63

Auggy ruined this tea for me, and I mean that in the nicest way possible!

I have a feeling I would have loved this tea, had I never tasted the sample Auggy sent me of SerendipiTEA’s Colonille.

But let’s talk about this tea alone. Anyway, when opened, the little packet exuded a scent of warm vanilla. Not very overpowering at all, but pretty natural-smelling. Very, very happy-making indeed. No sad panda over here! The leaves are fairly standard sized, and you can clearly pick out the vanilla bean. So far, off to a good start!

The wet leaves and the infusion itself smell surprisingly similar to Colonille! So I was pretty excited. Could it be? Another Colonille? Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Make no mistake, this one tastes really good at first. But the vanilla is pretty mild, and the black tea base here is nothing special. I actually think it’s the Vietnamese black in Colonille that elevates it to awesome heights. So rich and with a lot of depth, and even cocoa hints. Here, the black tea doesn’t really serve any purpose except as a backdrop for the vanilla.

As this cooled, I liked this a bit less. A too-sweet aftertaste comes with every sip, almost syrupy. This flavor began to completely overtake the entire taste of the tea, until all I was tasting was vanilla syrup and no tea. It’s not the most pleasant flavor, either. It feels too heavy for the type of light tea that this is. It’s a weird type of flavor that I can’t wrap my head around, but it’s lingering for a bit too long to be welcome.

I definitely would not have been so nit-picky about this one had I not tried something better, but the truth of the matter is that better vanilla tea does exist. Colonille is all I could even want in a vanilla tea. This one is definitely better hotter than cool.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 30 sec
Ricky

Ohhh, I have to try this one tomorrow. Forgot I had another vanilla I could have done a comparison with!

Cinoi

I am super excited to try this one!

takgoti

Colonille is good. Mmm…gonna need to revisit that soon.

Auggy

Glad I could do my part to ruin a tea for you! Yay! Hehe. I had pretty much the same experience with this one and I blame Colonille as well!

teaplz

Colonille is just far too good of a vanilla tea. It’s going to win every time! It’s also the taste of the Vietnamese black there, that gives that subtle cocoa taste… that mixes with the vanilla… drat it, now I’m craving a cup.

Auggy

Mmm. That and City Harvest Black (which has a bit of orchid in it) always make me think of buttercream and Cadbury Creme Eggs. Mmmm.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

People who liked this

Comments

Ricky

Ohhh, I have to try this one tomorrow. Forgot I had another vanilla I could have done a comparison with!

Cinoi

I am super excited to try this one!

takgoti

Colonille is good. Mmm…gonna need to revisit that soon.

Auggy

Glad I could do my part to ruin a tea for you! Yay! Hehe. I had pretty much the same experience with this one and I blame Colonille as well!

teaplz

Colonille is just far too good of a vanilla tea. It’s going to win every time! It’s also the taste of the Vietnamese black there, that gives that subtle cocoa taste… that mixes with the vanilla… drat it, now I’m craving a cup.

Auggy

Mmm. That and City Harvest Black (which has a bit of orchid in it) always make me think of buttercream and Cadbury Creme Eggs. Mmmm.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

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

Following These People

Moderator Tools

Mark as Spammer