LiberTEAS

AMAZINGLY good. So incredibly good. OH my!

The dry leaf is incredibly aromatic, with strong “green” notes – green as in fresh grass clippings and dark, leafy green vegetables. Sweet and fresh and vibrantly green. The brewed tea maintains that strong green scent, although it is softer than that of the dry leaf.

The flavor is sweet. It has a thick (think velvety thick … and soft!) mouthfeel, with a delicious creamy note that melds beautifully with the sweetness. Easily one of the creamiest, sweetest “pure” (aka unflavored) green teas I’ve ever tasted. Smooth and rich and silky, with a mild vegetal tone. There is some astringency to this, but I find that most of it is softened by the creaminess, making the sip from start to finish remarkably smooth and well-rounded.

This may sound weird, but, this reminds me of fresh milk. Not fresh from the grocery store milk, but fresh from the farm milk … not a dairy farm, but, a small, family farm that allows its cows to graze on meadows of grass. Milk that hasn’t been processed or pasteurized or homogenized or any other such thing – just pure, fresh, unadulterated milk where you can still taste hints of the grass. I haven’t had milk like that in many more years than I care to admit to, but, the flavor of this tea brought those delicious memories of visiting my childhood friend’s farm back to me.

Nice! This has such a delicious, natural flavor. The black tea is robust but does not overwhelm, the bergamot tastes fresh and it has a pleasing contrast between sweet and tangy. The bergamot here seems sweeter than in Earl Grey teas… it’s not a heavy bergamot note, the bergamot and black tea meld together seamlessly. A bit of astringency toward the tail that cleanses the palate, imparting a floral aftertaste.

AWESOME!

So good! Delicious malty tone but not quite as heavy as an Assam, I’d say it was somewhere in between Darjeeling and Assam – with flavors that match. There is a woody tone to it that reminds me of a Darjeeling. It is rich and earthy without being too strong. There is a fair amount of astringency, perhaps more than might be expected from a lighter bodied tea. But it is a crisp, tangy astringency, leaving the palate feeling clean and slightly dry. The aftertaste is earthy and a little sweet.

A very pleasant afternoon cuppa.

Backlog: This afternoon, my daughter and I went to the Lan Su Chinese Gardens in Portland. They have a Tao of Tea teahouse there, and we of course had to stop for a tea and some snacks. My daughter had the peppermint tisane while I had the Dragonwell. Quite nice – and a lovely way to spend the afternoon. The food was yummy too!

Thank you to DaisyChubb who sent some of this to me!

It would seem that this one is a hit or miss here, I happen to like it. It tastes very much like Butter Truffle from ESP Emporium. Nutty, sweet, and nicely spiced. I don’t really get a pastry taste from this, but, I do get a buttery note which kind of plays toward a pastry taste … not quite the bread-y part of a pastry but definitely the buttery, rich part. As I continue to sip, though, I notice the bread-like flavor develop.

I like this.

Backlog: I started my day with a cup of this. Very energizing, and I love the delicious spiced tone – not what I’d call hot or spicy, but, just warm and tasty.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me a bottle of this tea.

It’s tasty. The first couple of sips were slightly off-putting because I could taste the stevia, but, after those initial sips, the rest of the flavors emerged and sort of washed over that funky stevia taste, so I didn’t taste it any more.

This is half lemonade-half tea, so the tea is having to share center stage with the lemonade, and it is therefore a lighter taste. But overall, I’m enjoying this, and the mellow mood part works, because, I am really feeling drowsy now … and I wasn’t before I opened the bottle. This stuff works better than a cup of chamomile tea. I’d like to keep it on hand for the relaxation properties, because I often have trouble falling asleep. I don’t think that will be an issue tonight.

Good night, Steepster!

Yum! Milk Oolong! So deliciously creamy and smooth. Sweet!

