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This brews up a gorgeous color, deep dark almost ruby red or garnet. At first I thought I was underwhelmed by this tea because of all the hype—I was like “that’s it?” the first couple sips—but found it so drinkable, rich and strong but incredibly smooth, that it was a total pleasure to finish the cup and I found myself longing for a second right away. I can see why this is so highly esteemed—it’s the smoothest, most easy-drinking breakfast blend I’ve tried, without sacrificing presence, real tea flavor.

Wow, this really does taste like honey and flowers, so naturally, delicately sweet—very sweet without being cloying. Honeysuckle. Reminds me of summertime as a kid, when you go outside to play and end up sucking the sweetness out of purple flowers. Lovely. Brews up a golden honey color too. Next time I might steep a little longer or use a bit more tea (couldn’t find steeping directions anywhere); this is a tad delicate for something that smells and tastes so delicious. There’s a juiciness—bursting with more honey sweetness!—at the end of the swallow I really like. Really lovely afternoon or after dinner (on the weekend!) tea. Also, the delicate beautiful nature of this tea goes really, really well with biscuits (Dutch caramel wafers or hobnob-style cookies!)—I’m noticing subtle teas pair excellently with sticky flaky sweets.

Was a bit worried this would go the way of the dessert-flavored stuff I tried from Culinary Teas (not bad, just disappointing, with an unsatisfying tea base and more aroma than flavor) because they both have ceylon as their foundation, but no! This was surprisingly yummy, and a lot smoother and silkier than the CT stuff. The cinnamon smells and tastes like true cinnamon, strong and not sweet, and the tea base is actually quite decent, round and satisfying, and seems to go well with the cinnamon flavor. I would definitely drink this again! Takes well to some milk and raw sugar.

Man oh man do I like the way this one smells dry. Both in aroma and flavor this reminds me a bit of New Mexico’s Provence Rooibos (which I adore), so I suppose now I have a caffeinated, black tea version of that flavor profile should I need it.

The dry leaf has a heady, almost liquor-like cranberry aroma. Brewed there’s something warm and spicy, which I welcome to balance the fruity tartness of cranberry (memories of horrid “Zinger”-ish stuff from Celestial Seasonings as a kid…shudder). I might be imagining it but I think there’s vanilla? That makes this super welcome, and reminds me of one of my all-time favorite seasonal desserts, Laurie Colwin’s Nantucket Cranberry Pie (really more of a cobbler). Just the reminder of it is making me smile.

EDIT: Ah! For once I got it right. The copy says there’s almond to go with the cranberry, and the major components of Colwin’s (super easy to make, yum) dish are cranberries and almond extract. Huzzah!

There’s an oh-so-slight bitterness; perhaps next time I’ll brew at a lower temp, or for a bit less time. Unlike a lot of flavored teas, this is not very sweet at all. Has kind of a juicy mouthfeel. I appreciate that the cranberry tastes like actual fresh cranberry, not that whole garish whack-you-over-the-head mere tartness, but juice and that crisp clean-tasting flavor good cranberries have.

Toasty and filling, and exactly what you’d expect it to be—a toasty version of Laoshan Black. Mm. The sweetness and chocolate really comes out after a few sips. That said, I think having both Laoshan Black and this hanging around my cupboard at the same time is overkill/redundant. Both are wonderful of course.

Dry this smells dark chocolate-y, like Laoshan Black. Fascinating that this tea freshly brewed smells like rye toast to me—made from delicious, fresh, fluffy bakery rye bread. Toasted caraway seed, yeah…yum. [EDIT: I guess the toastiness I’m enjoying is what others describe as the walnut note? Interesting!] Upon sipping there’s some scotch and faint chocolate and a little minerality and the taste of fresh, pure water. Towards the end of the sip the jasmine comes out, contributing I think to that sense of sweet, clean water. It’s neat that a tea that smells so heavy and has notes like rye bread and scotch turns out to be so refreshing at the end. And it’s very smooth. Oh, and there’s some slighter notes of caramel sweetness.

I don’t think I quite love it as much as Laoshan Black, but that is certainly not a dis on it considering I’m not sure I’ve ever had a tea better than LB in my entire life. It’s also less straightforward to brew for me—weighing it, making sure not to fill my teacup more than halfway, counting down quickly and precisely—as I’m not too familiar with non-Western steeping set ups yet (still don’t have a gaiwan ‘cause I can’t seem to find an affordable pretty celadon-hued one). But on a damp dark day like this? Really hits the spot. Definitely high caliber, as I’ve come to expect from everything from Verdant.

On second steep, I can really taste the coconut. On third, I’m noticing the aroma gets sweeter and sweeter, and texture-wise it’s getting smoother and richer. Gosh I love these teas, the way they’re almost like the magical gum from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, changing into different flavors on and on…

I love how accurately this smells and tastes like pineapple! And there is the bacon, too—a smoky saltiness, but not as hit-you-over-the-head as with Maple Bacon. Much easier to drink than Maple Bacon, sweeter and less intense. I also like the mouthfeel, smooth and silky despite the fruitiness—no astringency or bitterness. Yum.

I must be missing something, ‘cause I have no idea where to find brewing instructions for 52teas stuff. So far I’ve just been looking at other Steepsters’ logs to get an idea of how long to brew things. Hrmm.

Dry I love the smell of cucumber (I’m a fiend). Brewing it smells a bit like…chlorine. Or floor cleaner. But then tasting it, oh, it’s yummy. You can definitely taste the kiwi bits, not just the cucumber. I am always surprised when a tea tastes better than it smells, because so often it’s the other way around. Obviously I prefer the former, so I’m happy with this. I’m crossing my fingers this is one that will also taste great iced.

Had some trepidation with this one because as much as I love love LOVE lavender (!!) I tend to hate rose (yeah really). But I want more “teas” I can drink after 5pm beyond just baked good/candyshop dessert offerings, and New Mexico has impressed me in the past with the freshness and quality of their tisane ingredients. I’m glad I risked it because I think I love this! It’s so clean and refreshing, yet it has a floral and fruity thing going on too. Not too astringent, surprisingly smooth. Really love that I finally have something in my repertoire like this, not a sugarbomb but totally delicious and satisfying as well as calming. Yay! Prospective bonus, it has a flavor that makes me think it’d be fantastic iced, and also like it’d be delicious mixed with gin. So. Fingers crossed! Even if that doesn’t live up to my hopes this is still a definite keeper.

EDIT: As with other NMTC stuff I’ve had, this resteeps alright too, yay.

Cannot say enough good things about NMTC. The quality is way up there, the customer service has been great (and my stuff’s come really fast and packed appropriately), and the price is oh so right (especially because they have free shipping). Love.