Robbin12

Ok, so I was stupid. I tasted Strawberry Rose Champagne/Peach Tranquility blend in Teavana, fell in love, but only bought the Peach Tranquility. Recently, I bought this tea, thinking I could make my own blend. WRONG! It tasted nothing like the one brewed in Teavana, so I have some tweaking to do. But, this tea has a VERY strong rose scent and taste. It steeps a light amber liquor, but the taste, ugh, even though I sweetened with a little brown sugar, the rose is the dominant flavor of this tea and I am not a fan of roses, unless they’re black. I daresay the tea even smells like cheap rose attar or an old lady’s face cream. Blech! This definitely needs to be blended well and with something else.

What can I say but this is some beautiful stuff. Prior to steeping, this one resembles a bag of mixed dried fruit. The smell, OMG, absolutely delicious…just like chocolate and bananas foster. Teavana nailed this on the head! Steeped, it brews up a pale yellowish amber color, but the aroma still remains. Surprisingly, this is incredibly pleasing on the tongue. You can taste subtle bites of chocolate and unripened banana which plays seductively with a natural sweetness. Very smooth but robust blend. I will definitely be buying this again.

Peach Tranquility is exactly as it sounds…peach and tranquil. Pre-steep, this tea resembles Teavana’s myriad of tisanes with a melange of dried fruits and a sparse number of tea leaves. Steeped, it resembles old, dirty pee. The aroma of the pre-steep tea is simply intoxicating with its abundance of peach notes. Steeped, the aroma is tempered quite a bit tho it is still present. Upon tasting, the peach presence initially is missing, but it quietly reappears once the tea crosses the rear of the palate. This tea is pleasant, unassuming and unremarkable. It probably will fair best if blended with something else.

Prior to brewing, the aroma of this tea is devilishly intoxicating…nothing but amaretto! Brewed, this tea turns a gorgeous rich red that mimics merlot and the amaretto is still present, but somewhat muted. And the taste, oh my. It’s a bit tart as it contains grape and black currant, but if such a thing existed, I’d say it tastes a bit like a natural fruit punch. It’s tasty as a hot tea, but will probably be better as an iced tea.

I love that this tea comes in a resealable kraft paper pouch, either in loose or tea bag form. Of all the teas available, this looked the most promising. Crossing my fingers, I brewed up a mug which produced a beautiful dark yellow to orange and then orange-red color. Sadly, there isn’t much of an aroma with this one. It smells like hot water. The taste isn’t any better. Again, hot water.

In the pouch, this smells like a box of Red Hots, and resembles redwood chips and dead flowers. Brewed, it yields a nice rich amber color and smells of Red Hots and a childhood medicine whose name escapes me. Tastewise, it’s not doing a thing for me. It tastes just the way it smells, like Red Hots and medicine. I definitely will not be trying this again!

Couldn’t wait to try this one…chocolate, chai…does it get any better? Well, maybe. The aroma of this unbrewed chai is delicious and smells like Mexican hot chocolate. If you’re not a fan of cinnamon and chocolate, you might not like the aroma. Once brewed, the liquor turns a beautiful, warm dark amber brown and the chocolate aroma is still present. But, that’s the end of the chocolate. The cinnamon and cloves overpower the chocolate in this chai blend although it stills makes for a decent cup of tea if you’re looking for something with a bite or punch cuz it’s a spicy one! Don’t know if I’d want to buy this one again, though.

I’m a chai lover, but have never been a fan of instant chai or chai mixes. But, after reading about this one, I just had to try it! Prior to brewing, this mixture resembles coffee grounds which I presume is the black tea ground with a myriad of spices. And, it smells strongly of cinnamon and cardamom. Following the directions, I dumped a scoop of this into two cups of water and boiled for 3 minutes. The aroma remained the same and permeated the house with a nice potpourri scent. I then added the milk, but threw in a little ground cardamom (couldn’t find my pods) and fresh ground ginger. Boiled 3 more minutes, strained and added my brown sugar. Resembling coffee with cream, the taste is prevalent but not quite what I expected, especially compared to chai I make per an ex-Pakistani husband’s instructions. It tasted mostly of cardamom, ginger and cinnamon. The black tea seemed to get lost and the consistency of the liquor was rather thin. I’ll probably finish my bag of Tipu at some point, but will stick to what I know when it comes to making chai. I wouldn’t say this is actual chai, but rather a chai mix although the best chai mix I’ve ever tried.

Oh my. The aroma of this tea is scintillating! Remember those Neopolitan coconut candies made by Brach’s? Well, this is exactly what the unbrewed tea smells like…so sweet it will make your mouth water. This tea brews a light brown liquor that retains a surprising amount of the coconut aroma. The taste is light and kind of funky at the front of the tongue, but full coconut bursts forth at the back of the tongue. Of the coconut teas I’ve tried, this is my fave so far.

I bought this based on the name, but I won’t be buying it again. It smells divine prior to steeping, and hints of caramely goodness and hot sugar waiting to melt in your mouth. Steeped, this tea resembles really old urine from someone who only drinks pop (don’t ask how I know this) and the aroma is greatly weakened. The liquor itself is weak, bland and unremarkable. At best, you can taste the mild, grassy flavor of oolong while catching a little bit of buttery caramel undertones. Very smooth tea, however, bordering on being a cream tea.

