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Q is for… Qi’Lan Fired Oolong.

My only ‘Q’ tea. This is also one of the oldest teas in my stash, way back from 2014. It still tastes fine, maybe a little drying, but it’s nice and roasty toasty.

P is for… Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle.

So cute with its little pumpkin sprinkles!

This came out bitter, even after adding my usual honey and cream. I’m sure I must have used to much tea leaf, but this is the last of it so I’ll never know. This is heavily spiced. I wish I could smell or taste the cardamom or even the cinnamon, but all I notice is the clove.

P is for… Plum Oatmeal Squares.

I remember vaguely that I didn’t love this one before, but I never wrote a note and couldn’t remember why I didn’t really like it. Tasting it now, there’s this tang that is making it feel thin. My husband says he can taste the oatmeal, but I don’t taste oatmeal OR plum.

O is for… Oolong Goddess.

Sipdown! Unfortunately this tastes only like a very watered down, very unextraordinary oolong. I can’t say for sure how old it is though, since I only have the one single sachet.

N is for… Nepal Black.

This is probably my favorite tea from DT. I love its chocolaty flavor. I reordered a few bags of this last year sometime, but this was the last lone teaspoon of an older bag that’s been in my cabinet for a while. The flavor may have faded some, but I’m still enjoying this long-time favorite.

M is for… Mango Fruit Tea.

This has never been one of my favorites, so I tried Martin’s steeping parameters to see if that might make a difference. It really is a beautiful blend to look at, but it’s always been far too citrusy for my tastes. I also never taste any mango. This cup is lighter in flavor than others I’ve had before, and I do think I like it better this way, but it still isn’t as enjoyable as I’d like it to be. Maybe a cold steep? I think I’ve tried it cold before, but I can’t remember for sure. I’ll give it another go iced and see if that might boost the rating for me.

L is for… Lapsang Souchong Imperial.

Another gift from Michelle. I asked Michelle if she could send a bit of this one since I’ve had it on my wishlist to try, no doubt due to a fantastic note I read here on Steepster some time ago. I really enjoy smoked Lapsang Souchong, ever since I tried my very first one. I think it was a bagged Twinings. It tasted like bacon and I loved it.

This one smells very smoky right out of the bag – definitely campfire smoke. After steeping, I get more dirt/earth scent coming from the steeper. The flavor is lighter than I expected, but I followed the online instructions and used less leaf than I would have normally. Next time, I’ll try steeping with more. There is plenty left for me to play around with. Thanks, Michelle!

K is for… Kunlun Mountain Snow Chrysanthemum Flower.

These are beautiful. A gift from Michelle. I used five buds in a clear mug and steeped for four minutes. The water turned dark as soon as it hit the dried flowers. They opened fully and swirled around the top of my cup as they steeped. I thought I smelled dark chocolate covered cherries in the dry flowers, also lemon, but both the aroma while steeping and the taste after hints at dill (just as Michelle said). There’s something else I can’t place, like the feeling you get when you walk into an antique store full of leather furniture and old books. It’s not a musty smell, not at all, but it seems very familiar. Each drink feels as though I’m about to take a sip of pickle juice as I’m leaning in, but the flavor isn’t so strong as the scent. The description said that honey would increase the flavor, but I’m not really finding that to be the case. If anything, the honey is overpowering the taste. It also says that rock sugar is often added, so I may try that next time instead. Michelle mentioned that she frequently adds this to chamomile or Assam. I feel like this herbal has a lot to offer, both on its own and as an add-in to other teas. I’m intrigued by it and really glad I’m having an opportunity to try it. Thanks, Michelle!

J is for… Just Peachy.

Hot, this tea reminds me of something I would use for an iced tea. It has that Lipton-esque flavor (and I don’t mean that in a bad way – I like Lipton). So I put it in the fridge, thinking it might mellow as it cools and I would be able to taste the peach. Now that it’s cold, it’s even more bitter and astringent than it was when it was hot. I still don’t taste the peach either. This is an old sample, and this cup finishes it off. Perhaps it’s just gone off with age, and it was better fresh.

I is for… Ice Cream Matcha.

Unlikely green and
Cream and warmth, contradictions
Abound! Swirl, sip, soothe.

For National Haiku Day.

Another sample from my Mix ‘n’ Matcha set, and I’m loving it! It tastes similar to the Mermaid matcha (going from memory here), so I think I’d like to try them side by side to see how they differ. James says he likes this one better, so it looks like I’m going to be getting a full size later on. Interestingly, he thought it tasted like coconut and vanilla and said it reminded him of the beach. I guess they do sell ice cream at the beach, so it works!