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I have a bit of a sugar rush from breakfast this morning. I had two English muffins slathered in butter and strawberry preserves. Now I’m not feeling so hot. Probably should have used less preserves. I blame my husband. He bought the kind with added sugar, which I usually try to avoid.

Anyway, this is a free sample I’ve had in my cupboard for at least a year. The dry leaf aroma is cocoa and coconut. There’s a fair amount of scum in the water after brewing. This seems to be somewhat common with DAVIDsTEA blends and is probably attributable to their use of artificial flavorings. The brewed tea aroma is a weird combination of cocoa, coconut, and star anise.

First sip…bleh not very good. The flavor is just as weird as the aroma. I’m not sure who came up with this combo but it is strange. Then the aftertaste seeps in and YUCK! This is why I avoid teas with artificial flavorings. This is disgusting. I’m going to add milk to see if that helps cut the stank going on in my mouth right now.

I added a little more than my usual dollop of skim milk, and it did help cut the nasty aftertaste. But overall, this tea is not for me. I don’t like this combination of flavors and it all just tastes so fake and gross. Yuck yuck blech blech. Down the drain it goes.

Some of these Steaz drinks have been surprisingly delicious and others have been horrid. This one is pretty good. It doesn’t really taste like tea though. It just tastes like fruit juice. But it’s organic and cold and thirst quenching and that’s all I really need it to be at the moment.

I thought this was a black tea base instead of oolong. I’m really glad I read the brewing instructions before pouring boiling water over the leaves! Anyway, the dry leaf aroma is certainly pumpkin-y. I’m looking forward to trying this one!

First sip sans additions…velvety, creamy, pumpkin dream tea! YUM! Why did I only buy one ounce of this? And of course it’s already sold out. :( Boo! I added a little Truvia to the rest of the cup and now this is the perfect pumpkin tea. Perfect, I tell you! Better than any other pumpkin drink I’ve had. And that’s saying something because I’ve tried a lot of different pumpkin drinks looking for the best one. Well, the search is over! At least for as long as this ounce holds out. :P

I really like how played up the vanilla is in this tea. I think that’s what takes it from great to stellar. The spices are blended well and complement the main flavor by mostly staying in the background. Pumpkin, cream, and vanilla are in the forefront. Mmm, sooo yummy! I will enjoy every last little bit of this tea. Happy Cyber Monday, everyone!

This is a tea I got from my Mother-in-Law. I wish she would just look at my Steepster wishlist instead of buying me whatever she comes across. I haven’t had good luck with her finds. This is an herbal blend that my cat was immediately interested in, probably because of the catnip. He started by sniffing the box and then began biting it. He even nipped my finger and batted at me when I tried to take it away from him! Little jerk. He’s really annoying me today. Every time I get up he steals my spot on the couch. Then he cries at me when I move him. *Sigh.

I really need a cup of something relaxing. I’ve not had a very good day. Tea usually makes it better but the last couple teas I’ve had have been disappointing. I’m not even sure I should really be drinking this one because some of these ingredients aren’t recommended during pregnancy. So I’m just going to have a couple sips so I can write a note about it and then I’m going to re-home the rest of the box.

This tastes to me like an herbal teabag usually does. The peppermint comes across as the strongest flavor then maybe the chamomile. I can’t say that I can detect each ingredient individually but I think they all contribute to the taste. Overall, it’s an unremarkable and inoffensive blend. I think others could enjoy this. It’s not bad at all, just not my cup of tea. Anyone interested in the rest?

My package said “Anxi Monkey Picked” instead of “Anxi Monkey King.” But from my messages with Angel, I believe this particular sample is the latter. There’s a dark quality to the dry leaf aroma that intensified once it was brewed. I’m not sure about this one…it’s definitely not the Tie Guan Yin I’m used to.

I can definitely taste the darkness that I detect in the aroma. I’m afraid darkness isn’t a very good term because it has a negative connotation. What I’m tasting here isn’t necessarily negative. It is different. It doesn’t have the fresh, clean, vegetal, buttery flavor that I’ve grown accustomed to tasting in green oolongs. Instead, it has this heavier, oaky, almost roasted kind of thing going on, which I’m calling “darkness” for lack of a better term.

