1500 Tasting Notes

81
drank Kapha Organic by TeaGschwendner
1500 tasting notes

Forgot I drank this already. It’s still good! Felt like there’s a cold coming, and it’s helping move things around. Definitely spicy, but not too much so – like a spicy chai minus the black tea. I think this is something I need to look into cooking with – as a broth perhaps, or maybe in a curry?

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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69
drank Tra Nghe - Turmeric Tea by Hung Phat
1500 tasting notes

Any chance I get, I will try a turmeric tea. I love turmeric in my food and in my teas, and I’m still a bit upset that DAVID’s no longer sells their version of a turmeric tea. Sigh. So when I saw this in T&T Market (a local warehouse-style Asian grocery store), I immediately snapped it up.

As I opened the packaging, I noticed there are a few interesting ingredients, including pissenlit (dandelion, in French) which is a word that always makes me giggle. What I smell most though as I unwrap the plastic packaging from the outside of the box is licorice. Oh my. I’m cool with licorice, but I wanted a turmeric tea.

After a surprisingly short steep time, I taste. It’s too hot, and yet, tasty… and mostly licorice. Yes, there’s a bit of ginger bite at the end that I can feel on my lips, and there’s definitely an element of turmeric mid-way through the sip, if faint. Truvia mellows things out a bit, and makes it a bit more like a turmeric tea, but only barely.

The search continues.

Preparation
Boiling 1 min, 0 sec
gmathis

Sounds like something you might want in the medicine chest come cold and phlegm season! ;) We have a local health grocer that carries a number of Vietnamese boxed teas…I’ll have to investigate a little more closely to see if this is on the shelves.

MissB

I pored over the shelves at T&T looking for something else, and found this. If it’s not by you, I’ll gladly send you some. It’s bagged, and (I thought) tasty.

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81
drank Blueberry Lagoon by Tealish
1500 tasting notes

Recommended steeping time: 4-6 minutes. Actual steeping time: 25 minutes.

Smells like a field of juicy, dripping blueberries (you know, after the kids have run rampant and eaten/squashed them by the handful). I thought it was a bit tart though drinking it… of course, my ridiculous oversteep is likely the cause of that.

I liked this, and really liked it after adding Truvia – the blueberries and apple really turn mouth-watering then, almost like a sweet blueberry pie, minus the crust. There’s zero to pick out that was ‘bad’, I just… wanted to like it more. Blueberry fans should definitely try this.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more
JustJames

25 minutes huh? lol.

MissB

Lol. This is why I use the Breville, it does all the thinking for me.

JustJames

ahem…. does it have a red light and say ‘by your command’. (there are toaster toasters, it’s true!)

MissB

Heh. Well, it has a blue light, and I can program it to ‘my command’.

JustJames

=0)))) my inner dork is grinning.

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78
drank Key Lime Pie by LuxBerry Tea
1500 tasting notes

First, a caveat: I oversteeped this. I forgot I as I was putting my youngest to bed that I had boiled the water and gotten a small cup ready to drink. Recommended steep time is 2-4 minutes; I steeped for close to six. Argh!

And so, I’m going to give it a bit of leeway here, because I think I did the tea wrong, in a way. It does smell very key lime-ish out of the bag, and more so after steeping. My first sips were a bit astringent, so I added Truvia. Holy moly! A sweet, tart, key lime tea here, with a hint of the base peeking through. I can definitely tell there’s pineapple in here as well, although I think it was supposed to take a bit less of a front seat in this blend, it’s likely due to my oversteeping. And then the creaminess, which is more in flavor than feel… usually I like teas with the yogurt stuff in them (bits?) and this is no exception.

I’ll have to brew more another day to really try this out, because I am getting something floral and off-putting at the end of the sip, underneath the lime/pineapple sweet and sour.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 45 sec

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77

For the life of me, I’m blanking out why I bought so much of this. Somewhere, someone must have told me this was the end-all, be-all of chocolate teas.

Smells carob-like and fresh out of the bag, but more cocoa-like as it steeps. Sweetened, this is an excellent fix for my love of hot cocoa, even though it’s got zero of the creaminess that cocoa with milk does. It’s more.. thick. A teensy bit of cinnamon in the aftertaste. Mostly lightly flavored, dark cocoa nibs. It’s a strong like, but not a love. I think this would really sparkle with some orange in it, or as Sil said in another tealog, mixed with something else.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 0 sec
JustJames

this is backlogged for me…… i did not get any cocoa. i got lots of spices…… not right for me i don’t think, but i want to give it a final go.

MissB

I have a huge amount. Did I send some to you? The cocoa I get is only when sweetened, and only at the end of the sip – almost like a bitter cocoa, and that’s it. I want there to be more, and I have a feeling it’ll rock when mixed with Cacao Tea… which still hasn’t shipped after ordering on the 26th of November.

JustJames

you did! thank you so much!!

MissB

Funny. I just was wondering if I’d sent it, or if someone else did. :P You’re very most welcome!

