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I’ve tried this one before, but I loved it so much I made sure to pick up another bag before Butiki closed. I’ve been hoarding it a little, but I finally pulled it out today. I wouldn’t want it to lose its flavour, after all! I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 4 minutes in water cooled to around 175 degrees. I’m amazed all over again at how pretty (and green!) the leaf is, at the size of the buds and their wonderful white downiness. It’s a quality white tea, for sure.

The liquor on this one is so pale, it’s hard to believe it’s tea at all. There’s a very faint yellow-ish tinge, but that’s it. The scent is pure watermelon juice, though, and so is the flavour. It’s pretty sweet, but with the slight “bite” watermelon can have and the perfect sense of wateriness. It’s just spot-on watermelon, really. None of your candy-like, haribo sweet-recalling watermelon flavour here – just natural, fresh tasting, true-to-life watermelon juice. If I didn’t know it was tea, I probably wouldn’t be able to guess.

Every time I drink a Butiki tea, it’s like saying a small goodbye. It’s sad to know I’ll never be able to get this one again once my bag is gone – all the more reason to treasure what’s left.

I’ve been avoiding this one for ages, because frankly I’m scared of it. I mean, bacon. In tea. I must have been feeling pretty brave yesterday evening, though, because I bit the bullet and made this one up for work today. It got the usual SBT treatment – 3 minutes in ¼ litre of boiling water, topped up to 2 litres with cold water, and then into the fridge overnight. I’m back to being scared this morning.

I took my first sip very tentatively, and was surprised to find that I’m actually okay with this one. It’s mostly maple – and the maple is so strong it’s almost like drinking maple syrup. I love maple syrup, so that’s more than fine with me. There is a tiny hint of smokiness and something a little like those bacon salad crispies, or just bacon-flavour crisps, right in the mid-sip, but it’s fleeting and really just barely there. I’m a little relieved about this, but actually it works rather well with the maple and as I drank more I found myself thinking that I could take it a little stronger. A surprise if ever there was one! On the whole, I’m pleased this is mostly maple. Maple tea I can understand! I had to try this one just for the novelty value, but I’m happy that I ended up enjoying it as well. Wonders never cease.

A sample from Roswell Strange. Apparently I’ve tried this one once before, but I only have the vaguest of recollections so it’s nice to have an opportunity to refresh my memory. I gave this one 4 minutes in boiling water, and added a decent splash of milk. I do love a decent latte-style chai!

To taste, this one’s so creamy it’s almost unreal. I’m sure the milk has helped, but it’s also the vanilla, which is by far the strongest flavour. It’s rich, sweet, and smooth with that characteristic vanilla bean stickiness. The spices emerge mostly in the mid-sip, and stop the sweetness from becoming cloying. It’s a nice balance between the initial hit of vanilla and the warming cinnamon, ginger and clove. The black tea base is pretty perfect – unobtrusive, with no astringency, but with enough body to support some milk, and to avoid tasting thin. Beautiful! This one would make a great cup on a snowy day – I might have to try and source some of this for just such occasions! Yum!

A sample from Roswell Strange. I’ve not tried many fig teas before, largely because they seem to be a relative rarity in the UK. I think I’ve maybe come across one or two before, but certainly no more than that. I like figs, though, so I’m always glad to have the chance to translate that into tea form! I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it three minutes in boiling water. No additions. The resulting liquor is a medium golden-red-brown; the scent sweet with notes of dried fruit.

To taste (and as I’d hoped) the fig is the real star! It’s so true-to-life, and very fresh tasting to the point of juiciness. It’s hard to describe fig as anything other than “fig”, but I suppose raisin or fresh date come into it a little, although milder and sweeter. It makes for a great mid-morning cup! The black base is very smooth, with absolutely no astringency. It’s a tiny bit malty (although not overpoweringly so), and really just lets the fig flavour shine. This one’s a real winner with me.

A sample from Roswell Strange. I don’t think I’ve tried a tea quite like this one before – it’s a bit of an odd duck. It’s bagged, so it’s hard to see exactly what’s inside, but it looks to be thin, narrorw strands of leaf. Some are red, and evidently Rooibos, but there are also a multitude of other colours; green, yellow, cream, some a pinky-purple. Interesting, to say the least! I gave the bag approximately 3.5 minutes in boiling water, and the resulting liquor is a medium golden-toned yellow-green. This one is truly as unusual as it sounds. The scent is very grapey, so I can see where the muscat in the name comes from. I’m intrigued.

To taste, this one reminds me of nothing more or less than grape flavoured hard candy. It’s pretty sweet on the whole, but with that slightly sour edge grape can give things. It not “muscatel” in the way of Darjeeling – more “muscat” in the way of grape Kool Aid. I’m not really sure what I was expecting, but I am pleasantly surprised by this cup. It’s a pleasant, low calorie treat on a summer afternoon!

A sample from Roswell Strange, and another first. I can honestly say I’ve never tried a Lady Gaga inspired tea before! I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 3 minutes in water cooled to around 180 degrees. I crushed the juniper berries a little, as recommended! The scent of those is so good, and as close to gin as I can get on a miserable Tuesday afternoon. At least I have tea!

