Raritea

6 grams of dry leaf used for 370 ml of water

The brewed tea has an aroma that reminds me of sweet black licorice. Musty, leathery. Faint aromatic, pungent floral. Fruity apricot-type note. Hint of sawdust.

On the sip I’m detecting an astringency which is bordering on being overpowering (burt/dark chocolate note). The apricot and leathery notes are upfront in the flavour. Mild floral hints in the background. Mushroom-type note/mouth-feel. Licorice-like from the scent translates into the flavour. Maltiness close to the end of the sip.

As the tea is allowed to cool a slight creaminess comes out in the taste. Char note near the end of the sip.

Second infusion at 4.25 minutes. The flavour reminds me of roasted corn.

1.2 tablespoons used for 375 ml of water infused for 8 minutes

Punchy rooibos flavour- reminds me of fruitiness. I’m detecting a milky-like flavour. Sweetness throughout. Thin mouth-feel which does not compliment the flavour profile. Blandness in taste on the sip.

Rating: 65

Thanks to Indigobloom for sharing with me!

0.9 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375 ml of water

The brewed tea has a sugary spice scent with a touch of fruity-ness to it. The scent of the black tea is present in the background.

Primary smooth black tea taste with spice and fruity flavour complement. The primary spice flavour is cinnamon. Delightful combination.

Thanks to Indigobloom and Sil for sharing this with me!

1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

Grassy/stem flavour from the green tea. Slightly seaweed-y Light lemon flavour- not overpowering. Mild sweetness. Smokey note. Very nice flavour combination

Rating: 82

0.8 tablespoons for 375 ml of water.

Sweetness throughout. Mild, pleasing astringency from the black tea. Smooth and buttery. Light overall taste.

Rating: 83

0.8 tablespoons for ~375ml of water.

The brewed tea scent is intoxicatingly delightful. I am also detecting a hint of black tea in the scent.

The flavour reminds me of powder-y cake batter mix. Not as creamy as I would like. Most of the flavour ends up near the end of the sip. Mild astringency present which converts to a dark chocolate flavour. Little to no sweetness present but this works very well with the overall flavour profile. Black tea flavour present.

Rating: 86

1 tablespoon for 375 ml of water

Brewed tea has a smoky aroma. The tea has a thick brothy feel to it. Soft lime flavour that blend surprisingly well with the green tea taste. Sweetness that fills the mouth. Mild earthiness in the flavour. Very smooth tasting. I am detecting some tangy-ness from the lime flavour. The marshmallow root compliments the flavour profile very well.

An unexpected delightful experience as I don’t normally like artificial lime flavour.

1.5 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

The aroma of the brewed tea is mainly that of tart apple and cinnamon. There is a hint of baked crust scent in the background.

On the sip, the apple taste is rather flat and trails artificially to the end of the sip. The aftertaste is pleasant and does not carry the flat notes from the sip. Cinnamon flavour is mildly present. Buttery baked crust notes come through.

1.5 tablespoons for 375ml of water.

Very aromatic/perfume-y flavour. Ginger taste present but there is no strong spice quality to it. Blunt bitterness in the middle of the sip. There is a tart-flat note near the end of the sip. Peach flavour mildly present in the aftertaste. Pleasant black tea astringency present. Overall flavour is quite flat.

Thanks to Sil and Indigobloom for sharing this with me!

1.25 tablespoons for 375 ml of water.

The brewed tea has an enchanting milky-floral aroma. These scents transfer to the flavour. I’m getting a heavy cream mouth-feel with floral notes in the background. Sweetness throughout. Hint of tangy-ness.

Second infusion at 4 minutes. Hint of banana flavour.

Third infusion at 5.3 minutes. Detecting the tangy grapefruit taste that I have found to associate with other milk oolongs in the past.

Thank you to Indigobloom and Sil for sharing this with me!

1.5 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

Detecting sencha flavour on the sip. Seaweed-y saltiness is present and slightly overpowering. Slight cocoa flavour and sweetness in the background. Very unique flavour combination.

As the tea cools, there is a creaminess to the taste and mouth-feel.

Thank you to Indigobloom for passing on some of this to me!

I used 1.5 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

Astringency is not present with a shorter infusion time. Sweetness present. I really like the mint paired with the black tea base. The candy canes gives a soft savoury sweetness that trails into the aftertaste.

I used 0.9 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

Malty flavour. Toffee sweetness that is not overpowered by an astringency. Smooth black tea tones.

At room temperature, I notice a robustness to the flavour at the end of the sip. Brittle confectionary sweetness near the end of the sip.

I used 0.8 tablespoons for 375 ml of water.

