KittyLovesTea

One of the many Tea Moments blends that I have had for a while but never got around to trying..until now that is. My husband chose this one at random from my cupboard which is good for him because he loves apple tea.

The blend doesn’t look special in terms of quality but it was only a cheap tea, something I thought was worth trying for an every day tea. The Sencha is dark green with a fair amount of twigs while the chamomile is completely dry and almost brown in colour. As for the apple they are small pieces that are very dry and a little rubbery. it smells like grassy cinnamon which is actually quite nice.

Once steeped the tea is orange in colour with a sweet and spicy apple aroma.

Flavour is light and quite refreshing with sweet apple and spicy cinnamon tones but also a kind of clove coolness. Also picking up a little bit of a floral mist.

Overall it’s alright and I will experiment with stronger steepings and also cold steeping. For now it’s drinkable but unfortunately this blend is nothing special.

Thank you very much NofarS for this sample.

After my manic cupboard searching which was made much easier thanks to yesterdays cleaning I came across this Darjeeling sample. Just what I have been looking for.

The leaves are crisp and pungent with thick floral and perfumey musk tones. Certainly one of the strongest Darjeelings that I have sniffed.

Once steeped the tea is light brown and orange in colour and has a musky floral and fruity aroma.

Flavour is delicate in terms of flowers and fruit but thick on wood and musk. It is very perfumey with some dryness but light enough to still be refreshing. It also has a slightly sour tang but it quickly subsides. I actually brewed this one a little weaker than I usually would based primarily on it’s very strong raw scent. I’m glad I did because the levels are ok, it’s not as floral as I was hoping for but nice by all accounts.

I am still on the hunt for the perfect Darjeeling….

I’m craving some Darjeeling to match this warm weather and all I can find is this white Darjeeling from Canton. I think it will do, the birds outside are singing and all I want to do is drink tea and listen to them.

Other than a crisp floral scent this tea has little else in the way of aroma, the leaves are also very pale and considerably smaller in size than the other Arya Darjeelings I have tried before..could be because this is white and the packet says rare/hard to get hold of.

Once steeped the tea smells a little spicy and fruity, something I was truly not expecting.

In flavour this tea is delicious! Soft, sweet, creamy, spicy, floral and fruity. A whole lot going on but in a mild way. When I say spicy I mean cinnamon spicy and the creaminess has a vanilla hue about it. It tastes like a flavoured tea and not at all like a natural tea let a lone a Darjeeling.

Colour me impressed.

That’s the last of this sample now from my Holiday Cheer gift box. I’m thinking about what I can do with the cute little tin that’s left over. It’s only large enough for 5 teabags but perhaps I can keep matcha in them and re label the tin. That’s the best I can think of so far.

I did my food shopping earlier and filled my fridge completely with fresh fruit, salad and veg so tonight I plan on doing a salad bowl with some fresh bread for dinner. We (me and my husband) also went walking with my parents and their three dogs which was nice, I just need to get out of the house and get used to leaving the cats on their own for a couple of hours. Since Ebony died I am on alert mode 24/7 and I really just need to relax.

Tired and achey from the walk I have a slice of Christmas come early with this Candy Cane tea and a few pink wafer biscuits as an extra treat. :) Hold on to the little things because it’s those things that get you through the day.

No notes yet.

No notes yet.

Probably my last pot of tea before bed. I got the ‘Adagio Holiday Cheer’ gift set from my husband for Christmas and since we have been drinking bagged tea all day (for a change) it made sense to try a sample from the set. I let my husband pick a tin at random and he chose Candy Apple which sounds very good. I can’t remember the last time I actually had a candy apple/toffee apple.

The pyramid bags are rather clear and I can note finely chopped black tea with a few pieces of dry apple in each. Not quite how I imagined it would taste but alrighty then. The bags have a sweet and slightly spicy (cinnamon?) apple scent. Score :) I just checked the back of the tin and it does say cinnamon.

Once steeped the tea is dark brown in colour with a sweet and fruity scent, not quite candy/toffee apple but more like apple pie. That could be because of the cinnamon, I have never had a candy/toffee apple with cinnamon on/in it before and I cannot see why they have included it in the ingredients.

In flavour this has a strong black tea base which counters a lot of the sweet toffee flavour and the apple is being over taken by the cinnamon. So it’s malty, smoky, spicy and a little fruity.

Oh Adagio, this is far from candy apple. Seriously, why the cinnamon? It’s similar to the previous tea I drank (Dilmah – peppermint and English toffee) in that the black base is just too strong and it ruins the flavours that you would expect it to have.

I’m not saying it’s undrinkable, I can finish the bags that I have…but it’s just not what it says it is in my opinion. Such a shame.

