend in terms of teas I steeped up.

Cold Brew!

I think this is my favourite Trader Nick’s blend. I had the cold brew pre-strained and waiting for me after my day out yesterday, and I have to say that my first sip of this blend after hours in the heat and humidity was HEAVENLY. It’s sweet and fruity, but with a deep and very round feeling nuttiness as well. Blood orange, amaretto, maraschino cherries. I’ve waxed poetic about it before, but suffice to say there’s a reason I bought more of this before I’d even finished my first bag.

I just need it in my life.

Geek Steep: Top Geeks 2023!

Cold Brew!

It’s that time of year – top geeks! And how could I pick anything other than a fandom inspired tea for this recording? I won’t spoil exactly what my top geeks were so that it’s still a surprise if you listen to the episode but I will say that this was one of the best (if not the best) fandom teas I tried this year. I’m not a huge Lion King fan, but this tea is pretty incredible. It’s sweet, bright, and fruity in a way that feels really warm and sunset-like in terms of its vibes.

More specifically it tastes of blood orange, sweet amaretto, maraschino cherry – very much in that “red” flavour familiar but with a lot of layers. Citrus. Candy. Nuts. Booze. They blend together in a very fun way that tastes exactly like the colours of a sunset. It feels like a fantastic fandom blend both on a flavour level and mirroring the fandom inspiration.

Iced!

For the most part, all of the blends from Trader Nick’s have been pretty good. However, I think this might actually be my favourite so far! It’s also maybe the first one that’s felt truly like something I haven’t tasted elsewhere.

The smell of the dry leaf is really mouth watering to me; it’s mostly like a sweet orange candy aroma but with hints of red fruit syrup and just a little ‘something something’ that reminds me of baked goods??

Steeped, it’s more apparent that the baked goods element I was smelling is this really sweet and wonderful amaretto/almond flavouring that’s kind of aromatic but also very dense and coating. It compliments so perfectly the other two flavours of blood orange and grenadine to combine into a sweet but surprisingly complex profile that tastes like what I’d imagine the flavour of a sunset might be, if it were to have one. Like a fun mixed cocktail, in a way, too. Or, like, an Italian soda?? It also has just a bit of brightness – mostly from the hibiscus – that helps break up the sweeter flavours, but without shattering their balance.

I am very, very into this one!

Cold Brew Sipdown (2401)!

Sweet, fruity and honestly surprisingly smooth? Mostly what I mean by that, though, is that despite lots of very acidic ingredients I didn’t notice the tart twang or bite of the hibiscus/acidified apple as much as I’d have expected visually. The strawberry was stronger than the watermelon, though both flavours were present. Sort of had a semi-sweetened Jello or Kool-Aid mix kind of vibe to it.

Really refreshing, and definitely very tasty but I think I’m okay finishing this one off because it feels like something I can find similar of elsewhere with relative ease.

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz4fs9mOA2Y/?img_index=5 (5th Pic)

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1x_-iAJBDU

Cold Brew!

Y’know, it’s interesting that between this and the Harney & Sons blend I now have two Minnie Mouse inspired teas that are practically nothing alike but that both feel perfect for the character in different but spot on ways…

This one is so fruity and sweet, but it makes for a hell of a cold brew. In terms of taste I’d say that it reminds me a bit of a cross between strawberry jello mix and some type of unsweetened red kool-aid. Really bright, a little bit sour and tart and also really “polished” red fruit taste. Now cross that with watermelon candy flavour and you’ve basically got this tea spot on.

I do feel like it’s a flavour combination I’ve certainly tasted before and there’s nothing about it that’s unique, but it’s also really tasty and I think the flavour is super fun for the character inspiration!

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The other tea from my first subscription package.

I actually really enjoyed this one. It tastes like the intersection of a mild Earl Grey and some kind of creamy lemon dessert. Apparently it’s actually lime, but I’m getting a lemon vibe. It’s quite mild overall, not strongly flavored, but a really nice mellow, sweet and desserty treat for the afternoon. There’s a touch of glitter, but luckily it’s not too much, and it’s glittery sugar instead of dust, so it doesn’t make a mess everywhere!

