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Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #9
I just watched the third Hobbit movie the other day. :D Happy to see this one in the teabox to try! Oolong and Tahitian vanilla? sure! And boy is this an oolong fit for those elves. It’s like nectar of flowers… and fruit… and this lovely vanilla and this oolong is so smooth. The fruits sometimes seem like pear and peach and cherry. So so good & gorgeous. I don’t think I’ve tried an Anxi Ben Shan before… but I think I remember Ali Shan being very fruity and mostly pear. I’m not sure what these cedar leaves bring to the table, but nothing that doesn’t fit with this cup. I couldn’t think of a better name for this one either. I just love the creamy floral fruitiness of it.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// 15 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 7 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // 3-4 minute steep

This is another that Zen sent over for the teabox. Such soft, delicate, crumbly leaves with this one. So many colors to the leaves as well – from white to the darkest green. The flavor is light, lovely and sweet. It tastes like sweet creamed corn, probably because the texture of the tea is very smooth and silky too. One of the lightest green teas there are, while still maintaining a ton of flavor. The second steep has much of the same flavor but with a little more depth and strength. Overall, a fantastic, light, tasty, sweet, refreshing green tea. Not overly vegetal at all. A great example of this type of green tea if you’re looking to try it.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// 30 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 25 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #8
A headache means I dove in the teabox for a minty blend. Found this one right away and it’s delicious. Plenty of smooth mint with hints of chocolate. The yogurt pieces really make it even smoother. The apple mentioned in the description seems a little weird but I don’t taste much apple. I always love a chocolate mint herbal and this is a perfect example of the type. Though I wouldn’t protest more chocolate. I’m not sure if this company makes their own teas though. The description of the toffee tea sounds very much like the one from the angry tea company. So does the pumpkin rooibos.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheBeesTeas?page=1

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #7
Another tea company I haven’t tried before! I’ve been drinking tea for years and it’s amazing that there are so many teas out there. Even though some shops might repackage teas from other companies. This one is just labeled Canadian Maple, but I searched for that and I saw that the picture of the Angry Teabag was the same. :D Why is the teabag so mad?! But whoa is the maple accurate. This tea is sweet sweet maple syrup on a medium black tea base (that actually looks like it could be maple syrup.) I’m not sure where the cocoa comes in, since I’m not tasting it. I’d rather this just be maple anyway. Another tea shop that looks like it has some interesting blends (caramel popcorn movie night, candy cane, some pumpkin blends). And this is the ONLY one on Steepster. sigh.
http://angrytearoom.com/collections/front-page

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #6
Another winner from the teabox. A lovely flavored black tea that is pure sweet toffee and dessert goodness. The resulting brew is a medium brown. Both steeps full of flavor! I haven’t heard of this Etsy shop before, and this is EXACTLY why I love teaboxes. To find tea shops like these. I hope I find the eggnog blend in the teabox… I’d really like to try more of their blends. Thank you to whomever included this one! Here is the link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheBeesTeas?page=1
All six teas have been winners from the teabox so far!

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #5
These “red pearls” are some of the twistiest and shiniest leaves I’ve seen yet. They seem more like snails rather than pearls though. They actually remind me of the new version of Zen’s Phoenix Pearls. Silky rather than fuzzy. The flavor is phenomenal. This brew that looks like a cup of coffee has smokey notes and the flavor profile of a keemun. Two great steeps of bittersweet chocolate here! I barely got any sleep last night, so this was a teabox winner.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// few minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3-4 minute steep

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #4
Sipped this one yesterday. Now here is a dessert tea! You can hardly tell this one is tea, it’s so sweet. The green tea is hardly noticeable in the both the flavor and the blend (so many goodies). I’m not sure why this mentions ‘blackberries’ in the blend. I’m not sure if it means leaves or the fruit, but I can’t taste either one. No fruitiness or that medicinal bitterness of the blackberry leaf. No chicory taking over either. The main note is like white chocolate or toffee. Very delicious — both steeps. This is why I love teaboxes!

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #3
A solid black tea – malty and sweet, medium bodied. The leaves are crinkly, like a crumbled golden monkey. The brew color is a rusty red. A tasty tea but nothing that makes it stand out. (That might be the fault of the thin pouch here.)

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #2
I’m always willing to try any of TheNecessiteas teas! However, this one isn’t on their website so I can’t really tell how old it is. The flavor still seems delicious anyway! It’s more of a syrupy sweet flavor along with some nuttiness that should be walnuts. It’s not fakey banana anyway. I love banana bread! The second steep was also really flavorful – definite walnuts. Not sure how that happens without noticeable walnuts in the blend… A nice smooth and sweet rooibos as well. I’d really love to try more Necessiteas blends. I wish they offered sample sizes.

Here’s Hoping Traveling Teabox – Round #5 – Tea #1
The teabox is back and signups are available for round six in the forums! Please join up if you’re in the US!
This is the first one I chose with barely a dive into the teas. It’s also the first of the NEW 52Teas blends I get to try! From a glance at the tasting notes, I like this one more than most (probably because of the Lapsang.) I’m not sure if the name is accurate, but this is a mighty tasty cup. It tastes like some sort of dessert (probably the nutmeg or caramel) but with some smokiness along with it. Sweet and cinnamon and thirst quenching. The second cup seems a little weaker though and most of the smoke is gone. Maybe those who don’t like the smoke can try the second steep and like it better?
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// few minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3-4 minute steep