Itachi

Oh my god, this is absolute perfection. Once brewed, it tastes even better than the dry leaf smelled, which I didn’t think would be possible! It really tastes like white chocolate, real good quality white chocolate, and it isn’t too sweet at all. The white chocolate notes are almost flirty, very uplifting, and the finish almost makes me think of mint. It’s very fresh, and ridiculously delicious.

This is so yummy! The mint is strong—I steep it for no more than two minutes and find the balance between tea and cool sweet mintiness to be just about perfect. :)

Smells AMAZING! Definitely tastes nutty—it’s absolutely delicious. I can’t think of a single bad thing to say about this tea. I’m on my second steep and it’s just as good as the first. The leaves still smell fragrant, so I might even go for a third. It’s creamy, probably from the coconut, but all the way through is just that wonderful walnut flavor. Why do I only have a sample size? :’(

Yay, my Black Friday order is here! Hearts.

Since falling in love with a peach tea blend I got once from a little middle-of-nowhere cafe, I’ve been looking all over for a peachy tea capable of kicking me in the face with flavor. This is not that tea, but that doesn’t mean it’s not lovely. It’s really balanced and nice, with the flavor swooping into delicious fruitiness just when I think the black tea is getting strong. It leaves a hint of mango on the back of my tongue after the sip—yummy!

(From momo.) It’s very minty! There’s probably more mint in this than anything else. On my first cup, I couldn’t really taste anything past the mint. Not that this is bad; unlike a pure peppermint cuppa it felt substantial enough to finish (I’m weird about plain peppermint tea this way).

I think it really shines on the second steep, though. The mint is toned way down, and I get some of that richer smokiness on the back of the sip. It’s much more balanced with less of the mint. The wet leaf smells woody and nice. A bit astringent, but I really like this second cup.

There isn’t really much more mango, this one is definitely heavy on the rose. While I wish it was a bit fruitier, it’s definitely growing on me the more I drink it! Very smooth and calming and rosy sweet-soft. The loose leaf is lovely as well.

Mmmm! I like this better on the second go. It doesn’t need anything added to it. I actually like it a teensy bit oversteeped—the syrup and the hint of bitterness is actually quite tasty.

This was really cozy warm and… nutty? Will write more after another cup. I accidentally left this steeping for about 10-15 minutes (OOPS) but it wasn’t bitter at all. Just delicious! :)

So I haven’t yet had a good experience with either a fruit-based or an herbal tea, which made me really nervous about trying this one. Turns out, there was no need to fear!

This is an absolutely delicious blend. It’s sweet and appley, very smooth with a burst of flavor on the finish. I’m definitely going to eat all of the apple chunks out of the strainer when I’m done.

Sipping this now. I could taste more of the mango when it was hot, but now it’s settled into a very pleasant, soft rose flavor. It’s a bit astringent but I don’t mind that. I had a whole rosebud in this scoop, which might explain the heaviness of the rose, but I hope the next go has a little more mango. :) Ultimately, yummy!

Oversteeped it a tad. Not so bad. The black tea is the main flavor in here, which I don’t mind. I noted a piece of chamomile in my scoop. :) Wish this tasted a bit more like how it was described, but overall a nice breakfast addition.

Sweet! So sweet! Smells very powerfully maple-y. I thought I was a sweet-oriented person, but this might be a little dangerous…

I’m pretty sure Genmaicha and I are going to elope one of these days. It’s such a comforting, toasty warm taste. I love the little popcorn pieces! I could curl up with a bottomless mug of this and die happy. (The way it actually happened was: I brewed a mug in the morning too late to drink it all before leaving for class, which is luckily right across the street. However, not being in possession of a thermos, my solution was just to take the mug down to class and finish it there. Why no, I didn’t look weird at all walking down the street like that.)

Brews up to a vibrant light green color, and tastes vibrantly green as well! Grassy and delicious.

ETA: On an empty stomach this gave me tummy trouble. :(

This smells like brown sugar in milk! Silky, yes.

I didn’t read the ingredients prior to trying this, so boy was I surprised at the taste of the peppermint! I bought it mostly hoping for a really peachy mango-y flavor, but that wasn’t nearly as strong. I think what I’m tasting behind the mint is the honeybush. (Will drink again and come back later.)

Average semi-floral taste. Sweet. Not quite sure how to describe it? Easy to drink with my cold.

I was expecting it to taste more like nuts than it actually does, but I don’t mind at all! It’s very smooth and cozy in the mouth, and I have a hankering for more…

SMELLS LIKE PERFECTION… in the bag. Once I steeped it, it sort of smelled flowery and bergamot-like? Unfortunate, as I hate bergamot! The first sip was nice, but as it cooled I couldn’t finish it. (I’m a slow drinker.) Maybe I just got a bad scoop, or maybe my cold is ruining my tasting sense. Will try again later, hopefully it will taste more like chocolate. Or mint.

EDIT TO ADD: On my second go it was much better—it tasted like tea, not flowers! Still not as chocolatey or minty as I was hoping, but much more pleasant than bergamot. Bleh.

Smells wonderful and nutty in the package. I don’t think I steeped it long enough though, or maybe I just haven’t figured out how to drink anything chai. I couldn’t taste the nuts as much as I was hoping. I’ll steep longer next time.

The beginning of some backlog:

Sweet! Kind of… sour? Not really what I was expecting. It was pretty tasty, and also tastes good after sitting all day in the refrigerator. Not my ideal tea, though.

I’m admittedly new at this, but I can’t really taste anything in this tea. It smells softly chai-like and sweet after brewing, but tastes very muffled, not like anything in particular. I certainly don’t taste chocolate or spice. Maybe it’s gone off (I have no idea how old this tin is) or maybe rooibos just isn’t to my taste.

So I’m just getting started with teas—I’ve always generally been a cold-drinks kind of person and have never bothered obtaining a palate for tea, until now! I feel like it’s something worth trying (and, as I don’t drink coffee but am constantly nodding off, feel that a source of caffeine would do me good).

This is the first tea that I’ve tried and have actually, thoroughly enjoyed! It had a toasty, satisfying aftertaste that I could still distinctly feel hours afterward (like a phantom taste… or a craving). It was absolutely delicious! My previous attempts at green teas were bitter, oversteeped disasters, but after a little more education I’m proud to say I finally had a wonderful tea experience. :)