Jude

This is a bit tannic (for a puerh) without a lot of depth. It’s a mystery why they named it “Bold Leaf”.

Richly flavored yet light, naturally quite sweet, toward malty. Minimal, if any, new notes on the second steep, just muted flavor. This is a no-brainer for a go-to breakfast tea that will gently and smoothly bring you into the day by awakening your taste buds with a kiss.

Note: may come in bags, per Ethos much earlier review, but I purchased it from the bulk tea bins.

Lighter than other keemuns I’ve tasted yet still a well-rounded flavor and enough smoothness and body to drink it straight… I sometimes add almond milk to black tea to accomplish that. The slight caramel sweetness was just right but there was also a little perfuminess that was just a note or two too much for me to make this a staple, though I’d be happy to drink it in a restaurant.

This has a pleasantly subdued mint flavor; it’s not a strong mint tea. The flavor notes beyond the mint are what subdue it, but they’re not clearly discernible to me. It’s a stretch to find the cocoa peel flavor, though it’s there in the fragrance and in the roundness of the flavor, but this isn’t a tea I’d reach for if I were looking for chocolate/cocoa, itself. The mate, meanwhile, is muted by the mint but it’s there.

Overall it’s a nice smooth tea and it could definitely grow on you if, like me, you’re not big on the brightness of mint tea, or if you enjoy bright mint teas but are looking for a little change-up of more complex, rounded flavor.

Looking forward to trying this iced this summer.

This is a tea to drink if you’re in a hurry or focused on something else and just want some organic green tea, because while it’s inoffensive, neither is it lingering/savoring-worthy. If it weren’t organic I’d rate it lower because it really has very little personality but it’s also clean and its production doesn’t contaminate the environment so I enjoy that aspect of it.

As I was scouring my mind for a taste descriptor besides buttered popcorn (unsalted), something to describe the particular vegetal note, edamame emerged as the answer, and I was pleased that I’d locked it. Then I read the description from Verdant of the growing process: “Rows of soybeans grow between the tea bushes to distract insects, and the beans are used as … fertilizer.” Whoa, floored me. Here I was thinking I’d pulled out this abstract analogy and it was totally concrete, if the tea absorbs any of its neighbor-plant through air or roots. Like scenting tea with jasmine flowers. I’m clearly no botanist but it seems plausible, and if true, makes me wonder if I’ll ever have such a bulls-eye in future reviews ;) I will not go so far, however, as to start consuming different kinds of worms, soil and fertilizer to further develop this skill.

The tea is smooth and savory, very pleasant, low-key, mild astringency.

Spring’s first grass freshly mowed then gently sauteed with butter, that’s this tea. It’s a soothing, just-barely-sweet and savory green. A lot of flavor and very smooth, no edge whatsoever. Many thanks to Teavivre for the generous samples, it has been a fun tasting journey!

This is a tea I would be delighted with if it were served to me in a restaurant… smooth and full-bodied with natural notes of simmering caramel sweetness. Just a slight astringency adds a little extra interest without being puckerish. Noteworthy dropoff in character and flavor on the second steep — making it an unremarkable cup, but the first steep is worth the price of admission. Very nice overall, thanks to Angel at Teavivre for the generous sample!

I don’t know what “Organic Caramel Flavor” is and that makes me a bit leery of this tea but just drinking it blind, on flavor characteristics alone, I’ve gotta say this is very enjoyable. Caramel apple but not that sweet. There’s a nice, fresh fruity-apple taste. It has ginger, clove and cardomom among the ingredients but they are played down entirely – this is not at all a spicy brew, but soft and fruity… those ingredients are likely what prevents the overall flavor from being too sweet. It’s a savory sweetness. Did I say yum? Smooth. This would also be excellent iced, no need for adding sugar.

This has a nice flavor palette, naturally mildly sweet… the addition of banana is a nice touch, rounds it out. If it were only less ‘thin’… and I actually brewed it with 50% more tea than WTH advises. If I doubled it (next time) it’d possibly still not be sufficient. Adding a bit of almond milk didn’t help much in this respect, either. So it loses a few points for that. It’s otherwise a very pleasantly flavored gentle tea to wind down with in the evening.

Sipdown. Prefer this to Matevana by a long shot as this is much smoother and the flavors are better integrated, though a tad flat. Brews up nice and dark. Hazelnut with a hint of chocolate. Benefits from the addition of almond milk.

By the way, if you’re looking for a mate-based coffee substitute, the best – by far – that I’ve found is Guayaki’s Javamate, in either Vanilla or Mocha Maca flavors. That is purely on a flavor and body basis… you can even brew it in your coffeemaker. And there are pluses, as well — it is a socially-responsible company and these products also contain ramon nut, a rainforest “superfood” that’s still largely under the radar, at least in the US. Whole Foods used to carry it but now you can only order it from the company, apparently.

The reviews are all over the map on this one, and I fall into the “where’s the chocolate?” camp. I love mate but this tastes like smokey bark. Actually dislike it unless it gets a splash of almond milk, that helps a lot. I’m almost tempted to add sugar but I never do that when rating a tea. Maybe I got a bad batch. As a coffee substitute it moderately succeeds, based mostly on its depth/body. I really like Guayaki’s Javamate, in either Vanilla or Mocha Maca flavors, as a coffee substitute. Both of them leave Matevana in the dust flavor-wise, plus Guayaki’s a good company, socially, and the products contain another rainforest superfood, ramon nut.

