187 Tasting Notes

60
drank Jasmine Pearls by Golden Moon Tea
187 tasting notes

This is one of those teas that falls into the “eh” category. A take it or leave it kind of tea.

But frankly, right now, I’m pretty happy to be drinking tea. I really haven’t had ANY since January 1st.

I actually have three different kinds of Jasmine Pearls in the house, thanks to takgoti! I figured I’d try the Golden Moon one first, before I try some high-quality takgoti versions.

The look of this tea is gorgeous! Pretty little pearls, a beautiful blue-green with yellow strings interspersed. So soft and silky to the touch. The pearls smell like a juicy, floral jasmine. They’re extremely fragrant. Each pearl has jasmine seeped right into it. I couldn’t wait to see what these leaves would do in the water!

They unfurl beautifully once the hot water touches them. I was a bit disappointed that they didn’t unfurl more than I thought they would. Most of them were still somewhat rolled by the time my timer rang.

So I poured, and the wet leaves smell like a milder version of the dry. And the infusion smelled delicious, with a rich, heady jasmine scent. A sweet green smell underlying it as well. And such a pretty light yellow! Similar more to a white tea than a green, actually.

The light color should have tipped me off to the taste of this tea. Because it’s very light, especially when hot. The jasmine doesn’t really come through until the aftertaste, and the forefront of the flavor is definitely a Chinese green taste: a bit bitter and vegetal, maybe a bit mineral-like.

The problem is just that the tea is just too flavorless and unexciting. It’s not that it’s a bad tea, perse. It’s just I wanted a fuller tea taste, and more body. Not necessarily bold and brisk and strong, like a black. Just more rounded and interesting, especially on the jasmine front.

In short, the tea is weakness. Maybe a good introduction to jasmine, but I don’t see it winning any awards. I’m sure that there are better jasmine pearl teas out there.

Second Steep

So I decided to steep this a second time, at 3:30 minutes, and the same water temperature. The leaves opened up a little bit more, but still didn’t completely unfurl. Odd. The juice was around the same color as the first time, except with a bit more of a honey tone. The tea had a bit of a thicker mouthfeel, and much more sweetness. The sweetness became a bit overbearing after a while, though, with the jasmine only appearing as an aftertaste. After the tea cooled, it seriously began to taste like Juicy Fruit gum. I don’t know why, or how. But it was bizarre. More of like an aftertaste of Juicy Fruit. Like you’ve chewed it for too long and you spit it out, and then your whole mouth feels like it.

Really odd.

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec
Auggy

That’s too bad. It might really step up in the second steep if you feel daring, though. I think I’ve run into a few that are like that.

takgoti

Too bad indeed. I’ve also found that jasmines open up a lot more as they cool down. Did you find that with this one? Anyhow, I hope the ones I sent meet you well. For its ubiquity, jasmine tea seems to be difficult to get right.

teaplz

I think I might steep it again, just to try it… and yes, it definitely got better as it cooled. I thought I mentioned that… but I guess that didn’t make it into my review. :(

takgoti

Apparently [after a re-read] you eluded to it, but I was just too dense to pick up on it. My bad.

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92
drank Marco Polo by Mariage Frères
187 tasting notes

Happy New Year, Steepsters!

So, I said that my first tea of the new year would be Marco Polo by Mariage Freres, and I lived up to my word. takgoti sent me some in her amazing box of wonders, and I’ve been dying to try it since I first smelled it. I don’t know how she held out for so long.

Let me tell you, this has to be the most delicious smelling tea I’ve ever stuck my nose in. Seriously, amazingly delicious-smelling. Sweet strawberries bursting with a juicy and full aroma, layered with creamy vanilla and subtle hints of black tea. It is an experience for the nose, let me tell you. Once you smell this, you may never come up for air again. Unless it smells like Marco Polo, that is.

So I dumped this in the pot, nearly jumping up and down with excitement. The leaves are fairly small, although there are some wiry pieces mixed in, and each single leaf has the intoxicating aroma I’ve been describing. How do I know this? I picked one up and took a big sniff. Yep. Marco Polo.

The tea juice that arrived in my cup on the pour was rich and decadent smelling. The wet leaves smelled very similar to the infusion, so I’ll just skip that. A lighter version of the dry scent, with the vanilla battling the strawberry-ish tones in a symphony of amazing. First sip… and I’m happy surprised! No, this tea does not taste as it smells. But would you want it to? That’d probably be ridiculously cloying and overwhelming.

