Zen Tea

Hi hi hi Steepsterites! Back from the mountains. It was fab. Apart from the cave and basin STILL being closed off since last year, and Moraine Lake closed off too, it was a great getaway. I even got a tan. Go figure! And some highlights, so you’d think I was in Malibu.

It’s so hot here now, tornado weather hot. Actually, the power just went back on. So all this heat made me crave iced tea, so into the fridge this went.

I figured this was going to make a better cold brew, and while it does, honestly, it’s incredibly dull. The cherry is very faint, and there is something about the base that’s dry. “Dry” is that word I seem to use to describe most of the Zen Tea bases so far. Odd.

But the price is right. There are better cherry greens out there, though.

I lied. I snuck in one last sipdown!

No idea how this compares to other chocolate mint rooibos’, but I will need to replace it. Chocolate mint tea before bedtime is kind of essential you guys!

Sipdown of this one! I’m trying to convince my bf that this will be tastier than the flavored spearmint water he buys, especially because he likes caffeinated drinks. Will update later with the results.

Seems like an odd combo – hazelnut and oolong? It’s pretty good though. I enjoyed it, even if it was slightly artificial tasting. Drinking the rest of my 1oz pack won’t be any trouble, but I probably won’t rush out to get more.

While I can’t say I loved this tea, I won’t say it was bad. It has a heavy taste and no one flavor or fruit shines through. Maybe the problem is that there are too many good things in the blend and they have to fight for attention.
Nonetheless, I am grateful I got this sampler from Zen Tea and for such a good price. (I can’t recall exactly, but it was under $2, I think.) A sampler from Zen gives you enough to taste a few cups and then decide and that’s what it’s all about – finding what you like. (For future reference to myself, don’t be in a hurry to re-order.)

TTB-A sample. There was just about enough for one more cup left of this one, so I snagged it. Actually a tiny bit more than I would normally use in my cup (but only barely) so I decreased the steep time to account for it.

I love black pearls so of course I was intrigued. These aren’t so much pearls as little wadded up leaves; the look of it almost reminds me of the shape of the Laoshan Black first picking. Steeped, it does have a bit of a chocolatey aroma but its tempered by some high fruity notes and a hint of… coffee? Well that’s weird, but it did pop into my head while sniffing it.

The flavor is pretty classic black pearl, which is to say pretty tasty. I’m not getting any sweetness in the first steep, and the chocolate is definitely muted. Definitely on the earthy side of Yunnan blacks, with a bit of woodiness as well. It was smooth and malty when I first started drinking this cup, but it’s getting a touch harsh as it cools, and as such my rating keeps dropping as I sit here writing this tasting note. I mean, it’s still tasty, but my desire to have another cup of it is waning. Maybe it’s because I just had my One True Pearls (Teavivre) the other day, so they are fresh in my mind.

Second steep, at four minutes, wasn’t really worth it for me. Thin and lacking in the flavors I like (cocoa, grains, malt), with more of the flavors I don’t (a weird darjeeling-like fruitiness). Ah well, so it goes. This tea wasn’t sealed in an airtight pouch, so there is always the chance of flavor loss over time, but the first steep was quite strong so I kind of doubt that. Glad I got the chance to try these but they won’t be replacing my faves any time soon.

From the Traveling Tea Box! There a few rooibos blends in here and since I am way low on herbal teas for the evenings, I’ll be trying them out. Also, it is awesome to be able to sample all of these teas without having to add them to my cupboard.

So usually I don’t do mint teas, and usually I don’t do rooibos, but together they seem to be working out for me. The mint is smooth and not too “brisk”, and it seems to totally mask the weird, fruity, medicinal quality that rooibos often has. It does taste like Junior Mints or maybe a York peppermint patty. Definitely one of the better rooibos blends I’ve tried!

Three steeps of this today – it’s nice to have something easy you can just add hot water to with no stopping to clean out the infuser. ;)

Additional notes: I’m sipping this one right now and I LOVE it. It will definitely be my replacement Earl Grey Cream when my others run out (since my favorites have disappeared by now). This one is just delicious. Next cup will be a sipdown of my sample.

I bought this more for iced tea but seeing that I’m going to Banff tomorrow (exciting!), I’m not going to start busting out my mom’s iced tea jug only to have to clean it again.

Anyway, the dry leaf smells very subtle. There is a touch of cherry. Middle of the road scent, neither natural nor artificial if that makes any sense.

Hot, it’s what I had expected. The cherry is on the duller side. It’s there, and a little on the sweet side. It’s not tart at all. The rose is hardly palpable here.

It’s pleasant but there’s nothing more to really say about it, except that I’m sure it’ll make a better cold brew.

I ended up having an interview today, so I brought this one with me in a travel mug.

It does well! The flavour is muted, and I left most of the honey in the original mug by accident, but I thoroughly enjoyed this tea. Oh, the water was quite cooled because I got distracted by emails from my references. Ha! The tea still worked!

As far as the interview, I think it went well. It was with a temp agency (most of my interviews will be!), and I was sent this hilarious personality test. So awesome. Told me exactly what I know about myself and my working preferences. A work culture that emphasizes constructive criticism and work-life balance? Oh, that’s for me. A job that includes opportunities to sort, as well as opportunities to create or innovate? Please and thank you. I love sorting things. I also love analyzing things and problem solving. Yep yep!

The Margaret’s Hope my mom gave me is so much nicer. I don’t know why, as I don’t have the packaging anymore – different harvest? Fresher?

