Raritea

Used 1.75 tablespoons for ~375ml of water.

The primary scent in the brewed leaf is that of honeybush which gives a warm feeling to the aroma. I’m getting that burnt-out beeswax candle smell that I seem to be associating with other honeybush teas from 52teas. I can also detect the tanginess of the kiwi in the smell. There is something in there that reminds me of cucumber-scented hand-cream, otherwise I have never really been able to find a smell from a fresh cucumber. I’m also smelling something that reminds me of citrus.

On the sip, I’m detecting mostly a melon flavour which evolves into something that tastes like the scent of cucumber-scented hand-cream. There is only a hint of kiwi flavour in this one. I’m also tasting the burnt-out beeswax candle smell.

Overall, this tisane has a very mild flavour.

As the tisane cooled to room temperature it took on a refreshing flavour profile and reminded me of the taste of cucumber-infused water. I’m also being reminded of mint taste.

Many thanks to Ellyn for sharing this with me!

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

Far too bitter. This tea likely has to infuse for a shorter amount of time and could maybe use less leaf.

Withholding my rating for now.

I used 1.75 tablespoons of dry leaf for 375ml of water.

The brewed tea smells like berry candy. There is a strong sweetness to the aroma but the berry smells artificial. There is something in this aroma that just makes my mouth water; I can’t really describe it but it is heightening my excitement to try this tea.

On the sip, the white tea and berry flavours are well balanced. There is a pleasant sugary quality to the aftertaste. The berry flavour really comes out close to the middle of the sip and follows through to the aftertaste. I am detecting the slightest bit of tang which makes the berry-tasting experience more authentic. There is a buttery quality from the taste as well closer to the end of the sip leading to the aftertaste.

I’m getting more of a juicy berry taste as the tea cools.

Second infusion is very mild. This tea will not likely do well past the first infusion.

Thanks to Kittenna for sharing this with me!

I used 2g of dry leaf (2 tablespoons) for 375 ml of water.

Aroma of the brewed tea is swampy with hints of sweetness. I’m detecting peppery notes and possibly even hints of cinnamon. There is a strong floral tone.

Mild tasting. Light floral flavour thoughout. Slight saltiness is detected. Sweetness closer to end of sip which carries through into aftertaste. I’m detecting hints of pepper and vegetal in the aftertaste.

Lingering aftertaste develops into a corn-like flavour.

I used one tablespoon for ~375 ml of water.

Light floral taste balanced with black tea in background. Very smooth tasting. Sweetness especially near the end of the sip leading into the aftertaste. Pleasant astringency present on swallow and in aftertaste.
The flavour came through more as the tea cooled.

Mild-tasting, this tea may benefit from the addition of more dry leaf.

Thank to to Ellyn for sharing this with me!

Used 1.5 tablespoons of dry leaf for 400 ml of water.

Brewed tea has a primarily black tea aroma with a hint of creamy coconut smell. Detecting a definite sweetness in the scent.

On the sip I’m getting an apricot flavour with trailing black tea flavour. Mild coconut in the after-taste. Maybe this tea was sitting too closely to the Brandied Apricot Upside Down Honeybush blend. Overall, the flavour seems to be that of a plain black tea but it was a quality black tea so I still was able to enjoy this infusion!

I’ll hold off from giving a rating for now.

Thank you Kittenna for sharing this with me!!

Used 1.25 tablespoons for ~375ml of water.

The brewed liquor has a very rich malted scent that I was not expecting from the scent of the dry leaf. The scent brings Milk Oolong to mind for some reason.

Sweetness throughout. Light chocolate flavour. Hints of malted taste closer to the end of the sip. I find the mate a little overpowering and it doesn’t seem to compliment the flavour profile. The different flavors seem to be delicious on their own but seem to be out of balance for me. Overall, thin-tasting- very much unlike the flavour profile expected from the scent. The aftertaste has a rich chocolate malty flavour, especially on the exhale.

Many thanks to Kittenna for sharing this with me!

Used 1.75 tablespoons for ~375ml of water.

This brewed tisane has a strong authentic cinnamon aroma. I am also getting scents of sweet icing and a distinct ‘baked good’ smell.

On the sip, the cinnamon flavour tastes a lot like cinnamon heart candies; very sweet with an artificial edge to it. The aftertaste is slightly smoky and reminds me of the scent of a blown out candle. I’m not detecting a strong baked goods taste in the sip of this tisane but it is present closer to the end of the sip, trailing into the aftertaste. I’m tasting a bit of the icing flavour but it isn’t as strong as it was in the scent.

As the tea cools, I’m getting more of the baked good flavour and the icing taste is coming out more as well. Baked cinnamon roll flavour is very strong on the aftertaste during exhale- it would have been nice to have this in the sip of this tisane.

This tisane may benefit from a longer infusion time of 8 or more minutes.

