From vacation haul.
Honestly, this was pretty expensive for the amount of tea in the tin BUT it’s very very unique and now that I’ve tried it I actually don’t mind the price at all for the quality of it. It’s just gonna get used up quickly is all, and that’ll be disappointing…
I grabbed this one because of the unique combination of ingredients. The company, Algonquin Tea Co, was partnered with Cornelia Bean which is where I saw this one. They actually had about six different offerings but a lot of them seemed super wellness and religion based and that’s not really why I drink tea so they didn’t really interest me a ton. There was also one that was supposedly supposed to help with lucid dreaming? I didn’t really want to fuck with that though. So I grabbed this one solely because I thought I’d like the taste.
It smells really good to me; very fresh and outdoorsy with a lot of pine characteristic and sage undertones. I didn’t personally get much from the aroma in terms of the sweet grass in the blend, but most of what I was after was that strong pine aroma anyway and just going off scent this seemed to be a blend that would have a lot of that.
I brewed this one up at work, and I started with my normal four minutes that I do for Western styled teas – BUT I realized quickly that would have produced a really weak/bland tasting brew so I doubled that and steeped for eight minutes. I still think I could have pushed it even longer though, and would have got a more potent flavour without any negative repercussions. So that’s something I’ll keep in mind going forward.
This one brewed up really smooth though! I think it had a pretty equal representation of all three ingredients in the blend too: pine, sage, and sweet grass. That was a little surprising to me ‘cause I didn’t get the sweet grass at all from dry aroma but I got A LOT of pine. Not a complaint though! In fact, I really like the sweet, sappy quality from the sweet grass and the pine combined. And I love sage in general; it’s such a pleasant, soft herbaceous quality that’s really peaceful/relaxing. Overall, it just tasted really natural (kind of obvious that it would based on the ingredients though) and fresh. Reminded me of taking a walk in the forest; and also of those “Douglas Fir” candles that come out around the holidays – but just more stripped down, mellow and realistic. It would be a good tea for quite reflection or just meditation in general, I think.
Very happy with this one.
Flavors: Herbaceous, Pine, Raisins, Sage, Sap, Sweet, Warm Grass
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Good to know, good to know. If I am not mistaken, I have seen this one along my travels here in the city, though for the life of me, I can’t recall where.
Aha! Our tea festival lineup came out today and this is one of the featured blenders. I wonder whether they will bring this blend with them. I’d like to try it if it is available in small bits, but I am wary about the sage.
Embrace the sage! It’s just such a peaceful flavour.
Not so much the flavour, but the herb has negative effects on my various health issues. And THAT is a huge concern. Depends on the proportion of sage versus other ingredients in the blend though.
Ah, that’s completely understandable!
Good to know, good to know. If I am not mistaken, I have seen this one along my travels here in the city, though for the life of me, I can’t recall where.
Aha! Our tea festival lineup came out today and this is one of the featured blenders. I wonder whether they will bring this blend with them. I’d like to try it if it is available in small bits, but I am wary about the sage.
Embrace the sage! It’s just such a peaceful flavour.
Not so much the flavour, but the herb has negative effects on my various health issues. And THAT is a huge concern. Depends on the proportion of sage versus other ingredients in the blend though.
Ah, that’s completely understandable!