The taste is a rich, slightly bitter and astringent black tea, layered with a hint of creaminess (without the taste of vanilla). There’s a bit of a floral soapiness. And I mean this in the best way possible, although that sounds a bit bizarre now that I’ve typed it out. Unless there was soap in my cup/IngenuiTEA, which would then be pretty interesting. Then the tea opens up in pure berry goodness. It’s not a strong, domineering flavor, so if you’re expecting to be assaulted by berry, then you’re thinking of the wrong tea. It’s almost entirely in the aftertaste, a sweet-tart combination of strawberry-ish bliss. Very full and red and rich. It’s a sweetness and specifically strawberry taste that lingers on the tongue long after you’ve swallowed.

I definitely did hit the temperature point that takgoti mentioned. There’s this magical point when the berry comes to the forefront of the cup. It doesn’t last for very long, but it does indicate that there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface than what you first might think.

This tea tastes distinctly French. I have no idea why. It just does. And it’s completely a tea for the senses. You should be smelling and sniffing this as much as you’re tasting it and allowing it to roll around on your tongue. I highly recommend that you aerate the tea on your tongue. Slurp some sips, that way the full body can be tasted. Sort of like what you do with wine.

I finished this about 5 minutes ago and the sweet berry and cream components are still lingering in my mouth, in a wonderful fashion.

Yes, Mariage Freres is expensive, but it’s so worth it. One of the better flavored teas I’ve experienced!

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec
Cofftea

What am I missing here? Is it just because black teas aren’t my preference?

Doulton

Great review. I just love your writing! My experience was just like your experience with it. I have ordered the Mariage Freres tea called Eros and will review it when it arrives.

teaplz

Thanks, Doulton! This one is absolutely delicious. I love that you can actually taste the black tea! All too often flavored teas have weak bases. This one tasted like tea, and that’s what I loved about it!

takgoti

Yay! I always get a little worried when I get so hyped up for something. Part of me was scared that you would hate it. I don’t know why. So glad you enjoyed it!

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49

It’s nearly the New Year here on the East Coast, so I decided to relax a little bit before the party I have to attend and have some caffeine-free stuff. So I pulled out more TG stuff, specifically, Strawberry Pepper.

When I heard that they had a strawberry pepper tea, I leapt at the chance to try it! I love it when sweet blends with savory (an aside: if you’ve ever had Moroccan food, they do a great job of blending the two), so I couldn’t pass this up. The leaves smell pretty much entirely of strawberry. It’s a very juicy-tart strawberry. Not particularly overly sweet, like a vanilla-strawberry. Just a plain strawberry. There’s a bit of a rooibos smell underlying the tea. Not very strong, but it’s present.

It steeps up to a very pretty strawberry-red, and the smell coming off the cup is a deep, juicy strawberry. So if you like strawberries, this will definitely get you pumped to taste it. The taste… is interesting! It’s actually a bit more watery than I expected it to be. I wanted a more robust strawberry taste. I might need to steep this a bit longer, even though I steeped it at the amount that TG suggested. The rooibos flavor is completely overwhelmed by the strawberryness. There’s flashes of subtle woodsy sweet, but it’s really just a base to hold up the strawberry flavor.

As for the pepper… it didn’t really come out strong in this cup. There was a slight tingling sensation on my tongue, but it wasn’t a flavor. It was more of a feeling. Maybe my peppercorns all dipped to the bottom of the bag, but I made sure to shake it. Maybe I just didn’t get enough of the peppercorn in there. Anyway, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t manifest itself as a full flavor, but rather as a bit of heat.

I’m not the biggest fan of strawberries, and I tend to like them somewhat on the sweeter side, or mixed with something creamy (like vanilla-ish things. So if you like tart-ripe strawberries, you’d probably like this. This one would probably be pretty interesting iced as well. And maybe even sweetened a little bit, if you want it to have more of a sweeter strawberry flavor.

Overall, though, I think this is a great herbal to relax with and sip. I actually feel like it’s more of a daytime tea than a nighttime one, and it tastes very summary. It’s not particularly a favorite of mine, but I could see someone else really liking this one and getting into its unique flavor profile. It’s a bit fruity and one-note for me. I prefer a bit more body and oomph to my tea-drinking experience.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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95
drank Bai Mu Dan by Samovar
187 tasting notes

I am making audible happy noises as I’m drinking this. Thanks to takgoti, of course. MY GOD.

This is probably the most delicious cup of tea I’ve had in a few days. Seriously. SO. GOOD.

I felt like a white tea this afternoon, and I began rummaging around. I almost tried the Adagio Jasmine Silver Needle that Auggy sent me, but then the thought of this popped into my mind, so I decided to steep some up.