Many thanks to Kittenna for sharing this with me!

Used 1.5 tablespoons for ~375ml of water.

Detecting coconut on the sip. The aftertaste has a very authentic coconut flavour. Very sweet throughout. Honeybush taste really comes out in the middle of the sip. I’m tasting the slightest bit of savoury tang which I can attribute to the cheesecake part of this tisane but, overall, I’m not strongly reminded of cheesecake from the flavour.

As the tea cools the creaminess is coming out, reminding me of coconut cream pie. That authentic coconut flavour is creeping into the main flavour of the tea from the aftertaste. I am impressed at how close it matches the flavour of biting into coconut flesh.

Second infusion at over 8 minutes. The flavour is noticeably weaker and would not likely do well past the second infusion.

In the future, I would like to try infusing this for a longer amount of time (8 minutes or more) to see if I can get more of a cheesecake flavour out of this tisane.

Many thanks to Kittenna for sharing this with me!

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

The brewed tea smells sweet. The mixture of fruity smells reminds me of the smell of ‘Nerds’ candy, perhaps. The fruity scents are a little bit strong for my liking, they have a sharp edge to it. I can also detect a buttery undertone in the aroma which seems to be coming from the black tea scent.

The black tea flavour is the first taste that I detect on the sip. Very nice to have it up front. The black tea does carry a buttery quality to and has an astringency which borders on bitter. The fruity tastes come though closer to the middle of the sip. I’m getting a raspberry-lime taste. I can’t fully detect the orange taste but I think that it must be contributing to the citrus quality that I’m getting from the lime taste. The end of the sip is a lemony-black tea taste which leads into a black tea aftertaste. The fruit flavours in this one taste very much like the ones used in candy. I’m being reminded of those ‘Rocket’ frozen treats with cherry, lemon and blue-raspberry flavours. I really enjoy the black tea taste I’m getting from this flavoured tea.

Bitterness comes through more as the tea cools.

Thanks to Kittenna for this sample!

I used 1.5 tablespoons for 375ml of water.

The aroma of the brewed tea is fresh mint.

Complex flavour profile. Sweetness throughout. Mint is in the background. Roasted green tea taste is detectable but not a significant part of the main profile. A slight bitterness in the aftertaste. The marshmallow is a very nice match for the spearmint and gives the mint a softer, sweeter edge. The taste reminds me of fresh morning dew.

Light, fresh, fog-mist-like aftertaste.

Second infusion for 4 minutes still has enough marshmallow-mint flavour to be enjoyable. The roasted green tea taste is also allowed to come through more.

Thank you to Ellyn for this tea!

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

The black tea aroma is dominant in the scent of the brewed tea. There are notes of toasted sugar as well.

The black tea flavour overpowers the tea. There is only a hint of toffee taste in the middle of the sip. Tea taste trails off into a bitterness with a sharp edge.

I think that this tea may have to be brewed for a shorter amount of time.

Rating: 64

Thank you to Ellyn for this tea!

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

I notice a complex flavour profile. I’m getting floral notes on the sip leading into a spice taste at the back of the tongue. I can detect the cumin and it compliments the flavour profile rather nicely. I am really reminded of Indian food with all of the savoury spices. I can maybe detect a hint of pistachio as well. This tea has a creamy feel to it and a definite buttery quality. I can taste the black tea flavour quite strongly in the aftertaste.

The second infusion (5 minutes and 15 seconds) looses a lot of the spice flavour. This tea would not likely do well past its second infusion.

Thank you to Ellyn for sending this to me!

I used 1.5 David’s Tea Perfect Spoonfuls for my Aqua-ovo.

The first thing that strikes me about the brewed leaf is the scent- it really does have a scent that strongly reminds me of cookie dough and transports me back to times were I have made chocolate chip cookies. I think that it smells like a mixture of vanilla extract and chocolate chips.

There’s an odd bland taste on the sip but this blooms into a very chocolate chip-like flavour. After taste really does taste like cookie dough. I can mildly detect the white tea in this one. I’m not sure if the slight astringency mixes well with the light sweetness and chocolate chip flavour. I usually associate that strong type of flavour with a dark chocolate and thicker cocoa tea. I’m detecting a little bit of nutty taste (from the almonds and walnuts) which compliments the flavour profile. As the tea cools, I am detecting more of the caramel taste coming through from the cream caramel pieces.

Overall, this tea has a nice rounded flavour.

I was able to try a sip of this tea cold at the end of my cup. It was very sweet and chocolatey. This may be a good tea to have iced.

The second infusion (7 minutes) is noticeably dilute in flavour but still carries an overall pleasant taste profile. The cocoa taste is still quite strong at the end of the sip. The sweetness is still present.

Smooth black tea flavour present in the background. Coconutty roasted sweetess at the forefront of the taste. Light sweetness of the chamomile trailing into the aftertaste. Possibly hints of white tea peeking out but the other flavours are quite robust and take over. Near the end of the sip gives a taste reminiscent of chocolate with the leathery black mixing with the coconut.

