Tamm

I’ll be honest. Non-flavored whites freak me out. The dry smell of this one especially! I got this as a gift. I’m feeling a bit guilty for not getting around to this sooner. The hardest part of brewing the small amount I did, about 150ml, is that I only added as much as I guess-timated would be the best.
The smell on this one is very, well, dry. I find it has a lot of hay like notes. The liquor itself is very light and surprisingly has a very strong smell.
But oh my gosh. I’m so glad I tried this one! I think the water should have been heated just a bit higher b/c this is already cool and it’s only been 2min. But it is much sweeter than I thought it would be! The sweetness is actually in the forefront of this cuppa.
I actually really enjoy this tea! Coming from someone who avoids this type of style generally I am floored. This is an extra silky, extra sweet liquor with a small amount of dry/hay flavor that right now I’m willing to overlook.

Long time no see Steepster! To be honest, this is only my 2nd cup this week. I was very very sick and couldn’t even smell tea without getting a little woozy. I picked this up at a local shop yesterday after looking through some pretty awesome cheeses.
This is my second look into Iron Goddess; my first being from Chinese Tea Shop.
I have to say the overall smell of the dry leaf on this one is less floral and far more barley or some kind of grain. I think that this was the small downside to this one. I find myself surprisingly drawn to the more floral of the two.
The liquor is very smooth with some very creamy notes that are highly satisfying. I find that this is a more vegetal offering of Iron Goddess. I think I will play with steep times some more to find that proverbial sweet spot. Until next time, I hope everyone is doing well!

MMMMmmm I decided to have a late night cuppa and this fits the bill! It was my little splurge for Black Friday weekend.
This is so, well, crisp! I think it reminds me more of grapes and green apples than pomegranate. I know they mentioned cherry in there, but I was not able to find it. Maybe on the next brew. The mouth feel of this is very different. It has a kind of heaviness that can only be explained as somewhat like juice as compared to plain water. Very interesting. This is not a punch in the face flavor, but it is nice and light.

Thanksgiving day tea! :) Semi-gongfu style. The dry leaves have this really distinct luster.
1st steep (1min 30sec)
The liquor has a distinct pea smell. It is very light and has that sweet tone I love. Oh this would taste perfect with melons or strawberries paired with it. This is actually stronger than I was expecting it to be. It’s very smooth and has no bitterness. This steep really woke the leaves up! They smell so different after the 1st steep. Very verdant smelling.
2nd steep (2 min)
Still very light and green. This time there was a bit heavier taste on the palate. It is still very sweet and reminds me of spring. This time it also seems to be begging to be paired with green fruit. I’m totally sad I don’t have any of these things lying around. Good thing I have a lot of this left! :)
3rd steep (2min 30 sec) final steep for now because I have to get going to Thanksgiving!
Light and sweet. I love this tea! I wouldn’t have picked it for myself, but got it for free from a member of another board. It really hung in there and I think it could do more steeps if time permitted.
I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

I’m doing something new this time! Since I just finished up my sociology class I decided to celebrate by trying to do some kind of gongfu. :p I’m not experienced so these were all guesses on my part. I was using my tiny 150ml houhin shaped random piece I found at the Chinese store at my local mall. It could be something else, but I have no idea. It was just cute!
1st steep (1 min)
Buttery, soft and much more green than other times I’ve had this. My last sips were very sweet!
2nd steep (1min 30 sec) p.s. ouchies my fingers! lol
The liquor is much more yellow/green this steep. The smell is far more grassy and less sweet. Brighter flavor this time and the grassy notes are really peaking through this steep. Very, very soft mouth feel; almost silky.
3rd steep (2min)
The leaves have completely unfurled now! So very pretty! I’m really liking this method. It’s giving me time to relax. This time it smells much sweeter with almost no grass. The flavor is full on sweet; my favorite cup so far. Small amount of something almost spicy in the very back of this. Just as buttery as ever!
4th steep (2min 30 sec.)
Starting to mellow down again. Stronger hay smells with this steep. Much lighter liquor. So. Very. Tasty. Still very sweet and light (getting lighter!)
5th steep (3 min) Final steep
The smell is so light on this steep. Sweet, but fading. Very light and creamy as the very 1st steep. Lovely tea, really, I think this is a great introduction for people to unflavored oolong.