This doesn’t really smell like much dry, but the leaves are so pretty! Like real leaves. And downy tips. So pretty. Everything pretty much looks nearly whole. The infusion is a very light honey color. Beautiful to look at. And the smell is sweet like corn, with woodsy highlights.

On my first sip, I literally made an audible “MMMM” noise. It was very loud. And then I gave a little gasp on the swallow, because this baby has depth. It’s very light tasting, but actually pretty heavy on the flavor department. There’s a lot of complex layers going on here. I feel like I can get lost in this. So unexpected and deep, yet so completely sippable and drinkable!

So let’s try to explain this. I’m a bit incoherent right now cause I’m so excited about the taste of this, and I’m still in awe over the flavors that are packed in here, but we’re going to try. There’s deepness here. Toasty notes, as well as pure sweet and floral notes. I’m definitely getting the sweet corn that takgoti mentioned, kissed with a light bit of butter. Delicious and rich. There’s also the feeling of cocoa. I can’t explain this one… not the flavor of it, but the overall end feeling of taking a sip of that drink. I’m getting some sort of nutty flavor, maybe a bit of walnut?

There’s a mouthfeel here too. I think that’s the first time I’ve noticed it. A thickness, a deliciousness that cannot be described. No astringency whatsoever. This is a tea that just keeps on giving. I love the lingering feeling on my tongue of nectar and honey and goodness. I am just finding that I love white tea in general. How something light could be so deep… it’s almost like the Caribbean waters.

The flavors here are so round and pronounced, yet so different, distinct, and enjoyable. I really can’t even begin to properly describe this cup. I’d just suggest getting some for yourself. THANK YOU TAK-TAK FOR AMAZINGNESS, as usual!

Preparation
160 °F / 71 °C 2 min, 45 sec
Ricky

White tea, walnuts, corn and cocoa. Sounds so weird yet so delicious!

takgoti

Wheee! I actually feel like your review makes more sense than mine, but I’m a bit ecstatic that you enjoyed this so much. It really is a very good tea. And I get what you mean by the cocoa thing, I think, but I can’t describe it either.

And now we’re conversing about it anyway, so I’m just going to tell everyone else what we decided – it’s like essence of cocoa, but instead of getting actual the cocoa flavor, it’s everything else. The texture, the darkness, etc. It’s really abstract, but that’s the best we could do.

I also think that it might be partially due to the walnut component of the tea.

teaplz

takgoti is absolutely right! Ricky, I think the only “flavor” per-se that’s really going to come across strongly out of that list is the sweet corn, and maybe a bit of woodsy walnut-ness. Of course, white tea typical flavors… but much richer, deeper, and darker, while still being ridiculously light. It’s like a well of flavor! And mouth feelings and teases and flashes of something else, something more… the walnuts and cocoa are that “something more.” It really is sweet and delicious though!

Ricky

You guys are making my Samovar shopping list grow…. evil evil evil.

Cofftea

@Ricky. White tea, got it. Walnuts, eh could get soggy and weird but got it. cocoa, YUM! But… CORN ??? Is a matcha mill on your Samovar list yet?

Ricky

Let’s just make our own Bai Mu Dan blend. I’ll supply the corn :D

No matcha mill…. yet… I’m going the old fashion way, mortar and pestle.

Cofftea

@Ricky, you actually grind your own w/ a mortar and pestle vs buying it preground (except for your Rishi matcha)? WOW! Do you use tencha or some other tea? What brand?

teaplz

There’s no corn in the tea! Or walnuts… or cocoa. No flavoring. It’s just plain leaves. Those were tasting notes. :(

Cofftea

@teaplz haha ok- darn. I was kinda psyched up for it lol.

Ricky

Haha, no. Sorry for the confusion. I don’t even own a mortar and pestle. I’ve always wanted one though =X. I always accidentally purchase ingredients as a whole.

Cofftea

Yeah that may be smart. Matcha tends to fly if you even think about breathing so I think that’d be a big mess.

TeaCast

Can’t believe I haven’t had any samovar yet, this will be changing in early 2010. Wow.

didi

I love your description of the mouthfeel! right on!

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34
drank Banana Walnut by TeaGschwendner
187 tasting notes

If you know me, you know that I love bananas. LOVE them. I think they’re probably the best fruit ever. Extremely sweet and creamy, perfectly portable (moreso than any other fruit, since they don’t even need to be washed!), and delicious in desserts. Bananas and chocolate is probably the best combination ever. And a frozen banana, dipped in chocolate and then sprinkled with nuts? Heaven!

