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The problem with getting more active on Steepster (after being an intermittent lurker for years) is that I’m now discovering SO. MANY. TEA. COMPANIES. I want to try! Hence an order from Murchie’s, placed one night when I was staying up far too late playing Sims 4 and browsing tea websites. My order arrived in record time and I’m very excited to try all my new blends.

This one is a truly decadent dessert tea and I am digging it. It maybe reminds me more of blueberry pancakes than crumble because there’s a slight maple-y element, but no matter. The blueberry is pleasant (if more present in the aroma than the taste) and not too artificial or anything. It’s got a nice graham-y, crust-y element that really works with the blueberry to create a rounded flavor, all layered on a fairly unobtrusive green/black base and accented with the barest hint of cinnamon.

Is it terribly sophisticated? No. Do I want to drink it every day? Probably not, given that it contains sugar and could maybe get a little cloying with too much repetition. But is it bringing me great joy on a rather blah Monday afternoon? Sure is!

So light and delicate! I’m getting a floral, almost fruity sweetness, with a soft, smooth mouthfeel. Very satisfying for a lazy afternoon sipping session.

Another random tea bag someone gave me over the holidays. I grabbed it thinking it was a straight black this morning and only realized after tearing open the packet that it’s chai. Ah well—it’s cold and windy today, so chai seems fitting.

I never find myself craving chai spices, and I’m not sure why, because I usually enjoy them. This one is heavy on the cinnamon, with the other flavors (mostly clove and cardamom, to my palate) playing second fiddle. It’s pretty nice, but maybe a bit too cinnamon-forward. That’s all I can say.

Another one from my January Whistling Kettle box. It’s… kind of odd? The vanilla scent in both the dry leaf and steeped tea is very strong and, to my nose at least, fairly artificial. It reminds me of something else I can’t quite identify… some kind of creamy vanilla candy I had as a kid? It’s a bit off-putting, yet I keep coming back to sniff it again.

I don’t really taste vanilla, though—I’m mostly getting warming spices with a bit of heat. I thought oat milk might help and meant to add a splash but accidentally added a large glug instead, and now that’s kind of overpowering the actual tea. Oops.

Sure, cherry/almond/marzipan/amaretto-inspired teas are a dime a dozen, but I haven’t tired of them yet! So I was happy to see one in my second subscription box from The Whistling Kettle. Dry, the leaf smells of super sweet amaretto, and the scent carries over into the brew. The taste is heavier on the cherry, with a flavor that veers toward cough syrup. There’s a hint of orange that helps temper it, but yeah—definite notes of cough syrup in this one, and I’m not getting a baked good flavor to evoke the biscotti element. The pink peppercorns bring a verrry tiny bit of heat toward the end, which is unexpected and a little odd—it seems to enhance the medicinal flavor! I’m not getting anything from the green tea base.

This is not the most sophisticated cherry-almond blend I can imagine. If you’re sensitive to that medicinal cough syrup flavor, steer clear.

I’m enjoying my second steep of this oolong as the snow starts accumulating outside on this bitterly cold day. This is so nice — soft and just slightly drying, with heaps of floral notes that almost remind me of jasmine, and just the slightest bit of woody roastiness. I also get a nice little grapefruit note at the back. I’m detecting a bit of soapiness on the second steep that I don’t love, but it’s still quite enjoyable.

Sipdown!

Huh, I thought I’d reviewed this one before! I bought it last year thinking I’d either love it or hate it, and happily I’m in the “love it” camp. It’s fruity, floral, and robust, with a hint of smokiness at the back. It’s just a really interesting and tasty tea!

I had a feeling based on the scent and appearance of the dried leaf that this was going to be a fairly generic fruity flavored black, and I was right. It’s got a somewhat astringent black base with notes of that artificial peach candy flavor we all know. (I don’t mind it, but YMMV.) There’s also something almost floral there? I’m not getting any strawberry, though.

Interestingly, the ingredients on the Whistling Kettle site include concentrated peach puree, concentrated strawberry juice, tangerines, and more; on the other hand, my packet lists only “black tea, flavoring, peaches, strawberries.” I’m wondering if it’s just a shortened list because it’s a tiny taster bag with space constraints, or whether it’s a totally different blend than what’s listed on the website? A mystery!

Anyway, this is fine, but not something I’ll crave and not my first choice when it comes to fruity black tea. I’ll probably try it iced when the weather gets a bit warmer.

Another random tea bag that came along with a Christmas present! I adore jasmine teas and have a very fond memory of accidentally spending way more than intended on jasmine pearls at Teavana (RIP!) a decade or so ago.

Anyway, for a bagged jasmine, this one is quite pleasant. It’s delicate and light with a smidge of citrus. I bet it would be a good entry point for the jasmine-curious, because the floral note is fairly understated. So soft and soothing!

A family member gave me a few assorted bags of tea from this brand over the holidays, and I’m just trying one out now. I needed something caffeine-free, and this tisane seemed promising! Apple, blackberry, raspberry, citrus… and it smells exceptionally tasty, like plump juicy berries. Except… I somehow missed that hibiscus was the very first ingredient. Now that it’s brewed, though, it’s unmistakable in both scent and color.

As for taste… hmm. OK, the hibiscus is not horrible. It’s definitely the first flavor I get, but it’s not quite as aggressive as it could be. (An admittedly low bar.) There’s the faintest bit of something syrupy and sweet to back it up and temper it a bit. I have no desire to drink this one again, but I don’t utterly hate it.