Pumpkin Spice

Dear Pumpkin Spice,

I wanted to like you. Really, I truly did. I know that you might not want to hear that right now, but please hear me out.

When I was mildly disappointed with the first cup, I did not shun you. I tried you again the next day. When that cup, too, left me crestfallen, I was not deterred.

I know what you’re thinking, but don’t you DARE pretend that I didn’t put effort into trying to fix this. I experimented. I changed your steep time. I changed your water temperature. I changed the amount of you that I put in…you. I sat by your bed and read you Harry Potter, and I even held your hair back on that one night we decided to take shots every time those girls on The Hills did something that made us want to lose our faith in humanity. And still, after everything that we’ve been through, things just never felt right.

You were just so bitter. I could never understand it. You looked so good on paper, and I’d be lying if I said your scent wasn’t slightly intoxicating, but being in your company simply wasn’t enjoyable.

I think that the night I knew it was over was when I broke down and tried you with cream and sugar, and I got no pumpkin flavor and could only taste the sugar. With all due respect to your parents, why would they name you Pumpkin when there is no pumpkin to be had? Are you related to the Scented-Bitter-Waters who live up north?

And now, we must part ways. I’m sorry, Spice. Please believe me when I say that I wanted this to work.

Sincerely,
Heather

P.S. You wouldn’t happen to have any friends who taste a lot better than you do, would you?

Alright, I’m willing to try this again as fall is approaching. It still smells like that bubblegum you used to get on Halloween from the old folks down the street.

I tried to dress it up a little with a splash of 2% milk and a dash of cinnamon on top. It’s certainly an improvement. The milk’s creaminess rounds it out, but it still doesn’t really taste like pumpkin to me. And there is still no spice at all, aside from the cinnamon that I added. How can you call something “spiced” when it’s plain? C’mon, Adagio, I trusted you!

And another sipdown! :O Gotta make room for the 9 new teas/samples I ordered from H&S! And then I grabbed the sachet sampler, so… that’s a lot right there but I like surprises!

Now, on to THIS tea.

I can see this isn’t popular but I can tell you that when you make it as a pumpkin with a touch of brown sugar in it, it’s pretty phenomenal! The best part is that our fancypants coffee-machine at work does lattes, so after the tea brewed I just added the hot milk and OMG – yes!

It does have a bit of a banana taste too – which someone else pointed out. Strange, but I don’t mind.

Wow! The reviews are all over the board for this one!

I apparently don’t hate this as much as most of the reviewers, but I think part of that is that I’ve danced with Adagio’s black base for almost a decade now. (I’ve found if you go at it at about 205F for just under 3 minutes, then you don’t get the bitterness. Then wait until it cools a bit before drinking to avoid the astringency).

That said, I wish there was more pumpkin in my pumpkin spice. I get cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, but the pumpkin takes the back seat to the spices and only really makes itself known with the addition of milk. The spices are warming and perfect for a cold, blustery day though.

Thanks jeweledthumb!

The artisan who makes my soap sent me a sachet of this tea along with my last order of soap. She used to be one of my very best tea customers when I sold tea. :) It is nice that she thought of me and included some tea with my order!

I don’t hate this as much as it would appear most of Steepster does. Then again, after having gone round and round with the black tea base of Adagio, I have learned a thing or two when it comes to steeping their flavored black teas. A slightly lower temperature (just below boiling) and steeping for 3 minutes (or even just 2 1/2 minutes) produces a pleasant cup. Oh… and let it cool a few minutes before taking that first sip. About three or four minutes will do it. It tames the astringency significantly. It still is certainly not the best cup of tea I’ve ever had, but I’m not hating it either. It’s agreeable.

The pumpkin flavor here IS odd, though. It tastes artificial. The spices are nice, but, the pumpkin just tastes off.

Overall, it’s alright. Not something I’d buy, but, more than that, I’m very happy with the thoughtfulness of my dear friend, the soap artisan, and I truly appreciate her thoughtfulness.

Wow this tea has received such a wide range of rating scores. It would seem that you either love or hate this tea. Time to add my review for this one.

The pyramid tea bag is lovely and see-through so I can clearly see the tea. There are a few pieces mixed amongst the the black tea but it’s hard to define what they are from the list of ingredients. It has a sweet yet subtly spicy scent, the pumpkin isn’t coming through as strongly as I would like.

The black tea is the strongest element to begin with but towards the after taste there is a delicate creamy squash with a touch of cardamom and spice. It’s a very mild blend with some sweetness. It is a little astringent but I feel that a drop of milk would sort that out, a spoon of sugar may also bring out more flavour but for me it’s sweet enough.

I quite like it. It’s not great but nor is it terrible. I would drink it again but would not buy it again.

Wow… this is pretty bad. When I opened the sample, my nose was assaulted with bitter, sharply sweet notes of what I think was supposed to be pumpkin. But it was like no squash I’d ever smelled.

I keep adding the Adagio teas to my list because their samples are so inexpensive, but I think I should just save my money for more expensive, higher-quality teas.

Not an experience I would care to repeat.

Sigh.

Why does my pumpkin taste vaguely like banana?

Not strong on the pumpkin or spice. It was a decent black tea, but needs something more. I’ll try it with milk next time.

I only have this tea because Adagio said you’d get 4 oz with an order. I made an order, and was surprised by the fun holiday-themed tin in came in. If only I liked the tea as much!

I’ve tried it straight, with sweetener, and with sugar and soymilk. I like it more the less stuff I add to it. It’s not very pumpkiny and it’s not very pumpkin pie spicy. It reminds me of vegan alternatives to regular foods. If you go in thinking it should taste like the original, you’ll be disappointed. If you go in thinking it’s something new, you might find something in it you like. When I drink this not expecting pumpkin spice, it’s okay. And that will get me through the tin.