So I was really excited to try this tea, since I’m a huge banana fan. But fake banana stuff tastes bad. You can’t extract an oil or an essence from a banana. It just doesn’t work. They don’t have that. So I’d imagine banana-flavored tea is a difficult thing to accomplish.

Anyway, when I opened the bag from TG, I was immediately hit with the smell of a somewhat artificial banana. Maybe a Laffy Taffy-style smell? It was actually a lot more authentic than I’ve smelled before. There was also a nutty scent of walnuts. I was nervous.

The leaves are fairly smallish, and there are walnut leaves and tiny banana pieces mixed in. It’s all very pretty. So I threw it into my pot, and let it steep up. The resulting infusion smelled a bit better than the try leaves. A bit more buttery and creamy, with more walnut accents. A bit less fake.

On my first sip, I was midly surprised! The tea actually tastes like tea. The flavoring is sort of an afternote. You start with a fairly brisk black, and then it evolves a bit into a walnut taste. It’s a combination of that specific astringency that comes along with eating walnuts, and an overall nutty taste. It’s very subtle, but it’s there if you concentrate. The aftertaste is a creamy banana-ish flavor. Sort of like bananas in cream. Or maybe banana candy. It’s sweet, but not cloying, and definitely not overwhelming. If it was, I think this tea would be dead in the water.

I would have liked it if the bananas had tasted a bit more natural, but I realize that that’s pretty much impossible to create in a banana tea. I did finish my cup, but it’s not a tea that I can imagine drinking regularly. It definitely is balanced, and entirely drinkable, but it would get tiring every single day if you had to drink this over and over again.

So overall, not a huge disappointment. I didn’t expect this to be a perfect 10. After all, banana is hard to replicate. Passable.

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 0 sec
takgoti

I also love bananas [though maybe not to the extent that you do!], but I don’t mind artificial banana taste. I love, love, love banana runts. Sorry the banana part of the tea is a letdown. The rest of it sounded good!

Micah

The way you describe the layers of flavor really make this sound like a winner.

Banana flavor is definitely hit or miss. Even dried bananas don’t really taste all that much like bananas. But I also don’t really mind artificial banana flavor. When I was a kid my favorite popsicles were the (definitely artificial) banana ones. Tasted nothing like bananas but I thought they were the greatest.

Kitch3ntools

i love the flavor of bananas and i even like artificial banana flavor but the texture of them grosses me out so i gag if i try to eat them (im weird lol)

Ricky

Doesn’t Art of Tea have some banana tea? I hear it has chocolate in it too :D

teaplz

Ricky, the boyfriend gave me the Dessert Sampler for Christmas from Art of Tea, with the banana and chocolate and pink peppercorn rooibos! :D

takgoti, I LOVE RUNTS. Banana. Mmmmm. Some of this tea is coming your way anyway! Yay!
Kitch3ntools, hahaha! I’ve had textural issues before too. Onions make me gag. Literally.

Micah, I remember those fake banana popsicles! They tasted gross in an amazing way.

Kitch3ntools

lol onions do have a weird texture. banana, jello, and like rice pudding are the 3 textures i gag at lolz but oddly enough i LOVE chunky mashed potatoes!

banana runts are amazing! i like the new chewy (they my not be that new lol) runtz

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20
drank Sencha by Golden Moon Tea
187 tasting notes

Color me unimpressed. :(

I read Auggy’s review of this, so I went into this with a bit of trepidation. My first sencha, and it’s very disappointing!

Anyway, the leaves look pretty! Very needle-like. I haven’t seen anything like this yet (no Japanese greens for me so far). It… doesn’t really smell like anything. If I breathe hot air onto it, I get somewhat of a buttery note, but other than that… nothing.

So I steeped this one up, and I was really surprised at how light the infusion was! It’s such a ridiculously pale yellow that I did a double-take. Lighter than a lot of the white tea I’ve tried.

And the taste… well, it’s a bit non-existent. It’s like hot water, with some bitterness at the end, as well as some astringency. The smell is a bit buttery and grassy, but I’m not getting anything remotely like that in the taste. At all. There’s the faintest taste of sweet, but I’m really having to search for it like crazy. It just tastes like really odd, hot water. I don’t even really feel like I’m drinking tea, which sort of makes me upset.

I didn’t have tea all day, as I was out, traipsing about in the mall. And I went to Teavana for the first time! The store was packed out, and no one bothered me… but I tried their sample tea and nearly gagged. It was Jasmine Pearl mixed with Rooibos Tropical. Not only did the tea taste awful, but it was so ridiculously over-sweetened that it was a nightmare. DISGUSTING.

