358 Tasting Notes
I had a cup of this from the Traveling Tea Box the other day and forgot to log it, oops! Overall, I liked this tea. It had a fun fruitiness to it, with a little hint of floral in the background. Maybe not one that I would chose every day, but it was certainly nice for a summer cup first thing in the morning.
-Dry blend has large black tea leaves and twigs with large pieces of dried fruit, yellow petals, pink rose petals, and small lavender petals.
-Dry leaves smell lightly musty and of dried fruit. Tea liquor aroma is malty and of sweet fruit.
-Tea liquor is a clear dark brown color.
-Tangy fruit flavor and finish with a small amount of bitterness. Strong floral aftertaste.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Good tea. A very fruity cup with floral hints of lavender and rose.
Preparation
I’m a bit apprehensive about this tea, to say the least. The name sounded wonderful, and made me think of buttery, sweet cookies. Instead, the ingredients listed include cumin, coriander and pink peppercorns. The dry leaves do smell very strongly of peppery spices. The rich, buttery aroma comes out in the tea liquor, and there is also a hint of salty spices. This is by far the oddest tea I’ve ever tasted, and I can’t quite decide if I am enjoying this cup. It has a thick and buttery flavor with a spicy finish. There is a light buttery citrus aftertaste that does remind me of cookies. Adding sweetener tones down the spiciness nicely, and adding milk adds a touch of creaminess, but the milk isn’t necessary. I think I’ll finish off this cup, but that’s about it. Although I like the butteriness (this is the most buttery tea I’ve ever had!) and the hint of citrus, I’m not loving the peppery spiciness that I keep picking up. This would probably be an excellent tea for anyone who likes savory flavors.
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves and twigs with pistachios, almonds and small red berries.
-Dry leaves smell like black tea and strong peppery spices. Tea liquor aroma is of rich butter and salty spices.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium yellow brown color.
-Thick and buttery flavor with a spicy finish. Light buttery citrus aftertaste.
-Best with sweetener. Milk optional.
-Fair tea. A very odd flavor. Buttery with a spicy note. A hint of citrus and cookies noticeable.
Preparation
I think they are trying to represent the kind of truffles that pigs help harvest for gourmet restaurants, not the wonderful sweet confections most of us would expect. :)
Ha ha Terri. Whenever I hear truffle, I always thing of the truffle fungus, which is delicious despite the name. I never think of the truffle chocolate. Usually though, it ends up being the chocolate one and I am always a bit disappointed.
:)
One day at the restaurant we were serving a special of pork tenderloin with black truffle shavings. One diner ordered this but requested it without truffle because he was “allergic to chocolate”. We laughed. A lot.
Hmm, well now I’m even more confused. The description mentioned a type of citrus cookie batter, and I did taste a buttery cookie flavor somewhere in the middle of all that savory!
First cup of the day from the traveling tea box. I dug around a little this morning to find something that I was pretty sure I’d like. In the afternoon I am a little more adventurous in my tea selections, but it’s always a bummer if my first cup in the morning is a big miss. Luckily, this one was a huge winner!
The dry leaves smell like sweet chocolate and raspberries. The tea liquor’s aroma is completely milk chocolate and fresh raspberries – I could smell it as soon as I poured the water over the dry leaves. The flavor is of creamy milk chocolate and a little malty. The sweet raspberry flavor comes in the aftertaste. I’ve had chocolate and raspberry blends before, but they seemed to be more of a dark chocolate flavor. This tea leaves me feeling like I just ate a piece of milk chocolate. It is incredibly creamy and smooth and not artificial tasting at all. A wonderful tea!
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves and twigs and pieces of red rooibos with cocoa bits.
-Dry leaves smell like sweet chocolate and raspberries. Tea liquor aroma is of milk chocolate and fresh raspberries.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium orange brown color.
-Creamy milk chocolate and malty flavor and finish. Light sweet raspberry and cocoa aftertaste.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Excellent tea. Smooth and creamy raspberry and chocolate flavor.
