Makers Tea

This one is… an oddity. I’m not getting chocolate really, maybe some malty notes, and there’s no floral aspect at all. Maybe this could have benefited from a longer steep, though the strawberry is really prominent. It kind of reads like a regular strawberry black. I really love rose teas but this one just isn’t strong enough.

Finally getting to my samples from Makers Tea! As Azzrian suggested, you really should use the entire sample for a cup. They’re kind of small, and I’ll admit that I was a bit disappointed. I mean, you have to pay $5 upfront, I was hoping they’d be a bit bigger so I could play around with them more. But you really only have one shot: this makes me nervous with flavored teas, because they don’t resteep well usually so you have one chance to get a good cup out of it. And the suggested steeping time is… 7 minutes?! That seems way too long for a black.

This is a nice caramel tea with a smooth, tasty flavor but I’m just not getting much salt. The caramel is really really good, but I was hoping for more of a salty bite and I can’t taste it at all! And the base is just okay, nothing really outstanding. So a good tea, but nothing really spectacular.

I brewed this up last night and found it tasted like the inside of a bounty bar. Somehow having a crunchy feel to it.

I got this from the new tea company in sample size. There is only enough in the bag for one cup. So I brewed it up and found the black tea was stronger the red velvet. Also the bags are not labeled although there is a card that listed what teas came in the package. I would like to see labels (with ingredient list) on them. I wouldn’t buy a 1oz though as I didn’t feel it was anything special.

I believe the problem here is that their steeping instructions say to use 1 tsp but from my experience and every steeping “rule” I have ever seen you would normally use 2 tsp per serving.
Since Makers offers 2 serving samples I feel they have said to use 1 tsp to stretch the sample as they already have their little sample bags selected which fit perfectly into their packing. The issue is if the tea drinker does not get a full bodied flavor and cup, then it won’t get reordered.
I feel this tea is the one of the three that could have made me place an order yet because it is so thin and lacking in the flavor it should have I won’t.
I should have followed my knowledge and used the whole sample but I assumed that they knew what they were talking about in their steeping instructions.
I am not trying to sound harsh BUT if you want your tea to be as good as it can be it is better to say “use the whole sample” and let people know that if you order an oolong you will only get ONE serving versus two OR change your packaging. There are ways to fix this but I fear for them it will be an issue especially for tea drinkers who may not realize this would be a really good tasting tea if it had been steeped right!
So now I sit here with a cup that is promising but can’t deliver and one teaspoon left of a leaf that does me no good.
I actually feel this could have been an EXCELLENT tea!
Bummer.

Such a pretty tea and it smells absolutely amazing however the flavor does not seem to transfer from aroma to the steeped cup. I do not care for the floating flavoring or sweetening agent “scum” on the surface of the tea liquid. This is reminiscent of David’s Tea and while not terrible, just not something I go seeking out in tea. I do feel that again this is close but not quite there yet. There is a nice cakey flavor, a slight chocolate flavor which is perfect for the red velvet cake idea, and it is creamy, but the after taste from the sweetener is not enjoyable.

I have tried a few salted caramel teas. I would say this is as good as all better than some, but not something that made me feel that THIS is THE salted caramel tea I have been desiring. It does have more saltiness than most, so for that it scores higher than others as I feel often you just can’t taste the salt. What makes me feel less excited about it is that the base itself is not all that outstanding, and there is that typical flavoring oily texture floating on the top of the cup. I feel that they are really close to an excellent salted caramel tea here but just not QUITE there yet.

I do taste the coconut. Not overpowering or fake, just an appropriate amount. A mild oolong base with some but not all of the strength of flavor I expect from oolongs – which isn’t a bad thing for me. Again, though, rating is based on what the description says and what the tasting delivered to me, not on whether or not I’d buy it again.

Very interesting. Tastes like an oolong for sure. Then after about half a cup I started to get an odd sweet aftertaste. The sweet definitely does linger. Raritea is right – there is a slight numbing sensation. I didn’t come back and read the description before I tasted this so I didn’t remember what to expect. I would not have identified what I was tasting as liquorice root but yeah, after reviewing it is definitely liquorice.