A disappointing tea day! Let’s hope tomorrow will be better!

Preparation
170 °F / 76 °C 2 min, 0 sec
Auggy

Yes, they put lovely things together to make them nasty and dump honey in it. Not good.

Sorry this was your first sencha. :( But on the plus side, things can only get better, right?

takgoti

Ew. Ditto on the condolences as to this being your first sencha. They can be awesome, so hopefully you’ll drink one soon!

I happen to own that particular tea from Teavana, and it’s never been flavorful for me. Never tried it with sugar, but I’d just be drinking sugar water, I’m pretty sure. I’m throwing out the stuff I have from them, actually. Good riddance.

Micah

That sucks! I’m sorry that that was your introduction to Japanese greens because they are an incredible group of teas.

And Teavana can be a scary place sometimes. They have some great teas there – although you can usually get the same thing for a better price somewhere else – but, based on my personal experience, the blends they come up with just aren’t executed well.

Ricky

I was going to say, haven’t you realized GM’s plain tea are generally pretty bland….then I realized I actually liked this Sencha. The first time I drank Sencha (Adagios), I hated it. You should try Den’s tea sampler for $3, they give you a variety of Sencha. It’ll be a new tea year soon! Yay!

Carolyn

@Ricky I totally agree. I’m getting to the point that if something is available at Den’s Tea and somewhere else, I buy at Den’s. Their quality and customer service are just that good.

Auggy

@Micah I would have said that their blends are insane and disturbing but you said it much nicer. Thumbs up!

Micah

@Auggy Haha! Well, I can’t say that they AREN’T insane and disturbing. I guess I’m just skilled in diplomacy…. or something. =P

teaplz

I definitely have hope for the Japanese greens! I could taste somewhere, under the complete blandness of it, that there could be something potentially good from sencha. And the cup smelled really good if I sniffed at it hard enough! Interestingly enough, when this hit room temperature, it started tasting sweeter. I HAVE NO IDEA WHY.

Ricky and Carolyn, I’ll definitely have to try that in the future, but right now I have too much tea to play around with!

And yeah, Teavana… so much honey/sugar/something else. UGH. There was also an Amanzi Tea in the mall as well (http://amanzitea.com/) and they had a Rooibos Cream Caramel. It was overly sugared as well, to the point of the texture changing and becoming syrupy. EW.

Micah

I think I added this to the Golden Moon order I just put in… yep. I probably wouldn’t have if I had remember that this review was of a sencha from GM but I didn’t realize that. Oh well!

There will probably be a review of this by me sometime next week and, judging from yours and Auggy’s review, I won’t be impressed. =/

Ricky

Aww, you should have just bought the whole sampler :D teareviewblog promo code for free shipping. I checked and it was still working a few days ago.

Micah

Consarn it!!

I’m going to go rush off and see it I can edit the order.

Micah

… I can’t. Oh well, life goes on.

Ricky

Try calling?

teaplz

Micah, oh POO. I hope you can still call them or something, because the sampler box is the bees knees.

Carolyn

@Micah Seriously if they haven’t shipped it already try writing them or calling. Golden Moon has some of the best customer service I’ve dealt with. They’ve helped me out in the past.

Micah

I did call them and they were wonderful! The tea sampler ships on Monday and I’m super excited!

Carolyn

Great! I’m glad. They are really one of my favorite companies to buy from.

teaplz

YAY! Awesome! Oh my, I’m seriously super-excited for you! Welcome to the GM sampler set club, hehe! It’s been fun and awesome being able to share and drink a lot of the tea everyone else is having!

takgoti

WHEEEEE! That made me ridiculously happy, actually. I love good customer service stories.

And had it not been for you, Carolyn, I never would have heard of Golden Moon. I have a tin of Sinharaja sitting on my desk that’s there solely due to you!

They’re based pretty close to where I live, so I seriously want to crash their office.

Auggy

Hahahahaha! I feel like we are a cult that just got a new member! Welcome Micah! :)

Micah

Aww! Well, even if this is a crazy, creepy cult, I’m glad to be here. This website/group of tea fanatics has totally reinvigorated my love for tea. I had kind of slumped into just keeping a few favorites on hand and not even drinking tea everyday. Now I’m discovering new teas and companies and it’s wonderful! So thanks everyone! Glad to be here!

Auggy

Aw, yay! That’s so awesome! I wasn’t in a slump but the folks on here have introduced me to lots of great teas and vendors it makes tea exciting again!

takgoti

Goat sacrifices on alternate Wednesdays. Don’t forget to contact Auggy about picking up your complimentary Snuggie.

