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Mmm..yum!! (thank you Lori for forwarding this sample!)

This is delicious! Almost like a mocha chai cafe latte! :) The taste is rich and almost coffee-like, to me. Nicely spicy and cocoa-y.

The scent is very much like mocha (very cocoa-coffeish). And the spices…I detect plenty of cinnamon, maybe a bit of cardamom and black pepper? It’s very chai-like.

This is a flavored tea done right! I’m so happy to try out a Kusmi tea. I’ve been so curious about this brand. This is definitely full-tin worthy!

(lol! I crack myself up— I’m remembering a Seinfeld moment— “Sponge-worthy!!”)

I’m trying to use up my sample of this…it’s amazing how bottomless a sample can be when you don’t like the tea much!

All I can say is, the flavor improves a little, on the second steeping. The peach mellows out and becomes less fake candy-ness and more like peach pie filling. The toastiness of the oolong becomes more pronounced. But something is still “off” about this.

lowering the score by 10 points!

I think is one of those teas that tries to enhance a natural oolong characteristic (like peachiness) with an artificial flavoring. Kind of like milky oolongs with milk flavoring. While I don’t mind flavored teas at all (in fact I love them!), this one just isn’t done right. So sad.

I may have to toss you, poor tea sample! I just can’t endure another cup!

(Nor can I impose your inferiority on others!)

I’ve “re-discovered” this tea and have been drinking it a lot lately! It’s simply excellent—such a fresh, sweet jasmine flavor that seems to never get bitter. I’m on my second steeping and the taste is mellow and creamy. So refreshing!

Thanks to Lori for the sample!

I’m so glad that I had a chance to sample this because I can now confirm with certainty that this is SpecialTeas’ Almond Cookie! From the appearance, scent and taste it’s all the same.

So, please see my review of Almond Cookie for further tasting details. :)

It’s a delicious tea, nonetheless.

Yummm—Maraschino Cherries! There’s a fine line between maraschino cherries and cherry cough syrup and I’m happy to say that the cherry-ness in this tastes like pure maraschino cherries—which I love because it reminds me of Shirley Temple drinks and childhood. :)

I do taste pineapple, sugar and a hint of cake. This is kind of like a canned fruit salad. It’s sweet and candy-like but not cloying. I wish there were more of a cake-y taste but I’m enjoying this a lot—it’s great as a dessert tea. It’s almost like Pineapple Ambrosia but without the marshmallow fluff.

I detect no pipe tobacco-ness or woodiness like I would with a rooibos. Honeybush is great! :)

From Tokyo to Paris in 24 hours…

The dry leaves smell, scarily, like cherry cough syrup!! Oh no! Very scary.

Once brewed that “screeching” cough syrup scent fades and turns into a super sweet strawberry jam.

First sip…is like a strawberry creamsicle. Or a strawberry & cream flavored Creme Savers candy. It’s a fruity hard candy taste with an almost creamy aftertaste.

Subsequent sips…there’s something distinctly citrusy in here—like a strawberry-flavored Earl Grey. Yep, I can sense the bergamot!

In the background, the black tea tastes smooth and a bit biscuit-y.

I think this is a fairly good cup. It didn’t “wow” me like I hoped it would. The flavors are pretty mild. But I can’t get over that initial cherry cough syrup impression. I hate cherry cough syrup with a passion! gag I think it colored my overall tasting for the worse. So this was an “average” experience, for me.

The brewed aroma is deliciously toasty, bready and peppery. Like steaming, sweet malt. Sooo yummy !

The first sip seems sweet and yeasty to me—like King’s Hawaiian Bread! I love King’s Hawaiian Bread. I remember eating so much of it, as a kid—it was like cake to me.

I’m not getting much of the typical Yunnan pepperiness or earthiness, in the initial flavor. Maybe more as an aftertaste.

Very smooth, no bitterness or astringency (despite boiling water and a longer-than-recommended steep time).

I’m enjoying this cup immensely! It’s simply a delicious black tea!

I was very excited to try this—since I love sesame-flavored Asian sweets!

The leaves brew up really “fluffy”—they expand almost like an oolong! So my tall mug looks like it’s half full of leaves after putting in about a teaspoon and a half.

The taste is florally and sweet—no green tea bitterness or astringency. I detect mostly the caramel and just maybe a hint of the toasted sesame. The sweetness reminds me of Golden Moon’s Sugar Caramel Oolong—without the steamed banana leaf flavor I always get with their oolongs.

I wish I can get more “sesame” out this—but, overall, I’m really liking the sugariness!

This is a green tea I can see myself reaching for everyday. It’s very tasty and easy to drink.

Yes!! Red Hots Candy/Big Red Gum/Cinnamon Altoids deliciousness!! If you like cinnamon at all, you must try this. This is sweet cinnamon black tea at its best. There’s a hint of orange and clove that just heightens the flavor. This is so sweet that I think they’ve added sugar or some kind of sweetener—but no?

Either way, I love it and must get a full tin soon! I find cinnamon very soothing and warming in the tummy (I have stomach aches alot), so this is perfect for me.

I felt like something chocolatey tonight, so I chose this. Mmm….cocoa and roasted peanuts in a cup! This has a dry, bake-y, nutty flavor that I find very delicious. It tastes like those Mexican Ibarra Cocoa tablets except without the sugar. There’s this heavy sprinkling of roasted peanut shells-taste in the mix too.

Super comforting and super yummy!