Personally, not my preference and I won’t be keeping it in my cabinet, but it is precisely what the description says it is and it seems to be of decent quality so my rating is based on that and not on whether or not I’ll order it. If you like oolongs, you’ll probably like this one.

Dry leaf has a very thick, creamy, buttery smell. Sweet notes come through as well.

The brewed liquor maintains the buttery smell. It also smells like what reminds me of freshly baked goods. The sweetness is still present.

This tea feels thin on the creaminess in taste. Creaminess is present mostly at the start of the sip. Mild sweetness is present closer to the end. Near the end I’m getting some delightful roasted notes.

As the tea cools, I’m getting more of a fuller cream taste closer to the end of the sip. I am also finally getting the baked goods taste that I was describing in the scent.

I really like the complexity of the tea in which I am able to detect distinct creaminess as well as roasted taste.

This tea would not likely do well past its third infusion.

Big thank you to Makers Tea for the sample!

I was pretty excited for this one since I have never had an oolong blended with ginseng before. I used the whole sample (approx 1 tbsp) in my cup, and went for light, gentle steepings so the licorice notes wouldn’t overwhelm.

The taste reminds me of a Chinese Wellness tea that I have – in fact, it tastes exactly like it! It’s a cold/flu tea with a lot of different herbs, but it’s in a tea bag. I much prefer this to the tea bags!

That said, it’s still a taste that is quite unique and not very shy! The licorice root is mild and definitely adds a sweetness, but not at all cloying. Very gentle and a nice offering – I’m glad I got to try!

My only “complaint” is that the samples came via regular mail, so they were quite crushed – however they were free samples and I have no doubt that an order would come protected. Just something to note!

Dry leaf smells primarily like a vegetal, sweet green tea. There are hints of milk oolong as well.

I used 1 tablespoon of leaf for 0.8 of my aquaovo tumbler.

The brewed liquor has a sweet floral scent with a hint of something I would describe as “higher up” (for some reason I feel compelled to describe it as that) in the smell that reminds me of metal or copper scent. I am also getting a smell that reminds me of my aunt’s house; reminiscent of her perfume.

On the first sip, the green flavour is not on the forefront. I am getting that floral-perfume-like taste, as described earlier in the scent, on the periphery (sides) of my tongue. Reminiscent of a milk oolong. Creamy on the sip which fades throughout until the end. Sweetness crescendos up to the middle of the sip and then fades out. The taste ends with an unfortunately slight bitter tinge which turns more into a roasted note as the tea cools. The floral-sweet is strongly present in the after-taste.

The second infusion takes on a more typical vegetal green tea flavour. Prominent buttery notes. Floral taste is still present in the background and after-taste.

Dry leaf smells peppery. Fragrant with hints of milk oolong scent. Also, a herbal mix smell that you might experience when entering an apothecary (for example).

I used one tablespoon of dry leaf for approximately 0.75 of my aquaovo tumbler.

The brewed liquor has a distinct Camellia Sinensis scent to it. Some sour notes as well. Milk oolong scents are peeking out among the stronger notes.

On the first sip, I am getting a fruity taste mixed with a creamy milk oolong flavour. The milk oolong is more present at the end. The liquorice is coming through, less as a flavour and more of a numbing/sweet sensation near the tip of my tongue after every sip. I am able to make out the liquorice root flavour a few seconds after the end of the sip.

As the tea cools, on the end of the sip I am getting more of a full mouth sensation of the liquorice root. The liquorice flavour seems to really take over with only a slight hit of the milk oolong taste at the beginning of the sip leading into the full mouth sweetness. Very sweet and a kind of sweetness that doesn’t have a artificial unpleasant trailing aftertaste.

Overall, an interesting tea tasting experience. The liquorice root sensation is something unexpected that I think I would need some getting used to.