So Long, and Thanks for All the Licorice

Thanks to Stacy for sending me a free sample of this tea. I’ve had it for a while but forgot about it until now.

It seems like licorice is one of those things people either love or hate but I definitely belong in the love camp, at least with natural licorice flavor and not those nasty “Red Vines”.

I wouldn’t drink a chai plain but I sipped on this and it seems mild enough that you could drink it that way if you wanted to. I added about 1 tsp. of sugar to mine as well as one of those little creamer doo-dads from the office.

I’m wondering what this would have been like with an asssam tea base, because MAN the spices are strong! I actually love fennel but this is knocking my socks off. The star anise & cinnamon is also pretty strong here but I’m not picking up on the cardamom. It definitely lives up to its name, I’m just not sure I need anymore. I’m finding this to be a bit overpowering for me, it is pretty tasty though. I also love the fact that Stacy’s blends are all vegan.

My swap with OMGsrsly arrived today, much to my delight!

This was one of the wonderful teas she included, and one that I’ve been curious about for a while. I’m a fan both of Douglas Adams and licorice, so this had to be the first to try!

Opening it is like opening a bag of moist and chewy molasses-rich black licorice… but knowing the calories truly don’t count!

Once it’s steeped, the promise of the aroma does back off a little… maybe a slightly longer time or a little more of the dry blend will give my next cup a little bump. The licorice is still there, and even a slightly thick mouthfeel, but I can pick up a couple of the fainter supporting notes now.

As it is after midnight, I do wish it wasn’t caffeinated, but since I’m still on winter break I’ll just channel the caffeine into more costuming. I’m such a nerd. But off to reconstruct Viking clothing in period fabrics with period stitch types. Yay!

As for the tea, this little lovely is going on the shopping list.

Despite being uncomfortable around licorice flavoured things, I opted to get a sample of this in my last order. It made up one fine mug of spiced chai with sweet licorice notes. My only complaint is that I drank it too quickly and now there’s no more.

I love the lingering aftertaste of sweet cloves, and I didn’t have a problem with the licorice, fennel, and anise (I think I may actually like anise). Not bad at all. Maybe I’ll pick up more as the weather continues to worsen.

Backlog:

Absolutely LOVE this. LOVE it. This is one of the very best black licorice-y tasting teas that I’ve tried yet, and I’m a huge fan of black licorice so when I find teas that are “black licorice-y” I usually MUST try them. This one is the best that I’ve tried. Have I mentioned that I love this tea yet?

A really good chai too, it was pleasantly spicy. The Guranse made a great base for the tea, rich and flavorful. Just … a really wonderful tea. REALLY good.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/07/30/so-long-and-thanks-for-all-the-licorice-black-chai-blend-from-butiki-teas/

Mhmmm. Sweet licorice deliciousness!

This tea is a yummy treat. It reminds me of Good N Plenty’s, only a bit more natural tasting. It’s sweet, but not cloyingly so. There is also a nice spice to the licorice that comes through beautifully in the back of the sip. I’m also getting a grain-like taste – NOT texture! The texture is smooth. The grain-like taste accompanies an almost milky aspect. I’m getting some nice cinnamon notes in the middle of the sip, and there is a nice mild floral aspect that lingers on the back of the tongue.

Overall, I really enjoy this one. It makes a great dessert tea for those licorice lovers out there. I know I’m enjoying it this morning with my cinnamon streusel muffins. Perfect!

What am I doing?! I’m having the worst Butiki sip downs ever! My penance for hoarding and letting tea go bad. Or it could just be that I dumped all the dustings in the bottom of the bag in my steeper. I’m not getting much licorice, just that too-much-clove bitterness. Never noticed clove in this before. As I sip on I get a little more licorice and that tingling sensation on my tongue from the cloves. I’m not enjoying this cup. What a rotten way to say “So Long”.

This one never really appealed to me, despite its high ratings, since I tend not to be a big fan of licorice in tea. But in Butiki’s closing frenzy, I thought I might as well snap up a packet before it disappeared forever, just to see what all the fuss was about. And I’m glad I did. Both dry and steeped, it smelled weirdly—though not unpleasantly—like root beer, though the flavor was more clove-y (though there’s definitely some root beer in the background). It’s a tiny bit astringent, though a splash of almond milk mellowed it out (and subdued the spices some). This is a really nice, unusual chai, and one I’m really glad to have been able to try.

First off – I LOVE this tea. I hate actual licorice but love all licorice flavoured things… candy…sambuca…. hahaha but I can’t eat actual licorice – figure that one out for me!
Anyways this smells AMAZING. I’d smell it all day if I could – unfortunately, I’m not getting as strong of an actual licorice taste from this – not that it isn’t there but I was sort of hoping it would… punch me in the face. (never thought I’d say that)
Added a bit of sugar to it and it brought out the flavour a bit more but I’m thinking if I let it cool off the licorice might taste a little stronger.
And for the price – this tea was such a good deal, I’m glad it came in 1oz sizes vs the 1/2 ounce.
I’ll definitley be hoarding this one for a while. Very good.
We’ve only had a fleeting relationship Butiki, but I hope it was as good for you as it was for me… ;) now, onto my other teas from this order!

Finally digging into my Butiki samples that I got in a swap from… Janelle? a while back?

This is tasty – a nice, light chai with a good balance of cinnamon and anise/fennel flavours. None of that back of the throat, cloying sweetness of licorice root, which I’m quite happy for. There’s also a jasmine note that might be from contamination, though I washed my steeper out quite well.

Quite lovely.

I love black licorice. When I was young, I had a great friend who was born in Holland who introduced me to the really strong double salt licorice. Hated it at first, then loved it and ate tons of it. Sweeter licorice is good too.

Ah, this tea. A flavoured black, my favourite. It is so so licorice-y. What is most amazing is the mouth feel of it, and how it really feels and tastes and smells like you have been eating black licorice. I had it with milk and a bit of rock sugar, but I bet it would be fine without either. This is another tea that I wish I could have in my cupboard forever – will be very sad to say “so long” to this one.