95
drank Golden Monkey by Tazo
1737 tasting notes

I’m in a mild state of mourning regarding the demise of Tazo. I just feel that Starbucks really dropped the ball on this one. They focused on coffee in the stores, where most of the people are coffee drinkers, and then wondered why the Tazo tea did not sell. The only place to buy the loose varieties (which were always the best) was online at the Starbucks site (again, the last place where tea drinkers are going to be looking for tea!), and in one store in NYC, now closed down.

Teavana, meanwhile, had their own huge network of franchises, so obviously they were bound to make more money than the Tazo acquisition, even with primary sales of “chunk o’ food” blends. The Tazo Collection series of high-quality whole-leaf loose tea came packaged in excellent ziplock foil envelopes about a million times better than the nonsensical paper bags provided at Teavana as a ploy to get customers to buy their humongous and ridiculous canisters. Bad management, and the end of yet another once good company, eaten up through the avaricious forces of corporatization.

So today’s afternoon black brew was Tazo Golden Monkey. My first Golden Monkey, and invariably wonderful. Beautiful golden shimmery leaves make up most of the dried tea, with gold dust to go with it. An unsweetened caramel flavor suffuses this rich and luscious brew. I love this stuff. Fortunately I have one more large envelope to go…

Flavors: Caramel

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 30 sec 4 g 12 OZ / 354 ML
cookies

Demise of Tazo? Just in Starbucks or in grocery stores/online as well?

Blodeuyn

What cookies said… demise?

sherapop

I’m not sure about grocery stores, but the whole line is being purged from Starbucks, cookies and Blodeuyn! The looseleaf Collection teas left the website a couple of months ago, and now the tins in the stores are on 30% off to clear them out.

TeaBrat

I won’t miss them personally…

sherapop

I know that a lot of people around here agree with you, TeaBrat, but they were really my gateway to decent tea, the first to take me beyond Celestial Seasonings, so I am a bit nostalgic…

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cookies

Demise of Tazo? Just in Starbucks or in grocery stores/online as well?

Blodeuyn

What cookies said… demise?

sherapop

I’m not sure about grocery stores, but the whole line is being purged from Starbucks, cookies and Blodeuyn! The looseleaf Collection teas left the website a couple of months ago, and now the tins in the stores are on 30% off to clear them out.

TeaBrat

I won’t miss them personally…

sherapop

I know that a lot of people around here agree with you, TeaBrat, but they were really my gateway to decent tea, the first to take me beyond Celestial Seasonings, so I am a bit nostalgic…

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

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Bio

I have fallen off the “tea log boat”, as I am now in New Zealand and was really flailing about for a while, having depleted all of my Chinese and Japanese green tea supply! Fortunately, my first order of 2015 has now arrived! I should begin writing very soon about tea at my new blog, sherapop’s tea leaves. Please stop by and contribute your ideas—all viewpoints are welcome!

A long-time tea and perfume lover, I have recently begun to explore the intersections between the two at my blog: http://salondeparfum-sherapop.blogspot.com//

The scent of tea can be just as appealing as—sometimes more than—its taste! Tea also offers boundless visual beauty in its various forms and states of preparation.

A few words about my ratings. In assessing both teas and perfumes, my evaluation is “all things considered.” Teas do not differ very much in price (relative to perfumes or any luxury items), so I do not usually consider the price when rating a tea.

What I do consider is how the particular tea compares to teas of its own type. So I might give a high rating to a fine herbal infusion even though I would never say that it is my favorite TEA. But if it’s good for what it is, then it deserves a high rating. There is no point in wishing that a chamomile blend was an Assam or a sencha tea!

Any rating below 50 means that I find the liquid less desirable to drink than plain water. I may or may not finish the cup, depending upon how thirsty I am and whether there is another hot beverage or (in summertime) a source of fresh water available.

From 50 to 60 indicates that, while potable, the tea is not one which I would buy or repurchase, if I already made the mistake (I have learned) of purchasing it.

From 60 to 70 means that the tea is drinkable but I have criticisms of some sort, and I probably would not purchase or repurchase the tea as I can think of obvious alternatives which would be better.

From 70 to 80 is a solid brew which I would purchase again.

From 80 to 90 is good stuff, and I probably need to have some ready at hand in my humble abode.

From 90 to 100 is a tea (or infusion) which I have come to depend on and look forward to imbibing again and again—if possible!

If you are interested in perfume, you might like my 2400+ perfume reviews, most of which have been archived at sherapop’s sillage (essentially my perfumelog):

http://sherapop.blogspot.com/

Finally, please note that after a great deal of debate with myself, I have decided to use the cupboard here at Steepster as a “museum” of sorts—to commemorate all of the various teas which I have purchased and truly enjoyed since December 2013.

I do not currently possess all of the teas listed in this cupboard, but am using the function as a way of recording how many times I drank every tea which I did own at some point and wish not to forget. Teas found both in my “cupboard” and on my “wishlist” are those which I did own and intend to restock. Teas best forgotten have been removed from the cupboard once depleted (in some cases tossed…).

I have also decided (beginning in 2015) to use the tasting note function to maintain a chronological record of the teas I’ve consumed since December 15, 2013. Most new reviews will now be posted directly at my blog, sherapop’s tea leaves.

Location

Curio Bay, South Island, New Zealand

Website

http://salondeparfum-sherapop...

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