Lost Maples - Medium Roast

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Honestly, I was disappointed in this one.

I really loved the green version, which was the first I tried from the sampler. This smells amazing dry, like honey-sweet golden raisins. But for some reason, for me there’s a noticeable ashy, charred flavor in the steeped tea. I didn’t see any other reviewers mention it, so I’m a bit perplexed… Otherwise, it has a nice autumnal, lightly toasty herbaceous flavor with plenty of sweetness and notes of autumn leaves, tobacco, and syrupy dried figs and raisins. But that very mineral ashy taste just throws the whole thing off for me.

I tried different steeping parameters but the result was the same for every cup. Not sure what I’m doing wrong… :(

This is the medium roast from Catsprings Yaupon. Now that I’ve had a chance to try the green version, I can see the similarities. I still get the grassy and dried hay notes, as well as the wood, but the nuttiness is a bit stronger and sweeter, reminescent of honey roasted nuts. There is a roasty quality but it is far from being smoky or charcoal-esque, and is more of a darkly toasted bread/weak coffee flavor. There is also a sort of pleasant caramel note coming through.

Honestly, I could easily drink either of these, but if pressed I’d probably choose the roast. Perhaps I’ll like the dark roast even more…

Since I had a full box of teabags of this one, I made several pitchers of this cold brew, which was quite nice as well. Reminded me a bit of cold brew mugicha, albeit a little sweeter.

A tea I have received from White Antlers. Thank you!

As I know from my last Yaupon experience, it is a caffeine booster. Lots of energy boost. And I was somehow tired when I was choosing today afternoon cuppa; probably due to morning cleaning up the car from snow (around 25 cm of snow, and it’s snowing again!) and overall I was cleaning up the footpath a bit as well our yard paths.

Anyway, as there is a lockdown, and I have lots of exams and everything, I do not do any inventory checks and I was saving the tea bag of this to some. I am afraid I won’t go there anymore — mostly because I just want to find a job right after finishing the university. We will see.

Anyway to this cup. Roasted yaupon sounded somehow a tiny bit better than a green variety, and Lost Maples Park is another place I have saved as would like to visit one day. I was expecting a bit of the maple flavour and I think it’s there actually. As well baked bread as others were writing about. That’s not all! It was kind of pleasantly sour and herbal, which was a bit confusing. It was enjoyable though and I liked it more than classical one.

I have tried to place an order and actually it would work for me! Shipping of their multipack of tea bags for almost same price as the mulitpack is a no for me right now though. Maybe one day!

A lighter-tasting yaupon. Has a bit of delicate autumn leaf taste, and a good deal of faintly burnt sugar/caramel. Very drinkable and not too heavy on the caffeine.

Method: Loose leaf
Steep time: 4 mins
Water temp: Boiling
Brew style: Western, in my Kati mug

Dry leaf doesn’t really have much of a scent, which is unsurprising, because I’ve had this for a few years now. Steeps up a cool-toned muddy brown color. The liquor smells exactly like yerba mate— earthy, smoky, and pleasantly sour.

The flavor profile for this medium roast Lost Maples is more delicate, complex, and green than the dark-roasted Marfa variety by the same company. I’m getting notes of hay, grass, toasted barley, very slight caramel (really more like burnt sugar), and then a bitter little punch of an aftertaste that quickly dissipates.

Personally, I prefer the more full-bodied and bready Marfa blend for breakfast, but this makes for a fairly pleasurable mid-morning pick-me-up. Re-steeps well, too.

This one is a bit greener than the dark roast, and it has more of a wet wood feel to it. The sweetness is alike cane sugar, and it comes with a bit of astringency; however, it is still quite smooth and easy to drink. I enjoy the buzz yaupon gives me.

Smooth and mild, our medium roast yaupon is inspired by Lost Maples, a forest unlike any other in Texas. In the fall, the bigtooth maples along the Sabinal river, left over from the last Ice Age, don a magnificent array of colors echoed by the caramel notes in every cup.

Available in 2 ounce loose leaf and individually wrapped yaupon pouches (our take on the tea bag).