Voila! In Frederick

I require some green tea – and this hits the spot! I love this one iced or hot. Double delish!

Please see previous notes; this is a fave.

Sipdown, and swap-down. 249! I’ve swapped a bunch of samples away, plus I am sipping down this one that is actually two. I had a tiny bit of Winter Palace Marzipan from a local tea shop in Port Jefferson, NY, and some of this, which I got in a swap from Sare (thanks!). I think they are the same blend, and this pot was mostly this tea, so it’s getting logged here. I also put a lot of rooibos in the pot because these samples are both fairly old, and it’s hard to oversteep rooibos.

Mmmmmmarzipanny! The fruityness that rooibos often provides is interpreted here as apricot, which of course always works well with almond. I can definitely taste the coconut in this one as well, which lends a creamy quality to it that is nice. This is a nice evening tea, and I think that roobois is best with nutty flavors like almond. Glad to have this one this evening.

My tastebuds have been so off lately, thanks to a six-day migraine and the longest, weirdest flu bout. I brewed up some Eight Candles but couldn’t finish it – it was too sweet for me today. I know, I know, I said that. Me, little miss addicted to sugar and candy. I couldn’t take it. So I opted for something minty and more plain. This is my tried and true, my go-to flavor. Love me some minty and gunpowder happiness.

This tastes kinda sugary too, which is odd. There is no sugar in it, and I don’t add any sugar to my teas. I rinsed out the mug after the Eight Candles. I guess things are tasting sugary as part of my tastebuds on hiatus? Weird, like I said, weirdo flu bout.

Tea of the afternoon. Plenty of folks are worried about the potential snow…I just want it to be the weekend so I can sleep!

I love a good gunpowder green and mint. Refreshing and happy. :)

Brewed this up since I didn’t really know what I wanted. It’s spicy and fragrant, often each sip seems different. I’m liking this more so I upped the rating slightly.

This is interesting. Very flavorful and tastes as good or as unique as it smells dry, and as it brews. There is a weird raisin-y taste to it as it cools. I’m not too “keen” (sorry) on that flavor, but the spiciness almost overtakes it.

But do I like it? I’m not sure. I’ll have to keep trying this one. It’s almost too many different spices competing for best taste to enjoy.

Picked this up last night while introducing a friend to the awesomeness that is Voila. This is a mighty spice cuppa, which I love! It’s wintery and comforting, warming and Christmas-y. I taste cloves and nutmeg plus cinnamon and cardamom. It’s like a chai without being in-your-face chai. Not sure if I would drink this all the time, but it’s definitely a must have for winter.

This is just a friendly tea! Just makes me smile! It’s packed with flavors, yet still tastes happy. A hint of cherry and almond, with a hint of something sweet – maybe honeyed almond? It’s aptly named and appetizingly delish!

I’ve been drinking this iced lately, but threw it in my work bag today and enjoyed a hot cuppa. This is a fave – I love gunpowder green tea, and the mint is the perfect compliment. It’s also fabulous iced. I usually add a little extra mint (spearmint) for a sweeter taste when doing the iced tea thing.

Backlog – had a cuppa to clear the palate after my Mango and Friends disaster date. Much better – and it gave me great dreams. ;) I’ve upped the rating – this one just gets better and better.

Or I may be still suffering from the mango trauma.

I may need to drop the rating – and my love! – for this one. It’s been over a month since I’ve had this tea, and I opted for iced tea. WHOA. Mistake. I don’t know what happened, if the tea got old or maybe it’s not good iced (which is odd since it’s heavenly hot). The color was off – it looked like #1, if you know what I mean. (sorry) It smelled odd, and the taste was way off. It didn’t actually taste old or stale or anything, just not as fruity and flavorful. Now it was the bottom of the tin, and it was double the dosage for iced, but even so. I expected much more from this one. I still have a little bit left, but I’m not ready to go there yet.

Before I change the rating I want to try it again. Maybe it was a fluke. Maybe my husband put a spell on my tea so I stop consuming so much of it – and therefore, of course, needing to buy more. ;) I don’t know what happened but it was not good.

Has this ever happened to anyone else – not with this particular tea or flavor but just in general?