There is a lightness to this, it isn’t too heavy or creamy or cloying. It tastes like a natural milk Oolong rather than one of those artificially flavored ones. It has a delicious hint of vegetation that melds with the milk creaminess to give it an almost “creamed vegetable” kind of taste. It is sweet and very pleasant to sip.

Another winner from The Rabbit Hole. I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve tried from them.

Brewing the last little bit that I have of this tea … I do love this one, and I was inspired to brew some after finding some soap on etsy that was inspired by this tea: http://www.etsy.com/listing/68514508/spice-market-tea-soap-cinnamon-orange

I must get some of this soap!

Wow! This tea is good and strong! Definitely a good tea to get one going in the morning (and even though it’s 2:56 pm, it’s morning for me). Robust and deliciously malty. There is some bitterness to this (I steeped it for 2 1/2 minutes in boiling water), but I’m not finding it to be off-putting or undrinkable because of it. Rather, I think I find it just jolting enough to kind of help invigorate me.

There are some wonderful smoky tones to this, not a strong smokiness, but, in the background, somewhere beyond the malty tones, the hint of sweetness and the bitter mid-point. It all works together quite nicely, and forms a decent breakfast blend. Not the best breakfast blend I’ve tried (the best breakfast blend I’ve tried would be my own breakfast blend, aka LiberTeas Breakfast Blend, if you’re wondering), but it is enjoyable enough, and it would be a good tea to reach for on those days when I didn’t want to wake up but needed to.

I like this a lot. Normally, I like rooibos blends best when I can’t taste the rooibos, but, here I can taste the rooibos, but with the almond and vanilla, it works. And it works very well! This is really yummy.

Really glad I decided to try this tonight, so yummy!

Amazing Oriental Beauty! Sweet and delicious. Honey tones and hints of fuzzy peach in the background. Smooth and just oh-so-good!

I’m now on my third cup (which is infusions number five and six).

The first cup was light and crisp, with hints of honey and peach. The second cup was darker, and deeper in flavor, richer, with the honey tones being quite distinct now. The third cup was somewhere between cups 1 and 2. Six very delicious infusions from one measurement of leaves.

This is a perfect Oolong for those who typically find greener Oolongs to be too flowery or floral. This is not nearly so floral, but more of a fruit/honey taste. Absolutely delightful.

This is really good. The mango and peach are pretty evenly balanced, providing a sweet, delicious fruit flavor to the cup, while a hint of lavender and rose linger in the background. The black tea is rich and smooth. A very well-executed blend by Ovation Teas.

This is an excellent Earl Grey Creme, the black tea is a good, strong base of black tea flavor that holds its own and is tasted even though it has been heavily flavored with bergamot (I love strong bergamot!) and what I like best about this particular blend is that even though it is a “de la creme” Earl Grey, the vanilla flavoring doesn’t soften this tea to the point of being more like a creamsicle than a Earl Grey tea. Don’t get me wrong, I love creamsicles, but, when I’m drinking an Earl Grey, I want bergamot!

Instead, the vanilla softens the bergamot just enough to curb the sharpness without muting its tangy qualities. This is smooth and rich and sweet and delicious. YUM!

Dry, this is a very visually appealing tisane … and it smells incredible. Very fruity with floral notes. It brews to a golden color, and while the aroma softens quite a bit once it’s brewed, I can still smell that lovely fragrance that I noted before it was brewed. Sweet, fruity, and a whisper of floral tones.

The flavor is very pleasant. I like that this is a green rooibos blend, as I prefer green to red rooibos. It makes for a lighter, fresher tasting cup. The fruit flavors are the strongest here, I taste tangy citrus, sweet peach and a hint of apple. The rose notes are softer at the start, but develop by mid-cup.

Overall, a very enjoyable late-night cup.