I absolutely hate black teas (unless it’s sweet or iced tea) and I hate Lipton tea even more, but I’m so glad I took a chance on this one! I was pleasantly surprised to find this in pyramid mesh pouches, but the smell took me aback…it smelled just like Lipton’s regular tea. Disappointed, but hoping for the best, I made a cup and fell in love. Steeped, this turns into the most beautiful caramel amber color. The aroma is slight, but holds the attention with it’s vanilla caramel scents. The taste was wonderful, considering it’s a Lipton black tea. The black tea itself was not overpowering, but it was very present. But, toning it all down are the gentle notes of sweet savory vanilla smoothed over by the milky caramel tidbits which really makes this more of a cream tea. I will definitely keep this on hand…at work.

No notes yet.

OMG. Chunks of pineapple, nuggets of pecans, tiny toffee crumbles and bits of coconut are scattered throughout this blend that reeks of a rich praline aroma. Brewed, it is a pale orange, but the aroma does change and is reminiscent of buttered popcorn. The taste, according to my partner to which I concur, is Jelly Belly buttered popcorn with a hint of buttery toffee, but I also taste a sweet note provided by the pineapple. While it definitely does not wholly taste like a praline truffle, it does not disappointment. Light, pleasantly aromatic, and delicately balanced…I will definitely keep this in stock.

No notes yet.

I used this spicy little blend to make a tea latte. Upon opening the pouch, my nose was assaulted by clove and cinnamon, making me think this would make an amazing stove top potpourri. Brewing yields an unremarkable light medium amber brown color. The aroma, as with most chais, is simply intoxicating. The taste, however, is a bit underwhelming. The chai I make from scratch has SO much more flavor with only tea leaves and one spice. This particular chai begs for more cardamom. While this chai blend is decent, I anticipated a stronger, heartier and more robust flavor rolling around in my mouth. The spices blend well with the tea leaves, helped by the vigorous snap of the ginger, so I’d be willing to keep this in my cupboard…as an emergency back up.

Yes, here is a taste of yet another free sample. The tea itself smells scrumptious and chock full of cranberry, orange and other nummies, but I only saw a couple bits of fruit. Upon steeping, this tea yields a beautiful amber brown color and the aroma is light with a slight scent of orange. The liquor itself is a bit disappointing due to the delicious aroma. While it’s not bad, I don’t think I’d buy it. While pleasant on the tongue, this tea is full-bodied but light with a hint of citrus and a slight bite of cranberry. Not a favorite, but as best, it was simply pleasant.

No notes yet.

I got this as a free sample so at least I’m not out of any money. The name of this tea is a turn off…I hate Colorado, let alone Boulder, so…When I opened the pouch, I was excited…it didn’t look like much beyond dried grass shavings with some purplish fronds mixed in, but it smelled just like strawberry Bubble Yum! I couldn’t wait to steep and taste! Granted, the loose tea unfurled beautifully and looked quite pretty, but my excitement waned as soon as it hit the mug. The delicious aroma disappeared and the tea resembles old pee. The taste, super light and unremarkable. I didn’t even want to waste any sweetener on it. Not knocked out, not disappointed. I’d drink this again if I absolutely had to, but I’d never buy it.

Probably like you, I got this as a free sample with my catalog. Among the ingredients are licorice root, which I happen to hate, but I gave it a try…even after the super strong cinnamon slapped my nostrils from one side of my face to the other. Bracing myself for what I thought was going to be a super strong brew, I was surprised how mellow this tea is. I could taste cinnamon and it had a little bite, but that’s about it. The overwhelming flavor, despite the lustrous reddish brown color, was hot boiled water.

After first whiff, this tea smells strongly of licorice root, but that’s not one of the ingredients. It also resembles redwood mulch. Upon brewing, it turns a deep caramel brown. The tea liquor aroma reflects cinnamon. Sans sweetener, this tea tastes like medicine with a tinge of orange peel. Blech! With a dollop of brown sugar, my sweetener of choice, I can taste more of the rooibos and the gentle nibbling of the cardamom. Sadly, no scent or taste of vanilla. Even though my partner likes it, I’d only buy this again as a back up for tea latte drinks.

The scent, I must discuss the scent first! This blend, resembling coarse ground redwood sawdust, will fill your kitchen with the rich, heady scent of the finest quality caramel you can imagine with a little hint of orange. My partner said it reminds him of pipe tobacco…which is a good thing. Who doesn’t love that smell?! While steeping, the water is a rich, dark red and as time elapses, the color changes into a rich, deep caramel brown. I was amazed that this tea retained the scent once poured and sans sweetener, it tastes like a little cup of heaven…a perfect blend of caramel and a tinge I can only describe as round. This tea has earned a permanent spot in my tea cupboard.

I didn’t have high hopes for this tea and it didn’t fail to meet my expectations. The aroma is reminiscent of…a clean, sweaty body, the color is amber and the taste, oh God, the taste. It tastes just like hot water with perhaps the slightest nuance of orange. Thank heaven this was a sample because I definitely will not ever buy this.

OMG, this tea is amazing. Strong spicy aroma with incredible orange notes and gorgeous dark amber color…this tea works equally well as a stand-alone tea or as a tea latte. This has earned a spot in my fave beverages to drink. If you have a Biggby near you, save your $5 and buy this tea for about $5.99 for 20 silken sachets and make your own lattes at home.

I hate Lipton tea so when my boyfriend grabbed it, I turned up my nose. One day, I was out of iced tea and this was the only thing in the house. I took a chance, brewed it and drank it, and OMG, Lipton finally got it right! This tea is amazing! It’s very light with subtle hints of fruit, and it smells wonderful. This is by far a most refreshing iced tea and at bargain prices, too!