bluebelle select Send Message

T&C Box 18/18

Well darn, I oversteeped this. I got distracted and it got too dark. This claims to resteep, though, so I’ll keep the leaves and try again. If it doesn’t resteep well I may sneak another teaspoon out before I send the box off to Kat_Maria, there was plenty in the bag.

Even oversteeped this is good. I think I love Yunnan teas after this teabox! It’s a little bitter but there are intense chocolate notes mixing in with the woody, smoky flavor I’m starting to love. The fact that I’m giving this the highest rating possible despite my own errors says it all, I think.

T&C Box 17/18

Oh, Teavana. I didn’t have a problem with them until I took a snoop around the Steepster boards and found out about how badly they treat their employees. I’ve been in one in Indianapolis and while the employees did overpour me very slightly they’ve never been pushy or rude in any way. I don’t like companies that treat their employees badly, though, so I’m now underwhelmed by them as a whole.

I told myself I wasn’t going to try this one. I was going to pass it along unopened to Kat_Maria. But then I got curious, which means I opened it and made myself a cup. I’ve never had this without the huge amount of sugar Teavana stores put in their samples; however, unless candied papaya now comes in crystal form I’m pretty sure there’s rock sugar in here, and not in the ingredients list to boot. Sigh. There’s also so many ingredients that I’m hoping I got everything in the teaspoon.

This does smell good to me, but that’s because of the overwhelming cinnamon. I tried to get everything into the teaspoon but I see no evidence of blooming oolong leaves anywhere. In fact I see very little that could be qualified as tea at all. This tastes mostly like cinnamon and fruit, with not much going on other than that. It is also definitely sweetened, as I suspected. Maybe I should have left this one alone.

T&C Box 16/18

What a beautiful tea! It has long, flat leaves and uncurls slowly in water in the most lovely way. It also has a surprisingly complex smell, which isn’t something I’ve encountered much with greens. It almost smells like an oolong, with deep green notes and some fruitiness.

Apparently this is a dragonwell, which makes it the second one of that type I’ve tried. It brews up light, but the flavor is intense. Sweet, sweet green flavors, some white flower notes, almost juicy finish. Buttery is a good description but it doesn’t quite explain the rest of what’s great about this tea. I love this but have no idea where to get it, so I think I’ll look out for another company’s dragonwell instead.

T&C Box 15/18

Dry, this smells like a cookie. Sort of a mix of a coconut macaroon and a sugar cookie. As it brews it smells equally of coconut and vanilla, and so strongly that it’s almost fruity and floral.

The taste is nice. It’s sweet and tastes much like it smells, so it’s a little like drinking a cookie. This is light for a black tea, and I wish it had a little more body to it. It could probably stand up to a stronger base, and there is something that feels like it’s missing. Stronger vanilla? A fruit note? I’m not sure, but this is just “okay” for me.

T&C Box 14/18

The smell of this reminds me a little of Yunnan, but it’s darker. Smoky and woody. I really love the smell of these smoky teas and I’m starting to think I’ll have to keep at least one around at all times for when I want a more savory/bolder cup.

As it brews the woody notes come out even more. There’s a definite fruitiness to it, too, almost like cherries or dark grapes. The taste is so interesting! There’s a tang to it and the flavors are assertive, but I’m not finding it overwhelming at all. This is definitely a darker, bolder tea than I’m used to. There’s a malty flavor up front that’s soon followed by wood and fruit notes and ends with a honey flavor. A very good cup.

T&C Box 13/18

Getting down toward the end of the list of what I wanted to try out of the T&C box. As of right now the number is 17, although there may be one or two more I’ll sample if I feel like it. I might as well have a taste while it’s here!

This is the last oolong I haven’t tried out of the box. I decided to have it now because I was just out shoveling and it is cold (-3 Fahrenheit!). I need a little pick-me-up after that, and oolongs are my favorite pick-me-up.

This is wonderful to look at and smell. The leaves are a rainbow of colors and the smell is gentle and slightly fruity. I’ve used a heaping teaspoon in about 6 oz. of water here, mostly because these are not my teas and I’d feel bad using any of the smaller samples up! I know I’ll be replacing them with my own, but still.

Even slightly off from the recommended instructions this seems to have done okay. It’s very rich and full-bodied, and there are some juicy fruit notes in there. I’m also getting some wood notes, and I understand the comparison to pastry, but the peachiness is strongest and absolutely wonderful. Apricot and peach notes in straight oolongs are my favorite, possibly because the first oolong I tried had a strong peach note. Another beautiful oolong from Butiki!

T&C Box 12/18

So I went back to check because I suspected as much: this is my first earl grey in a week and a half. A year ago it was all I would touch! There have been so many other good teas in the meantime that I barely noticed.

This definitely smells creamy both dry and brewed. It’s one of the better tasting EGs I’ve had; the cream taste is there, but it doesn’t overpower the EG base and make it taste like something else entirely like some others do. It’s slightly sweet and very nice as a morning cup! I may have to grab some of this one too.

Another one from MissB! I’m trying the T&C teas as fast as I can, but there’s only so much black tea I can take at once. And I’d like to get to MirandaGou’s swap teas, too… Perhaps over the weekend I’ll go on a spree, since I’m hoping to get the box traveling along soon.

This one smells like…granola bars? An odd thing to say about a tea, but it smells like a berry granola bar. This brews up surprisingly dark for a rooibos. It almost looks like black tea brewed! The granola bar smell is still there after steeping, but I think that’s the berries mixing with the lavender.

I definitely taste the berries up front, and then the florals are more of an aftertaste. The rooibos adds to the florals and gives them some depth, which I sometimes feel is lacking in rooibos blends. It makes for an interesting sip. This is taking a little time to grow on me, but it is growing on me.

T&C Box 11/18

This smells like straight black tea in the bag. Really good black tea, admittedly, but I don’t notice much else. While it’s brewing, though, wow! So citrusy and sweet. It almost reminds me of honeysuckle mixed with oranges.

This brews up a gorgeous orange-gold color and tastes just as gorgeous. The citrus note is strong in the flavor, but there’s still a floral edge to it reminiscent of jasmine. It’s juicy and sweet and smooth, I can’t get enough of it. It’s also lighter than most black teas, which means it feels really refreshing. I will absolutely have to buy some of this.

T&C Box 10/18

This one smells like the holidays for sure! Orange, cinnamon, cranberry, and apple are all very present in the dry blend. Brewed it smells mostly like cinnamon and oranges.

The taste of this is much more subtle than it smells. I taste mostly cinnamon and black tea with a tart fruit undertone. I don’t notice much of the apple or green tea at all, unfortunately. That said what I do taste is well-balanced. I don’t know that this is the holiday tea for me, but it is pretty tasty!