1500 Tasting Notes
A huge thanks to Ellyn for sharing this tea with me in the 12 Days of Steepster Christmas swap this year. Her packaging was beautiful – vacuum packed package of this tea, with a very professional-looking label detailing all of the ingredients, as well as the day it represented (Partridge in a Pear Tree).
This smells delicious, and has huge chunks of cranberry and what I assume are dried pears in the mix. It’s just as lovely steeped up in the smell department, and it does taste as described. I doubt I would have ever tried this on my own, or thought of it as a holiday tea. Yet, it really does fit the occasion, and is lovely to boot.
Thanks again Ellyn!
Preparation
Spoiler alert for those wanting to keep the Herbal Infusions 12 Days of Christmas teas a secret!
This is day two of the 2013 lineup, and I’m a bit leery again of this tea. It has a LOT of ingredients, and of course I can only guess as to what they are. There’s definitely rooibos and cornflowers, and then the rest is a mix of… I don’t know what. Cavo did an excellent job with the pics; there’s something chunky and green, some large form of what looks to be a brown fruit (fig?), and a few other things that meld into the rooibos but aren’t obviously rooibos.
It smells interesting. Hard to explain. Fruity in a deeper, full way – again I think of figs, or something like them. Dates? Maybe even candied yams. Brewed up I didn’t notice the smell, and then had to help my son construct a superhero Lego universe, so this went cold on me.
Cold, it smells like rooibos. Drinking it is… confusing. My interpretation of pumpkin pie is very different than whomever blended this tea. I’m getting more yam pie than anything, with some really unusual flavoring I’m struggling to place. There is something flaky and cakey in the blend, which is nice. I assumed there would be spices in here (cinnamon, nutmeg, something) and I’m getting nothing along those lines.
I’m really unsure what to make of this, so am holding off on my rating.
Preparation
Backlogged from last night’s marathon of sleeplessness and potentially fighting off a cold.
Tried it again, realizing that I’d grossly underleafed it last time (1/2 tbsp instead of a full one). This time I really got the cayenne and ginger, and it was delicious. Still had a large amount of dregs at the bottom that refused to mix into the hot liquid though. If this were unsweetened, it would be my tea of choice on many days.
EDIT: Upping the rating, as I really do enjoy this, it’s just still way too sweet for my needs.
Preparation
Backlog from last night’s marathon present wrapping and tending to a sick kidlet night that never seemed to end. Still tasty, juicy blueberry, although I’m learning if I oversteep this, it gets more apple-y and less blueberry-y than I’d like.
Preparation
Backlogged from yesterday (I think).
Ordered this from SPUD, a local organic delivery company that offers some really great food and products, many of which originate in the Vancouver, Canada area. This is one of those products.
“Stone ground tea” is prominently posted on the packaging, and it looks like dried, ground honey (and smells like it, too). I wasn’t a huge fan of sweeteners being added to the mix already, however I love ginger teas, and this is something I could see myself drinking when feeling icky. So, I grabbed some.
It requires a tablespoon per cup, and I found it difficult to dissolve so many solids into the allotted hot liquid. I’ll try 1 tsp next time, as I used the dregs from the first cup to make another two cups, and it tasted the same each time.
This is very similar to a ginger tea I used to buy at a local Asian grocery store years ago: powdered ginger, powdered honey, add hot water, serve. I stopped drinking that one because, although inexpensive and really yummy, it was just too much sugar. I have the same issue with this tea. It’s yummy, it’s also got ground rooibos in it, however it’s just way too sweet for me.
Preparation
Interesting, I had never seen/heard of this until I was in London Drugs Saturday. I bought the Caramel Chai.
Will keep it in mind to use a lot less than recommended.
Officially the most expensive tea I’ve ever purchased. It also came in the 2013 advent calendar, however I think I sent that mini package along so that someone else could try it, too. For future reference: even though the Christmas packaging is stunning, buy this in the plain 100g bags on Cadeau Vendomme in the future.
This is a gorgeous tea, and takes up a lot of space. Used 1.5 tsp for the cup just in case. It brews up a light yellow, and smells like honeyed cherries – an unusual yet breathtaking smell to me.
Drinking this is like art: it’s savored, taken in, and enjoyed fully. I normally shy away from cherry teas (too medicinal usually, and kinda yuck), however this one? Light and true cherry, with something sweet and gentle tickling my palate. It’s beautiful, and I’m really glad I tried some tonight.
Preparation
SPOILER alert: If you want to keep the teas in the Herbal Infusions 2013 12 Days of Christmas Sampler to yourself, skip over this review.
I’m a day early in this review, likely because I’m the kind of gal that (until six years ago) celebrated Christmas on the 24th in the evening. Also, I was impatient, and wanted to enjoy something Christmas-y with my daughter as we celebrated my son’s 6-year-old birthday. Unfortunately, he’s come down with something as of late last night, and is curled up half naked in a chair in the living room, alternating between watching Magic School Bus on Netflix, and sleep. :(
As Herbal Infusions has given zero steep instructions or even an ingredient list, I went with my eyes and nose for how to brew it. It looks like it’s a green and black blend, with pieces of orange rind, roses, cornflower, and something else tiny and red in the mix. It smells strongly of a red berry, and I was concerned immediately due to my strawberry allergy. My daughter even warned me as she took her first sip, “Mom, this smells a LOT like strawberries…”
I tried it anyway. I’m thinking the berry in this is raspberry, because I had zero reaction until the very last sip of the cup, and that could be from something else I just ate. It tastes very raspberry green to me, light and lovely, with just a hint of orange in there. The almond passed by me completely, although it is still creamy. It’s nice and well blended, although I doubt I’ll go out of my way to reach for it.
