QuiltGuppy

Frank had me at Butterbeer. I’m a huge Harry Potter fan, and have been curious about what it might taste like. There are a multitude of different recipes for Butterbeer, but add in the tea and I’m there. I didn’t even flinch when I saw licorice (well, maybe just a nanosecond), and the ingredients quite possibly could have included dirt and I think I still would have tried it. In the end, it’s here, it’s ready and I’m drinking it.

The dry scent is interesting. It has a sharp feel to it that is rounded out by the sweetness of the root beer scent. It reminds me of a spicy rootbeer, with something… foresty.

I went a bit light on the steep time and I can taste it. Next time, I’ll make it stronger. It has an interesting flavor. Hearty, but something else, too. It’s almost slightly acidic, but not tart. I definitely taste the chicory, which I love and think is perfect for this hearty cup. Licorice is there, too, but it’s not offensive. More like anise-laced and very light. It’s not sweet at all, which I thought it would be with all of the root beer scent in the packet.

A bit of the way through my cup, I added German rock sugar to it. Now, it’s sweet. And buttery. I can smell the butter just before I sip it. It’s also cooling and I can taste the chicory a bit less. This tea is quite complex and, dare I say, magical? Yes, magical. It’s hard to pinpoint the different flavors as they blend so well together. All in all, it’s a very different cup of tea.

Pucker up because A. C. Perch’s Black Currant black is a tart tea! (Perfect for February with Valentine’s Day up and coming.) :)

Thank you, Angrboda, for this lovely sample!

The scent of the dry tea promises bountiful berry flavor and it has a bit of the sharp tartness of the cup as well. Almost like Kool Aid in the packet before the sugar has been added.

Once steeped, the black currant flavor is evident, even before it touches the lips. It’s very heavily scented. The berry is quite tart, almost raspberry-like in flavor, but with a bit more depth to it. It resonates on the tongue after the sip is gone. There is a sense of creaminess in the flavor, but it’s not enough to offset the tartness. So, as conflicted as I was about my choice, I added some German rock sugar. It toned down the berry, most certainly, but it also changed my sense of the tea actually being a berry tea, and created more of a kids’ drink feel. I think I preferred it plain, tart and all. It’s a fun tea, but more of an afternoon drink than morning. My mouth just wasn’t quite ready!

Thanks again, Angrboda!

Thank you, Angrboda, for this lovely tea from our swap so many months ago… I finally had the chance to sit and enjoy it this afternoon.

This tea smells gently of strawberry hard candy, with a slight scent of leaves, presumably from the green tea. I didn’t want to risk bitterness as I only had a small sample, so I steeped it lightly, and it turns out that it was the right approach for me.

Together with the orange, the strawberry actually presents more as a gentle, non-acidic pineapple flavor. It’s sweet, yet not overly so. The green is a great choice for countering the sweetness. Other than that, the green tea is unremarkable, but it doesn’t need to be anything more than a crisp base for delivering a pleasantly sweet afternoon tea.

Thank you again, Angrboda! :)

The tea is packaged as shown in the photo. Very cute little packets that are shaped into the form of a small nest. The dry tea smells like straw. It isn’t, however, offensive and barn-like as some other pu erhs tend to be.

I rinsed for a few seconds prior to steeping and was surprised by the amount of small pieces of tea that were washed away. After a relatively short steep, this tea does indeed smell like buttered popcorn. The taste is somewhat different. It’s somewhat earthy, yet with a little kick to it. I don’t think I would consider it a spearmint flavor as the description mentions, but there’s something wildly unmatched to the scent coming out. It’s as if the tea peaks mid sip then lingers a bit on the tongue.

I resteeped this twice. The second steep was too strong. I let it stay in the water for 45 seconds and the liquor was dark brown and a bit straw like in flavor. I didn’t care too much for it. The third steep produced a much more muted flavor. With the overwhelming scent diminished, the flavor is easier to detect. It is earthy, but not in a musty, dirty way as with other pu erhs. Instead, it was pretty good, all things considered.

