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I finally signed up for a 52Teas subscription box because why the hell not. XD This one came in the June box (which arrived in early July), and then I was on vacation, and I’m only getting around to trying it now.

So, it smells delightful. After being burned (not literally) by the horrifying, cloying nature of that one Strawberry Shortcake tea from Murchie’s, I got a little twitchy when I saw the label. Happily, the scent here is much less “strawberry car freshener someone bought at the dollar store and then ripped completely open and hung up, filling the car with noxious fumes” and more “sweet strawberry candy, but in a good way.”

Steeped, the strawberry loses some of its strength, but that’s OK. I’m still getting a light, buttery creaminess layered over a bit of strawberry, plus the nice toastiness of the rice. The green tea comes in at the end as a gentle grassiness; it’s definitely present, but not overpoweringly bitter or anything.

Overall, it’s very nice and quite fun. I’m not totally sure I’d be able to identify the flavor profile/inspiration if I’d gone in cold, but I’m enjoying it (y’know, judging by the fact that I’m drinking it on a 90˚+ day). Cold-brewing it might be good too.

This green tea was included in the final installment of my six-month Whistling Kettle gift subscription. I’ve been pretty ambivalent about the WK boxes—there have been a few really tasty blends, but there’ve been more duds.

This one, however, is not a dud! It’s a gorgeously light green tea with delicate, almost buttery soft and smooth flavor. It’s mildly vegetal, but pretty unobjectionably so. I’m getting the tiniest hint of asparagus in the aroma, but I have to really sniff deeply to find it.

There’s not a whole lot to this one, but what’s there is good. I haven’t been drinking much tea in this hottt weather, but I’m glad I made time for a cup today. :)

Snagged a small pouch from the TTB and am just getting around to trying it. I kept it because the dry leaf smelled so interesting—the ginger made it almost effervescent, like cola. I’m not much of a soda drinker (it’s far too sweet) but I do like the spice blends and flavors in some craft sodas.

The steeped blend, though, is just odd. It smells oddly vegetal, and the taste is quite muddy and muddled. The ginger only comes through at the end, and on top of it is something more reminiscent of asparagus or savory herbs! I’m not getting any sweetness at all, or really anything evocative of cola. The Yunomi website suggests cold brewing it and adding sparkling water, so I might try that with the remainder of the package.

I’m a total sucker for anything peach, so I was looking forward to this one! The dry leaf definitely smells very cobbler-y, with creamy pastry notes layered on top of the peach.

The brewed cup is a bit of a letdown, though. Hot, I’m just not getting much of anything beyond the Ceylon base. Once it cools, it reads as more of a peaches and cream flavor than peach cobbler. That base is super astringent, though! It nearly overwhelms all the other flavors.

Reading through the other reviews, it seems like this might be a fairly temperamental tea—others seem to have coaxed more flavor out of it. I could see it being quite tasty cold-brewed.

I won’t be keeping this from the TTB, but I’m glad I tried it.

Yeahhh, no. This is like buttery mineral water.

I enjoyed the the teabag version of Mince Pie in Bird & Blend’s advent calendar last year, so I figured I’d give the loose-leaf version a shot when I saw it in the TTB. I brewed it up and had it ready to go in my KeepCup to enjoy while running errands, and then… completely forgot about it until I returned home. Oops!

I’m drinking it cool now and it’s still tasty. I’m getting gently spiced marzipan. Yep, this is pretty much how I remember it from last December, although the pastry notes are missing. Still, not bad. I’ll keep my rating the same. :)

Oh heck yes! I’m a sucker for dessert teas, and this one is inspired by one of my favorite baked goods of all time. My mom makes a killer lemon loaf (we called it a “tea cake” when I was a kid) and as such, the nostalgia factor is through the roof with this tea.

I snagged a couple bags from the TTB and my partner and I brewed them up last night. He was handling the prep while I read on the couch, and I heard an audible “mmm” when he sniffed the bag. We were both expecting the brewed tea to fall short compared to the aroma, but happily, it doesn’t. It truly does taste like the essence of a lemon loaf has been distilled into tea: creamy, lemony, and pound cakey, with a hint of vanilla and the suggestion of sweetness without sugar. Love it. I wouldn’t say no to a bit more zestiness (I like my lemon loaves sharp!). I might have to pick up a box and tinker with adding some lemon.

The takeaway: Bagged teas can still delight and surprise. :)

TTB sample on a rainy (yet warm and humid!) afternoon. This brews up a very lovely pale neon green—almost chartreuse. The Global Japanese Tea Association website describes it as “a dense liquor with lots of umami” but I’m not really getting either of those descriptors. I have such a hard time describing delicate green tea… it’s maybe a little grassy, maybe a little vegetal, but to me it just tastes like a fresh, clean green tea! I don’t know what else to say! I get no particular notes in the taste or aroma. I like it well enough. It’s tasty. The end. XD

Sampled from the TTB, and I might have to keep some of it! This is so tasty. I wasn’t expecting much because the scent of the dry leaf was verging on that almost artificial vanilla cake scent that can be a bit cloying, but happily the tea itself has a much more refined vanilla flavor. It’s a light but true vanilla, subtle but present.

I don’t think I’ve ever had osmanthus before, and I’m not quite sure I can pinpoint the flavor in this blend—I guess it’s the kind of floral note? Regardless, it works very well with the vanilla. Yum!

Morning with the TTB = trying caffeinated blends! The caffeine is very welcome, as my team is sending the summer issue of our magazine to press today, so I need stamina as we finalize pages.

…welp, I started that note about eight hours ago and am only getting back to it now! Ha! So, Divine Highlands. It’s very mild and thin, even though I added more leaf than recommended. I’m not really getting eucalyptus or mint as the package promises; It’s quite mineral-y and vegetal. I prefer more boldness and flavor in my black teas, so I think maybe it’s a matter of expectations. This is more like a light oolong to my fairly unrefined palate. I don’t mind it, but it’s not giving me the oomph I was hoping for.