Preparation
Another tea from the traveling tea box. This one immediately appealed to me – it just smelled delicious when I opened up the little bag. I also have loved everything from The Persimmon Tree Tea Company that I’ve tried, and this one is no exception. The dry leaves smell very strongly of sugary caramel. The tea itself has a sweet caramel aroma with a hint of toasted rice. The flavor is initially grassy from the green tea, but it has a toasty finish. There is a light, almost burnt tasting caramel aftertaste that follows. Overall, it’s a little lighter flavored than I’d prefer, but the caramel flavor does become stronger as it cools. The toasty rice flavor is a nice addition, and it almost reminds me of caramel popcorn. It is also surprisingly creamy for a green tea. Perfect afternoon tea after a morning of running errands!
-Dry blend has large flat green tea leaves and twigs and small red rooibos with large yellow petals and caramel pieces.
-Dry leaves smell overwhelmingly of sugary caramel. Tea liquor aroma is of sweet caramel with a hint of toasted rice.
-Tea liquor is a cloudy medium yellow color.
-Fresh grassy flavor with a toasty finish. Light almost burnt caramel aftertaste.
-Best with sweetener.
-Very good tea. A cup of creamy caramel with a hint of toasty rice. Slightly reminiscent of caramel popcorn.
Preparation
Another tea from the traveling tea box! This one has actually been on my shopping list for awhile, so I was really excited to see it in the box. The dry leaves don’t really smell like banana to me, instead I smella tangy tropical fruit aroma. The tea liquor itself smells more like the tea’s description – warm coconut with a hint of banana. The flavor is sweet and malty with a fresh banana finish. The banana isn’t too strong, but it’s definitely noticeable and it’s not really artificial-fakey tasting like a lot of banana flavored things are. There is a soft fruity coconut aftertaste that finishes out the sip nicely. Adding milk and sweetener brings out more of the coconut flavors and an overall tropical fruitiness. The more I sip this, the more that I am liking it. I checked the website and it seems that this one is no longer available. Please bring this one back, Element Teas!
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves with slivers of coconut and banana and small yellow petals.
-Dry leaves smell lightly of tropical fruit. Tea liquor aroma is of warm coconut with a hint of banana.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium orange brown color.
-Sweet malty flavor with a fresh banana finish. Soft fruity coconut aftertaste.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Very good tea. Fresh banana and coconut flavors. Not artificial tasting.
Preparation
This is the first tea that I’m trying from the Traveling Tea Box! It actually came on Saturday, but we had a friend staying with us over the weekend and I didn’t check the mail until late Sunday afternoon. Needless to say, I’ve been excitedly waiting and barely containing myself until everyone left and I had a quiet house all to myself to dig into this huge box of tea!
The dry leaf of this tea smells heavenly. I can detect a rich black tea smell with a lot of sweet and nutty baked cookie aromas swirling around. I followed the instructions on the package and only steeped this tea for two minutes, and am surprised at just how darkly colored the tea itself is. To me, the flavor is more malty and almost smokey black tea than anything else. I did add some milk and sugar, and it brought out a little more of the sweet coconut, but there is still a lingering smokiness. Even though I love coconut and macaroons, and this tea has only a faint hint of those two flavors, I am really enjoying this cup! The black tea base is really wonderful, and it takes milk well and becomes almost creamy. I’m glad this first tea from the Traveling Tea Box was a hit!
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves and twigs.
-Dry leaves smell like rich black tea with a hint of sweet and nutty baked cookies. Tea liquor aroma is of black tea and sweet coconut.
-Tea liquor is a clear very dark brown color.
-Deep malty flavor with a lightly sweet finish. Very faint coconut aftertaste with some smokiness.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Good tea. Very light coconut cookie flavor. Strong black tea base takes milk and sugar well.
Preparation
This is another tea that I’ve discovered at the bottom of the tea drawer. It’s been in there for far too long without me trying it by now! I’m a bit hesitant about this one because of the rosehips. I’ve found that teas with rosehips in them are always just too tart for me. This tea also has an odd aroma – I can detect vegetal green tea and a hint of sweet fruit, but there is also a strong underlying smell that almost reminds me of a car garage. Like a heavy oil and tire smell, maybe? I know it sounds odd, but it’s just the first thing that came to mind when I smelled this cup. The flavor was definitely less tart than expected, with a nice full vegetal green tea flavor. There is a slightly tart rosehip finish and a smooth, almost buttery aftertaste. I tried adding some sweetener, but it seemed to bring out more of an artificial flavor, so I think it’s best with nothing added. Overall I am just not a fan of this tea. There seems to just be something a little off in the flavor, and I can’t get the smell of a car garage out of my head. Thank you for the sample, though, Nicole! I’m glad I finally got around to trying this one!
