Featured & New Tasting Notes

I got this in London. I love green rooibos, and this one is super fresh and tasty. It’s so smooth and fruity. It’s delicious cold and lightly sweetened. The cold resteep is perfect as well.

This is all blackberry/huckleberry. Not getting any juniper (or anything herbal), but the berry flavor is nice.

This is one of four grades of Tieguanyin currently being sold by Tealyra. It is Stock Code 405, and is currently the cheapest of this type that they sell. I don’t doubt that it is from the Province of Fujian, but Tealyra does not claim that it is from Anxi County, the “home” of Tieguanyin oolongs. That claim is reserved for two other somewhat more expensive products. Nevertheless, it is the product I naïvely bought and am reporting on here. To be fair, I did just finish sipping a competitor’s Ti Kuan Yin, but this (code 405) is clearly inferior in color, aroma, and flavor. It does hit some of the expected notes of floral fragrance and mineral flavor, but it really tastes more like a fourth steeping of exhausted leaf. And for goodness sakes, please ignore Tealyra’s health claims— get your diabetes remedy from a physician and don’t look to a knock-off tea for it. Ditto for cancer. Ditto for weight loss. Etc.

I brewed as directed, and got the pale yellow swill that was described, with echoes of the sensory experience promised. I did try a second, hotter and longer steeping with minimal improvement. I was justified in taking a grain of salt with the description of it being a “tea masterpiece”. The only masterpiece was in the florid writing by Tealyra. Not recommended, and rated as a 35 score. This is going to the compost heap. Some day I may try the more premium offering(s), but a lot of water will have to pass under my bridgework first.

A very interesting tea that my coworker brought back from Japan for me to try!

It seems like some, if not all, of the ingredients in this tea are upcycled. The yuzu seeds, for example. I was super curious about this one because I have no concept for what yuzu seeds should taste like – and new ingredients/flavours are always appealing. They looked cool! Because they were rather large and round (and also hollow?) they reminded me a bit of popped lotus seeds, and it was neat seeing them mixed in with the more twiggy hojicha base.

The hojicha was a bit of a lighter roast with more of a mineral profile that had some brassiness to it, a little bit of a woody or bark-like character, and a lot of nuttiness that read as quite golden. So, so smooth. Taste wise, I really didn’t feel like there was anything citrusy to the profile but that wasn’t really a surprise. Seeds and leaves rarely totally mirror the taste of the fruits they’re from. Hard to 100% say it was from the seeds, but there was an almost sunflower seed/oil kind of note that I think was stemming more from the seeds than the green tea.

Overall I thought this was really nice, though! Quite clean, balanced, and a really nice medium level intensity that felt well suited for a bunch of different times of day or moods.

I wanted to try this one as it reminded me a few of my fave no-caff blends from 52Teas in the past.  And really, the inclusion of the marshmallow root made it a sure thing buy.  It’s great!  Exactly what I expected it to taste like.  Citrusy!  With a pillowy marshmallow sweetness, if that makes sense.  Then a hint of lavender.  Not as good as my beloved ‘Peachy Keen’ but that is a high high bar that I will never shut up about.  Also, now that I think of it, not really trying to be the same thing… Also, I got super sleepy, super quick, so I think this works as a sleeper tea.
Steep #1 // 1 1/4 teaspoons for a full mug // 22 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 4 minute steep

I saved enough from the TTB to try one cup, but I wouldn’t have minded more of this one! It’s rich and nutty and chocolatey. Sweetened with milk and sugar, it made a really nice desserty tea!

A few weeks ago when my friend Todd was visiting, several days of lackluster sleep were starting to catch up with me, so I pulled this out even though it is a “newer” order (which I typically ignore to drink older teas first) just because it was only one of two yerba mate blends I had in my current stash. After opening the package I realized it was cut with rooibos and thus probably not the caffeinated bomb I was hoping for, but at that point I brewed it up anyway.

Todd and I both really enjoyed it! The tea smells like cinnamon and cheesecake, and the flavor isn’t far from that, either. The tea is very sweet, with strong notes of woodsy cinnamon and cream cheese. There is a little lingering spice in the aftertaste that I think may be the ginger, but it doesn’t really come out in the sip. I’m not sure if I could say I’m getting horchata specifically, though I definitely understand it. I think for me it’s more of a warm cinnamon bun with cream cheese frosting, which I’m equally down for! A very desserty cup. Makes a fine latte, as well.

I got this sample in Oxford. I overleafed this by a lot, but even so, it turned out pretty light. I taste red fruits, but nothing is very special. The resteep was super standard.

TTB! This was lightly appley and floral. The black base was very light, barely even noticeable. Hot, it tastes like nothing, but it was pretty enjoyable cold.

