White August

Archive-Divin’ and sipdown! Subtle fruits, jasmine, and ginger under the semi-grassy green tea! Nice!

I read about Russian Caravan online—it was described as a blend of Lapsang Souchong and Assam—and couldn’t wait to try it, since I have always loved Lapsang… and since Russian Caravan is such a beautifully evocative name (always a plus). Also read a great review of White August’s version in a Steepster discussion. And it’s true—this tea is quite, quite awesome. It’s also true that it smells very smoky, so at first I wasn’t sure it was actually a blend—it seemed like pure Lapsang. But it’s mellower than I expected—still lovely and smoky (some reviews of other Russian Caravans say they’re not smoky at all, and I definitely wanted quite a bit of smokiness), perfect for late morning/early afternoon. I’ve been drinking this every day since my order arrived.

Another SIPDOWN…delightful…see other notes!

SIPDOWN
A really great flavored green! :)
See previous notes :)

Lemon, Cream, Berries, and black tea! I LOVE this! Yet another SIPDOWN! As much as it needs to be done…a major SIPDOWN…that is…it’s pretty depressing – saying goodbye to so many friends…I mean TEAs that I LOVE. See previous notes. If you ever get to sip on some tea from White August Tea Company makes sure this is one of them!

SIPDOWN #2 for today…altho…not all of my notes will be sipdowns like yesterday.

I have lots of backlogging to do today tho! Bare with me!

I do like this one, too, and have reviewed it before…check out my previous notes :)

Winding down with this tea. This is really delicious, the coconut is the dominating flavor, but I like how the blueberry and pomegranate mingle with the coconut. The result is a sweet, creamy, berry delicious rooibos blend that is light on the rooibos flavor (a plus).

I like this one a lot. The Pouchong is light and velvet-y and pairs very well with the sweet, creamy vanilla flavor. The lemon myrtle is a soft flavor, it doesn’t interfere with the pouchong and vanilla. A very smooth, sweet, delicious tea.

LOVE! This is a fabulous Golden Monkey. I taste so many layers of flavor. In one sip, I can taste notes of caramel and honey, raisin, spice, malt, wood, earth as well as the faintest hint of smoke. It is very smooth it its approach. No bitterness and very little astringency. The finish is sweet and vaguely smoky. So very beautiful. I love this one.

Yum! Chocolate!

I have been spending this early part of the day waiting (and waiting and waiting… and still I wait) for the FedEx truck to arrive. I don’t think I’ve ever been so anxious for a delivery before!

Anyways, while I wait, I decided to have some Yerba Mate. Not that I needed to be caffeinated on top of this anxiety. I didn’t really think that part through very well. haha!
Fortunately, this also has chocolate which has a way of soothing me even when I’m bouncing off the walls.

This is really good. I do wish that there was more chocolate because more chocolate = better. But as it is, it is very pleasantly chocolate-y, and I’ve always felt that Yerba Mate and chocolate are a perfect pairing. The earthiness of the yerba mate works so well with the flavor of the chocolate. This tastes rich, smooth and delicious! YUM!

VERY sorry to see this one go! I had 3 lovely infusions out of my last little bit the other day and enjoyed every sip!

Lemon, vanilla, floral goodness…sipdown! YUM!

This smells amazing. After brewing it my kitchen smelled like plum cobbler and berry compote!

The flavor is delightful. A strong fruit essence – a mixture of plums and berries. The black tea is also strong. A very delicious blend: sweet, with just the right touch of tartness to it.

I really, REALLY, really like this one! When I first started sipping it, I felt kind of unsure about it, maybe I liked it, but not a lot. But now that its almost gone I am going to miss it! It’s really good, and it has a flavor that grows on ya!

First tea of the day. I really enjoy the hint of smoke in this one. It is just barely there, but no mistaking it. The color is vibrant green and gold. The flavor has a depth to it. Levels perhaps. At the beginning of the sip there is a silky richness of tea flavor, green and vegetal yet oxidized. Middle sip, this one really fits the Oolong description of lightly fermented, between a green and black. Some Oolongs are something else on their own, but this one seems to be right there in between with notes of both. The end of the sip gives up that hint of smokiness that I love. However, it is a small trace, so if you are not a Lapsang lover, give this one a chance. I purchased this with some other teas from White August during their Spring 25% off and free shipping sale for Steepsterites. I am SO GLAD I did. All their teas have been to my liking and when they have a sale, they really have a good one.