Ah late night tea time! :) I seem to have run out of rooibos and that Swiss Vervaine still hasn’t been sorted out; so this will be my night time cuppa!
I noticed this time that the color on this is actually quite…swampy? Maybe it’s the hibiscus in this. Still, it is my go to sleepy time mix. :)

I took a break from playing Skyrim to take a sip!
This stuff is awesome. Simply amazing really. I think that I’ll up my rating on this because it is really exactly what it is described as. Smooth, sweet chocolate without the guilt. There is some nutty notes this time around. I think that out of the Teavana teas I’ve had this one would top my list for something to give to newcomers to tea. It’s simple to brew and it is pretty much foolproof flavor wise.

Mmmm I brewed this to try an combat my inability to get temperature correct in my house today. I kind of overdid it this time! I added a few too many leaves/too long brewing/too high temp and somehow this still turned out nice. It is incredibly smooth; despite the temperature issue. I think that I need to watch my stupid pan like a hawk so that my water doesn’t do this again. This is darker than some coffee I’ve had, but so much nicer!

I got this sample in my swap with DJBooth. :) The dry smell has an almost alcoholic note to it. Needless to say, it smells interesting! I needed something to celebrate since I just did so well on my test! This seemed to be sweet and citrusy so this will be my cup of celebration.
The dry leaf is very fragrant. The name says jasmine, but I can’t smell any jasmine; which is fine with me b/c I don’t always like jasmine.
The liquor is just as sweet smelling as the leaf was. I’m actually looking forward to this because it is not something I would pick for myself, but smells very nice. Holy cow! This stuff is super super tasty!!! The sip I took has so many different flavors. I can’t exactly tie any of this down, but dang! It has a very light and bright flavor profile.
Even though the end of my brew was done at a higher than usual temperature this tea has no bitterness. Very solid citrus-type flavor. No jasmine to be seen! >:)

This is a tea that really has to suit my mood. Since it is pretty bold on the citrus overtones I tend to take it slow. What it almost reminds me of is chocolate oranges, which I hate, without the chocolate. I love the spicy/citrus-ness. (It’s the chocolate that I dislike..)
But on a cool night like tonight, closing in on the holidays, it is a nice cup. I think I feel bad because this is an obvious B list tea for me; despite my liking for it. I think that the reason is the flavor can be just too powerful at times. Occasional sipping is where this one gets points for me.

This is another tea that I recently was able to get 2 free oz of at Teavana. These were not picked out by me at all and so far the flavors of these free teas are…well..meh. Not great, but not bad either. Even though I adore green tea I don’t see myself picking this one on my own.
The buds have a very peppery smell. Very interesting to say the least. They also, to me, remind me of the smell of say, a bai mu dan. I’m not a big white tea person. So before I overly judge this tea on smell alone lets get to tasting!
The liquor is very light. The suggested steep time was only 1 min. The liquor still has that peppery smell and also a bit of something almost floral.
Hm. This is interesting. It does carry that pepper flavor into the tea. The flavor is a lot more full than I expected due to short steep time/liquor color. It has a pea overtone in the end of the sip.
Overall I think it’s okay. This flavor isn’t really what I’d be looking for in a green. I think that if I needed something in a pinch this would be fine, but overall I’m not overwhelmed.

2nd steep!
I just realized what the color reminds me of; apple cider. I stepped up the temp. and time on this steep. (190F/4 min)
The smell of the liquor is just as floral as the last one. I am amazed! If I’m thinking correctly this isn’t flavored at all/perfumed. Which is what is so awesome to me. This smells and tastes like no other tea I’ve had and all that is included is tea leaves!
This steep is much sweeter than the first one. The floral taste is much more subdued, but still present. It is still very smooth and has no bite. This cup has almost no vegetal flavor in it; which was surprising. I am getting a lot of creamy notes. I love that this one just, in it’s own way, melts in your mouth.
Really solid 2nd steep. More to come!

