639 Tasting Notes

12

I don’t know how my opinion of this tea could change so much in such a short time, but I don’t think I like it anymore.

The coconut tastes artificial and leaves a gross aftertaste. So strange, ’cause I really loved this before. Rating of 80 is dropping to 47. Phew!

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 0 sec

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50
drank Formosa Bai Hao by Adagio Teas
639 tasting notes

I decided to give this tea another shot.

The first infusion was definitely still salty peanut shell. But it had a certain sweetness that I don’t remember the first time I tried this tea.

The second infusion was still nutty, but less so. The end of the second cup was fairly astringent. On to the third infusion!

Finally, the salty nuttiness is gone and I’m left with a pretty pleasant cup of tea. Still astringent, but much better flavor overall. Sweeter notes are making themselves visible.

I’ll change my rating from 45 to 50. I might be able to get even more infusions out of these leaves, but I think I’m done.

This tea should go on on to someone who would enjoy it more than me. Would anyone like a sample?

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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81
drank Momoko by Lupicia
639 tasting notes

Where to begin! The dry leaves smell like heaven. Very peachy. Very fragrant.

There’s an abundance of pink rose petals, tiny blue cornflowers, and little hard translucent crystal-like rocks (sugar perhaps?). That might explain why this tea is so sweet! I’m impressed with how much is in here besides green tea leaves. Lupicia never skimps on ingredients.

In Japanese, Momoko means ‘peach child.’ It’s an interesting name because this tea reminds me of cotton candy and bubblegum, which I associate with childhood. The peach is very present, but there are also some lovely rose notes.

I can taste the vanilla, and it’s blended so well with the peach flavor. My only negative comment is that this tea is somewhat heavy because of all the rich floral notes. And something sour is pinching the back right side of my mouth. I have no idea what that could be!

This is a very flavorful green tea! It’s very sweet and only a little bit astringent, though not bitter at all. At the end of the sip, I’m getting classic sencha grassiness.

Overall, this is a good flavored tea. Not my favorite of Lupicia’s flavored greens, but still a contender. The second steep was almost identical to the first.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 1 min, 45 sec

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82
drank Lady Grey by Twinings
639 tasting notes

I read the adorable letter from Uniquity to Lady Grey & knew I must try this tea!

But after waiting for it to steep and smelling the aroma, I thought I might have made a mistake. This isn’t like Earl Grey at all.

I took a tentative sip. Yuck! The citrus overwhelmed everything else and almost made me gag!

I re-read Uniquity’s letter and thought I might have to write its antithesis. But I decided to add a little bit of milk and sugar before completely giving up hope.

What a difference!! Suddenly, this tea was more than stomachable; it was wonderful!

The lemon complements the bergamot nicely, and now I’m truly enjoying my cup of Lady Grey (who I always mistakenly call Lady Earl Grey). She definitely is much sweeter than her husband and quite forgiving.

Thank you, Uniquity, for writing such a persuasive letter that I couldn’t help but try and love Lady Grey. I followed your steeping instructions and with the addition of a little skim milk & Truvia, I’m a convert.

Sincerely,
CHAroma

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 30 sec
Uniquity

Huzzah! I don’t know that I’ve ever felt so blessed or appreciated in my tea experience as when I read this note. For a while I toyed with the idea of writing letters to all my teas, but it seemed a little insane. : ) I’m glad you could find a way to enjoy this one as well. I certainly had trouble with my path…

CHAroma

Aww, you’re the sweetest! Go tea blogging, haha!

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74
drank Earl Grey by Twinings
639 tasting notes

Delicious! Dee-lish!

Not at good as Lupicia’s Earl Grey (which surprised me because this is Twinings!), but still a good substitute when I’m craving that bergamot flavor.

It’s not overly strong bergamot, which I guess a lot of users dislike this blend for. But nevertheless, I still like it!

I don’t want my bergamot eating a hole through my stomach. This tea contains just enough to let me know what I’m drinking without making me woozy.

With just a little bit of sugar, this tea has me ready to tackle anything!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 30 sec

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93
drank Irish Breakfast Tea by Twinings
639 tasting notes

I can’t help but compare this to English Breakfast. It’s a little darker, a little malty-er, but still a robust black breakfast tea.

I actually might like it more! It’s missing the bite that English Breakfast sometimes has. It’s smoother and milder and just a great addition to an otherwise dull, rainy morning.