The aftertaste is cooling and refreshing in a unique way. This is certainly interesting. I can understand the appeal to many tea drinkers. I don’t quite think it’s a flavor I would regularly seek out though. I prefer the fresher, greener, creamier oolongs. Still, this is definitely a high quality tea. My rating is only a reflection of my personal enjoyment of it. Thanks to Angel and Teavivre for providing yet another free sample!

Thanks to Angel and Teavivre for the free sample! This is an all right oolong. It’s vegetal and buttery. I’m not getting anything floral. There’s maybe a hint of minerals, but that’s about it. The aftertaste fades quickly. I think I should have gone for a longer infusion because the flavor doesn’t taste entirely developed yet.

Second infusion for 2.5 minutes is surprisingly not very flavorful either. The aftertaste is weird and mineral-y and just not good. I’m confused. This tea seems like a dud and Teavivre isn’t known for producing duds. I tried a third infusion for 5 minutes before giving up on this one. The initial flavor was slightly better but the aftertaste is still mineral-y and unpleasant. I can’t say I recommend this one, though their other oolongs have been much more enjoyable.

To go out shopping on Black Friday or not. That is the question. It’s going to be so hard to not spend a lot of money today. My inbox is full of 20% off coupons valid through this weekend only. And of course, all my favorite tea companies are having sales. But seeing as how I just spent over $140 stocking up on my favorite Butiki teas, I really can’t justify buying more tea at the moment.

It took me a while to decide on which tea to drink first. Normally I hoard my favorites but I’m going to enjoy these teas thoroughly. I decided to start with a new one. The leaves were big and dry and hard to measure, so I had to kind of guess at what looked like 2 tsp. The flavor is delicate and lovely. The white tea shines through and leaves me wondering if this is flavored or unflavored because it blends so brilliantly. It’s buttery and creamy most of all.

I love it just the way it is. But I am curious to know how sweetener would change the flavor. Right now I’m not getting much in the way of cookies. So I added a little bit of Truvia and now it’s more reminiscent of sugar cookies. I think this is my third favorite white tea of all time. I love this! It’s so beautiful. Cantaloupe and Cream is only a tiny bit better but it’s also so different that I may like this one more depending on my mood.

Why does Stacy have to close the business? Why?! :( The tea world is going to be a much less tasty place with her gone. I’m thankful that I’ve gotten to enjoy as many of her teas as I have, but it’s still impossible not to be sad devastated that one day soon there will be no more restocking. This was probably my last Butiki order because so many of my favorites are already sold out. I feel like crying, especially because my cup is now empty. :(

I am 32 weeks pregnant. Only 8 weeks left! I can’t believe it. We still have so much to do. I need a nice relaxing cup of tea before I tackle bolting the bookcases to the wall in the nursery. Thanks to Angel from Teavivre for this free sample!

The dry leaf aroma is fresh green oolong and a scent that I love. The brewed tea aroma is even fresher and greener. It’s such a comforting aroma. The tightly rolled leaves have fully unfurled into giant whole leaves with a vibrant green hue. They look like they’ve just been picked off the branch. The liquor is a light golden color.

The flavor is exquisite. It’s vegetal, a tad both floral and nutty, and buttery most of all. As the cup cools, it loses its floral quality somewhat. The second infusion was for 2.5 minutes. It’s similar but not quite as flavorful and a tad astringent. The third infusion was for 4 minutes. It was good but definitely the last cup for me. Overall, this tea is delicious and I can confidently recommend it to others.

I have to say, this tea + agave = DIVINE!

Raising the rating from 70 to 74. Also for some reason I can’t record 1.5 tsp as the amount of tea leaves used. That’s what I did here. This is yummy! There’s only enough left for one more brewing session. Sad. :(

The dry leaf aroma is apples and cinnamon and smells delicious! Mmm! The leaves are finely minced and there are huge chunks of freeze-dried apples. The flavor is mostly fresh-cut juicy apple. I can barely taste the cinnamon, which isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing. The tea base is light and airy and a tiny bit hay-like. The oolong does give a certain quality that’s reminiscent of oatmeal. The flavor hints at a grainy component without being a direct correlation.

This is also definitely not a sweet tea. You’d have to add sweetener to get that. I enjoyed a second infusion at 180 degrees for 6 minutes. Overall, this is a good tea. Not something that will sock you in the mouth with flavor but it’s not too light either. The aroma is definitely the best part for me. It smells exactly like hot cinnamon apples from a pie.