I’ve been lacking in some of my updates..I got this quite awhile ago from Chinese Tea Shop as a sample. It arrived very, very quickly! I got this package before I got some of the ones I was expecting from in the states.
This is my first infusion of this tea. I used lower temp. water for a lower time. I’m a bit unfamiliar with oolong steeping; so this may have been a strange guess on that aspect.
This was my first excursion into Iron Goddess teas. The leaves were just beautiful. I have a certain love of oolong leaves and this one was just nice to watch.
The liquor is this beautiful yellow/gold color.
The flavor is so smooth and relaxing. I can taste very slight floral notes. I can’t quite explain what they are though! Shame on my young palate. :p But there is this distinct almost, hm, buttery note to it. It is very pleasant. There are some vegetal notes but they aren’t overpowering or unpleasant in the least. This blend gets high points for me because none of the leaves’ smell is lost in the liquor. That subtle floral aroma stays with it.
I highly recommend this tea; especially for people like me who are new to unflavored oolongs. It really is a nice oolong!

Much better! I finally seem to have done 2 things to straighten out the flavor on this a bit.
1) Low, low temp. I’d say 170 or lower
2) mixing the leaves a ton before spooning into the water.
I still am disappointed; as I’m still not tasting lemon. I’m getting lots of flavors in this now. I am tasting far less of that scary popcorn overtone I was getting before. I think what this needs is more mint. I think I’ll start adding my own since I have it on hand. A strange flavor appeared at this tempt. though, pepper. O.o Again, this stuff is excellent for making me sleepy. I think I’m enjoying this more now than before, but still don’t think I could really suggest this to anyone or purchase again.

Mmm I made a cup of this to unwind after a pretty nice day. I got all of my work finished for one of my classes! Which means now I’m a whole month ahead. :)
This tastes nothing like brulee, but very much graham crackers. Tasty, sugary graham crackers. It has this certain note of flavor that instantly links the two to me. Maybe graham cracker doesn’t sound as fancy as toasted nut brulee. shrug But either way I love this to relax. I’m also starting to think it’s strange this is labeled as an oolong blend when it is predominantly rooibos. Oh well!

My first try at this was met with some interest. I may have added too much and boiled it too high. It ended up tasting like…mallow? I don’t know what it was, but it wasn’t citrus at all! Later that night I got stomach cramps. I don’t know if it was the teas fault; so I’ve waited a bit before trying this again.
non-brewed leaves: lemon/citrus
brewing leaves: no citrus/weird mallow-sweet smell : /
steeped smell: popcorn?
This is very perplexing. But the popcorn smell/taste may have been what turned my stomach a bit. I had a bad run-in with an artificially flavored popcorn lollipop when I was a child. My guts never forgave that flavor!
This time the flavor is toned down, but still no amazing citrus! I feel so sad about this. :( I was really looking forward to some lemony bite. This stuff smells overwhelmingly strong when you smell it but it is not present at all in the flavor. Maybe I should try mixing my batch more or something. But there is also no mint flavor; which was mentioned to be in there somewhere.
Until further notice this tea is under intense scrutiny!
edit Three things must be noted before I nod off. First, the lemon started to appear at the end of the tasting. It was subdued and kind of lack luster but there. Secondly, one of the more promised effects is that it supposed to be kind of a relaxant. That part is indeed holding up. Lastly, I noticed something this time that worries me just a tiny bit. My tongue feels tingly. Not in a nice tasty way; but in an itchy way. I’m not allergic to anything but bunnies (that I know of) but hopefully this isn’t a side effect of one of the ingredients.

I got this one in a swap with Nicole. :) I’m pretty interested in trying this out in comparison to the Butiki coconut cream pie that I really loved. Of course there are some differences, this one is black instead of rooibos, so it should have some very different nuances.
Mmmmm this one is so creamy! I think that I put a bit too many leaves in this, so I think it’s a bit overpowering, my fault not Franks! It’s a little tiny bit astringent, probably a result from the extra leaves. But this is very nice! When I first smelled it I was a bit worried that the coconut would be too strong or be a bit more like suntan lotion. But it’s really calmed down by the time I get it in my cup. I think another thing that I noticed with this one is that the black tea base is much harder to taste than in the other blacks I’ve had from Frank.
I think that the one miracle achieved by both of the coconut cream pie teas that I’ve had is some how figuring out how to make it taste like crust! It’s very pronounced in this cup and I really love that part of the tea. Overall this is pretty good and I’m dying to blend this one with my chocolate oolong from Teavana.