Also, the cheesy aftertaste is gone that I experienced yesterday. I definitely blame the tap water. It can no longer be trusted. No more funk here!

It’s equally as good as English Breakfast. But I still think the English has a little more get-up-and-go pep! But the Irish is definitely just as good. Yum!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 30 sec

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93
drank English Breakfast by Twinings
639 tasting notes

Ah, I just love my English Breakfast. It never disappoints. Thank you, Twinings!

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50

Strange tea, this.

It has a spicy note to it that reminds me of an herb I cook with, but I can’t put my finger on it. Oregano, maybe? But not quite as powerful as oregano.

Overall, it tastes like a light black tea. But it has an interesting vegetal quality that’s probably coming from what I think is the green tea or it could be
lemongrass.

There’s no added fruit flavorings that I can tell. No astringency. Only a slight bitterness from oversteeping since I left the leaves in my cup as I drank it.

I haven’t tasted anything quite like it before. Maybe it’s a custom blend?

If anyone knows what this tea is or where to find it, please message me! It’s driving me crazy that I can’t find any information on it! Also, if you’d like a sample to try for yourself, please message me! I have a limited supply, but I’d appreciate the help identifying it.

It’s not the best tea I’ve ever had, but it’s far from the worst. So, it’s getting a middle of the road rating from me.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 30 sec

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29

OMG, this is horrible! Okay, it’s really not that bad. But it tastes EXACTLY like apple cider minus the apple.

All I’m getting is hot cinnamon/ginger water. If I poured this into some hot apple juice, it would probably be a lot more enjoyable. I drank it straight without any milk or sweetener in a bagged version (and I’m confident loose leaf would not have improved this any).

I was intrigued by the name. How can this tea be black AND green??!
The answer is: it can’t.

I didn’t even get any “tea” flavor. Nope. All I get is a blend of spices in my cup, no black tea, and definitely no green tea.

This just has too much going on: black, green, chai, organic, premium. Yuck. This company tried too hard. They should have picked one type of tea and concentrated on making it perfection. Instead, they created an apple cider minus the apple, which I’d rather have added back in.

Don’t be fooled by the name. This is not premium tea, and I for one could not care less if it was Certified USDA Organic or not. Okay, enough ranting.
Moving on!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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31
drank Darjeeling by Twinings
639 tasting notes

I’m not sure why this tea appears twice on Steepster, so I’m just going to post the same review under both of them.

I first tried a bagged Darjeeling tea from Lupicia. It was a Second Flush and pretty light. I probably watered it down too much, which I tend to do sometimes with Lupicia teas.

But this Twinings bagged version was a completely different experience, and not for the better! This wasn’t watered down at all. It created a nice brown liquor and seemed to be a normal cup of tea. I drank it straight without milk or sweetener.

It’s not the worst thing I’ve ever tasted, but I did not like its taste at all. It’s hard for me to pinpoint what it is I don’t like. I think it’s just the taste of the tea itself. It’s not that it’s bitter or astringent. It just tastes…not good.

The first sip is unassuming, average, black tea. But then it’s just yucky. I couldn’t finish my cup. But my boyfriend drank his and the rest of mine down and said, “It just tastes like tea. I don’t know what you don’t like about it.” And neither do I.

But this is not one I’d buy again. Now I want to try the Lupicia version again for further taste comparison.

Anyone know why this is called the “champagne of teas”? It does elicit the same reaction from me as champagne: Blech. I’ll give it that.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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Bio

Entering the sweet blissful world of tea aromas!

Having discovered this website at the end of July 2011, I’m so excited to share my tea adventures with all of you! I grew up with my grandmother serving Twining’s English Breakfast with cream and sugar.

But on a trip to Seattle in 2010, I stumbled into a Chinese teashop and tried my first oolong tea. I was forever changed! I embarked on a startling new love for green and white teas.

With a world of teas to discover, I was inspired to keep a tea journal to record my thoughts and new favorites. Let’s get brewing!

My ratings are completely subjective and 100% my opinion. All ratings are given in relation to each other (ie. teas are rated in the order of my enjoyment of them). Therefore, my ratings will constantly change as I try more teas.

I love swapping!!! If you see something in my cupboard you’d like to try, just send me a message. If you’d like to trade, anything on my shopping list will do or feel free to send something else entirely. I’m willing to try almost anything (although I’m not really a fan of honeybush, red rooibos, pu’erh, Lapsang Souchong, & banana-flavored teas).

Location

Maryland, USA

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