June Sipdown Challenge Prompt – a tea swap and sample tea

I have had this sample pack for a very long time. I may have ordered it, but it is possible someone sent it to me, and I am sorry if I have forgotten. It got overlooked because of being an unknown, and usually a night time tea with no caffeine is sought for pairing with a food and I had no idea how I would like this.

I love tea and ice cream and yesterday I had a tiny amount of leftover vanilla ice cream as well as some chocolate chip and pecan cookies I made a few days ago. I decided to make ice cream cookies and wrap them up in the freezer as a surprise dessert for Ashman, aka the Cookie Monster. I decided it was time to try this tea!

Wow! It knocked my socks off! The reviews already here are great descriptions already. This is nutty and dark, so so smooth, and roasty with no bitterness or smoke at all. No one has said hojicha, but I get a super smooth and silky hojicha vibe from this, but ultra soft and silky while still full of flavor. Almost milky.

Since two of us were drinking and Ashman like refills, I took their word for it that it resteeps well. I made it as they suggest – very short steeps at low temps increasing by ten seconds each. The instructions call for the whole 5 gram sample to be made in about 6 ounces water but I used seven ounces water. I made four steeps in a row and combined them in a big pot to share.

Edited to add: just discovered that there was a little tea left in the pot. It smelled like chocolate so strongly that I thought Ashman had emptied the pot and made a chocolate tea until I saw the golden color and realized what it was.

I would 100% order more to serve as our evening tea with Asian food or ice cream. Absolutely.

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – June 2025 Tea #2 - A flavored green tea

Not quite a sipdown yet, but I love this one.  Rhubarb!  Light and sweet bergamot!  Rose!  A buttery green tea base!  It must be melding together even better with age.  It’s mostly a sweet, light flavored tea at this point. I would definitely keep this tea around.

Just like most of the Dilmah bagged teas, this one is also pretty decent, with solid black tea base and naturally-tasting pineapple flavour. Nothing extraordinary, of course, but decent as a casual tea.

This reminds me of other peach black teas, but this is a super high quality version. In some cups, I can maybe taste the extra something desserty that makes it not just an apricot black tea. I like it best at room temperature with milk and sugar. The resteep tastes just as good as the first.

The flavor I taste most strongly is the sugar. It’s pleasant and sweet with milk and sugar, and sometimes I feel like I really can taste the boba, especially during the resteep. It’s nicest cold or at room temperature. I enjoy eating the boba after it’s finished steeping.

A sipdown! (M: 3 Y: 77) — prompt: A tea you can buy in your town or city

I consider myself lucky that I have a small corner shop in my town with a vast variety of Basilur teas.
This is one of the sampler I bought last year; and I think it’s great one… lots of good fruit infusions that you can almost pick any according to your current desire.

I will repeat myself from my last note… both fruits are present here, genuine and not artificial tasting; but unlike that note, I haven’t noticed too strong hibiscus — it’s not tart today. Thanks to that I am raising the rating.

I am a little sad that I haven’t tried this cold or iced; but ces’t la vie and I will try that method with other teas in my stash. And this one may return one day.

2025 Steepster TTB Tea

This has a high quality base, and it fairly malty and smooth. I get grainy notes. No sweetness at all from the tea. There are some cinnamon and vague pumpkin spice notes, but no pumpkin or buttery/cakey ones, which is what I was looking for. Even some vanilla would have been nice. Now, I did use just under a tsp of leaf for my cup (300 mL) since it is a small cup and I want to leave enough tea for the next person who receives the box. Maybe with more leaf it would have been a bit more well rounded. I tried brewing for quite a while (6 or 7 minutes) to compensate. I’m drinking this was a dash of unsweetened soy milk and wishing I had some agave or maple syrup to sweeten it with.

June 1st Sipdown Challenge Prompt – in honor of June’s birthstone, the pearl

Although I have had this tea before, Ashman has not. I told him we needed to drink it today to fulfill a prompt and told him we would have it at afternoon snack time. When asked if he had a preference for snack, he said his only request was that there be one. I made blueberry cobbler and we ate a remarkable amount of it, both of us going back for seconds which we don’t usually do for snacks.

We have only done two steeps so far but I will make another in a few minutes.

Notes are as before – it is a mild green tea without so much astringency and bite as I have come across in many jasmine teas and even in pearl tea. The jasmine is lovely and just right – not heavy and cloying but also more than just a whisper. I would definitely be willing to repurchase this tea.

I have received this tea from derk, quite a long time ago; and I felt I need to be very focused on this tea to enjoy it fully. And as I am home alone for once again, and I have a mood for damn good tea, I picked those 8 grams in small zip-lock bag; got water ready, preheated the gaiwan, measured half of the tea amount, and put tea in the gaiwan. Actually, I wanted to use all 8 grams; but I read the notes by others and rather used just half. That means I will have a chance to have this tea once more; with a proper sipdown.
Thank you a lot, derk that you send me such gems in the tea industry.