I love everything about this tea. So much so, that before I came here to write this review, I went online at Harney & Sons and purchased some more as I only had a sample.

The scent of this tea when dry reminds me so much of autumn leaves when first dropped from the trees. It’s almost a toasted scent, but not quite.

I have been having temperature issues with the Breville and discovered that it’s best to choose a lower temperature. My water boils in it at 195. Really boils.

At any rate, I steeped this one for three minutes. It’s still a lightish color. The scent is really something special. It’s like a fruity, floral aroma all wrapped up into one delicate punch. The taste is stellar. I can taste a fruitiness as in apricots, without the syrupy sweetness. Just a light, fruity addition. The floral notes are also lighter in flavor, more like lily or gardenia or cherry blossom, without being cherry. It’s difficult to pinpoint, but it is a delicate flavor, not heavier like rose that demands your senses’ attention. This is more like flirting and teasing. Each sip leaves me wanting more. The toastiness in the scent, it’s like a whisper in the taste. This is an oolong for me. Smooth, sweet, floral, divine.

No notes yet.

It has been a while since I’ve had time to sit and enjoy a cup of tea. Thank goodness for a busy Saturday agenda. We’re participating in a charity walk for juvenile diabetes today. I decided enough was enough and I put an end to my tea hiatus.

Thankfully.

This tea is such a lovely reminder of how much I need it. The tea in the package smells fresh and almost grasslike, which surprised me for a black. I decided to go with a lower temperature for steeping and treated it more like an oolong. The result is a delicious cup of tea. The black is malty, most certainly, and almost tastes of roasted pumpkin seeds. It’s slightly vegetal, but surprisingly full of flavor. The tea is smooth, without any astringency or bitterness. This is the perfect cup of tea for those who dislike the bite that many black teas bring with them. I daresay that this will find a way into my permanent stash.

I saw Frank offer this one and immediately jumped to buy it. Everything about it screamed my name. One of the best cheesecakes I’ve ever made was a pumpkin cheesecake and the memories came flooding back. I couldn’t wait. Finally, it arrived and I made it the following morning, but I’m left a bit puzzled on several different levels.

First, the scent is slightly spicy. I’m thinking warm pumpkin pie. It’s definitely that nutmeg, slightly cinnamon promise of autumn’s enduring flavors. The addition of the marigold petals is perfect. It adds that touch of color that embodies the season. Aesthetically, it’s a pleasing tea, too.

After steeping, I’m still mentally tasting the spices and my mind is still anticipating pumpkin… until I take a sip and I’m not tasting pumpkin. Or cheesecake. Yet, as disappointing as this is, the actual flavor of the tea is not. It is warm and spicy in a perfect autumnal fashion. The tea is not bitter, but is instead a nice, mellow black that carries the flavor without casting its influence over it. I think the issue I have is the name. Maybe Autumn Spice would have been a better choice for what it actually is. Even though the pumpkin is missing, I’ve been drinking this each day since it arrived in my mailbox. It’s really a nice tea for the morning.

This morning’s tea is a very random choice from the sample basket. I wasn’t certain quite what I was searching for, and fortune brought me to this one.

The scent in the package is fresh, clean and vibrant. It seems to promise a crisp cup and so I’m aiming to find out.

I steeped slightly lighter, first at one minute, then sampled. It’s vegetal, but light. Still it’s a solid cup at two minutes less than the recommended time. The promise of the scent delivers and I’m enjoying every sip.

Still, I decided to try it at a longer steep time, so I put the remaining tea back in for another minute.

The flavor is still very developed. It is full and vegetal, very like artichokes. The scent has a sweetness to it that doesn’t really translate to the taste, but no matter, it’s still very enjoyable. I think I prefer this at the shorter steeping time. There’s a touch of bitterness at the end that lingers, but it’s not overwhelming.