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80
drank Tropical Mango by Teajo Teas
1500 tasting notes

My teenage daughter says, “I’m not an expert like you Mom, but this tea tastes really good.” That’s a few minutes after steeping with the water having cooled, and zero sweetener. Yep, it’s a tasty tea.

Out of the bag it smells very tropical and mango-y, with a slight hint of floral in there too. I’m okay with the floral in this case, as it’s faint and seems to only enhance instead of taking over.

Steeped, the mango is prominent, with whatever floral note falling way behind, and the black base solid in the middle. I prefer this lightly sweetened with Truvia, but that’s just because it’s more fruity.

Will I buy this again? It’s tasty. I have a credit with Teajo because of the exploding tea incident during shipping — and thank you for the credit, and for dealing with the issue so quickly! If I needed something else to round out my order? Yes, I’d order this again. I doubt I’d go out of my way though if this was the only thing I wanted.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 0 sec
Stephanie

This one is sooooo good iced!

MissB

Oh, that sounds like a lovely idea!

CelebriTEA

This sounds reminiscent of the Coconut Mango from Tea Forte
that I absolutely LOVE!

MissB

Hm. I don’t think there’s coconut in here… unless I missed it completely. More juicy mango than anything. I’ll put some aside for you to send off in another bag, CelebriTEA.

CelebriTEA

Hmmm….I guess I simply thought “tropical” would include coconut…lol…
I love the coconut mango… :-)

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100
drank Caramel Matcha by Red Leaf Tea
1500 tasting notes

Mixed up with coconut/almond milk blend, and added 1 tsp Truvia. The milk wasn’t cold, so perhaps that’s my issue – because something tastes off here. Granular? Not as caramel-y as I’d expected? It’s weird.

Holding off on reviewing any more than this until I know I can do it justice.

Preparation
Iced

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92
drank Grand Amour by Nina's Paris
1500 tasting notes

More thank you’s to JustJames for sending this along for me to try out.

A small cup brewed in *CelebriTEA*’s turkey cup, and this is heavenly. Raspberry and caramel mingle together to form something dessert-y and decadent, and I enjoy this more sweetened; the raspberry seems to really shine this way. This tea is unctuous, which is an odd term for tea, and yet, it really feels right to me.

I steeped it a bit longer than I likely should have, only because I’m using this in a one-cup allocation instead of my normal 1L of tea in the Breville. Walked away, and, oops! Luckily, this tea can and did handle my mangling well.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 15 sec
JustJames

i love this tea…. i can send you more too =0)

CelebriTEA

Ahh…JustJames…
Would you be up for a swap with this after the first of the year?
This sounds divine!
If not, I may have to check Amazon :-)

CelebriTEA

Glad you like the cup, Miss B, I loved them when I saw them :-)

MissB

It really is delicious! Thank you both. :)

JustJames

CelebriTEA absolutely! that reminds me…. i should list my allergies on my profile, lol.

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93
drank Rooibos Vanille by Dammann Frères
1500 tasting notes

Thank you dear JustJames for sending this along to me.

A lovely rooibos, and exactly what I wanted tonight to wind down with. Lovely vanilla tea, and one that I can barely taste as being rooibos-y. Creamy, a touch tart, and thick. Delicious!

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 8 min or more
JustJames

so glad to oblige, my dear!

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76

Having to skip a few days of Dammann’s Advent Calendar due to allergies, this finds me at day six.

This tastes like an expensive Earl Grey to me, heavier on the orange than bergamot – but let’s face it, I’ve confused the two many times before. Had to add a fair amount of Truvia for me to enjoy it.

Nothing to see here. I think I may move on to day seven next.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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Profile

Bio

A few years ago, the obsession with tea started. The cupboard got bigger and bigger, more swaps occurred, group buys, secret rendezvous with local teapassionistas… and that’s how you end up with 500+ different kinds of tea in your home. At one time.

Almost all of the tea was given away, sold, or otherwise shared. A few relics still remain. I now travel full time with only two carryon bags to my name. One quarter of those bags are tea.

It’s still a challenge to avoid the chipmunk-like hoarding of The Teas, yet, the lightness of being from having so little compels me more.

If I have enough, I’m happy to share. If I’m in your area, I’d love to swap, meet for tea, and explore together.

As for the day-to-day stuff, I’m focused almost entirely on Love, (yes, with a capital L), Spirit/Self, transformation, travel and my writing and speaking work.

What kinds of teas do I normally like?

YES: flavored teas, fruity, dessert, chai, and spicy (REALLY spicy).

A FONDNESS FOR: all white teas, malty black teas, any herbal or medicinal teas, strange/weird teas you can only get in one place.

ALLERGIC TO: strawberries, lavender

DISLIKES: any added sugars, grains, lapsang souchong, and overly floral teas – I might enjoy a Jasmine Green every once in a while, but unless it’s a creamy floral tea (think roses in a chai, or the smoothness of a floral note in a French tea), I’ll likely pass. Earl Greys are a hit or miss with me; heavy on the cream or fruit notes and I might like it, heavy on the blergamot and I definitely won’t.

http://instagram.com/teatravelninja

http://teatravelninja.com/

Location

Canada

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