No notes yet.

Thank you Josie Jade for this sample.

Almost seen all of the songs in this years Eurovision and some of the entries have been…interesting…to say the least. Still it’s nice to see so many different cultures in such a short space of time. Voting time!!! GO FINLAND!!!

The tea pyramids are quite thick and clothy which makes it hard to see the quality of the leaves. I can smell them though and can note a toffee/butterscotch type scent but no peppermint. It’s not overly sweet either.

Once steeped this tea is dark brown in colour and has a slight sweet and minty aroma. The Ceylon is a strong earthy base with delicate touches of mint and sweet toffee. It’s not as strong as I was hoping..well the flavours aren’t anyway. It’s almost like an every day black tea until you get that touch of mint and a sweet finish.

Overall it’s nice but the flavours don’t stand out enough for my liking. My husband loves it though.

Thank you Canton Tea Co for this sample. A couple of months ago I received an empty box from the Tea Club and as an apology they sent me a few samples along with the original club order. Was very nice of them to do so. :)

Watching Eurovision tonight and thought we had might as well treat ourselves to a tea mad marathon night.

The pyramids are completely see through so I can note bright green, sharp and dry Darjeeling leaves that have a gentle floral perfume scent.

Once steeped the tea is orange/brown in colour and has a sweet malt and flower aroma.

The flavour is gentle overall so it has a clean and refreshing taste. It’s a little sweet and floral with malted and soft fruity tones. The perfume dryness is minimal which helps to keep the sweet and floral tones clean and light in the after taste.

A very nice cup of Darjeeling and great for a posh everyday tea.

I finally broke into my New English Teas collection boxes for breakfast this morning. The collection has breakfast tea, afternoon tea and traditional tea.

pic.twitter.com/ivGz5yG5Sp

I wasn’t a fan of New English Teas Earl Grey as for me it was just too mild but hopefully this breakfast tea is full bodied like I’m craving right now.

Served with a drop of milk. This tea smells leathery, rich and sour. Flavour is very rich and definitely full bodied but it’s also musty and woody. Not quite what I was looking for but it will do. The leather and wood aspect is the strongest so I’m toning it down with a little stevia sugar.

That’s better, now it’s a completely different tea. Tastes maltier and less thick and earthy but it keeps it’s richness. In the morning the last thing I want to taste is leather or wood, I want something refreshing and clean.

Overall it’s an average black tea that requires milk and stevia sugar before becoming drinkable. Without sweetener this is rated at roughly 6.5/10 and with sweetener this is rated at roughly 7.5/10. It truly makes a huge difference.

I bought this tea on the same day that I received the Teavivre news letter featuring an all new ‘Strawberry Oolong’. I hadn’t known Teavivre to do anything flavour wise other than Jasmine and I decided then and there to treat myself. Well it arrived yesterday and I have had to wait until tonight to sample it.

The smell is divine, sweet and fruity strawberry with a clean and mouth watering juiciness. It looks like any other late harvest Oolong and without the smell I wouldn’t have thought anything else of it (had I known known the information on it and was blind tasting). However it really is a very nice scent, it smells a little unnatural but not too much to spoil it.

Once steeped for 3 minutes this Oolong is cloudy yellow in colour with a soft but still juicy strawberry aroma. So far it smells so fruity that it resembles a fruit only blend.

Wow! It has the same sweet and juicy flavour as it’s aroma but there is also a gentle floral and slightly toasted depth to it too. Not too sweet but at the right balance for me and it’s nice to be able to taste the Oolong beneath it all. Overall it’s quite light and refreshing but with enough flavour to be pleasing. The sweetness is almost honeyed. Very smooth and delicious!

I think it would be a good tea to try iced, maybe even worth a try at cold steeping it. Very happy that I was naughty and bought this tea despite my promise to drink what I have first…oops.

This only arrived today but it smells so delicious and I must have a taste. It’s very citrusy and strong and fresh. I can smell the orange and lime vividly. Lovely! Again it looks as shown in the picture.

Once steeped this tea is dark brown in colour and has the same strong, sweet and waxy citrus aroma. Flavour is strong but refreshing and the balance of waxy and sweet citrus fruit is perfect. Lemon, lime, orange…a mixture of everything is present. The strength is strong but still very nice without the aid of milk or sugar so it has some smoothness and without any bitterness.

It reminds me a little of Lemon and Lime Black Tea – Ahmad Tea but with more flavour and depth. Looks like I have found a winner, another new tea company to remember. :)

No notes yet.

Another find on eBay and yet another small company to try out. This was advertised as a valentines tea but it looked nice and I thought “What the hell” and bought it anyway. We all need love on more than one day a year.

