iHeartTeas

It’s Christmas in June! Aw yeah. I am in love. Queue the bells. Thank you Rachel, for playing matchmaker! (yes I am mixing holidays here lol)
Of course, at first sip, when this was hot, I hated it.
Wayyyy to heavy on the vanilla, as that was practically all I could taste. Now, I don’t mind vanilla in some cases, and I haven’t quite put my finger what it is that makes me cringe but this seemed to be hitting that mark. I could swear there was some coconut in there too.
Then I added some milk, and let it cool down some and… oh man, soooooo good! A little more mint would have been nice, but I’m not complaining too much as it was still very tasty. It reminded me of a yuletide latte, with just a little somethin extra thrown in if ya know what I mean ;)
Brainwave! This would be ahhhmazing with some peppermint schnapps. It isn’t something I carry in the house, but I’d go out and grab some just to try it, I am that convinced it’d be incredible. Mmmmmm.
Also, this is kinda similar to the pumpkin latte version you make Rachel. I definitely prefer the pumpkin one, though I’d really have to try them side by side to see how wide that disparity is.
Oh and the other thing that this reminded me of, towards the end of my cup… well, it’s more of a mouthfeel, accumulated by the many consecutive sips I suppose, but, melted mint icecream. Mint chocolate chip is my fave! Chocolate, well I love the crunchy texture and there is no way that can be achieved in a tea so I guess you could say this is the tea equivalent heh.
I think there is cinnamon in here as well, and I do get a shadow of it, but it’s not very strong so if you don’t like cinnamon, I wouldn’t worry much about it.
Anyhow, I don’t think I’ll try it as a true latte, since this was pretty great with just a splash of milk and I loved it just fine like that. However, I am hoping I check this note before making another cup, down the road, because I’d love to try it with that Schnapps! and also almond milk as well.
Happy Friday everyone!!

Thank you to Rachel from iHeartTeas for a lovely sample packet of this tea!!
It’s wonderful, truly! The spices mix superbly with the pumpkin, and the vanilla is just fine! (yes, this tea drinker was worried about that part upon reading the ingredients)
The black base is a little soft, but has that certain mallow note which works well in a chai. I wish the base was a touch stronger.
No matter, this is very much like pumpkin pie filling. Very decadent, making me feel as if I’ve had a dessert when really it was a pinch of sugar and some milk! Hmmmm, you know I think it is closer to pumpkin icecream than pie, atleast in the aftertaste.
And something else, other pumpkin teas I’ve tried had a certain “uncooked” feel to them, and to be honest, that is why I stopped looking for a version I enjoyed. Well, this was in the sampler I got, so I didn’t really look for it… but oh yeah am I ever glad it was in there.
Btw, I tried this with milk, but also greatly enjoyed the sip I took when it was sans dairy.
Sighs Ya know you are in love with a tea when you are pouting because the cup is empty! THAT hasn’t happened to me for ages.
When my buying ban is over, I’ll be getting more of this for sure!!!!

Fruity non hibiscus green tea! something I’ve been craving for ages. So I was supa’ glad I got this in the sampler pack from ihearteas.
Peach is definitely more present than raspberry, though I kinda wish it was. Either way, it hits the spot so yay :)

Guess what arrived in my mailbox the other day?!? Surprise! :P
Anyhow. What a deelish tea!
I’m not big on dark oolongs these days, for some reason. Red robe was my fave for a long time… I kinda miss loving it. Sighs.
No matter, I’m really liking my cup! It’s creamy and I can definitely taste the strawberry and rhubarb influence, though I do wish it was a tad stronger.
Second infusion brought out more creaminess. Mmmmm. What a treat :)

SIPDOWN! and thanks to kittenna for passing a wee bit more of this on to me. I’m beginning to think the memory of this tea was better than i recall. While this one is still pleasantly fruity and delicious, it doesn’t quiet hold the same appeal to me as a while back.

i REALLLLLLLYYYY thought i’d like this cold since it’s quite an enjoyable cup of hot tea. Turns out? not so much. I ended up having a few sips,trying to sweeten it and then dumping the rest of my little glass. I still quite enjoy this as a hot tea, so no worries there. Just haven’t managed to find another cold tea that my other half likes.

