Cocoa Amore

Cocoa Amore is great. I could not justify buying it for myself, so I asked for an ounce of it as a present. My main complaint about most teas of this kind is that people describe them as tasting like cherries, by which they usually mean the combination of chocolate and almond flavors are evocative of “the idea of cherries” or “cherry cordials” which do not actually taste like cherries. There is a fruitiness certainly, but cherry is a very specific taste, and I have not picked it up in this at all. I would maybe buy it again, but it is so ridiculously expensive that it is really hard to justify such an exorbitant expense. I brew it probably with more tea, and for a longer time than you’re supposed to, I sometimes add a little milk but not always, though I do always add a touch of sweetener as it brings out the maltiness. The results are always pretty satisfactory, and I would recommend it if you feel like paying for it.

I am naming today Sample Sunday for myself. Even though I have a new Liquid Proust order I want to dig into, I feel the need to clear out some of the samples and small amounts of tea that I’ve accumulated either through purchases from fellow Steepsterites or with past orders as they are getting older and cluttering my tea space.

First up Whispering Pines that I believe TeaNTeas was kind enough to give me a taste of when she told some of her stash.

The leaf of this smells wonderful. It’s kind of sweet and hinting at cocoa possibly. The leaf itself is long and kind of curly. The first few sips leave me feeling a smooth feels in my mouth. This is not what I expected based on the name, I could add sweetener to see if I can find the flavor. However, it is quite pleasant with no additions. It is very comforting. I can’t really place any flavor other than smooth black tea. I feel lucky to have tried this.

I think I was sold on the chocolate description and this tea is for someone looking for a very subtle version of this tea’s marketing. Maybe it’s just me, but that was oversold. I wouldn’t have bought it if I had known.

I received this tea packet around my Birthday last month and saved it for a special occasion.

I prepared the tea in my Gaiwan.
Rinsed the leaves quickly two times.

The perfume from the wet leaves was one of those rare experiences.
Powdery, sweet, very floral…carnation and orchid with honeysuckle
but not funeral flowers…not nauseating floral overload.

This was the best floral scent in the World! Love and life smells like this! It was breathtaking! If you were walking on the outskirts of heaven barefoot, the scent that would rise up would be this scent…I’m certain.

I took a sip of tea and the aroma was so wrapped up in the flavor that they were the same. Floral, incense, sweet and smooth with a little buttery mouth-feel.

No astringency, no dryness. No acidity or vegital flavor.
NICE!

Incredible Tea! Hot, warm, cold…the same. Gorgeous.

Thank you for this tea which has made this 40th Birthday celebration of my daughter Annalisa even more memorable.

Here’s a picture I took on the way home today of some Snow Geese on the frozen part of a small lake in Central Park. THOUSANDS come through here every year!!!

This is very tasty. It is definitely chocolate plus fruit to me. A darker chocolate, though the first steep is pretty sweet. The second steep is definitely dark chocolate with fruit. Even though it is lighter, it is more dry for sure. I am really glad to have this and that I tried it, though I probably won’t be breaking my neck to keep it around all the time.

I was going to review this tea a few days ago but never got around to it. Today, though I have time to sit down and think about what I need to say about this tea. If you are in a hurry and do not wish to read on, here is the abridged version; this tea is a marvel.

I opened the packaged and stuck my gigantic nose in; cherries, chocolate and vanilla strike me as the most dominant scents. I first brewed it according to the instructions provided, but then decided that this needed to be enjoyed gong-fu style. This way you really do get to appreciate the fine quality of this tea. Each subsequent infusion provides your palette with a new experience. It’s a taste teeter-totter where the cherry and the chocolate compete for first and second place on your tongue. The first few infusions you get chocolate, nice decadent dark chocolate, and then cherry. But as you get into the second, third and fourth infusion the cherry starts to dominate. I am starting to think that the cherry flavour is actually from the Tahitian vanilla beans. Though this tea has now informed my brain what flavour I was tasting in the wild mountain black. It was cherry! Anyway Brendan has really, really shown himself to be an adept tea blender. Picking very good ingredients, and then blending these guilefully in such a way to produce such complexity of flavour. It’s a wonderful thing. And something we aspire towards. Though on the flip side, it’s really hard to fuck things up when your ingredients are epic to begin with. So I don’t know if I’m impressed by the ability to source ingredients, to blend, or to conceptualize then implement.

The only down side to this tea is that it is expensive. But like a fine single malt scotch, teas such as these should be savoured. I know as well as anyone how expensive some of these teas can get. Not to mention that vanilla is the second most expensive spice in the world, with Tahitian vanilla being some of the more expensive varieties. I don’t think this tea can be achieved at a lower cost though. It would be difficult. But with amount of infusions you can get from this tea, and the enjoyment one receives from consuming such a work, it’s worth it!

This was a yummy treat! It definitely has rich chocolate flavor without being sweet or cloying. To my palate, it was not overly complex, but it was still delicious and I will enjoy it immensely.

It’s Easter! I get to ignore the stacks of books piled precariously on the floor, waiting to be organized and put into their bookcases. It’s cold too, so I deserve a delicious, warming tea!

I really love this one. I don’t have very much of it left, so I want to save the rest for after surgery. Without a sense of smell or taste, this tea is smooth, mellow, and slightly sweet. Really a delicious cup. But I’m hoping hard that my sense of smell will be restored at least temporarily so I can taste all my favorite teas, including this one.

I am not looking forward to surgery. It is painful, expensive, and not a cure for nasal polyps. But in the years since my last (fourth) surgery, some new treatments have been developed that may delay the return of polyps. The ENT will be implanting a device that should keep the openings to the sinuses open, so less debris will be trapped in the sinuses and cause infections. Fingers crossed.

That was probably more than you wanted to know! So, to recap, this is a delicious tea!

Another tea I couldn’t resist trying. This one smells quite similar to Golden Orchid, though the base is obviously different once brewed – I can taste some chocolatey undertones, and the vanilla is less prominent. I definitely prefer Golden Orchid, both because I love that strong vanilla, and because I’ve had more chocolatey blacks and wish one of them was the base instead. Overall though, tasty enough.

I haven’t yet reviewed this, though I’ve had it a couple of times. It is a really great tea. For a tea only flavored with vanilla beans, it tastes remarkably like cherry, almond, vanilla and cocoa. I like it without any additions, as it is quite rich. Reminds me of a European pastry! Yesterday, I shared a pot with my mom and little bro. They both liked it, as expected, and my bro said he liked it because it was subtle-ly flavored! Quite the palate on that one!