169 Tasting Notes

81
drank Smooth Earl by Compass Teas
169 tasting notes

I see we meet again, Monday.
Earl Grey is definitely required for Mondays.
When I spotted this sample from TeaEqualsBliss I thought I would give it a try.
Smooth Earl, eh?
Well, My Earl is normally more of the strong, silent type, but maybe I would like to try a Smooth Earl for a change.
Is he going to tell me how I look real hot in this old tee shirt with my hair a mess this morning?
Or how it musta hurt when I fell from heaven.
Or some other smooth line.
Well, lets see…dry, the leaves are not overly bergamot-y but it is there.
Scent of the tea is almost a cologne-like bergamot, not strong but different then some of the bergamot’s I am used too.
There is supposed to be a hint of vanilla, but I am not getting that when I smell the tea.
Taste is good, I can taste the bergamot and the black tea is nice and smooth.
Still no vanilla.
Overall, a nice Earl Grey.
He has flattered me enough to get me moving on this Monday Morning.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec
Bonnie

I just know there’s a tea bar somewhere with those kind of imaginary ’Earl’s’ ready to serve up a good cuppa! (the guys are going to scold me for this comment and I don’t care!) …tea!

Mercuryhime

Sounds like a great idea! There’ll be all sorts of earl grey teas and earl infused desserts. And all the servers will be Earl of something!

Hesper June

LOL! I like how you ladies think!

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97

Shut the Front Door!
Jumping Jehosaphat!
My Goodness Gracious Great Balls of Fire…this tea is tasty!!!
I fell in love when I opened the little bag.
I was impatiently dancing back and forth from one foot to the other waiting for the water to get to the right temp.
It is like Hawaii in a cup.
You smell floral and juicy pineapple, but neither is overpowering.
Then a creamly oolong in the background.
Taste: Mmmmm…pineapple! then I get hints of jasmine, but I do not see that listed in the ingredients, then the creamy Oolong gently emerges.
All around utterly delightful!
Well Done, Butiki, Well Done!

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 4 min, 0 sec
Bonnie

It’s good!

Butiki Teas

Thanks Hesper! No jasmine, however, I sometimes taste notes of jasmine in the Wen Shan Bao Zhong, so I definitely get where you are coming from with the jasmine notes. Oooh, I like “Hawaii in a cup”.

ashmanra

Sounds delightful!

gmathis

Review made me giggle!

Hesper June

Bonnie: Didn’t you help inspire this blend? I thought I read something like that in the past.
Stacy: It really did remind of my time spent in Hawaii! And I love going back there any way I can.
Ashmanra: It is! I highly recommend it.
Gmathis: I get excited about teas I love:)

Butiki Teas

Yes, Bonnie coerced me to do a pineapple oolong. :) I would love to go back to Hawaii. I was only there for 3 days on business but it was awesome.

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95
drank Dragon Feelers by Butiki Teas
169 tasting notes

First of all, I have to tell you…when I first saw the picture of this tea on the Butiki website I said “Ewww! this tea looks like fuzzy bugs!” (It had nothing to do with your lovely picture, Stacy! Your photos are always gorgeous on the website:) and then promptly added it to my list to order.
Why?
Because I am weird.
I think if it looked quirky then I was sure to love it.
Guess what?
I was right!
This tea is just so delicious.
It has this delicate buttery smell, then it tastes like the first fresh sweet peas of the season steamed with butter.
There are also notes of sun-warmed wheat (I know this smell well, my house is literally right next to a wheat field:)
This tea hits the ball right out of the park!
A very fine tea, indeed.
Brewed in my Bodum, this tea has a stunning champagne color.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec
TeaBrat

It has a nice name, too!

Hesper June

It does:)

Oolong Owl

holy crap that tea looks crazy! Like little fishes! I need to do a Butiki order sometime soon.

Hesper June

Haha! Crazy indeed. The leaves, once wet in the infuser change from looking like bugs/fishes to looking like baby green beans!

Bonnie

I love the shapes of tea’s that Stacy gives us. So cool to share with my grandsons. Fuzzy things are so neat!

Kittenna

Bahaha, I ordered it because it looks funky too! I’m a sucker for that sort of thing :) Glad to hear it’s tasty too!

Hesper June

:) Glad I am not the only one, Kittenna!