This tea comes to me this morning courtesy of… Angrboda. Thank you, my sweet overseas tea friend.

I don’t even know where to begin with this tea. I want to start out by screaming, “THIS IS AMAZING STUFF!” However, I think I’ll restrain myself and begin at the beginning…

The scent: The scent of this tea is just like caramel. It’s such a rich, toffee-like aroma that I have an urge to lick the tea. (It’s difficult to quell.) I digress.

The taste of this tea is out of this world. It’s so good. The black tea is thankfully not at all bitter, but instead smooth and perfect for the caramel “essences” as Kusmi calls them. These “essences” are the caramel of my childhood. The rich, toasted (not overly sweetened) caramel that my mom used to make for us once a year during the holidays, but which we pined for and whined for all year long. It’s not a very sweet tea, and it’s not at all a sugary tea. Instead, it’s a dessert tea that I would be proud to serve at a formal event. I can see this tea not only in my lime green mug, but also in a delicate teacup of bone china.

Wow, Kusmi, you’re amazing, yet so far away hanging out there in Europe. Add another stop to my European trip… Denmark and now France (comment tu me manques…)

Thank you, Angrboda!

I received this tea as a sample with an order I placed a few months ago. I stumbled across it this morning as I’ve begun to reduce the amount of tea in my home. (Whew!) I realized (with chagrin) that I hadn’t stored this one properly and worried about how my neglect may have affected the flavor.

My first real concern set in when I tried to smell it and couldn’t detect the scent. I steeped this one at a lower than recommended temperature, for the maximum amount of time recommended.

Now I can smell the tea. It’s slightly… floral? Yes, floral. I can detect the scent of honeysuckle. It’s a sweet scent, with a delicate floral note.

The taste is amazing, quelling any concerns I had about flavor. It’s not bitter at all, which was one thought I had when I saw the recommended steeping time. Instead, it is gently floral, but so sweet, too. It’s a beautiful green, tempered with the very slight vegetal taste a traditional green brings to the cup. It’s one of the best green teas I think I’ve ever tried.

Now, Chi of Tea, where are you hiding this gem? I hope this is something that will be considered to offer as a purchase because it is amazing!

This was a truly special treat for me this morning, especially because until yesterday afternoon I didn’t even know I would possess it! Many thanks to SimplyJenW for a lovely surprise packet of tea to sample. :) I couldn’t choose, so I turned the packets face down, shuffled them and chose one at random. This is the lucky winner today. Well, actually I am because this tea is really wonderful.

First, when I sniffed the tea in the packet, I picked up on a very roasted scent, much like a roasted Dong Ding. So, in my mind, I imagined I’d be tasting something similar. The taste, however, is not anything like that, other than that there is a definite smoky note to the tea. What I do taste is something unique. There’s a hint of cocoa, kind of like hot chocolate before the milk is added, but it has a sweetness and a nuttiness to it that keep the taste on the lighter side instead of being bitter. It’s unlike any tea I’ve tasted before.

Thank you again, SimplyJenW, for a lovely tea this morning. I can’t wait to try the next ones. :)

This was my first taste of Florence and I’m so happy to have finally tried it. I ordered it as a sample package and upon opening, my inner Nutella detector went off. Ooh, it’s so scented of chocolate and nuttiness that I can’t wait to try it.

I didn’t steep it too long, and I think this is one of the few that may have been better if steeped longer. But, no matter, even this way it’s really good.

The taste is a warm chocolate with a definite accompaniment of hazelnut. The tea itself has a slightly thinner mouthfeel and doesn’t coat my mouth as I would expect hot chocolate to do. (And, I know this isn’t hot chocolate, but the richness of the flavor is so true to it, that I can’t help but expect the hot chocolate experience.) Even with all of this flavoring going on, it’s still fairly easy to detect the black tea. It’s not bitter, or even astringent, which would work against the flavor. It’s really nicely paired with it. In fact, it’s so good that I’d like to try it without the flavors. One of the first times I’ve said that about a black tea!

