SimplyJenW

Not rating this one as I am an English Breakfast noob (which I know seems impossible, but we all gotta start somewhere.) This was actually my first Keemun, too. I really like this one. It is smooth and easy to drink. Just how I like my tea. I sweeten, but don’t need milk for this one. (Are you supposed to need milk in English Breakfast? Even if adding milk is proper, I will still do my own thing!)

Today’s evening tea….this one is hard to beat. I have seen recommendations for the resteep, and I am on it in about 5.

My afternoon cuppa. I just drained it…need to brew another, immediately! This tea really surprised me. I am not a lover of rose scents in general, but this tea is wonderful and relaxing. You do catch the rose scent when opening the bag, but brewed up, it perfectly complements this particular black base. I am bummed I only bought 2 oz…….

My tea to go for the day…… Not a bad blend if you like strawberry and maple flavor. I have also purchased this at The Whistling Kettle. Short steep recommended. Probably better with sweetener. Milk optional. I liked my sample, but am now undecided on buying more when what I have is gone. Maybe my palate for tea is growing up a little?

This is my cuppa the mornin’ today. As I am a big fan of Golden Monkey (well, any smooth black tea makes me weak in the knees) I bought this one based on reviews. I do think it has a deeper, more complex taste than Golden Monkey, while still remaining smooth. Love the cocoa notes (and am so happy I can finally distinguish some of the tastes…go me!) I liked the sample so much, I purchased more.

After watching TeaV videos with Zack, I decided to blend my own version of this right down to the sprinkles. On the video, ratios were 60% Vanilla, 30% Cream, 10% Caramel. I went by weight rather than volume measure. Just added some sprinkles for color, and it works. I keep some amount of this on hand as long as I have the components to make it. The last batch I mixed had an excess of red sprinkles which can make the brewed tea color a little weird. If you blend your own, I recommend the pastel jimmies.

This does smell like a vanilla cupcake, and it makes a great dessert type tea with milk and sweetener. Great if you want to have your cake and avoid the calories.

After trying this one hot, I definitely need to try it iced. I can taste the strawberry and slight peach with the light background of the green rooibos. Since I will not likely drink this hot again, I will save my rating for later.

I do prefer this one to the Green Rooibos Key West. The flavors in the Key West are lighter, so if you liked a lighter fruit flavor, Key West might be for you. The Citron is high in citrus flavor, and will be another great iced summer tea.

This is more of a tasting note out of the archives of my tea journal. I do remember trying this as a stand alone, and it was pleasant with a slight chocolate flavor. It does taste like chocolate and tea at the same time. By adding milk and sweetener, you get a blend of tea with a hint of hot chocolate.

What I really like about this tea is what it will do in blends. I like to blend this one with fruit flavor teas like Orange, Raspberry, or Strawberry. The general ratio I use is about 1 part Chocolate Tea to about 3 parts fruit flavored tea. As a stand alone, around 70, in blends as mentioned previously, high 80s. I know Adagio offers the option to make your own blends, but I go the more cost effective route and blend my own, as I am sure to drink all of the tea eventually! The Raspberry Chocolate is outstanding.

Had this for my afternoon cup. This one has the perfect ratio of mint to black tea, and the chocolate and coconut notes really play well together. I love this one with milk and sweetener.

I am planning to try to come close with a blend of peppermint and chocolate black, as the price is a little in the high range for a staple flavored black. Per pound, this one is up there…..and I like to buy my favorites by the pound.

I made a large teapot of this today. It is a good basic tea. If it gets oversteeped, it can get a little bitter. The grenadine and vanilla are light, but they balance well with the black. I take mine with a little sweetener.

I have noticed this comes from several online vendors; perhaps it is a Metropolitan variety?….I am on my third source. The first came from The Tea Table, the second from Culinary Teas, the third from The Whistling Kettle. I have not noticed a real difference in any of them.

Just finished a 3 oz. bag. Not bad for a chai, but I prefer others. May buy it again at some point, but not any time soon. I did like that this one was light on the spice. (I think it is clove that does not agree with my palate.)

One of my absolute favorite decaf teas. Lovely vanilla dessert type smell, great with sweetener added, milk optional.

I think this is a great gateway to oolong for the flavored black drinker. It is subtle and smooth, and a very satisfying, relaxing cup.

I am not usually a lover of ginger in my tea. This one is the exception, and I imagine it is due to the peach being the dominating flavor of the tea. I like this one more and more every time I drink it.

Again just adding a tasting note for the newbie tea palate. I thought this one tasted like the lapsang suchong of the oolong world. Very smokey. No rating from me as I am not an expert, and I will try this one again at a later time. I hope to grow up a little in my tea tastes one day, but am loving the adventure and variety available.

I am adding a tasting note, but no rating as I am sure I am not an expert in this type of tea. I had seen many revies of pu-erh noting that this tea tastes earthy. I had seen others noting that this tea tasted like a barn. Yep….a barn is what I thought of in trying this tea, too. I will try it again later when my palate for tea gets a little more grown up. I still seem to prefer flavored ‘kid’ tea.

This one is good…slightly sweet and more interesting than peach or mango. I will probably reorder this at some point.

A much better tasting herbal for me in comparison to Adagio Fruit Medley. This one I could see enjoying iced in the summertime out on the patio. However, this cup was a hot one as it is Winter. I will update in the summer!

A little tart for my taste. I sent this one on to a friend as I knew I would never finish it.

Not a bad tea, but since I like fruit teas, this one seems a little lacking. It is kind of on the tart side from how I was thinking it would taste. One way I was able to improve the taste was to blend with Adagio Cream at a 1:1. Blackberry Cream is pretty good, but I have to rate this one as a stand alone and not a blend. As a blend, I gave it about a 75.

This English Breakfast seems to be a different blend than Harney’s English Breakfast that is a 100% Keemun. The tin says it is a blend of Ceylon and African Tea. I will have to compare this one to the other at some point, but I find it a relaxing cuppa. I wish I had a greater knowledge of what makes an English Breakfast tea great. I should probably get some of the standard ones before I really make a judgement. I would buy this again…unless I like the Keemun version better.

I have the sachet version. I do think it is slightly more on the peppermint side than I prefer, and it just needs more ‘tea’ of the camellia sinensis type. All in all a good tea. I may brew it with less water as I used about 12 oz. Probably not something I would repurchase, but I would blend my own to get the perfect peppermint to chocolate tea ratio.

Great tea for when you are needing the sweets without the calories. The smell is of strawberries with a hint of chocolate. The rose petals in the blend make it a feast for the eyes. A great dessert tea. Great with milk and sweetner.

I decided to do a side by side comparison of Adagio Decaf Peach and Harney’s Midsummer’s Peach. I did find that the Harney’s was peachier, and since I tend to enjoy sweeter teas I prefer the Harney’s. However, I am not sure it is worth the twice as expensive pricetag for a pound…….

For Adagio, I do prefer the Decaf Apricot over the Decaf Peach. They do taste similar, so I will probably stick with the Apricot once my sample is done.