Dry leaves smell mostly after honey and cocoa, with some fruity line — it could be mentioned black currant by vendor; it could be something else, but nevertheless, it is a lovely scent.

I haven’t done any rinse, as, in my opinion, it doesn’t need any; as there are only nice twisted wires of leaves; nothing broken, no dust to strain.

First steep was only 10 seconds long, enough to wet the leaves; with first notes to appear in the drink as well. Leaves now smell really lovely, very familiar, but again, I feel short to point out what is it like. I think it could be again that black currant, but others say wintergreen. I am trying to recall if I ever had the experience with the latter and probably not at all. Just some teas that tasted like that before, but not the plant itself. If I look into Internet what wintergreen is, I found out many essential oils with such a scent.

The flavours are a bit weak, but hey, 10 seconds steep… you can’t have miracles.
It is a little tannic, however then the refreshing notes appear, fruity, something between red and black currants, hints of cocoa and woodsy. Long mouthfeel and aftertaste with cherry notes. Amazingly complex!

Second steep has been 12 seconds long; it seems I am more-less following Leafhopper’s note; brought much more darker liquor with a lovely aroma and I will tell it is that wintergreen.
Leaves started to be like chocolate covered cherries, a little bit reminding me griotte. The flavours exploded in my mouth, filling it with wonderful fruity notes; again the cocoa and the aftertaste is like the aroma of the leaves. And it’s long indeed!

Third steep, 15 seconds
I wish I could get high from the leaf aromas! It smells so nice and I could smell it very often. Narcotic isn’t probably the correct word for that, but my mind can’t bring other one.
This is chocolate covered cherry, there is nothing off-putting; lovely aromas rising from my teaware filling whole room; flavours that are mouthcoating like a honey… and that note appears in taste too, especially in the long aftertaste.

Fourth steep, 20 seconds
Oh my, that aroma from leaves. I know that I repeat myself. But it is such sooo nice. I am speechless.
As of flavours, it turns more into currant notes. Maybe a bit of herbaceous. Delightful woody notes; a little bit tannic, but note that there was a really low level to start from.

Fifth steep, 25 seconds
It started to fade, but it is not faded at all.
Currant-y flavoured goodness, with cocoa and woody notes. A little bit drying too.
A flaw? I don’t think so.

6th steep, 30 seconds
Still so fruity, so flavourful; drying and tannic level has risen a bit though.

And many, uncounted following steeps that are without written notes.

I saw a can of this RTD tea yesterday and I bought it right away. I saw well-known brand, so I thought it won’t be bad.

I haven’t checked the ingredients in the shop; but maybe I should next time.

First of all, it contains sugar. That’s not surprising, but me, who likes tea without any sweetener, it is a little dismal. Truth is that the amount is lower than expected; and maybe better sugar than artificial sweeteners or stevia.

Secondly, they claim it is Ceylon green tea. That’s not suprising either, as Dilmah is a brand from Sri Lanka. But Ceylon green teas were usually a miss for me.

But, well, I was drinking it and something was wrong. It is refreshing, jasmine is there, but a little bit hidden… not sure if is because of sugar, and it taste indeed like a green tea. But that aftertaste is weird, but what is it. I found out when I was finishing the can. It is like you used boiling water for a green tea. That creeping bitterness, which is very unwelcomed in green tea. Such a shame; it ruins the experience!

Lightly vegetal, some peppermint and very light buttery notes. I’m not getting chocolate or sweet desserty flavour at all. It’s fine, but not a dessert tea imo

This is one blend I’m keeping out of the TTB because I love it so much and it doesn’t appear to be popular with others.

I normally dislike hibiscus, but I actually like this one hot and cold over ice. I’ve had it hot several times. Although it is acidic and tart, there is also a lovely flavour in the green rooibos/green tea base. It’s quite fruity with melon and citrus notes. I’m finding it quite unique and an enjoyable summer cup.

I have managed to sip down most of the packet, and I enjoy the second steep better than the first. There is an astringent note that creeps in as it cools, so it’s best drunk early in the day and slurped quickly. I’ll probably add this to an order just because it’s a strong black tea Maybe I should read some Joyce?

A sipdown! (M: 4 Y: 69) prompt: The tea with the shortest name

I must admit, I was really aiming to finish this tea for the prompt, and honestly, these teas need to be consumed fairly quickly anyway.

I was genuinely surprised that, despite being packaged in a sturdy paper box and outer paper wrappings, it managed to keep its taste and aromas wonderfully locked in.

The tea was, predictably, very floral, but also fruity—I particularly noticed orange notes. Overall, it made for a very relaxing cuppa. While I’ll miss it to some extent, it might be more for the charming box than the taste itself. I’ll definitely keep one of the outer wrappings for my collection; it’s sure to bring back memories.