Or maybe I’ve just been drinking too many Assam teas. I’m not sure. But I don’t care for this one.

I actually really like this one! It smells strongly of orange when you first open the package. I ended up putting 2 tsp in my tea pot this morning, then forgetting about it and making something else. So when I got home about an hour ago, I boiled some water and made this.

The water cooled for 3-4 minutes, as I was using the timer for some instant noodles I’m testing for hiking (They were OK. The canned chicken was surprisingly decent [PC Blue Menu chunks], so I’ll be getting more of those and drying them.). Steeped for almost 3 minutes, poured into a mug with a little honey.

Yum! Because it’s not bergamot, I wouldn’t really call this an Earl Grey. It is a really nice orange tea, though. ahem It has a much nicer orange smell and flavour than the Murchie’s Mandarin Spice.

I’m really enjoying this with just the honey, and can hardly wait for the weather to warm up again so I can try it iced. I’ll probably get more of this one for the summer (free shipping in BC is just so incredible!), because I can see myself going through a lot of it.

I usually don’t enjoy “dessert” teas, but the second steep of my first brew of this was wonderful and I LOVED it. It really tasted creamy and caramelly (if that’s a word). My taste buds were so happy and craving more of that sweet stuff. Subsequent steeps have not been as successful. Directions say 5 minutes, but perhaps longer is the answer? I’m not sure. (It’s 70/30 that I would order more of this.)

I’m a bit stuffy this morning (yay for being allergic to the cat that sleeps on my pillow), but this smells a lot like the Black Manas from Teajo. Or at least the steeped leaves do. And they’re so pretty when they open up. Wow.

Sipping on this, I think it’s too hot still. I’m not getting a lot from it. As a bonus that means it’s not at all bitter or astringent! Yay!

Now, just as a note, I’ve really disliked every Yunnan black tea I’ve had so far. This one, I actually like! I’m so shocked! I made this up feeling all skeptical and hesitant, but I like it.

The first steep is pretty delicate, but I kinda get the cocoa and honey notes other Steepsters (Steepsterites? Hmm.) have mentioned. It’s not that earthy, but it is definitely sweet and almost thick feeling.

As it cools I’m getting some of that smoky dirt flavour on the roof of my mouth. Maybe that’s what “earthy” means for tea? It’s not detracting from the flavour, unlike some other teas I’ve tried.

No notes yet.

Still a pretty good Assam. Not as good as the Damn Fine Tea from A&D, but good. :) I won’t have any difficulty drinking this one down.

It’s so weird, most of the teas in my cupboard right now aren’t actually black teas! This must be fixed! Maybe with another sample order from Zen Tea? IDK.

Anyways, I rummaged around and decided to have this one this morning. Yum. Yummy yum yum. I will be ordering some more of this one, although probably not a tin. I do like to have variety, and with the selection of flavoured teas I have I’m afraid I wouldn’t drink this one fast enough.

Yessssssss. Did you know I like licorice? If you like licorice, you might like this tea. Oh, and I guess there’s cinnamon and fennel and orange in here too but mostly it’s just sweet sweet licorice.

I feel relaxed after drinking this, but I also feel like I should go and brush my teeth again too. Is it magic-stress relief tea? I don’t know, but at least I have a better idea of what kind of herbals I enjoy!

Thanks ozli for getting me into this tea. It’s pretty great, and it resteeps well too! I still have an unopened 1 oz bag of this to sip through!

So I received this as a free sample from Zen Tea Life, and I was pleased to try a new rooibos and also to compare it to DavidsTea’s cream caramel rooibos. Dry, it smelled nice and caramelly, a good start. I was wary of brewing it so long, but the package said 5+ minutes, so I did 7. The steeped smell is still caramel, but I used the wrong steeper haha and there are bits floating all in my tea, didn’t use the fine enough strainer. Ah well, they’ve settled at the bottom to not bother me :)

Wow, this is caramel. This is super sweet, I actually am surprised it’s so darn sweet! This flavor goes very good with the rooibos, the caramel is definitely the strongest, but the rooibos is an excellent base. When compared to Davids, I think this one is doing the caramel much better, it’s stronger and sweeter!

Overall, this is quite nice! Definitely sweet, definitely desserty! A nice before bed tea, especially when I’m craving sugar. Haha, I currently am having Tostitos though, which is kind of offsetting the sweetness, oops my bad! Anyways, this is a very tasty rooibos, and I might have to order a bit of this in the future!

So I had fun the other night and picked out all the licorice pieces that I could positively identify. (I like sorting…?)

The tea is much better now. Even more better with a squeeze of lemon juice and a healthy spoon of honey.

The licorice taste is in the background, and I can deal with it for the rest of the bag.

However… I got some fresh turmeric to dry to make my own version of the tea! :D So excited to play around with that. I might use fennel instead of licorice, because I like the flavour, not the aftertaste.

JennyFur was kind enough to include this as a surprise sample in our last swap.

I haven’t been a fan of rooibos blends so far. I have yet to try plain rooibos, but Im pretty sure I recognize the base after all the blends I’ve had.

This one is pretty good for what it is. My rating reflects my own preference, but not the quality of the tea. It smells more of rooibos than marzipan, but the marzipan really shows up strong in the flavor. It’s one of the more authentic flavored blends I’ve had, no doubt. I like it well enough to brew another cup in the future, but I don’t think I like rooibos quite enough to buy this one.

Had a pot of this lovely oolong. I forgot how creamy and smooth it is. Mmmm :-)