It arrived this morning and will be the first tea I shall try. The tea is as shown in the picture and has a very sweet scent…strawberry? It’s nice but synthetic smelling. It has the little sweets in so I wouldn’t expect anything less for this blend.

Once steeped this tea is dark brown in colour with a sweet and strong mixture of fruit and earthiness. Not as sweet as it’s raw scent but still pleasant.

Flavour is thick and the black tea is rather strong but avoids becoming bitter or harsh. Still slightly sweet with fruity and floral tones. I still think it’s strawberry. It’s very delicate though and my husband is having a hard time finding any real flavours other than sweet black tea.

Overall I think it’s nice, worth the cheap price and a nice novelty…plus it’s something I could drink every day with ease.

Unrelated Side Note – I made some lip balms this morning using Boysenberry Matcha and natural vegan ingredients as gifts to send. So if anyone does any large tea trades with me then be aware that you may find one amongst your teas. Working on more scents too :)

Just quick notes – This tea is not a strong Earl Grey in terms of bergamot but it does cure my fix for a strong black tea with a touch of sweetness. No bitterness and sweet enough to not require milk. It’s a cheap and cheerful cup of tea that is very well suited for all day, every day drinking.

Thank you Angel for this sample.

In raw form this tea is a lovely blend of dark brown, light brown and silver green leaves. It has an earthy, wooden scent.

Once brewed the tea is brown in colour and has a slightly spicy and toasted, earthen scent.

My husband had a sip and said he could taste pasta and pizza in this tea. The most bizzare statement that he has ever made. I found this tea to be spicy and warming with a gentle toasted almost fruity and floral essence. Very beautiful and elegant. Each sip brings forward different flavours but each one is as tasty as the last.

Side Note – I don’t think I have ever had a spicy natural Oolong before.

I was a huge fan of this tea a year ago and stumbled across a batch left in my cupboard and thought I would try to cold steep it. Most of the fruity teas I have cold steeped worked well, the hibiscus fruit teas however were undrinkable.

Scent is sweet and soft with noticeable pineapple tones and a generic fruit background. Taste is sweet with grassy tones and a light, refreshing fruity mist. Not overly strong but at a nice level, I steeped this slightly over what I intended to (7-8 hours) but it worked out nicely. Also slightly creamy and smooth. The more I drink the easier it is to detect a perfume, floral like taste.

All in all I’m glad I found this tea and will remember to keep it handy for my cold steeps. It’s cheap and delicious…couldn’t ask for more.

Still trying to carry on as normal just to keep myself busy. I have done my house chores and worked from home and thought it would be nice to treat myself to another cold brew as my reward. I forgot all about this orange brulee but found it in the back of my cupboard.

I think this was the first Oolong that I have cold steeped and I did notice when separating the steeped leaves the Oolong balls had fully unravelled and resembles seaweed. It has been steeping in my fridge for roughly 5 hours.

It has a delicious caramelised, sweet orange scent. Very brulee like and delicious. The flavour is very creamy and sweetly orange with a slight toasty caramel and floral after taste. Very clean and silky smooth with lots of flavour.

So far it’s turned into one of my favourite cold brews and it would be interesting to see the difference of trying it hot. I may have to do a pot steep later today to see.

I have had this blend for a while and only just noticed that I haven’t reviewed it…that may be because it has a very unique flavour and I’m just not sure whether I like it or not. It says on the ingredients list that it contains cranberry but I just can’t taste it, there is fruit there in a sweet and tart kinda way but it resembles more citrus fruit tones than anything else. Like a strong lemon or lime that has an edge of bubblegum about it.

Well I cold steeped it tonight and it’s much more refreshing and lighter than it’s heated form. Therefore I think cold steeping is the way forward with this tea for me, it still has that strange fruity taste but at a minimal level and it’s just enough to leave a tasty sweet taste in my mouth.

I should also mention it’s perfume like quality that is noticeable particularly in the smell. Perhaps also a little floral because of that too.

I shall not rate it because I am still just not sure but either way I recommend cold steeping this tea for any iced tea fans.

I have been a little quiet on here in the last couple of days and may be for a while longer. On Thursday night my beautiful baby boy Ebony passed away, he was only 1 year 3 months old. He came to me for fuss so I stroked him and then he clawed the carpet and within a few seconds he fell down onto his side and he was gone. The vet said it sounds like he was born with a heart defect that wasn’t caught in his examinations.

He leaves behind his brother who needs extra love and support as he has never been on his own before. Both me and my husband have taken some time off, for us this death is personal…I am unable to have children so my cats literally are treated like my own babies. To lose one so young and without warning is beyond shocking.