Auggy

STOP IT, you dork!

Micah

Goat sacrifice, eh? I’ll bring the pu-erh knife!

Ricky

I’ve got the pu-erh cake. =( I actually do! Well what’s left of it anyways. Welcome to Steepster, where friends help to run your wallet dry. Oh the irony!

teaplz

We also have a complimentary matcha mill where you can grind up an entire Thanksgiving dinner into a tea!

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47
drank African Autumn by Harney & Sons
187 tasting notes

First Harney from the loose leaf order! I threw this sample in as a kind of throwaway to meet free shipping, and to have some more caffeine-free/decaf options in my house. I wanted to cry when I steeped this up, as I picked up the sample packet upside-down, open, and dropped about 3/4 of it all over the place.

:(

:( :( :(

But I managed to salvage most of it, and it’s back in the bag. Anyway, the tea smells delicious. Like cranberry and orange, with a little woodsy flair. It also looks pretty rooibos-ish, with little bits of orange things and whatnot. I used Adagio’s tea filters for the first time, since rooibos doesn’t need to expand, and I think it was a smart choice. The last time I made rooibos in the pot it got all stuck in the filter and was incredibly annoying to clean out.

So while cleaning the rooibos off my floor, I steeped this up for myself and the boyfriend. The resulting infusion is a very beautiful red color, rich and pretty. The boyfriend thinks this looks like cough syrup. WHATEVER.

Anyway, the wet leaves and the tea itself doesn’t smell as strongly as the dry. On the first sip, I was midly pleased. I could taste cranberry and orange, and under it all, as an aftertaste, that woodsy sweet rooibos taste that I’m really growing to like. But as my cup cooled down, things took a turn for the south.

I’m tasting hibiscus. I’m not sure if it’s really hibiscus, and it’s just my head playing tricks with me, or my tastebuds revolting, but it’s got that tart hibiscus taste that’s pretty different than cranberries. And now I can’t get that thought out of my head, and all this tea makes me this of is an upscale Celestial Seasonings Zinger. A type of tea that I’m definitely not a fan of.

I think there’s a lot of subtle nuances of flavor in there that elevate it above a typical Zinger, but the forefront of the flavor is pretty much that dreaded flower. Followed by some orange notes, and finished with rooibos goodness. It’s a bit tart for me, overall… this might actually be better iced, or gasp even finished with a bit of sugar to round it out.

Is it a bad tea? Not at all! I just don’t think it’s stellar, and I couldn’t imagine ordering more once this little sample packet is done. The boyfriend says that it’s good. “Very tart. Not a favorite, not very smooth. I can’t see drinking this all the time.”

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec
Cofftea

I’ve so done that. Several times. That’s the one thing I absolutely hate about samples.

Ricky

At least these samples are resealable, unlike Den’s tea and GM. I try saving half, but I put them on a high shelf and I end up spilling them every time when I take it down. Time to invest in some zip lock bags.

Cofftea

And forget rooibos samples. I have a hard enough time w/ Adagio’s sample tin. HUGE mess. Yet another reason for me to not like it.

Ricky

I’m tempted to try Rishi’s blueberry rooibos. I have no clue why…

takgoti

It makes me sad when I spill tea, too. Thank the FSM you managed to salvage most of it.

denisend

Hibiscus? Granted, I’m not as sensitive to it as you are, but I don’t think I’ve ever tasted hibiscus in this tea (and this is the one that taught me that rooibos doesn’t have to be bad). I do drink it with sweetener, though.

teaplz

denisend, I’m pretty sure it was there… of course, I could be wrong! I’m not a big fan of super-fruity teas in general since hibiscus always seems to play a part.

Doulton

I can relate to your review. Some teas that seem like they will be wonderful are marred by too much hibiscus and/or rosehip. Those flavorings must be like the Jove and Zeus of the tea world: they take away all the power of other scents and tastes and become KING of it all. Too bad because I tend to really like Harney & Sons.

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82
drank Earl Grey by Samovar
187 tasting notes

This is the best Earl Grey I’ve ever tasted.

Okay, let’s back up for a second. How did I acquire this EG? takgoti sent me a ridiculously huge tea swap box. And I mean, ridiculously huge. The box is wider than me. And bigger than my head. There were 29 teas in there. 29! CRAZY. All beautifully wrapped and numbered and perfect. It’s enough to make you swoon. I nearly did. In fact, I teared up a little bit at the generosity, but that’s besides the point.

