Amy oh

I am not always such a huge fan of green teas but I am coming to like them a bit more as time goes by. I thought I would give this one a shot as I also like tropical fruit. I don’t know what kind of green tea is used here as the base but I am guessing dragonwell from the photo.

Steeped for about 2 minutes in 180 F water (I am guessing) and this is VERY fruity! Smells strongly of pineapple and a bit of passionfruit. I am curious as to what the blue flowers are here in this blend. It tastes predominately of pineapple and not too much of green tea. I was worried I would hate this after my Teavana Pineapple Kona Pop experience but I am actually kind of liking this.

I did manage to steep it a second time and there is definitely less pineapple and more tea but it is still quite tasty. I would definitely consider buying this again, especially for the summer. If you like tropical fruit you might want to give this one a shot.

This is quite a nice Da Hong Pao, especially given the price I paid for it which was only $6 an ounce. Considerably much less than some of the same types of tea I have been sampling from the region… but also not as complex and delicious as some other ones i’ve tried.

Regarding flavor it is mostly sweet and honeylike, exhibits some minerality and lots of stone fruit. Delicate flavor. Very peachy and juicy is how I would describe this one. Steeped at around 180 degrees for 2 minutes. I would recommend this for someone who is new to this style of tea as it is quite mellow and soothing. Beautiful amber color.

I might get some more of this as more of an everyday tea, it is quite a good value.

This was a staple time tea for me all last summer. I don’t drink a lot of white tea normally but this is quite a tasty blend of peach, tangerine and osmanthus flowers. I drink it hot and quite like it that way, but last night it got the cold brew treatment and I’m having it iced this morning. Sweet and refreshing.

It seems difficult to believe that I am the first person to log this but I did not see it in the database so I decided to add it…

So it was a late night last night and I am feeling kind of tired, I decided to pull his out of the cupboard and it was definitely a good choice. It’s a fair trade organic assam from Harney in one of cute little 4 oz tins. I like the tea tins because I will reuse them for other things once the original tea is gone and you can also recycle them.

This tea is delicious and smooth, not exceedingly malty and a tad bit brisk… bold but not too assertive. very nice. If tea was a comfort food this would be it for me, a great assam to gently wake me up.

I am going to a party tonight so more caffeine is ok for the time being. :)

This came as a free sample with the last Dong Ding oolong I got from Naivetea. I have been very impressed with the consistent quality and deliciousness across their product line. There is a clean and bright quality that is captured so well.

I am a fan of some of the darker roasted oolongs. When these tea leaves are wet they smell like burnt caramel and toast. There is a sweetness here and a smoothness that is quite delightful. I am wondering how mere water is transformed into such deliciousness!

After 4 steeps the tea shows no signs of losing its flavor and just seems to keep getting sweeter and more candy like. I do not think I like it quite as well as the Dong Ding (which got 100 from me) but it is still rather spectacular.

I probably drink too much caffeine (if you look at my tea log you will not be surprised!)

I thought I would try this as a tea for dessert or afternoon. I was a little worried when I opened the bag, it smells a bit “fakey”, like artificial somehow. I am not sure if this due to the tea itself or by virtue of the fact that it’s a decaf tea. I think I steeped this for 3-4 minutes with boiling water and I did not add sugar, I did add soymilk. The description here says it has a rich and “coppery” flavor, which is definitely true, if copper had a flavor I think this would be it. I am wondering if this is a ceylon which is not my favorite thing among black teas. I think the coconut comes through pretty well here. It is not perfection but it is nice.

This is a good choice for an evening dessert type of tea if you don’t want to stay up all night. I might get some more eventually… I did get two steeps out of it which is also a bonus.

Oh, how delighted and tickled pink I was to find the Arbor tea company!

Here IS a place that reflects all of my values: organic, fair trade and packaging that is backyard compostable! I must be dreaming… no, it’s true! and it’s fabulous!

This little pu-erh mini tuo cha is fantastic. I’m not a pu-erh expert but am VERY happy with this. It has a smooth and fantastic rich flavor. Aroma smells of trees, mulch and a bit of mushrooms. Taste is rich and luscious with a slightly tart finish with the complexity of a red wine. Slight sense of tobacco in the finish. It is reminiscent of coffee as well but without much bitterness. Me likey…

Second steep is a bit more mellow and is now getting chocolatey…

I’m having this after lunch and it’s heavenly to sip on just plain. Hurray! I will certainly need to get some more soon since this was only a sample…

No notes yet.

A lovely green floral oolong! Yes, I am getting lilacs in the aroma of this, very nice!

