ESP Emporium

This is quite a colorful tea! Bright and merry with all the colors of the rainbow. I let it steep for about five minutes, enjoying the pleasant fruity and herbal aroma. Then I indulged…into one of the best cups of tea I’ve had in a long time! Don’t let the liquor fool you; it brews up hot pink, and I starting thinking, “NO, not the dreaded hibiscus!” But the redness comes from goji berries and dragonfruit. So it’s not tart and won’t have you running for the hills.
The flavor is as soothing as one would hope with a name like Feng Shui. It’s calming and warm plus peaceful. Hints of fruity flavors, plus citrus and lemongrass, and herbal tastes blend together perfectly. Perfect harmony? This tea is aptly named. So glad I went out on a limb and tried this one!

Again, this one has me stumped. The liquor is a gorgeous deep pink color, which to me screams, “HIBISCUS! I AM HIBISCUS!” It’s slightly tart – as though a fresh raspberry is – not in the least hibiscus-y, even after a steeping of over five minutes. I really enjoy this cuppa. I needed something mellow, but this is going to put me to sleep and I won’t make it to 5:30. I’ll need something to pep me up next!

So far, I’m intrigued…and I haven’t even sampled the tea yet! I am just enjoying the citrusy aroma, which contradicts its rosy liquor. The aroma reminds me of oranges and mint, which is, as a favorite character would say, “curiouser and curiouser.”

I’ve steeped it for a good five minutes now, which is the shorter of the times recommended. But I fear the Revenge of Hibiscus, as many herbal samplings offer.

I need not worry! Even though this liquor is hot pink, it tastes orangy, minty and ginger-y all in one cuppa. Yum! And the orange flavor is natural tasting, not like that artificial-cleaning-product smell.

Second sip, I taste a vegetative quality – slightly grassy, but utterly herbally. There’s a sweet aftertaste, which I think may be the tangerine.

Third sip. This is a calming, mellow tea. I wouldn’t wake up with this blend, but it’s relaxing me after a hard day at work.

Definite cupboard contender.

This chai is…interesting. I’m not quite sure what to make of it. I don’t know if it’s really a chai, that’s my hang-up. It’s spicy, yes, with cinnamon, ginger, anise, and cloves against a backdrop of bold, strong black tea. But I don’t immediately think “chai,” when sipping.

I still like it, don’t get me wrong. It’s bold and spicy. The aroma is spicy too – so you know what you’re getting into when you brew it up.

A decent tea, but I’m not sure I’ll reorder…

NOTE: halfway into the cup I realized why I don’t consider this a chai. There is too much of a rootbeer flavor! Not sure where that comes from, if the medley of flavors just makes it happen or what.

This is terrific in the afternoon, to wind down from a stressful morning, or ease into a calming evening. It’s slightly sweet – a hint, as a result of the licorice. If you don’t like licorice, avoid. I love it, so I enjoy. :)

This is a wonderfully refreshing cuppa! This tastes pretty close to that elusive, expensive Aveda tea…but better! I steeped for over 6 mins, which means I can’t resteep, but that’s OK. This cuppa is delish! I taste hearty flavors of the following: licorice, cinnamon, fennel, ginger, cardamom. For all you anti-licorice fans, don’t worry – the licorice root adds a touch of sweetness in the after taste. The aroma is to-die-for as well. This is truly a relaxing, calming tea. A new cupboard staple…and a must-have for anyone who encounters daily stress. I feel relaxed already.

This is an interesting cup. I taste both sweet strawberry and a slight tartness, which I’m guessing is the lichee. There’s also a floral taste, more in the after taste. There’s a pale liquor, and a light overall taste. It’s not bad but not all that wonderful either. I definitely prefer Enchanted Forest over this one.

OK, folks, if you need some balance in your life, you need to try this tisane! I’m normally not too fond of herbal tisanes, due to the high potential of that yucky bitter hibiscus taste. But I grabbed this one on a whim and love it! The flavor is fruity and herbally – a perfect medley of both. There is a tartness, but not bitterness because the licorice root balances out any tart taste. Brews up a lovely hot pink color too. I had this after a very stressful day of work and Feng Shui did help me wind down, bringing a balance of happiness to my state of mind. (Or maybe that’s because it’s Friday.) If you want to try a sample, PM me – I’d love to share, in the spirit of Wellness! :)

I got this in a swap with Rumpus Parable so thank you for letting me try it.

I figured today was a good day for margarita tea since it’s Friday and all but sadly, for me, this tea does not live up to it’s name. Then again, I don’t drink much and really prefer fruity margaritas (drinks that don’t generally taste like alcohol, actually). I do get a lime taste from it but it just all goes wrong after that for me.

It’s possible I did something to mess it up – I have a corneal abrasion and am stuck wearing glasses during the day for the first time since I got contacts 18 years ago and these glasses are about 5 years old, with a prescription to match so I am a bit out of sorts. But I’m pretty sure I put water in my kettle this morning (else my husband’s coffee will be off too) and set it to 200 (what he needs for his coffee and hot enough for me for my black teas) but I guess I can’t say for sure since I’ve been running into things left and right (damn edges on my vision).

Sorry to waste one of your favorites Rumpus.