I post this message on this tea because the first post I made for this tea was me mentioning that I bought it because I had a beautiful black cat called Ebony. This was the first thing my husband could get me to drink after his death. He will always be missed and was taken much too early.

I may be on, I may not be… I just don’t know. So just to let people know I’m here from afar but just not ready to review yet. I don’t know when I will be.

http://tinypic.com/r/6gc0le/5

Thank you Sil for this sample. I love orange and nothing sounds yummier than orange Sencha.

The raw blend smells strongly of orange and citrus with thick waxy tones. Also sweet and perfumey. I can see why people say this smells like Pledge or any sort of orange furniture cleaner/dust spray, has the same almost chemical perfume like scent. I did notice on the ingredients list that it contains ‘tangerine orange flavor’ which based upon the smell I am lead to believe is artificial.

Once steeped the tea is orange in colour and has a waxy orange and tangerine aroma. Flavour is strong and dry with a sweet and sour citrus tang. Very perfume like and with real artificial elements in the citrus flavours.

I decided to steep this tea different to the recommendations made on the packaging. They suggested to use boiling water for 4-5 minutes which in my opinion would have made it too strong and bitter, perhaps even undrinkable.

It’s an ok tea but my tongue and the roof of my mouth feels dry and powdery which is very off putting. Sencha is sometimes powder like so perhaps I should have done a quick rinse before hand. Never mind, one pot sample and I’m not sad about it.

Thank you once again Sil.

The tea in raw form consists of small Oolong balls that are very dark brown/black in colour. They do look mature by the dark appearance alone but the rich toasted floral scent would have given it away had I not known before hand. Mature Oolong is always a treat and with age it becomes smokier and thicker but also more mysterious and interesting.

Using my Gongfu teapot with roughly 4g of Oolong and following the following instructions as taken from the Lu Lin Teas website.

Using boiled water cooled to 85˚C. Infuse for 30 seconds and discard first brew. Re-steep and infuse for 1-3 minutes, depending on taste. Re-steep up to 3 times.

First Steep – 1 minute – The tea is light orange/brown in colour and has a thick smoky, roasted/toasted aroma.

Flavour is rather delicate but has strong smoky tones of wood, flowers and leather. It’s also slightly sweet which tones down the richness of flavours. The consistency is smooth and overall a very pleasing first steep.

Second Steep – 2 minutes – A little darker in colour and with a richer scent. The Oolong balls are also starting to unravel and open up and expand to become twice the original size. A little deeper in flavour now with more smoky leather tones becoming more dominant and the floral notes are becoming weaker to detect. It does however remain sweet and honeyed almost.

Third Steep – 3 minutes – It’s amazing how quickly a tea can start to weaken in both smell and taste. We went from being fairly weak to moderately strong and back down to openly weak. That would conclude that this is the last steep so around three steeps per pot is correct (at least for me). The scent is mostly toasty now compared to the previous much smokier steep. Flavour is also much sweeter and resembles toasted flowers.

Overall it’s been a beautiful tea on a beautiful day and I could not have asked for more. This is toward the early end of the mature scale so it’s not as mature as it could be but it’s at a nice level. Mature enough to have flavour but light enough to be refreshing. It would be a great example tea for those interested in trying aged Oolong without throwing themselves into the deep end and buying something too strong.

Please visit my website for pictures and more information on this tea.
http://www.kittylovestea.co.uk/2013/05/06/oh-what-a-beautiful-morning-oh-what-a-beautiful-day/

Thank you Fiddling for this sample.

In raw form this looks like any other honeybush tea until you smell it and take in the sweet and light fruity aroma. Not like kiwi as such but definitely exotic.

I cold steeped this for roughly 6 hours (as a side note this is my last cold steep for a while..I think). After the long 6 hour steep this tea is brown in colour and has a much stronger fruity scent that is so sweet and delicious it’s making me salivate. Reminds me very much of 52 Teas – Breakfast Smoothie blend which I adore.

Taste is similar to the Breakfast Smoothie blend too but lighter and with less fruit tones. It’s very sweet and tastes like some sort of tropical fruit gobstopper. The mild tones are like cucumber in as much as it’s light, refreshing and subtle in flavour but it’s not something I would be able to pick out if I didn’t know what it was. Same as the kiwi really, it’s not sour like I usually associate with kiwi but there are gentle fruit tones in there.

Overall it’s a perfect blend of light, sweet, fruit that remains refreshing throughout and leaves the most amazing taste in my mouth. Would make a great iced tea on very hot days, a true treat. I love it, as much as the Breakfast Smoothie Blend.

ps. If anyone has any of this to trade please let me know. :D