This tea really started to grow on me after the second steep. I felt the leaves needed time to open up a bit and assert themselves. This is light and delicious… slightly earthy and very fresh. I really need to try cold brewing it too, I am sure it would make a fabulous cold tea.

I like this ok – it is very gentle and mildly fruity and has a nice smooth taste. Primarily I drink it in the summer as an iced tea and it is really good that way!

hmmm. I am taste testing this a few days after drinking the Vanilla Black from Rishi.

The Rishi tea definitely wins in terms of aroma + organic and fair trade.

However I am scoring this tea slightly higher because it has a smoother mouth-feel and taste. The vanilla is subtle and nice. I needed some soymilk to really bring it out and now I’m pretty happy.

Not sure I would buy this again because I am not MAD for vanilla, but if you are looking for a good vanilla tea you might try this one.

No notes yet.

Another sample from my tea pimp, Jenn…. ;-)

I rather liked this but I am a fan of chamomile, almond and especially cardamom. It really smells like a yummy white chocolate dessert!

The flavor here is kind of subtle which is nice – I felt it needed something to “round it out” a bit so for me it was vanilla soymilk. Voila, perfection! I would like a small tin of this, do you think Santa will bring me one? :)

No notes yet.

Purchased from the cafe down the street because someone is in my kitchen having a meeting. Go away so I can make some tea!!!

Smells very fruity-sweet and I am worried it will be nauseating, thank goodness no.

It’s a very light and smooth tea with just a very subtle smattering of fruit flavor. A really good choice for my afternoon. Still I was hoping for more fruit, I guess. Although I don’t mind this I will not rush right out and buy any.

well, this tea is certainly very interesting. It has a very beautiful long and slender leaf shape.

Upon opening it I got a smoky smell like a lapsang souchong which was really surprising!

I stepped this for about 90 seconds in cooler water (not sure of the exact temperature)

To me this tastes of pine, wood and ocean. I’m not sure I love it but it is very intriguing and complex… the website says it carries the taste and smells of the misty northern Fujian countryside where it is grown. I am definitely picking that up here, very cool.

I am quite enamored with this stuff, it is putting all my other tea to shame. sad. ;-)

Kusmi Tea Sampler 3/5

This is a fairly subtle blend which I am coming to appreciate after being knocked over by Prince Vladimir earlier this week. The bergamot is in the forefront here, the citrus and orange blossom is hanging out in the finish in a nice, polite manner. I was worried the orange blossom would be too flowery here but no, it’s very unassuming. I don’t even like bergamot that much so I don’t know why I am drinking all this bergamot flavored tea… :)

I like this pretty well, it seems like an afternoon type of tea for moi so I may end up bringing it to work.

yummm. there is not too much more I can say. For me, personally it is the best chai I have been able to make at home and is the perfect balance of tea, with mostly cinnamon and cardamom flavors with a bit of black pepper and clove. It is sweet and yummy and the cinnamon/cardamom flavors really stand out but I also really like them both. The black tea here is not very pronounced and blends in with the other spices. I highly recommend you try cooking this the traditional way on the stove but is also excellent just brewed plain with milk or soymilk added. My perfect winter tea. Try a bit of brandy too, that is heavenly on a cold winter night.

Some of the reviews here seem to be for the concentrated Rishi masala chai concentrate you make and add milk to, I would NOT recommend this, you need to get the real tea and make it yourself!

I was actually craving a chai today and then I forgot I had this little sample in my desk provided by the ever generous and lovely Jenn…

I think I learned something from my cinnamon spice experience with H & S, their flavor is strong so there is no need to overdo it. I believe I used about 1/2 tsb of this in 8 oz of hot water about 206 degrees.

This is a pretty good spicy chai type of tea. I did add my usual soymilk to mine and then after tasting it I felt the need to add some sugar which is kind of rare for me. On the website it says assam is used as the base for this. I am not picking up too much on the cinnamon or cardamom here and instead am getting a lot of clove and something else, I think perhaps it is black pepper. In any case, I like it but when it comes to chais I am partial to Rishi’s Masala Chai and West Cape Chai, they set the bar pretty high for me. :)

Ono tea – this is the company that has now become Koni tea and I don’t really feel like making a new listing for it.

I liked most of the things I got from Koni – this was good but it was not my favorite out of the bunch. I was hoping for more of a coconut flavor as well. It is a little weak and the coconut is competing with the fruit flavors in here for my attention and tastebuds.

I am having this iced with lunch today. It makes a delicious iced tea….

Bumped up the rating to 100 today… just ‘cause I love it so!! And it’s organic. wheeee.

drinking this again this morning since I needed an energy boost. I measured my water temp at around 135 F and thought this was too low but it is bringing out some nice subtleties of the flavor I did not notice before.