On Tuesday afternoon, my husband took me out to lunch in the Sellwood neighborhood in Portland, and right around the corner was Tea Chai Te, and after lunch he was good enough to bring me there to grab a cup of iced tea (and some loose leaf to go). This is the tea I ordered iced, but I also got an ounce of it to bring with me, and I brewed some of that tonight. I have to admit that I prefer the tea that I brewed myself over the tea that they served to me, I suspect that they didn’t make the tea strong enough when they added ice to it, making for a weak iced tea. This is MUCH better … lots of delicious, juicy strawberry flavor and sweet, buttery Sencha.

So yummy!

Thank you DaisyChubb for sending me some of this tea.

This is really a remarkable lychee flavored black. I enjoy many lychee flavored black teas, but I do think this one is (deservedly so) the best one I’ve tried. The lychee isn’t overly aggressive or perfume-ish, instead, it is a sweet, delicious fruit note that doesn’t overpower the black tea. The black tea is the strongest note here, and that is how it should be.

Really good.

I was really REALLY excited when this tea was first announced, because Cherry Garcia is one of my favorite flavors from Ben & Jerry’s. Then I read some of the tasting notes and got a little worried.

My first sip was a disappointment, but then I decided to allow the tea to cool somewhat, and now that it has cooled to a drinkable temperature (without being too cold or even lukewarm … it’s still hot, just not too hot), and the flavors have emerged. I taste the chocolate and the cherry and even the delicious creaminess that tastes a bit like someone dropped a spoonful of ice cream in my tea to melt. The tea is still strong, and it is very full-bodied and a fair amount of astringency, but, I am not finding it nearly as disappointing as some of the tasting notes here on Steepster have been.

Not my favorite from 52Teas, but I am enjoying it.

Wow! Very nice. I brewed this the way I’d brew a black tea, because the name and the color of the leaves suggested a black tea. However, when I checked the website for more information about the tea (after I brewed it, of course! ha!) I learned it was an Oolong.

But, fortunately, it would seem that the Oolong leaves nor the basil have suffered from the exposure to the boiling water. This is really tasty.

The basil adds a peppery overtone, with a hint of sweetness and menthol. The lemon is most prominent right at the start of the sip, and then it quickly subsides into the background providing more of a touch of brightness to the cup rather than a distinct lemon flavor. The Oolong is smooth and mild, with a hint of peach note in the background.

A very enjoyable cuppa – I really like this one!

I brewed this tea “blindly” – that is to say, I simply grabbed the tin (from the gift set) knowing only that it was a green tea, but not what flavor it was. When I smelled the dry leaf, I knew it was a cherry blossom tea – it smelled delightful! The brewed tea keeps much of this aroma.

I love the flavor. I know that this tea got some poor reviews as a hot tea, but, I love it hot with its delicate balance of floral tones and hints of cherry flavor, this is much more a Sakura Blossom tea than a cherry flavored tea when its hot. Once it cools, this tea becomes more of a cherry flavored tea. Both are tasty, but, I prefer Sakura Blossom tea.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this Tie Guan Yin. It’s lovely!

This is quite different from other Tie Guan Yin Oolongs that I’ve tried. The floral notes are prominent, with very little vegetal quality. There is a slight toasted, nutty flavor to this cup and this complements the honey-esque sweetness of the cup.

Pleasant, silky mouthfeel, and an overall pleasing cup of tea. Very spring-like!

Backlog:

A fine Dragonwell, possessing the qualities I’d expect from a Dragonwell: sweet, vegetal and nutty. Pleasant to sip, makes a nice afternoon tea.

Backlog:

Amazing! This month’s steepster select box is the best box that I’ve received from Steepster Select (and I’ve been a subscriber from the start).

This golden monkey is fabulous. Even better than fabulous. One of the very best black teas I’ve yet to taste. Definitely earning its 100 rating from me.

LOVE!

So delicious! Definitely one of the better Jasmine Pearl teas I’ve encountered. Sweet, buttery and rich, the jasmine notes are subtle and soft and exotic. No soapy notes here, just gentle floral tones and sweet, fresh flavor.

LOVE!