The dry leaf is an interesting thing to look at. Twists of Laoshan Green, a generous quantity of whole juniper berries, black, white and brown strands of wild rice, marigold petals, and the odd piece of saffron. Really pretty and rustic-looking.

Brewed, the liquor is a bright yellow-green, the scent beautifully vegetal in the way of wet grass. The green tea is definitely the most prominent flavour in the taste, but it’s sweet and grassy in the way fresh spring green teas can be, with a light nuttiness (I’m thinking pine nuts), and a touch of asparagus. It’s so smooth and buttery, it’s almost unreal. The juniper is also recognisable, coming out mainly in the mid sip. It lingers beautifully on my tongue long after the sip is over, with mild gin-like notes, and just a touch of warmth and sharpness. The toasted wild rice adds a certain genmaicha-like flavour, but it’s really mild and mostly just in the background. It really helps to give this tea depth and body, though! There’s a lot to think about when you take a sip, and a lot to taste. It’s so well balanced and blended, though, that that’s a treat more than anything.

I’m really impressed with this one, and I’m so pleased I got chance to try it – many thanks again to Roswell Strange for providing the opportunity. I’ve got enough leaf left for another cup, which I’m going to make sure I enjoy thoroughly when I’m not at work!

This one is at work with me at the moment, and as one of few black teas I have in my desk, I’m working through it fairly steadily. I’m still not massively taken with it. It’s quite finicky – sometimes I get a pretty decent cup with strong coconut cream notes (albeit mostly in the aftertaste), and sometimes I get a cup of plain black tea. It’s tricky to get right, and I’ve never yet got pie.

Today’s cup starts off as a plain black, but there’s some pretty good coconut right at the end of the sip. It’s not especially creamy today, even with added full-fat milk. I appreciate that this is a reblend, and that they weren’t always so good, but I have to admit that I’m a little disappointed with this one. Coconut, yes. No cream, and no pie. Sad face.

A sample from Roswell Strange. I’m a big red velvet cake fan, so it’s nice to have the opportunity to try a tea inspired by it. I think I’ve only tried one or two before now. I gave this bag 4 minutes in boiling water, no additions. The liquor starts off a beautiful pinky-red while brewing, but ends up more of a brownish colour with a red tint. I do wonder what this would look like with a splash of milk, so I’ll definitely be adding some to my second cup just to see!

The scent of this one is really nice – primarily raspberry, sweet and a little tart. The flavour, though, is more chocolate (in a dry, mildly dusty, cocoa sort of way). There’s also a creamy, almost thick-tasting cream cheese flavour going on, that’s surprisingly flavour accurate in a cool, tangy sort of way. The raspberry from the scent is less prominent in the finished cup, but it is there in the background. I can taste little sparks of hibiscus, but by no means overpowering so it’s not a problem. This is a surprisingly rich, flavourful cup, and I’m enjoying sipping on this while I tidy up a few loose ends at work this afternoon. A definite winner.

A sample from Roswell Strange. I’m drinking quite a lot of white blends at work at the moment, primarily because it’s so hot. This one looks to be a white peony, with plenty of twigs and a predominance of green leaves. Green, wow. The last white peony with actual green leaves I tried was from Teavivre – mostly, they seem to be black/brown, or perhaps I’m just unlucky with the White Peony blends I try. Who knows. Anyway, I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 2.5 minutes in water cooled to around 170 degrees. The resulting liquor is a pale yellow-green.

The first thing I have to say is that it’s really good. Really, really good. I’m a fan of tropical teas in general, but so often the flavour is at least a little lacklustre. Not the case here – the mango is sweet and a little peppery, very juicy-tasting. A true-to-life flavour and absolutely delicious! I can’t taste the pear at all when hot, which is okay by me as pear isn’t really my thing. My last sip was cold as I’d got distracted with a phone call, and the pear was more noticable, but only barely. It’s a mildly floral pear, but sweet and ripe tasting. It pairs well with the white base, which is completely unobtrusive except for some light honeysuckle notes.

I really enjoyed this one – it was the perfect cup for a warm morning at work, very fresh and refreshing! One of the better mango teas I’ve tried.

A sample from Roswell Strange. I’ve had quite a fraught weekend when I’d hoped for a calm, relaxing one, so now it’s nearly over I figured I’d at least end on a positive note with a cup of Assam. Assam has been – and still is – my favourite variety of black tea, and I’m always happy to try a new one. As an added bonus, this is also my first McQuarries tea too! I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 3.5 minutes in boiling water. I added a splash of milk.

The first thing I noticed about this one is that the scent is nice – rather like dried fruit. It’s a good beginning. The first sip is equally nice – a touch of raisin, and quite a lot of walnut. Fruit and nut is a great combination for an assam – very rich tasting, and not too sweet. The mid-sip is moderately malty, with a little more sweetness starting to come through, and the sip ends on a slightly dry note, again recalling walnuts to mind.

This is a solid black tea with a considerable amount of strength a decent amount of body. I agree with Roswell Strange’s sentiment that it would make a good everyday kind of black tea, as it’s a flavoursome but no-nonsense blend. A good tea to end the weekend on.