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80

Another tea from TeaEqualsBliss
This is only the second kind of Genmaicha + Matcha blend I have tried.
This is good.
Dry leaves give off a bit of dried Seaweed smell, add water and a tinge of bitterness and popcorn shine through.
Taste does not pop but it is a good tea to have with lunch.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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86

Just such a lovely tea.
Awoke this morning feeling better but still not 100%.
This tea sounded good to me.
It feels like such a classy tea, like it would be drank in a fancy tea room with little teacups and yummy tiny sweet pastries.
Plus, it is making me feel human again…
See my previous note for more info.

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74
drank Chai Chi by Compass Teas
169 tasting notes

Smells a little chocolatey.
Tastes like it would be a good dessert tea.
A bit of spice at the back of the throat.
Over all, a nice tea.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 30 sec

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74

I awoke with a nasty sore throat this morning.
Which is kinda bumming me out.
After trying to ignore it all morning, and now its lunch time and it is being joined by a drippy nose, I have succumbed to the fact that something must be done.
TeaEqualsBliss sent me a few samples of different kinds of Chai, and this is one of them.
I am hoping this will help with my cold/allergy thing.
I do not smell any spices, just black tea and something almost honey-like.
There is a small amount of spice of the tongue, but very mild.
Not bad, felt nice on my sore throat.
Might try another Chai, since I was hoping for a kick of spice:)

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec
Skulleigh

Eeek, I hate sore throats. Hope yours is better soon!

Hesper June

It is much better today, thank you:)
I do not know why it feels more miserable when you are sick in the summer.

Skulleigh

My hubby was just remarking on that yesterday. He was sneezing his head off (allergies, as he’s all right today) and said that it seems even worse to do that in the summer.

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86

My final sample from my Butiki order.
It smells just like Pumpkin Pie!
Spicy and cozy.
I must say I was dubious of this tea.
I mean, a tea flavored by pumpkin?
But, the scent envelopes you and comforts you.
It smells like Grandma’s house in November.
I burnt my tongue because I could not wait to try it.
Lightly spicy, a smidgen of pumpkin but then the black tea shines through.
Very tasty tea, indeed!

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 30 sec
Hesper June

Well, I have not had any other pumpkin teas to compare it too,but I thought this one was very yummy:)

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85

Sample from my Butiki Order.
I am hitting the black teas pretty hard this morning.
Another lousy night of sleep and woke up with a pounding headache.
Thankfully, the Earl Grey took care of most of that, but I am feeling like I want some dessert.
So, this tea appealed to me.
Once I smelt the dry leaves, I had to run over to the Butiki website and see what was in this tea, because I kept getting a violet flower scent.
There is no violets in this tea, so I don’t know why smell it, but I also smell the raspberry.
It smells like sitting in the garden after a rain, its lovely!
Light red in color.
I do not get chocolate when I taste this, but more of a creaminess.
This tea is very yummy.
Might just have to add this to my list I am preparing for my next order!

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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81

Sample from my Butiki order.
Dry leaves smell very nice, not picking up a lot of Bergamot.
Tea smells of a very good quality black, small amount of Bergamot/Citrus shining through.
Lovely dark red in color.
I can taste the citrus, the black tea and the bergamot!
Very nice tea.
If you enjoy a Earl Grey with a lower amount of bergamot I would say this is for you.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 30 sec

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Profile

Bio

A Farmer’s Wife who drinks her tea to forget the din of the world.
Love all tea, from black to herbal concoctions.
Usually start my day with black tea and then move on to Oolong or Green in the afternoon, then finish the day with a tisane.
Loose Leaf teas are my preference, I say “Free the Leaves!” :)
When I am not drinking tea, I enjoy knitting, baking, reading, playing with one of our rescue animals or working along side my husband on our farm.

My rating system is rather relaxed:
50’s or under- Um, is this tea or did I get this from the slop bucket?
60’s- Not really my thing, certainly will not be purchasing again.
70’s- I will give this tea a few more tries to see if it grows on me , right now it is okay but not thrilling me.
80’s- Like this tea a lot. It might be a tea that I have to be in a certain mood for and therefore not a daily drinker, but try to have on hand for those “moods”
90’s and higher- ADORE! Will never be without!

I most always drink my tea plain.
No sweeteners or milk/cream.

Location

Idaho

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