Lisbet Send Message

I think I’ve finally found a blend that tastes like the delicious chai I get in Indian restaurants- but without having to simmer spices in milk for an extended period. This is… so ….good. With a touch of my vanilla soy milk it’s even better. I feel like I’m sipping a spicy Indian dessert. Most chais really do let me down, but I knew I was in for a treat when I opened the package and smelled a delicious waft of what seemed almost graham crackerish (I know, that may sound dubious.)

What are you doing still reading my pithy review? You should be on upton’s website adding this to your cart- at least one of the cheap samples’ worth! (That is, if you like chai at all.)

Just kidding, I like it when you read what I write :)

I have come to absolutely adore this tea. It’s so unique, and while I am often skeptical of what teas are supposed to taste like, this one is seriously spot on. It’s one of the most interesting and well-crafted flavored teas I’ve ever tasted. Good with milk, but I never sweeten it. If I feel like slightly burnt toast, I just deliberately oversteep this one :)

I am definitely not going to rate this one based on the steeping I just had. My tea travel mug decidedly expands in size when it’s hot, so after putting the boiling water in, I couldn’t get the filter lid back off (I had it in because I was leaving the house and the next cup I planned to make was loose-leaf).

So the teabag was trapped (Can you picture this? I feel like I’ve failed). And as i drank this it got progressively more bitter and oversteeped. Still, I enjoyed it so that says something. I didn’t taste much of the honey, but it probably got drowned out. This was my ’don’t fall asleep while taking a test’ blend, and it worked well enough I suppose. The test was still inexplicable and random as usual, but that’s not the tea’s fault.

p.s. Thanks to Meghann for the tea bags!

There’s been a lot of coconut in my tea- life lately. Well, I ruined the low-calorie element of this by having it with a giant peanut butter choco-chip cookie, but it was worth it. The dogs had a different kind of cookie so nobody felt left out.

Anyway, this really does remind me of coconut custard, a dessert I do enjoy :)
It’s sweet and slightly milky. I do think this one would benefit from a bit of oversteeping, because at 5 minutes it tastes a little pale and watery. I can also see trying this in a vanilla-syrup added soy latte (one of my favorite things to do to tea lately- I don’t know why either, but it could be my missing Adagio Teas in Chicago).

A great after-dinner tea. I may mix this with 52 Teas’ Coconut Cheesecake honeybush just to see what happens.

p.s. Thanks to QueenOfTarts for sampling me some of this!

Thanks to Meghann for letting me try this one!
I have been studying Japanese all day. I have to take two tests tomorrow, because I was away at a conference on Friday, and missed one. Actually, it’s one test and a midterm. So cramming away I am. My head hurts, and I am tired of vocab, so this tea, despite having 山本 (yamamoto) in the name, sounded refreshing.
Indeed, this would be brilliant iced. It’s citrusy, in a pale and pleasant way, and definitely tastes of sencha. I think even my ‘flavored tea is a waste of tea’ husband wouldn’t mind a little citrus with his sencha.

I missed you, Upton.
I fell prey to the temptation of the delicious looking Earl Grey sampler, and I’m glad I did… I’m trying this one without any additives first to see what I think. The ingredients list is just amazing, and this manages not to taste artificial and cloying. It’s definitely an earl grey, but with a definite touch of cacao. I didn’t expect to like this one out of the otherwise appealing sampler options, but I do. I don’t love it, but I’m going to finish off the tin for sure!

This certainly smells strongly! Walking into my kitchen I thought ‘uh-oh, another jello-tasting tea’. Indeed, almost all red fruit in tea turns into hot jello. This, alas, isn’t much different despite its delicious sounding components. I am wondering if it’d be okay if I cut it heavily with some other kind of plain tea. For now, well, I shouldn’t have been swayed by the blackcurrant.

I am going to hold off giving a numerical rating to this until I decide what I think of it! It’s really unusual, as is so often the case with 52Teas’ blends. My first thought upon sipping this was that it tasted just like the scent that’s in the Lush cosmetics’ Christmas Party bath bomb and Champagne Snow Showers products. But that might, um, sound repulsive. It’s just unusual. I can’t seem to think of anything else now that I’ve made the association. But I actually can see how this is gingerale-y as well. It’s very interesting, and I’m looking forward to another cup, so I can try to sort out my opinion on it.

Okay, this plus vanilla soymilk = excellent tea latte. What an amazing beverage. I need to upgrade my rating of this, as I now never want to go without it.