Oh! It is so good! That’s about the only thing I can think right now. This is, hands down, the best raspberry flavored anything I have tasted! And, considering it’s paired with a phenomenal oolong, it’s even better.

Normally, when raspberry is in a tea, the result is a bitter-tasting brew. Not so with this tea. It’s extraordinary. The raspberry is so sweet and delicious, but not at all syrupy. The oolong is probably the best part. It’s a roasty, delicious oolong that pairs wonderfully with the raspberry, keeping it from going off the sweet-o-meter. The result is a fabulous raspberry oolong that I would seriously be willing to either pay the shipping to have sent to me from Denmark, or, preferably, just fly to Denmark myself to pick up.

It’s lovely! Thank you so very much to Angrboda for sending me this tea sample.

No notes yet.

We’re back from our vacation to Key West and while there I stumbled across this little tea shop called the Key West Tea & Spice Company. It’s a small shop near the heart of Old Town just off the end of Duval Street. Like all little shops in that area, it has its fair share of souvenirs and other stuff for tourists, but in the back is the tea selection. The teas are stored in glass jars on the wall. It didn’t seem as though they saw much business, either, so I was beginning to wonder how the teas fared in that environment.

This is my first time trying Icewine. I’ve read some of the other reviews of Icewine from other companies and it seemed as though others were pleased with it, so, inspired to try it, I bought some.

The tea smells sweetly of apple blossoms. The taste, however, isn’t floral, it’s sweet and fruity. It has a gentle taste of grapes, but with a raisiny depth to it that. There’s a lot going on. The tea is slightly drying in my mouth, but it’s not unpleasant and helps to tone down the sweet taste. Overall, it’s really pleasing.

My one point of contention with this company is their lack of attention to detail. First, the tea in glass storage in a store that has no front wall to it. (I think they just pull down a metal door to cover it at night.) Also, the tea is spelled Ice Wine on the package, but Icewine on the website. I realize this is a minor detail, but it shows a lack of professionalism on their part.

This tea should get a 100 just for the name alone. I wish I were able to name some teas.

The Mermaid’s Kiss is a delightful magnolia oolong from start to finish. (And what a lovely finish it is!)

The aroma of the dry leaves is gentle, like jasmine. They’re a pretty deep emerald green in the tin.

After steeping, they release the most glorious magnolia fragrance from the golden liquor. It’s so beautiful in so many ways. The taste is wonderful. On the forefront is the magnolia, which is quite strong for those who enjoy teas scented with flowers. However, the oolong itself is very present, with a hint of a roasted flavor that couples nicely with the oolong. This tea, like so many wonderful oolongs, sweetens as it cools, which I find so pleasant as I rarely drink an entire cup of tea hot.

Christmas in July? White Christmas, nonetheless. Ah, well. It was there when I was looking for a less-caffeinated tea to drink this morning.

It smells minty and sweet. The taste is pure white chocolate. With mint. It’s surprisingly refreshing and makes my mouth tingle. More surprising is the fact that there is NO chocolate in this tea. It certainly smells and tastes just so. I don’t think it was smart marketing to label this one a holiday tea as it’s clearly one that can be enjoyed year-round.

I received this in my package from Harney & Sons in the Big-Harney-Mixup-of-2011. It was one of the few without duplication.

The tea doesn’t stand out as the usual, high-quality tea that Harney’s usually has. It’s pretty to look at, dark with lighter color tea leaves interspersed in the tea. It smells rich and kind of nutty. The scent doesn’t translate to the flavor, though. The tea is extremely drying. I felt like I had been sucking on the vacuum the dentist uses to keep my mouth dry at appointments. It’s really uncomfortable. The flavor isn’t outstanding. I don’t see much complexity to it and it reminds me of a regular black. Granted, it’s a step above bagged teas, but not by much. As it cools, it becomes very, very bitter.