So, takgoti is always pimping Samovar. It’s like she’s their poster girl, or something! I say this with all the affection in the world, but if you don’t know that Samovar is takgoti’s absolute favorite tea company, you haven’t been on Steepster long enough.

After being dazed and confused for the wonderfulness for a day or so, I decided to dive right in and start with what she labeled #1: Earl Grey. Now, I have a very stormy relationship with the Earl. We’ve had… issues in the past, needless to say. But takgoti said that this is her favorite, so I went right along with it!

The leaves are definitely a lot longer and thicker than what I’ve seen of EGs. Normally the tea tends to be an afterthought of the bergamot, and in most EGs, the bergamot is so overpowering it’s ridiculous. Let me tell you though, the smell of Samovar’s blend is mouth-watering. Even more delicious-smelling than EGB by Adagio. In fact, a lot more interesting, because I can just smell the black tea underneath it. Flowery citrus mixed with… hints of cocoa? That’s what I’m getting.

Anyway, I steeped this up (and was surprised at the low water temperature and short steep time, but I wasn’t about to deviate), and the resulting cup was a pretty dark, coppery color. The wet leaves actually smell more like tea than bergamot! Super-surprised on that front. And the cup itself? A pleasant mix of the two.

On first sip, I sighed and gave the tea a mental thumbs-up. Then I gave it a literal thumbs-up when I took a picture of myself drinking it and sent it to takgoti. For once, I can actually taste BLACK TEA. And it’s delicious and yummy black tea, with all sorts of subtleties and hints of something more. The base here is really very good. I’m getting some cocoa, and some tart notes.

The bergamot here is phenomenal. It’s the perfect pitch of citrus and floral, refreshing but not overpowering. FINALLY. I don’t feel like I’m drinking perfume straight from a bottle! It tastes fresh and satisfying. I’m not gagging after each and every sip!

I still don’t think I’m an EG convert. I don’t think I could ever drink EG once a day, or even maybe once a week. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m never going to absolutely love it. It’ll always be middle-of-the-road for me, and that’s okay.

But I’d never, ever refuse a cup of Samovar’s blend. It’s delicious. Is it the strongest EG? No. If you’re into stronger stuff, try Adagio’s Earl Grey Bravo. Which frankly, the taste of makes me want to vomit a little. But if you like subtle Earl Grey that actually tastes like tea and has an authentic, refreshing and delicious bergamot note, then buy Samovar’s creation.

Seriously, I cannot thank takgoti enough for showing me that yes, Earl Grey CAN taste good. It just has to be super-awesome EG from a great company. Let’s hope that the rest of Samovar’s catalog is just as impressive as this, and I LOVE TAKGOTI SHE IS AMAZING.

That is all.

Preparation
170 °F / 76 °C 2 min, 30 sec
takgoti

Okay. Okay. One, you are way too nice to me. Two, I’m so so glad that you liked this. Three, I do unabashedly love Samovar. I am not ashamed to admit it. I’ll shout it from the rooftops. I’m ecstatic that your first experience with them was this pleasant!

I could say more, but I think this will suffice:
Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Hyrulehippie

Okay, okay! Gosh, people. Why does everyone want me to order from Samovar so badly?! Once I pay my phone bill, it’s ON!

I will admit that I drool over their website at least once a week.

Ricky

Yay! You finally found an EG you liked! Takgoti should receive a fan discount for advertising samovar all over steepster. I’ll have to order from them and try some of their tea eventually.

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77
drank Moroccan Mint by Golden Moon Tea
187 tasting notes

My stomach has been unhappy-making (probably due to the stuff I’m eating to try and gain weight), so I needed some mint to help it ease up.

I almost smacked myself in the forehead after I poured the water into this because I could have tried takgoti’s Moorish Mint. I’m an idiot.

I’ve never had Moroccan Mint, but I have had peppermint tea and gunpowder. The sample is pretty and dark green, with lots of peppermint leaves (complete with static cling), and rolled green tea. All very visually appealing.

The smell… well, it actually smells like exactly what it is. The mint overpowers the smell of the green tea overall (but I’ve never found Chinese greens to be that fragrant anyway), but it has a nice, rounded aroma.

The cup is similar in color to a gunpowder – not green, but a honey color. The smell coming off of it doesn’t have any of the smokiness of the gunpowder, and the mint hits you full force in the face.

I actually really enjoyed the taste of this. It’s uncomplicated, but interesting. Definitely a nice change of pace from the normal peppermint that I tend to drink. The green tea peeks through with a hint of verdant sweetness, but it really isn’t the main player here. The mint is fresh, and it almost, but not quite, drowns out the tea. Its herbal edge is definitely cut by the green tea, which is nice. No astringency… and no smoke, surprisingly.