Rating: 84

Second infusion at 5 minutes, flavour still coming through quite nicely.

When drinking this tisane at a lukewarm temperature, the punchy-ness is really able to come out in the brew. I’m getting coconut and almond on the sip which blooms into a grape-like taste that blooms into the rooibos flavour. Strong rooibos flavour and coconut-almond flavour on the aftertaste.

I used 1.5 David’s Tea Perfect Spoonfuls for my Aqua-ovo tea tumbler.

The brewed leaf smells overwhelmingly like vanilla cake or sugar cookies. There is definitely a baked goods quality to the scent. I can smell the almond which always reminds me of artificial cherry aroma.

The vanilla cake smell definitely carries through to the flavour right from the beginning to the end of the sip. I am detecting a very strong nutty flavour (mostly coconut with some almond). I’m getting a fruity taste as well which I think is a mixture of the rose and apple (a great combination, in my opinion). I can’t taste any ginger in this brew. The cardamom and/or ginger taste may be present very close to the end of the sip, giving a little bit of a spice taste. I can’t really detect the rooibos but I have a feeling that it may be contributing to the fruity taste; for me rooibos has a taste that I would describe as juicy.

Very sweet and smooth.

Second infusion at 7 minutes is very sweet and still retains that baked cookie flavour.

Third infusion at 20+ minutes is noticeably weaker in the nutty and baked cookie taste. The flavours that do come out are the cinnamon and the apple. This one reminds me of apple crisp. I can feel a little tingle in the back of my throat on the aftertaste- it seems to be ginger-derived.

I don’t think that this tisane would do well past its third infusion.

I used 1.25 David’s Tea Scoop in my Aqua-Ovo tea tumbler.

The scent of the brewed leaf is a nice mix of primarily peppermint and a coconut with a creaminess to it. I find peppermint to be a rather strong flavour/scent and seems to take over many others. The flavour is quite similar to the scent; primarily peppermint with a creamy coconut. There is a definite sweetness throughout and a pleasant sweet trail on the end of the sip. I am able to detect a hint of apple near the end of the sip following the sweet trail near the end. I am not partial to the combination of apple and mint flavours; it reminds me too much of when I take a bite of fruit too soon after brushing my teeth. As this tisane cools, I am really getting a strong hit of sweetness; not too sugary thought- it is quite nice!

Overall, a unique mint blend.

Second infusion for 5 minutes and 30 seconds. The sweetness is still very present while the mint and coconut flavours are subdued. There isn’t much in the way of creaminess for this infusion. Apple flavour isn’t present in this.

The flavour reminds me of candles that you would burn around Christmastime. Apple, cinnamon and cranberry flavours are the most prominent. I could not detect any green tea flavour.

I used 1.25 David’s Tea Scoops for my Aqua-Ovo tea tumbler

Primary flavour is mint. Faint chocolate taste closer to the end of the sip which is mostly overpowered by the mint. Cool minty feel on the aftertaste. Black tea taste is difficult to detect. The overall taste is too smooth (likely from the vanilla) for what I would expect a spicy chocolate mint tea to taste like.

I used 1.5 David’s Tea scoops for my Aqua-Ovo tea tumbler.

The smell of the dry leaf really reminds me of “Love Tea #7” by David’s Tea.

The aroma of the brewed tea is primarily a light chocolate with definite black tea undertones.

On the sip I am getting a full chocolately taste. I am getting a bit of a vegetable-earthy taste- kind of like taking a bite out of a red pepper. I’m guessing that this is the result of the different types of chili included in the blend. I don’t feel that the earthy taste really complements this mix, especially with such a strong chocolate taste. The black tea taste is mostly present at the end of the sip and rounds out the chocolate/earthy flavour. There is a little bit of spice present on the beginning of the sip and in the aftertaste (kind of a tingly feeling on my tongue).

This tea was good all the way through even as it cooled to room temperature.

This tisane tastes a little more dilute than I remember. I’m not getting the same chocolately creamy taste.

I used 1.75 David’s Tea Scoops of dry leaf in my Aqua-Ovo tea tumbler.

Has a sweet, rounded flavour. Taste reminds me of icing and vanilla extract. Flavour is bordering on being fruity. Smooth light nutty taste.

Creaminess present on second infusion.

The smell of this brewed tisane is not at all appetizing to me; it a tangy, acidic faint berry smell. The flavour is very thin and dilute. Too tart berry taste. Tastes a lot like a few bagged berry teas that I’ve had in the past.

As the tea cools, I can taste the flavours underneath the tartness near the end of the sip. There is a full berry melon-y mix of tastes
I’m not sure if there is an ingredient in this which is making it tart but maybe I should infuse closer to the 4 minute mark next time.