I love when a black tea base doesn’t shine through flavor (like AHEM Adagio). This is a perfect example of a flavored black tea done right! Each sip is warm and comforting – coconut and almond happiness. I normally have to be careful with almonds (allergic), but I’m OK with this version, perhaps because they are sliced? Who knows. Who cares. I’m enjoying this tea, bottom line!
The almond flavoring is a nice touch too. :)

I’ve had this iced at home several times; can’t believe I haven’t logged it yet! This is one of the rare teas that tastes wonderful iced or hot. Very fruity, without that annoying hibiscus tart-ness that makes many of us go BLECH. The dry leaves and the brewed liquor smell and taste the same too – also rare. Love, love, love this one – it’s a cupboard essential. I actually have two tins, one at home and one for work. :)

Tea of my afternoon. I’m totally juiced up thanks to consuming lots of caffeine to get through the day. This tea is calming me for the afternoon and evening.

Caffeine consumed – 3 cups of my new holiday blend which I will log soon (it’s my 12 Days of Christmas tea), and a Coke Zero.

I may have problems.

Started off my workday with this holiday tea. I think it’s actually available year-round, but the name suggests that it’s a Christmas blend. Oh well. It’s delicious regardless!

I don’t taste raisins, or that much apple, but the orange, cinnamon and almond flavors shine through. The cinnamon isn’t very pronounced, but there’s a hint of it. I wish there was more cinnamon flavor, as that’s one of my favorite tastes!

Overall this is a solid, decent tea. Nothing too fancy, nothing too fussy, but nothing too unique either. It’s good, but I’m not sure if I would purchase it regularly.

Backlog:
I drank this virtually every day when I was fighting The Cold From Hell. I love anise, and this is ANISE to the max. So if you don’t like anise? Avoid. If you do like it, this is a great varieTEA (haha) for you. Not much to say about it – it’s light chamomile and in-your-face Anise. Good!

Backlog:
I can’t believe I haven’t posted this yet! My tin is almost empty! I love drinking this in the evenings. I don’t recommend drinking this at work, unless you can get paid to sleep. Because that’s what this elixir will do to you – put you into the land of ZZZs.

I love the blend of honey and chocolate. I swear I can taste molasses too. I add a little honey sometimes, to enhance the flavor (or that’s what I tell myself), but it’s not required. This is so delish. I steep it for the length of the cuppa, not a moment less. The cuppa doesn’t last too long, though!

Had to get that Indian Summer taste away from my senses. This one was perfect! Love the honeyed almond, the cherry and playfulness of this one.

I’m surprised I’m the first to log this, but it’s possible it’s in here under another name. I don’t think this is exclusive to Voila! and I get the impression that they don’t craft their own teas…maybe they do! I can’t get a response from them no matter what I do…

Anyway, this is a great harmony of gunpowder green (a favorite of mine) and crisp peppermint. It truly is a refreshing treat!

I don’t ever want to run out of this tea. I love how flavorful but light it is. Bliss. See other notes, this is a cupboard staple.

Reposting from earlier – wrong company! Oops!

Thanks KEEN

It’s been a while since I’ve had a nice honeybush! This is pretty good. It’s mostly that honeybush flavor but also has a very little bit of citrus flavor mixed in, too!

It’s a nice relaxing cuppa. A good comfort tisane!

Pretty Good!

Thanks to Sare (not By Bo lol) for this sample! MMMM it’s so good. I can taste hints of cherry and cream or almond. It’s very sweet and you can still taste a little green tea. This is very delicious! Thanks again Sare!!

So im still fighting this Ongoing cold i cant get rid of So To have a good nights sleep i want to combined this tea with Niquill Hoping to pass out during a scary movie!!!

I am just unable to escape migraines this week. I’ve accepted it, begrudgingly. So now I am enjoying lighter green teas that aren’t too harsh on my stomach. This is a perfect fit for me today. The light blend of green tea and mate is playful and delicious. I really enjoy the smell and taste – like grape, passion fruit, cherry, honeyed almond and blissful innocence. It’s one of those rare teas that smells and tastes virtually the same!

A quick note: I accidentally steeped this for longer than I usually would steep a green tea, but it’s a tough tea – no harm done. Still tasted smooth and delish!