Handmade Tea

Added bit of honey to this and the fruity flavors shine a bit brighter. There is a base of smoke which is interesting with the fruit. The lemon is definitely there but the blueberry just adds a juicy/sweetness touch to it. It’s an ok blend. I’ll have to try it iced or cold brewed!

I thought I’d remember who I got this sample from in a long ago trade, but I don’t. :/

It smells like cinnamon and yams. After reading the description I can see how the yam scent is a little apple like. When I sip it, I just get light flavors of tea. Damn you head cold!!!! If I blow my nose and then sip really quickly after, I kind of get a little flavor. This tea will have to be revisited when I’m better.

Blossom is very mild-mannered and light, for a black tea. Its strength is brought down with rose buds and chamomile, giving it a very herbal, floral and relaxing taste. Probably best drunk at home after work or outside on a cool spring morning.

Backlog:

I bought this in the “mini size” a couple of months ago. The hemp lured me in. I am a big fan of hemp.

Rather than using a Japanese green tea as you would find in most Genmaicha blends, a Chinese green is used here. It looks a lot like a Chinese eyebrow (Chun Mee) but I could be wrong.

This is a bit nuttier than a typical Genmaicha tastes to me, it has a sweet, toasty flavor that I enjoyed. A nice, autumnal taste. Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/09/06/hempmaicha-green-tea-blend-from-handmade-tea/

I pulled this tea from the T&C TTB today. When I opened the package, it was confusing to look at because I didn’t realized that it was a blend of black/oolong/herbal. Despite my confusion, I went ahead and steeped it at about 185 F for 3 minutes. Even though I am usually not a fan of lemongrass, the lemony flavor went well with the green oolong in this tea. I couldn’t really pick out any black tea in either the flavor or the smell of the tea. Perhaps it was just the teaspoon that I scooped out happened to not have so much of the black tea? Anyway, I can see this tea being good for when your throat is feeling sore. I’m glad to see that I can actually enjoy a tea that contains lemongrass.

This is the August 2014 blend. I was so excited to open this package today and see an earl gray inspired blend….. earl is my favorite afternoon-pick-me-up tea.
This one is like a minty earl… It’s yummy and refreshing
I like it with milk and agave syrup.

Cold brewed this for the ladies at work today. It was a big hit. It brewed up light with just the right hint of berry flavor. I haven’t tried it hot yet.

From the Here’s Hoping Teabox 3

Hmmm.. this tea reminds me of curry – it must be the cumin seed in it. Actually, I don’t mind this tea. The black base is flavorful, smokey with the spices making this tea kinda savory. I’m getting cumin first – I think luck of the teaspoon as I see more notes on people tasting the fennel/anise. The fennel and anise add a neat sweetness at the end.

HHTTB #6/18

I was hoping for a fruity, citrusy tea. It smelled pretty nice, but in taste this tea didn’t deliver. I didn’t get any berry fruityness and I only got a hint of lemon. This was tar like for me. I read a few reviews after drinking a cup and it must be the keenum? That might be a bit of a harsh statement. This tea looks like it has been around the block a bit, so maybe it took on some weird taste from the TTB, but this one is not for me.

The aroma of this tea is strong in cumin. It’s very savory, too. Almost like a baked sweet potato with spices and herbs. It’s definitely a different cup of tea. I can taste cumin, fennel, and anise. The flavor is kind of like the smell with the sweet potato thing. The base is present with a sweet smokiness. I just can’t decide if I like this tea or not..

I honestly didn’t know if I’d like this tea because the aroma of the dry leaf really got to me. I hate the smell of cumin so I was super hesitant to try this tea. Steeped up it’s actually a really interesting tea. The smokey black tea is what pops out first, then a touch of spice, and after all that the anise and fennel. Surprisingly I really like this tea. The flavors blend well and it makes for a bold, unique cup.

Method: 1.5 tsp @ 180 degrees, 8 oz, french press

Dry leaf aroma: Roasty!

Brewing Aroma: Roasty!

Flavor: the tea is milder than most traditional genmaichas. I really like it. It does taste a little hempy, but mostly the flavors taste nicely blended. Thumbs up!

So I just realized a few days ago that I never reviewed this one on steepster.

This one is a good blend. It is very lightly smokey. There are large, LARGE, chunks of dried fruit in the tea blend. However, they mostly look like cranberries. I don’t get much fruit flavour out of this tea. But the fruit does add a light sweetness to the black blend.I was hoping for a bit more “tart” out of this tea. But it is still a decent blend.

This was my first month of Handmade Tea. I could barely smell and taste the lemon, but I still like this tea. I added a little sugar and I liked the result. I thought this tea had a lovely mild flavor. I’m going to try this as a cold brew later. I may add a little extra lemon and see how that goes.

Edit: I made this as an iced tea, and it’s very good. I used some sweetener and the result was very refreshing. Thumbs up for summer!

This was my first tea from Handmadeteas. I have to say, the presentation of what came in the mail was really nice. There was even a wax seal on the interior envelope (swanky!)

This month’s tea is a black tea mix with glazed lemon peels. I’m drinking a cup now. I’m not really getting lemon from it, but as a tea, it’s nice and strong. I won’t have any issues finishing it up, and I like it enough to stay subscribed.

As a side note, if anyone wants to subscribe please let me know, if I refer you, I get double tea one month. MORE TEA!

This tea was pretty good, but it didn’t wow me. I could taste the autumnal spices, but I didn’t think they were really strong enough. I believe a tea with cinnamon and cloves should have a good, strong flavor. I received this in a tea swap, and maybe it’s just the wrong time to be drinking this, also. I think my mind is in spring-mode!

Thanks to Hapatite for the sample!

This is yummy! It has a light strawberry flavor. I don’t pick up much cocoa, but I like it anyway. I did need to sweeten this with a little rock sugar to enjoy it more. Without sweetener, the strawberry didn’t pop!

Thanks to Hapatite for the sample!

I am kind of mixed about this one. I received it in a swap (Thanks, Hapatite!), and on it’s own, it tasted kind of plain, though I did get a little kick at the end. Then I looked up what it actually was and suddenly, I could taste a little cocoa.

So on the one hand, I feel like I should have been able to taste the flavors without knowing what it was. But maybe some of us just need to know what we are looking for when it comes to flavors!

I do think the peppers could have been a little stronger, but then I adore spicy things. I guess most people don’t want fire breath after drinking their tea!

Thanks for this sample Hepatite! Thanks for giving me enough to put in the Brevile since I have to use enough tea for 2 cups. That is about the only problem with a Breville, it has to make a minimum of 500 ml.
Caleb Brown from Handmade Tea was kind enough to respond to my question about purchasing from Handmade Tea. All I had been able to see on line was their subscription program. :-( But Caleb let me know that now they also have started having a General Store where tea purchases have been made available to us without a subscription. :-D

Thank-you Hapatite for this lovely sample from Handmade Teas. I haven’t had a yerba mate with mint before and I really like it. I don’t taste any berry flavor but that’s okay. I think this would also be a nice cold brew… nice wake up quality and yummy fresh mint. It’s too bad that it’s not readily available.

I have to thank the lovely and generous Hepatite for this tea.
I wasn’t sure about having an autumn tea in the spring but it works well. It reminds me of some chai teas. The spices are well balanced with out any overpowering flavors. I like cinnamon, ginger, cloves and allspice :-) so I’m a happy girl! The black tea adds a bit of body. I’ve had several similar teas made with rooibos lately but they just don’t have enough body to make it. I have enough for a couple more cups, so yeah!