Also, I’ve put in a note to Dan over at Herbal Infusions for an ingredient list, however it’s been a few weeks now with zero answer. If anyone received this, or knows more than I, please do send me a note (or comment here so that I can friend you). Merci!
Preparation
OBNOXIOUS CAPS RESPONSE: VENDORS… FOR ALL OF US THAT HAVE ALLERGIES IT IS A VERY IMPORTANT CUSTOMER SERVICE ISSUE THAT YOU NOT ONLY BE COMPLETELY TRANSPERENT IN YOUR INGREDIENTS LISTING, BUT ALSO THAT YOU REPLY IF YOU HAVE A CUSTOMER INQUIRE.
@ HERBAL INFUSIONS MissB is a friend of mine. we both have allergies and mine will affect a disease. if you will not reply to her inquiry then i will not buy from you at any point. the risk is too great, no matter your amazing tea bending skill set.
I had a similar issue with my first order; it took three weeks for it even to ship. After it shipped, I heard from Dan often and quickly – and again nothing now, after suggesting steeping times and requesting ingredient lists. I’m thinking they’re just really busy… or at least hoping that’s all it is.
I should note that the other teas (normal things you can order anytime) have ingredient lists. These were specially blended just for this one-time, Black Friday, 12 Teas of Christmas special. They sold out quickly.
i appreciate you speaking up MissB and if you want me to trash my comment i will, but it the absolute truth. if i do not have faith in your ingredients list, then i will not buy from you. that’s it, that’s all. tea is NOT WORTH THE FURTHER EROSION OF MY NERVOUS SYSTEM. i harbour no grudges if you pull my comment. i wrote it in application to myself only.
Oh gosh no. You’re saying it as I would have, had I actually drank something I was horribly allergic to. :)
I think OMGSrsly asked them on facebook for more detail and they replied regarding specific ingredients. It might be easier if you just ask if any of the teas have “X” ingredient as that would be quicker for them to reply to rather than write up the entire list.
Not trying to downplay your guy’s concerns – you obviously don’t want to risk a reaction, and if vendors aren’t upfront about what’s in there, it could be dire.
Also, if these blends are supposed to be secret then I might be in trouble because I started to post mine.
You know, I never realized that the 12 days of Christmas were AFTER Christmas. :P I guess I wasn’t a good Christian growing up.
lol…. i always ate chocolate for lent.
i don’t do facebook (ahem as you well know cavo, lol). IMO if it needs a label to be sold in a country like, say…. canada…. then you do not get to crap out and say ‘hey, message me on facebook, i’ll get back to you faster.’ sometimes rules are ridiculous, and others they are sensible. In My Opinion food labeling is essential. i am allergic to turkey: as in an epipen will not work.
if as a vendor someone has any expectation that i should write them on facebook then they should factor in the depreciation of their stock when i do not buy from their company.
Lmao. Are the 12 days of Christmas Christian? I just always thought they were fun.
I have emailed them, and they did reply (eventually). I shared my specific allergies, and again, it’s been a few weeks with zero response. I guess I’ll try Facebook then. Good to know.
MissB – I just looked it up because I was curious: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Days_of_Christmas
And JustJames – I don’t think they requested an email on FB. They didn’t say anything at all – that was just my suggestion as a way to get an answer back quicker. I am impressed with Herbal Infusions blends, but as a company I believe they bit off more than they could handle with these 12 Days of Christmas sets. I think they just pulled them together really quickly and weren’t prepared for the demand etc. It took over 2 weeks for them to ship mine out and with no communication either.
I know Dan is involved in a few projects at the moment too, so while I"m not super happy about the way these blends were handled (and advertised as re: the list of ingredients), I’m willing to forgive them so long as they learn from their mistakes!
Do you think I should hold off on posting the rest of my reviews for these teas? I didn’t think they were a surprise because the list was on the site, but I wouldn’t want to spoil anything.
oh no, cavo, i didn’t take it as an a request on their part…. but if a consumer can get a faster response via facebook that sets a precedent.
i tend to be a forgiving sort…. stupidly so. to the point where i just don’t pick up the phone for telemarketers because i can always see the reasoning. i am always inclined to forgive. however, in some instances, and this is one, it is not in my best interests to do so.
socially: we all make mistakes, live and learn, no harm done, it’s all good!
commercially: ‘no, herbal infusions i will never buy from you, i don’t care if it’s hearsay, i have too much on the line for my beloved cup of relaxation to take another piece out of me. just ask david’s teas, i don’t buy from them either, and for back up ask teavana at mayfair…. they see me coming they haul out binders and phones.’
Ok – just wanted to make sure I wasn’t misrepresenting anything! :D
And i"ll keep reviewing, just because you’re requesting it. :P Haha.
If they’re a secret, it’s news to me. All I know is, some folks like to keep these sorts of things a surprise, so I just put the spoiler in there just in case.
I think the company is new and overwhelmed, although… my first order was way before Black Friday, and I received both orders within a week of one another. I have a lot of theories on this one, I just wish it were different, because I am enjoying their teas.
I asked about specific things – mint, gluten, licorice – and received into as to which teas included those ingredients, not an ingredient list. I only got 3 teas based on their feedback.
i have my own due diligence rules and expectations…. that does not meet them in the least. and as a consumer it is NOT my job to chase you for ingredience lists. it is your (their) job to chase me with pristine clarity saying ‘look james, our track record speaks for itself, ask us anything…. don’t you want to give us money?’ lol.
I definitely would have preferred an ingredient list. I’ll email to chase one down as well. And point out (again) that this information is extremely important.
if you were feeling politely snappish you could simply send them a link to this review and conversation…. but it’s just a thought =0) (insert innocent batting of eyes) LMAO.
I’m GlAd you liked it!