No notes yet.

Hello and good morning Steepster! I’ve come to notice that despite threats of snow I have stayed clear of the white stuff. My landlord just took out my ac unit that was blocking the window in my living room. I feel like my house is less of a cave now! :)
This tea was something that I snagged 4-6 oz of for free. Teavana was giving this stuff away like candy so I have quite the amount. The one that I am drinking is the version with dried raspberries in it. I think that my favorite thing about oolong is the leaves. The beautiful curled leaves become humongous as they unfurl and they are so pretty!
I’m a little out on the availability to re-steep this. The dried fruit pieces actually look kinda blah after using them. Maybe in a bit I will try taking out these pieces because I know that the actual tea could probably withstand at least 2-3 more steeps.
The brew does not really smell overtly fruity to me. In fact to me it seems like the suggested temp (195) is a bit high. The flavor is actually pretty nice. It’s not going to blow my socks off, but it’s light and slightly floral. Which is what I’ve come to expect from oolongs in general. The tongue feel is very smooth! I think that is what I enjoy about this one the most.
This is a decent brew. I don’t think it would be something I picked on a regular basis, but it is very relaxing. I’m going to try to re-steep this later. :)

I’m alone tonight for the first time in a long time. I should be doing homework but I’ve felt under the weather all day. So I’m relaxing for the last few moments I can and sipping this tea in my “fancy” cup. It reminds me of last year when my husband insisted on buying it for me at Starbucks. :p
This smells and tastes so much like jam! I really enjoy sipping this one when it has cooled far more than my other teas. The color, even on the 2nd steep, actually reminds me of cranberries. If no one told me this was white tea I would have no idea…

I have to take an official stance and say enough with Christmas songs. It’s only the first week of November and I’m sick of it already. How is this even physically possible?!
I picked this tea over the sweet oolong revolution (for now…) because hubby seemed to like it more. And oh no! The Teavana people know who I am now! :O They’re like…haven’t I met you before? I cringe a little and say yes. I am an addict. A tea addict. I have to keep crawling back to this, my dispensary for the only things that help me going during my homework!
The smell on this is very warm and cinnamony. I like that a lot recently. The brew is really lovely and is much less cinnamon than I expected. I decided to eat this with a half of a English muffin with apple butter. This combination was heaven. There’s just this awesome fall synergy that happened that was so amazing! I am really tempted to mix this with my chocolate oolong from them. As this cooled the flavor had a lot more of the apple that was mentioned somewhere. I don’t taste the pineapple at all. This is actually a great flavor and something I could easily see as a fall staple in a chai lovers cabinet; even though this is not really a “chai” blend. I do have to agree with other reviewers though; I have no idea where they came up for the name of this. To really be called a brulee I’d like some more of the toasted-sugar flavor that I have experienced from such great teas as the caramel Kusmi.

You know what’s special about this one? It has grown on me. I think that as I sip this, my next to last cup, I’ve realized that I actually really liked this tea. I think that it gave a lot of flavor for a rooibos and I preferred it for late night sipping. I noticed that I have very few rooibos teas in my arsenal and may be tempted to buy this one again in the near future.

This is another sample that I got from Angrboda! :) This is soooo smooth! I really enjoyed it. I think that I would steep it at a much lower temperature next time. I thought that the flavor would be more in the background of the brew, but it’s right there in the forefront. It’s an interesting mix of different fruit flavors. It is not at all too sweet which makes it really pleasant. Great mix!
edit as I sipped this I realized that it actually has such a wonderful raspberry flavor. It’s in the background but it’s soft and amazing!

After such a long day I needed something to pick me up. I added honey to this, something I never do with my tea! I chose to use the special Savannah Bee Company honey I have squireled away in the cupboard awaiting the perfect moment.
This is magical. I love the cookie-chai-honey flavor I’m getting. More tea please!