YUM!

My first impression of this tea was “chocolate covered cherries” but as I continue to sip, I am finding more interesting flavors than I would normally find from a box of chocolate covered cherries. I especially like the addition of the Schizandra berries which add just a hint of tartness to keep the tea from tasting too sweet.

I really like this one!

This tea makes for a lovely after-dinner tea. The smooth richness is so soothing.

The aroma of the liquor is smoky, but the flavor I would describe more as roasted rather than smoky, although there is an element of smoke to the flavor as well. It has a deep woodsy tone and hints of peach-y flavor in the background.

A really lovely Tie Guan Yin.

SIPDOWN! I will miss you! See previous notes…

Thank you to Paul M Tracy for this sample!

The green tea base is more assertive than many of the flavored greens I have tried. In some, I almost can’t detect the tea base flavor! Not so here. This one is clearly a Japanese green and has a grassy taste rather than a vegetal or buttery taste to me. I picked up a slight astringency. There is a good coconut flavor, not as strong as in Harney’s Royal Wedding or in Bangkok, but still the forefront flavor in this tea, besides the base. I don’t have the most sensitive palate in the world, I confess it, but I didn’t pick up the ginger. It may be a very light touch of it, or maybe I don’t know exactly what I am looking for since I think the only ginger I have had in tea has been freshly grated in. Love the look of those bright flowers in the mix!

My guest really liked this one, and thought the coconut was just right! Thank you, Paul!

This is a darn fine Darjeeling, I can taste the berry notes very clearly and it has a silky texture that makes you want to return to the cup. At the end of the sip, that welcome black tea flavor pulls it all together.
I like everything I have tried from White August. Their service is very good, prices fair, and the teas excellent.

This is smoky and minty – bliss, really. It’s cooling to the palate and senses, but with a hint of smoky tea, enough to keep you interested. I drink this all the time, especially in the afternoons. It’s stress-relieving as well! :) A pantry must-have!

So yesterday was my birthday, and let’s just say that the majority of liquids consumed were not tea (though I was drinking wine from a tea cup for a good while yesterday). Cue this morning with utter dehydration, headaches, and exhaustion. My first thought? “YAY! Now I have a valid reason to try that hangover tea from brandy3392 (thank you, by the way)”

It is very tasty, which I need in a herbal “medicinal” tea. If it tastes like medicine, I won’t drink it, no matter the benefits. But this is very good, and it is helping with some of the hangover.

That all being said, I don’t think I’ll be replacing my Detox from DavidsTea with it any time soon, but I’m glad I made a pot of it this morning and that I’ve gotten to try it. Thanks again, brandy3392!

I like this one a lot! I’ve tried a couple blueberry jasmine teas in the past. Either my palate is acquiring a taste for the combination, or I just happened to get lucky with my steeping parameters, or perhaps this is just a superior blend to the others, but, this one tastes much better than the first one that I tried.

The blueberry tastes genuine, the jasmine is soft but develops in flavor as I continue to sip, and the green tea tastes fresh and vegetative. This is delicious.

I love the sprinkles :)! They are so much fun, it just brought a smile to my face! When I smelled this tea it had a nice vanilla smell mixed with black tea and a hint of peppermint to me, yummmy!

After the steep most of the sprinkles are melted and the smell is more black tea with a hint of vanilla. The liquor is such a pretty dark amber color. First sip, too hot too hot.. how I wish I had patience!

Let it cool just a bit and yum this is a good tea, I can taste the black tea first it is pretty mellow and smooth, next your get the sweet vanilla and it lingers on the tongue very subtle. This is a great dessert tea! After it cooled a bit more it starts to taste more like a sweetened sun tea from the south. Really good and just nice and refreshing!