I’ll probably have some Moorish Mint later, because those flavor combinations seem absolutely delicious.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 3 min, 30 sec
Cofftea

This, along w/ an oolong and Octavia’s Winter Mint was my 1st loose leaf purchase. Now that I actually know something about steeping tea, I can’t wait to try this one again. I’m thinking maybe 30sec steep.

Ricky

No smokiness from gunpowder (+1), mint full force (-1). Ahhh, what will I do!

teaplz

I doubt you’d get much flavor out of this in 30 seconds… peppermint is something that you can keep steeping for 7-8 minutes for optimal flavor, and gunpowder doesn’t really get going until about a minute or so of unfurling.

Ricky, you’ll DRINK IT, cause you already have it in your GM sample. :)

takgoti

You’ll have plenty of time for Moorish Mint in the future. It sounds like this was an enjoyable cup, and that’s what counts! I hope it helped your stomach!

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77
drank Darjeeling Tea by Golden Moon Tea
187 tasting notes

I AM OVERWHELMED.

I have tea coming out of my ears. Tea tea tea tea tea tea tea. SO MUCH TEA. I literally spent 20 minutes this morning, wringing my hands, pacing the floor like an animal, trying to figure out WHAT exactly I should drink. I’m worried about it going bad, about it getting stale, about it losing flavor. I’m like a woman undone.

Finally, in frustration, I just dunked my hand into the GM sample basket and I pulled this out. There we go! Darjeeling. Okay, fine, I’ll take it, let’s steep this.

So, Darjeeling. I’ve never actually had it. It gets touted regularly as the “champagne of teas” with “muscatel” flavors. Okay, so it’s really good and tastes like wine and grapes. Simple enough.

The leaves on this one are really wiry and long. I wasn’t picking up anything special on the scent. Maybe a bit more fruity than normal? But it pretty much smelled like a basic black. The leaves are really pretty to watch unfurl here; some are quite long.

Finally I had some tea juice in my hands and I was ready to drink. I stuck my nose in the steam of the light infusion (much lighter than I thought it was going to be) and inhaled. Hrm. I feel like I should be one of those snobbish wine connoisseurs and make up stuff. Like, “Oooh, this one smells like freshly tanned leather and pipe tobacco with a hint of animal dung.”

I am probably over-caffeinated right now.

But no, it doesn’t smell like any of those things. In fact, I was just a fairly default black taste. So I was actually pleasantly surprised when I took my first sip of it piping hot. It tasted… different. A bit musky, maybe? Subtle, but deceivingly so, because there seems to be a lot of depth.

I actually liked this a lot better as it cooled a little. Then that infamous “muscatel” flavor came creeping in. I’m not a big drinker of wine (and I like white over red), but this tea had a similar fruity composition. Almost grape-y. There were some basic floral notes, but overall, it was very smooth and sometimes sweet with no astringency. I think I would have preferred it to be a bit more full-bodied. This Darjeeling was actually lighter than I thought it was going to be.

Does it taste like any other black tea I’ve tasted? No. It tastes… like a Darjeeling. I don’t know if this is the best Darjeeling ever, and I don’t have anything to compare it against, but I enjoyed savoring that special fruity component.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec
takgoti

I like tea. Teay tea tea. Here it goes down into my belly…

Maybe Auggy sent you some of that Autumnal Darjeeling. Though, I don’t know how much of it she had left.

Auggy

I did! And based on tracking, I think you should get it today? AND THEN YOU WILL HAVE MORE TEA! MORE TEA! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

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Profile

Bio

28-year-old NYC girl just starting out on her tea adventures! I used to hate tea. If you asked me a few years ago what I thought of tea, I’d tell you it tasted like hot, dirty dishwater. Not anymore! I acquired a taste for tea when I started drinking peppermint tea for my upset stomach problems. From there I graduated to teas like chamomile and Lipton. But Lipton wasn’t strong enough!

I’m getting the hang of this loose leaf thing. Black’s my default, but I’ve found that I really love teas that fall into every category. I’m a purist – I always drink my tea neat. I prefer unflavored tea over flavored tea, and really dislike anything flavored with artificial-tasting substances. I’ve grown up a bit in my tea drinking, and I find that novelty appeals to me less and less.

I also am the happy wife of the boy that created the tea randomizer, which can be found here: http://www.jaydeee.net/pickatea.php

Location

New York City

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