Having this again after a long time away.

The scent is complex but not overwhelming… light with berry notes.

Again the taste has so much to it. The burnt flavor of a black tea in the middle of the tongue, a bit of berry to it, a bit astringent, leaves a clean feeling in the back of the throat. Light finish throughout the mouth.

Tried this cold-brewed. In a word: nasty.

The steeped tea smells lightly, not a strong scent here. It has a slight berry scent to it and a bit of the nutty associated with Oolongs. It’s a delicate fragrance.

The flavor is light, has a hay or nutty taste, a mild maltyness in the back of the mouth. Maybe a vegetal edge along the sides of the tongue. It’s also a touch floral. As it cools there are a lot of different aspects that come out.

It tastes like it’s somewhere between a black and oolong, really. It has a bit of both to it and not quite completely either.

The tea is very festive looking, in the bag. Colorful and very candy-like in scent.

Steeped, it is a pinkish, orangish yellow and smells of apple and mostly the lemongrass, giving it a bit of a Pez scent… again, candy-like. As he just passed by, my husband commented that it “smells like strawberry shortcake -the doll, not the food”, so each his own lol.

The flavor is much less sweet than the smell. The apple and lemongrass flavors balance out pretty well. The apple is very mild and like dried apples without the sweetness, just plain apple without the sugar. The lemongrass taste comes from the back of the mouth and tongue. I can’t pick up any of the raspberry that is listen in the ingredients.

It’s a pleasant fruit tea, but nothing outstanding or gotta-have about it, to me. One I’ll use for trade and a rare cup… might try it cold-brewed and/or as iced tea and see how that goes… perhaps I’ll find more to it with some experimentation.

But anyways, a good tea that I’d recommend to fans of apple and lemongrass.

This is my first (and last, most likely) chocolaty tea, so bear that in mind.

The smell of the unbrewed tea is of bitter chocolate and something artificial-scenty. It’s strong and, IMO, nasty.

The brewing scent is the same, I had to stand several feet from it while it steeped. I couldn’t stand to be close to it.

I’d read the ingredients and noted the chocolate contents before buying it, but since it was named Peach Truffle I thought, well, maybe all the ingredients together made that flavor somehow -because sometimes teas DO surprise you.

No.

Once it cooled enough I sipped it. The flavor itself isn’t bad at all, but I can’t report on what it tastes like because I had to sip it while trying not to breathe so that I wouldn’t smell the horrid scent of it. I truly couldn’t stand to be near it and breathe in. I’ve struggled to take 3 sips and have now just wrote it off as “I don’t like it”, officially.

This would likely be a great tea for those who do like chocolaty scents and teas, so I’ll use it for tea swaps. But I won’t be tasting anymore myself.

Scent is a little fruity, has a sweetness to it.

The flavor, too, is a bit fruity… maybe strawberries or something like that. Also has that rich brown flavor of Assams. Malt comes out as it cools but is not strong. It’s a moderate to strong tea. Long finish is slightly burnt, charcoal flavor.

It’s quite pleasant; I think I’ll keep it around for a stronger Assam option.

Second Steeping: Charcoal flavor is less, but so is everything else. Short finish, nothing greatly catching about the flavor in general or specific. Okay, but I’d rather trade or give it to someone else who might get more out of it than I.

First steeping: This is a solid, but rather run-of-the-mill assam. Warm notes on the middle of the tongue and a charcoal flavor in the finish. Some herbal touches. Generally ok but nothing great.

Revisiting a past favorite. I steep it for 2.5minutes, with 5g of tea to 12oz of water.

It’s still what I consider a great Assam. It’s strong but not overwhelming, has that burnt flavor that comes across the middle and back of your tongue, a slight malty taste, and is full and round in the mouth. The finish is lasting with the burnt classic Assam flavor.

A very full and strong tea, but not bitter or too intense, IMO. A good morning or late evening cup. I can see this being good with milk and/or sweetener, but I prefer it without.

I can’t believe there are no ratings for this by me. This is my favorite Assam in my cupboard and the one I drink most often.

Normally I have it hot and it’s wonderful.

Today I’m reporting on the experiment of cold-brewing it.

Just like when hot it’s excellent. But very different.

It’s not at all bitter from a longer-than-expected brew time (I forgot about it, it’s been in the fridge about 20 hrs).

It’s sweeter than hot-brewed. Very floral tasting and feeling through the roof of the mouth with a sweet honey-ness in the back of the mouth and throat when swallowed. The finish is dark under the tongue and a light feeling at the roof of the mouth. The flavor is complex but refreshing, at the same time. I can’t fully describe it. -But I definitely can recommend it.

I’m running low on this and it’s delicious both hot and cold; I’ll have to buy some more!

I actually got this from House of Tea but am too lazy/busy to upload a new profile…
but the description matches more or less.
The orange zest really pops out in this one, as does the spiciness. I’m not sure I like it- which sucks because I assumed I would and now have 100g! does anyone want to swap?
The licorice is throwing me off, that odd sweetness that reminds me of medicinal tea… oh… and it’s 50% roasted mate so it has less maltine in it. Not that it matters. Just puttin it out there in case anyone wants a trade!