Thick and brothy. Savoury. Highly vegetal (spinach) with a pleasant astringency. Hints of roasted flavour. Mild complementary sweetness.

(Second Flush, Organic)

I used 1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

Smokiness in the aroma.

Pleasant dairy barn aroma flavour. There is a crispness in the flavour that reminds me of white tea. I’m detecting hints of smokey flavour. There is a sweetness that has a likeness to ginseng. I am getting the baked squash flavour that was mentioned in the description – it’s coming through as an astringent flat taste with a sweet trail that I associate with roasted gourd flesh.

Second infusion at 4 minutes. All flavours are toned down. Gourd flavour in the background. Smokey flavour near the end of the sip and into aftertaste.

Thank you to Indigobloom for this tea!

I used 1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

Good black tea base that compliments the other flavours. Raspberry tastes artifical. Chocolate flavour is only very faint. Immediate aftertaste has a good balance of black tea and raspberry taste with a chocolate hint.

As the cup cools, the tea tastes more just like slightly flavoured hot water.

Thank you to Indigobloom and Sil for sharing some with me!

Mild minty flavour. Savoury marshmallow taste in the background which both compliments the mint and ties the overall flavour together. I’m detecting a very faint savoury, creamy chocolate hint (possibly from the mixture of black tea and marshmallow).

I used 1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

In the aroma of the brewed tea I am detecting buttery and root beer notes. Black tea scent is present and smells a little bitter however it does not take over the other scents.

The black tea is a tad bitter and the bitterness slightly overpowers the other flavous. Otherwise, I’m getting a very buttery taste along with the root beer flavour in the background. It’s almost like a bakey-toffee type flavour. The black tea taste is present closer to the end of the sip. I’m not detecting any licorice root flavour. The brewed tea does not taste as sweet as the dry leaf scent.

As the tea cools, the astringency isn’t as noticeable. The root beer flavour seems to have been toned down but is still present. I’m getting mostly the buttery flavoured tones.

As the tea cools further, I’m getting a fizzy mouth feel. I think that this might be from the chicory root.

I used 1.25 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

Raspberry perfume-y flavour on the sip. Detecting a melony hint which gives the raspberry flavour some fullness. The raspberry taste is fairly authentic. The overall flavour is quite mild. Hibiscus is well blended. Light sweetness. Detecting a light astringency and flavour from the black tea.

Hibiscus tartness comes out as the tea cools but it is neither unpleasant nor overpowering. It does, however, really stick out on its own. There isn’t enough raspberry taste on the sip to properly partner with it.

Thank you to Indigobloom for passing some of this on to me.

I used 1.25 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

Smokey green tea and licorice-berry flavour on the sip. Cotton candy sugary sweetness in immediate aftertaste.

As the tea cools, I am noticing that the flavour is quite mild.

I used 0.8 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

This English Breakfast is milder tasting than ones that I’ve tried in the past. It does not have the bright bitter edge that I usually find but there is a little tingle of astringency where that note would usually be placed. I’m getting a sweet caramel note near the end and into the aftertaste. The aftertaste is quite sweet and reminds me of a milky sweetness. Leathery tones near the middle of the sip. A little dull leading into the aftertaste.

Rating: 78

Thank you to Indigobloom and Sil for letting me try this!

I used 1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

The dry leaf smells like a very authentic rich and chocolatey chocolate cake batter. The authentic chocolate cake batter quality transfers to the brewed tea scent as well.

The chocolatey richness is present near the end of the sip in the background. The main flavour is a bit thin. The black tea taste is strong but there is no bitterness. The astringency of the black tea carries into the chocolate flavour and complements it, making it taste more like a dark chocolate.

Rating: 85

I used 1.25 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

I’m getting a good balance of smoky-roasted green flavour, mint and marshmallow root sweetness. There is a light airiness to the flavour. The immediate aftertaste is delightful.

As the tea cools, I am detecting hints of creaminess and slight heaviness near the end of the sip.

I used 1 tablespoon of dry leaf for 375 ml of water.

There’s a bitter earthiness in the flavour. I am detecting lime flavour with marshmallow sweetness. The tanginess of the pineapple is present.
There is a cloying stevia-like sweetness in the middle of the sip.

As the tea is allowed to cool, I’m starting to taste the roasted flavour from the green tea.

Lingering aftertaste is a very authentic lime jello flavour.

As the tea cools further, the roasted green tea is becoming present in the aroma and balancing nicely with the lime jello scent. The cloying sweetness is faded.

I may have have infused this tea for too long. I should maybe try to infuse closer to 2 minutes next time.