Thank you LiberTeas for this tea in my lovely HoppiTea package!

This tea can be summed up in two words: Simply Outstanding.

When I first opened the box, this was the tea I could smell. I’ve thought about it off and on, but haven’t been able to get around to tasting it until now. The dry scent is impossible to miss… pure chocolate malt.

It brews up to an earthy, golden brown. Very pretty. And the aroma is enchanting! I feel like I’m about to sip hot chocolate. The taste is heaven. It tastes like a chocolate malt in my mouth, or like chocolate chips straight from the bag. The warm cocoa is lovely. I haven’t had a better dessert tea for breakfast in, well, forever. Truly decadent.

No notes yet.

Kashyap, thank you for this really wonderful sample! I happen to love Dan Cong, and this is a really fine example. (Another multiple steeper.)

The first thing to notice about a Dan Cong is the color. The leaves, for an oolong, are very dark and long. Upon closer inspection, a deep red color is present, and hints of a lighter amber. It’s like the sunrise, just before the first rays of light stretch out across the sky. Everything is dark, but then there’s just the slightest hint of light coming. Beautiful.

The scent of the leaves is definitely woodsy. Once steeped, however, the aroma of the tea is much more complex. There’s the woodsy element, but something richer, more like raisin, or honey. At any rate, it’s a sweetness that hints at what’s to come in the flavor.

The flavor of this tea is divine. It’s definitely woodsy, with a baked flavor. There is a profound sweetness which develops mid-sip that fills your mouth with a nutty and deeply baked apricot, almost honey flavor that lingers for a while. It’s so lovely and rich. This is what I expect from a Dan Cong. Truly a beauty.

Subsequent steeps, particularly the second, proved to be just as lovely and slightly more fruity in flavor.

Thank you, ashmanra for this lovely tea!

I am an oolong lover, so when I received this tea in a swap, I was thrilled! It’s scent when dry is very much like that of a lilac in full bloom. It smells very floral.

Once steeped, the floral scent is still there, but it is deeper and richer. The taste, while slightly floral, tastes much more vegetal, like steeped vegetables more than flowers. It’s a deceiving tea. Your nose tells you to expect one thing and your mouth receives another. This is not a floral tasting tea. Moving on… the taste, in addition to being vegetal, has a very nice, grounded oolong base. It’s ever so slightly earthy, yet smooth. There’s a touch of a roasted flavor in this one.

Thank you, ashmanra!

Floral tea lovers, unite! I have Kashyap to thank for this sample. Thanks so much!

This is actually the second time I’ve tasted this tea. I’ve really been off my game over the past couple of weeks and need to get back into the swing of things. This is my first big attempt at righting my universe.

This oolong has a gentle, floral scent when dry. It seems very delicate. Once steeped, however, the liquor becomes a bright, golden yellow and the true magnolia scent sweeps over me. It’s really lovely in that it’s a fresh scent, not an overly perfumey one.

The taste is most definitely floral. This is definitely a scented tea, but it’s what one would expect when reaching for a magnolia tea… floral scent and a taste to match. The oolong is lovely. It’s not a heavily oxidized one, more mid to light, but it pairs perfectly with the pronounced magnolia flavor as well. This would make a very nice afternoon tea. As the tea cools, it develops a delicate sweetness that is really pleasant and makes me want to try this one iced.

The second steep (3.5 min) of this tea results in a lighter magnolia flavor and a more pronounced oolong taste. It’s still strong enough that I’d consider it a fairly equal balance of flavors, although the scales are beginning to tip a bit in favor of the oolong tea base.

The third steep (4.5 min)… and I almost never steep a tea three times, which is a shame because this one is still going strong. Now, there is more just a hint of the magnolia flavor mixed in with the tea. I steeped this for a bit longer than usual and am very pleased with it. It really holds up well to multiple steepings.

Thank you again, Kashyap!