Thanks to Kittenna for this sample!
I enjoyed this cuppa. Personally, I’m not huge on vanilla flavouring but every once in awhile it really hits the spot.
This tea was pretty smooth and creamy with a touch of something extra that I can’t quite identify, something that seemed to bring everything together, and iron out the vanilla/black tea wrinkles for me. That must be why… If I was going to reach for a vanilla tea again, this would be it. That said, I don’t plan on keeping any in my cupboard. It’s just nice to have once in awhile :)

No notes yet.

I will echo TC by singing this teas praises. I love strawberry teas, I love flavored oolongs, so this one was love at first sight! I only did one steep yesterday (will try to resteep this afternoon) but the strawberry flavor was so fresh, and the smoothness of the oolong still comes through. I didn’t get much rhubarb but I think the tartness was there. Yum!

I snagged this tea as part of the last iheartteas sale on etsy! WHoooooo! Is this one discontinued?

This is really good cold steeped! Really bright raspberry flavor! Overnight was a bit much though, it got a little too strong of a white tea taste/ going bitter verses last night deliciousness. Hot or iced? I don’t like as much – the raspberry tastes not as good – too much like raspberry juice powder in a way, but coldsteep the flavor is much better!

Uggg, really dragging my butt today to do my RushFit for the morning. I’m working out so much, but I need to drop all that winter weight! Plus that rich dinner last night, and I snacked on a few polvoron filipino shortbread cookies over the weekend (very good with tea btw)

I was thinking of skipping it, but I HORRIBLY rigged it on my HabitRPG to make doing Rushfit count or I lose lots of HP (or do it and gain lots of EXP and Gold!) https://habitrpg.com

Argg, must work out! Once I finish this cup, I’m gonna do it! Noo, I’m out! /cry

This is the first of a few tealogs I owe the lovely Rachel (who is currently and bravely without tea, keep up the spirit!) for the beautiful .5 oz samples she sent me after I won her blog give away last month.

I reached for this one this morning for my first latte of the day. Brewed it up with a bit of aguave and some frothed milk on top. And all I can say is, yum! Such a great idea mixing cinnamon with mint. I made sure not to oversteep so I can’t say how astringent the base was, but this is such a great Christmas tea. It reminded me of the flavors I like in the winter, and I can see the bite of this one being the perfect thing to enjoy on a cold day. I’m glad I tried this now when I still have an appetite for these flavors. Yum :)

Enjoying this delight as my last cup this evening. Decided to end with one of my favorite classic comfort teas. It is sweet, creamy, and wraps around you like a warm blanket. A fitting end before a start my one week “tea-fast” tomorrow.

To read more about it and follow my daily updates check out my blog… www.iHeartTeasTheBlog.com
P.S. Be prepared for some rather emotionally charged blog posts starting tomorrow while I go through tea withdrawal.

I LOVE this tea. Part of my winning contest prize pack from Rachel.
I was a bit leery as I’m not a rhubarb fan, but the strawberry is awesome and the rhubarb is mellow in the background. I loved the oolong as well. I did a quick rense of this then just 180 for 2.5 minutes (pretty fast and low) and it worked great. Good stuff!

No notes yet.

I’m so very tired and I need to be up early in the morning as I’m awaiting a parcel redelivery (and postal delivery starts at 7am) plus my food shopping is coming early. My husband has a day off tomorrow too and it’s always nice to share our days off together. We plan on cleaning all day (as if I’m not sad enough already.

My final sample of the night to be used in my new green teapot. In loose form this tea has an interesting appearance, with lavender, rose petals, green tea, black tea and what looks like vanilla pod all being noticeable. That seems to be all of the ingredients, it’s not often that I can so easily spot and separate them. As a whole the blend has a sweet floral aroma.

Once steeped the tea has a rich lavender scent and is mahogany in colour. The lavender is quite strong in taste but it’s not as thick and heavy as other lavender based teas that I have tried. The black tea gives it a deep richness but the green tea helps to keep it lighter with a little more freshness. The rose brings a little sweetness but is lost in comparison to the lavenders unique medicinal taste.