Would consider ordering this one, although I think I like Dammann’s Noël à Venise better. But it’s been a while since I last had that one…

Made myself a cup of this earlier in the week while at work, but I was 100% in the thick of a bad cold and just in denial of that fact. That whole day sort of feels like a blur since I was so dang foggy feeling, but I remember the first few sips of this mug and the way the hot liquor sort of provided a moment of instant relief from my head cold. The lavender was strong but smooth, and the finish had a distinctly licorice-y taste. Very slick, and throat soothing/coating. I think this was actually a much better choice that I had intended it to be.

Decided to make this into a very large Western style pot of tea to drink all throughout the afternoon at work on Tuesday! I was scared I might be committing to a large amount of essentially “perfume” tasting tea. Lavender is a STRONG flavour and a little goes a long way; if a company swings big with its inclusion in a blend it’s easy for that to quickly go off the rails and become a miss. I thought this was pretty good though! I ended up steeping this for longer than anticipated and it still didn’t get into that more chemical or aggresively floral/bitter territory. It was still strong, though! However I definitely feel that could be comfortably dialed back for someone less comfortable with lavender by decreasing the amount of tea leaf or steep time.

The white tea isn’t a super apparent taste, but I did feel like it added a nice body and some softer notes of honeysuckle and creamy cucumber pulp that were a bit more perceptible when the tea was still really hot. I didn’t find the blend especially creamy, which was disappointing because I was hoping (given the movie inspo) they would lean more into the “Creme de la Creme a la Edgar” vibe with the flavour. I also could faintly taste the chamomile and I thought it was unnecessary in the blend.

Overall, it was a fine tea but didn’t have anything to it to really make it feel more special than many of the other lavender white teas out there on the market.

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So I signed up for the Trader Nicks subscription, because they have an option for just two teas a month in a small size for a reasonable price. I’ve only tried a few of their teas, and I love the Disney theme, so I want to try more!

This one is just okay. On the package it says something like “blueberry & lemon cake” as a description, but I’m not finding that to be accurate at all. I do taste a bit of blueberry and a bit of lemon, but the herbal ingredients are really taking this tea in a decidedly non-desserty direction. I think it’s the vervain that I’m tasting? It reminds me of sage, or maybe somewhere between sage and lavender – it’s earthy and somewhat savory.

A shame, as a blueberry & lemon cake tea sounds delicious! Too bad this wasn’t it. :P

The flavoring here is much more subtle than I hoped. I taste mostly an okay quality rooibos along with some cinnamon. Drinking this without milk allows me to taste the flavoring a little better, though it’s still quite mild and unfortunately not special.

Got a free sample of this tea with my subscription package.

I definitely used a bit too much water, as it came out somewhat weak. I didn’t measure the tea, the amount looked about right so I just used the whole sample for 16 ounces of water. Clearly my eyeballing needs work, ha ha…

It’s still a pleasant cuppa, just more delicate than I’m sure was intended. To be honest, I’m getting more of a peach flavor than pineapple? Or I guess it could be mango, which often tastes peachy as a flavoring. I do get some of the creamy coconut at the end of the sip, along with a hint of tart pineapple. Nice tea, but gives me more of a peaches & cream vibe with a touch of a tropical twist.

I’m not generally a big fan of tropical green teas, but it was still fun to try. And for free!

One of two cups of tea I made for myself this morning!

The initial taste is soft, warm baked apple with notes of cinnamon and an almost slightly roasty quality to the undertones. Like last time, I’m not tasting pomegranate but that doesn’t bug me since the baked apple notes are so pleasant. However, the finish is kind of weird? It’s got a very slight hint of what tastes, to me, like Play-Doh? I wonder if that it a side effect of pour aging? It doesn’t seem like it should be from any of the ingredients listed, but it’s definitely very present in the aftertaste for me…

I feel like, for this Snow White inspired blend, I would have expected the flavour to be more like a sour green apple – but at least it’s apple flavoured of some kind, which is better than nothing. It does actually taste really good though. A bit of a more medium bodied black tea that’s pretty smooth, with lighter but distinct notes of baked apple and cinnamon. Just enough sweetness, too. I don’t really (at least in this cup) taste the pomegranate or cranberry which is a bit of a shame, but I feel like the apple was definitely the important part and that’s great.