Now that I’ve tasted more chocolate teas, I’m dropping my rating on this, since the complementarity of flavors seems to be off balance, so sitting and enjoying a cup of this leaves me wanting something to be different, rather than kicking back with a big “aaah”… it’s overweighted toward a sharp cinnamon, at least in the sample I had. Also tried it with a little almond milk and that didn’t help, only diminished its character.

Enjoyable! This was a surprise because I’m so jaded by so-called chocolate teas. I didn’t have to search for the cocoa or the coconut, both tasted natural and there were no ‘off’ flavor notes at all — smooth sailing. It is a little thin but there’s enough flavor to not be dissatisfying, just give it a good long steep, as my brethren here suggest. Drank with nothing added.

Slight cocoa fragrance, faintly chocolatey flavor. It’s a great ingredient list but the flavor doesn’t live up to expectations. I would not describe this as having surprising depth and body, even after I added almond milk. I think this tea might be nice as a low-key flavoring element for a fuller bodied puerh.

Really enjoyed this sample from Kasumi no Chagin, worth lingering over. This is neither a dark, oxidized oolong nor a fresh, green, floral oolong. It’s silky smooth, soft and round and … apricot. Apricot with a hint of assam from the nose through the long finish. The finish is slightly tannic on the second steep, though that may have been a little operator error oversteeping, not sure about that.

I am always seeking teas that inherently taste fruity (or chocolate/caramel/floral-y) without actually being flavored, and this is the most apricot I’ve tasted in that category. Smile-worthy tea sipping on this one!

If I liked chai I’d be more of a fan of this. It’s a nice enough cup but the cinnamon and clove hit pretty hard into the rooibos.

Molly sent me a couple of sachets of this that she’d just picked up so they’d be fresh, how sweet is that? There’s such a wide spread among the Steepster reviews and I can see why a lot of folks would love this smooth, flavorful tea, though I fall among those who are less enamoured, because it’s a bit too perfumey for my taste. The flavors are nice enough: I think Rebeccah hit it on the nose, so to speak, by calling it cherry pipe tobacco (I’d pulled out cherry and tobacco as predominant before reading her post, funny). Dark berry and bergamot are also apparent, and something smooths it out, like vanilla, which makes an appearance in the immediate aftertaste. Strong berry fragrance but this is not a typical light-bodied berry tea, it’s much rounder.

Smooth, malty, pulls no punches, easy drinking, I like it.

Thanks to Teavivre for the generous samples, much appreciated. This was a mild silver needle. Pleasantly buttery, with hay/grass and cucumber notes most apparent. Following recommended steeping with 1 1/2 tsp its flavor was quite subtle, so next time I will try it with 2 tsp.

Rich flavor, marine notes are just barely detectable, it’s cleaner in that regard for those who have an aversion to puerh for that reason. I think Kasumi no Chagin hit it with the ‘peat’ descriptor. ‘Forest dirt’ hits more on the second steep. I know, this sounds so appealing, doesn’t it? But it’s a pretty good puerh for everyday drinking.

I’m not a big rooibos fan but I’d like to enjoy it more because it’s healthy, plus I stop drinking caffeine by around 1pm, leaving a tea void in every day. So I’m always on the lookout for a nice evening tea, and this falls in that category. A pleasing complement of flavors — peach, mostly, and the rooibos is played down, almost on the order of a very faint dusting of cinnamon, though of course it’s rooibos, not cinnamon.

… If you’re reading reviews for this tea looking for a good, natural-ingredient rooibos blend, this one’s very smooth and palatable with a good deal of flavor, and you might also want to check out American Tea Room’s Choco*Late, which is a rooibos blend with cacao husks and vanilla beans.

I think it’d make a nice adult beverage but I haven’t given enough thought to which alcohol I’d add… maybe some type of brandy or bourbon. ’Scuse me while I make a second cup ;)

Thanks, Kasumi no Chagin for sending this – trying a new tea that I enjoy is like a friend showing up in a convertible in early spring and shouting “let’s go!” and you just drive anywhere for the experience, fun. That’s what comes to mind as I sit back with my 2nd cup :)

Gentle boldness. Caramelized tobacco. Smooth. Astringency on the finish but here the astringency was part of the enjoyment, tempered by the long finish of the flavor profile, so was an integrated part of the tea’s character.

On edit, the astringency outlasted the flavor finish … a few long red lights on the way home from the joyride.

A good cuppa, thanks Kasumi no Chagin! And taking the cue from Dinosara I brewed this at a lower temp and didn’t get any bitterness, though there’s a touch of tannin.

Smooth, clean, honest and I’d even put it in the category of a comfort tea, in the sense that you can just settle in with it and enjoy its well-balanced and mildly sweet flavors. I don’t mind assam, but there’s something too assamy about an assam; this tea has hints of assam, at the ideal subtlety level, perfectly balanced by apricot and a little malt.