This is just really a lavender tea that has been blended to be on the lighter side but with a good amount of flavour. It’s very nice all in all and I usually don’t like lavender teas because of their heaviness and strong bitter taste. It also leaves a nice floral after taste. The lavender does thicken the more I drink but that bitter astringency that it has is minimal in this tea. It’s even a hit with my husband :)

Yawn looks like the tea is doing it’s job. Goodnight all.

Dry tea smells of cloves, cardamon, and cream and a little bit like graham crackers. Brewed scent reminds me of starbucks pumpkin scones which I adore, so this is promissing. initial taste of ginger and cloves and something almost floral. the spicing is very pleasant, enough to create a pleasant, warm and comforting flavour but not to create heat. Undertone of vanilla underlying the spice, mixed with a faint sweetness from the pumpkin. The base is pleasant, edging towards a slightly bitter and earthy taste that I enjoy in hot drinks. Aftertaste leads to cooling sensation in my mouth. This is perhaps from the cardamon. A pleasant and soothing cup.

Tried this one again. Bumping the rating a little as I seem to have found a better balance between the temp and steeping times. Still not my favourite though – there are better caramel/vanilla type teas out there.

Thanks Kittenna! All of a sudden samples from you that I’ve been holding on to for forever have made their way to the forefront. Probably a good thing.

I’m not getting much flavor from this in the way of raspberry or apricot. Sencha though? Definitely. And there is a subtle fruity sweetness to it but it’s kind of hard to tell what it might be.

I let it cool off and I can taste raspberry for sure now. I think I will save the rest of my sample to cold steep.

Also I am so excited for hockey I am already plotting places I want to go in Raleigh. I can’t believe how long North Carolina is, it’s only 65 miles further to go to Tampa and driving back from Tampa felt like AGES. Short list: Tin Roof Teas, tea buying moratoriums stop when you’re somewhere new right?

But I know my boyfriend wants to go to Tampa because they have tesla coils in the arena. Wah wah wahhhh there aren’t even schedules yet what am I doing.

This tea was delish, like comfort food in a cup. The caramel, cream and vanilla were all there but not overdone or artificial tasting.

I was so happy to see that iHeartTeas had this for sale! I was wanting more after my sample from Granville Island Tea but it was a little cost prohibitive after shipping from GIT.

It’s looking like Sourenee, Sungma & Mim are becoming my favorite Darjeelings. This one is smooth and quite strong on the muscatel notes. I steeped it a bit too long so these first couple of cups are a little on the bitter side. Not an entirely bad thing but I’ll be more careful next time.

No notes yet.

Backlogging from last night…also a SIPDOWN

What a tiring day, a cup of tea and then I’m off to bed. :)

This was from a large sampler I bought from iHeartTeas a few months ago. It sounded sort of Winter/Christmas like so I kept it for such a day like today to try it.

Firstly the tea itself is brown with leaves that look tightly rolled and cut into small pieces that smell earthy yet sweet. Once brewed it leaves a dark brown tea with a fruity and creamy vanilla fragrance.

(Please note I have not added any sugar or creamer). The first few sips reveal sweet smoothness with a vanilla and caramel sort of taste. I can understand the fog part from it’s name, the blend is not strong nor weak and it has a slightly smokey/misty flavour which I believe to be the black tea base. A nice evening drink.

It could be enhanced with sugar to create a stronger caramel mix but it’s sweet enough for me.

I have been saving my sample of this for December time, particularly when I wanted to feel more Christmassy. Now is the time, I did some cleaning yesterday and wrapped some presents and I can begin to feel it drawing closer but the only thing that can get me into the festive mood is candy canes. I love candy canes! This one says it contains candy cane which is beyond amazing!

This blend is a mixture of finely chopped black tea leaves with some sort of finely chopped green/brown leaf and red candy looking pieces. It smells sweet and creamy :)

Once brewed this tea forms a dark brown liquid that smells sweetly of cinnamon.

My first few sips reveal earthy cinnamon with a sweet vanilla flourish followed by a breeze of refreshing mint. It’s a rather subtle blend overall but the ingredients compliment each other well.

If I was to say anything negative about this blend it would be that there is not enough candy cane in there for me and I was hoping it would be a little mintier.

Not sure if I feel more Christmassy but I’m certainly more happy at any rate. :)