-Dry blend has a mixture of green tea leaves and twigs with rosehips and dried raspberries.
-Dry leaves smell lightly of tart raspberries. Tea liquor aroma is of vegetal green tea with a hint of sweet fruit.
-Tea liquor is a clear dark yellow color.
-Full vegetal green tea flavor with a slightly tart rosehip finish. Smooth buttery aftertaste.
-Best plain.
-Poor tea. Lightly flavored with a strange hint of something off. Sweetener brings out an artificial note.
Preparation
It feels good to be back in my own kitchen, making a cup of tea this morning. We were out of town the past week visiting family, and while it was nice, it is wonderful to be back home in the peace and quiet. I owe an apology to Terri HarpLady for not contacting her about having tea while we were in St. Louis! My father-in-law has cancer and isn’t doing well, and my fiancee’s brother, sister-in-law and two children are living at his parent’s house while their new house is built, so we really didn’t have a minute to ourselves this trip. Hopefully next time! We didn’t even get a chance to go by The London Tea Room to purchase more tea, which was very sad.
I have this Mango tea more often as iced tea rather than hot. It’s definitely good in the summer, served over ice and lightly sweetened. Although a cup of this tea hot this morning is doing very nicely as well! The mango flavor isn’t overwhelming or artificial, it’s just very light and fruity. There is a fresh mango aftertaste that is just right. With a little bit of milk and sweetener it becomes a more creamy cup. Today is going to be a hot summer day, and this was the perfect cup to start the day with!
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves with yellow petals, small orange petals and pieces of dried fruit.
-Dry leaves smell sweet and fruity. Tea liquor aroma is of tropical mango.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium reddish orange color.
-Light fruity flavor and finish. Small mango aftertaste.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Good tea. A creamy cup with a light sweet mango flavor.
Preparation
I’ve had this tea for far too long without tasting it! It’s a pretty tea, with medium sized clusters of rolled green tea leaves. The dry leaves smell lightly of fresh grass and peaches, while the tea liquor aroma is more of sweet peaches. The flavor is very simple – slightly sweet with a wonderful fresh peach aftertaste. I was a little surprised by just how much I am enjoying this tea. It’s a very clean tea, just a refreshing fresh peach flavor. I think this would be excellent served over ice during this summer! Thank you, Ninavampi, for this sample!
-Dry blend has medium rolled green tea leaves.
-Dry leaves smell lightly of fresh grass and peaches. Tea liquor aroma is of sweet peaches.
-Tea liquor is a clear dark yellow color.
-Slightly sweet flavor and finish. Fresh peach aftertaste.
-Best with sweetener.
-Very good tea. Simple and clean flavor of fresh sweet peaches.
Preparation
I think the only other champagne tea that I’ve tried is The Republic of Tea’s Anniversary Blend, which I loved. I was excited to try this one, since it includes red raspberry in the flavor as well as the champagne. The dry leaves smell deliciously of sweet champagne. The tea liquor’s aroma is very vegetal with a soft hint of sweet berries. There is a nice sugary sweet berry flavor with an aftertaste of fresh grapes, but there is also a very strong earthy flavor that overshadows the other flavors at first. It does dimish as the tea cools, but it still a little noticeable even once it’s fully cooled. The sweet berry and grape flavors seem a little artificial to me. I am definitely getting more grape from the flavor than bubbly champagne. This tea isn’t terrible, but I’m not as fond of it as I am of the Republic of Tea champagne blend.
-Dry blend has large fluffy green tea leaves with small reddish orange petals.
-Dry leaves smell like sweet champagne. Tea liquor aroma is lightly vegetal with a soft hint of sweet berries.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium bright yellow color.
-Strong grassy flavor with a sugary sweet berry finish. Lingering aftertaste of fresh grapes.
-Best with sweetener.
-Fair tea. Nice grape and sweet berry flavor with an unfortunately strong earthy tone.
