Donna A

Today, I made this double strength and added ice for a delicious iced tea. Love it this way!

This time, I left it to Stacy to pick the samples to send with my order and am so glad she sent this one. I actually have never been that big on caramel, but surprisingly, I’ve found that I usually enjoy it in teas a lot. On the other hand, I really like vanilla, but have been somewhat disappointed with vanilla teas. My first impression of this tea is that it is very well blended, as I’ve come to expect with Butiki teas. The vanilla, caramel, and Assam play off each other nicely. I will definitely order it in the future. (Can’t get the rating thing to work-will try later)

2nd note just to say, this is a fabulous tea. Had it this weekend and I highly recommend it. Butiki has several excellent black teas and this is a favorite.

I can’t believe I never reviewed this Long Jing from the spring 2012 season. They are currently sold out, but I will order more when spring 2013 becomes available. These are my notes from previous tastings. A winner! Delicate, light, fresh, yet plenty of flavor and with no bitterness whatsoever. Overall effect was relaxed and refreshing. When it was cool it was still very good. More expensive than their organic superfine dragonwell long jing. Both were very nice.

Unfortunately, I’m sipping the last of this today. I’m going to miss it. A near perfect cup!

My house is empty tonight, with my husband on a 75 mile backpacking trip with one of our sons in the Carolina foothills. I did my own 2 hour urban hike with the Atlanta Outdoor Club today, and having been gone most of the day, I’m feeling that pull to the tea cabinet. I’ve been neglecting my Darjeeling teas lately, and had forgotten about the Upton Premium Darjeeling Sampler I had purchased. The company offers quite a few sampler sets which consist of 4 tins, each holding 35 gms. They also offer all of their teas in individual samples. Upton describes this as one of the finest from the 2011 first flush season, so my expectations are high. Right off the bat, before even tasting it, I enjoy the nice aroma of this golden amber cup. The delicate sweet liquor has an elegance about it with its layers of flavor and accents of tropical fruit. So very different from an Assam or a China Congou, yet amazingly, still a part of the black tea family. There is so much variety among all the different teas, even though they are all from the same plant. This Darjeeling is quite nice and one that I would recommend trying.

Its been awhile since I’ve had a pu-erh. I like to take some time with them since you can get so many steepings-16 for this one, according to Teavivre. So today, I have the time, and I’m motivated since my husband used my other sample yesterday, not realizing I was saving it for the right time. I start out in a conventional way using a gaiwan. Following the instructions on the website, I rinse 10 gms twice and start out with quick steepings, as follows: 10s, 10s, 10s, 5s, 5s, 5s, 10s,10s,10s,and 10s. I give my husband some of the later ones and he says, “Now that’s some good tea.” We’re in agreement on that. The first cups taste thick and rich, but all the steepings are nice. After ten 3-oz steepings, I do a final? two minute steeping for my husband with 10 oz of water, which he says still has plenty of flavor-so maybe we’re not done yet after all. The liquor is dark, the color of cola, with a pleasant earthy aroma. Sweet, earthy, and smooth are good overall descriptions, and importantly, there is no fishy taste, bitterness or astringency. So, for pu-erh lovers, or if you haven’t had pu-erh and want to give one a try, get a sample of this one. The pu-erh teas I’ve had from Teavivre do fine with either gongfu or Western style brewing.

Another puerh sample that my husband go into when I wasn’t around. He reports that it was very good. Being a 2012, it would be fun to get some more to age awhile. Fortunately, I have one more sample, so will report later.

My husband made this up and found it to be very tasty but unfortunately, I wasn’t around. Fortunately, I have one more sample, so will review it soon.

I have extra time today and have decided to make this Gongfu style which is my preferred method for oolongs. To prepare it, I rinse the leaves first. The liquor is light yellow with a greenish cast. The wet leaves smell very vegetal. The 1st infusion tastes very buttery and has light spinach notes. The second infusion has a more floral fragrance and taste, with light vegetal notes in the background. After 5 infusions, I can sum up my impression with the words buttery, light, smooth, and creamy, with a lingering sweetness-it reminds me of what I appreciate in a good Tieguanyin. Each infusion is a little different, but all of these aspects are there to some degree, and the first four infusions are very flavorful, though not aggressive. The 5th infusion is pushing it, but I think next time, I might use a little more leaf, higher temp, and shorter steeping times as an experiment. If you’re an oolong fan, this is worth trying, especially if you like Tieguanyin.

I’m always excited to try anything I get from Stacy at Butiki. I love a good black and Stacy has good teas, but I anticipated this might be rather ordinary since it is a CTC. I was wrong! If you like something bold and unique, you should give it a try! All I had was a sample, and I followed the instructions to only steep for 1 minute. It has a ton of bold flavor, rich and malty, and I didn’t find it to be bitter. My first impression is very favorable, and I want to order some more if she adds it to her website. I may even score it higher when I try it again. I may have under rated it.

I received this sample with my Butiki order today, and as usual, Stacy doesn’t disappoint with her flavored blends. Sweetened, this makes a delicious dessert tea. The aroma wafting out of the cup is like a juicy orange and the most predominant flavor is orange-it reminds me of the classic Creamsicles from my childhood, but you still know you’re drinking tea. There is a hint of chocolate and the marshmallow is probably in there somewhere, adding to the yumminess, but orange is at the forefront. Some flavored teas leave an unpleasant aftertaste, but not this one. The second steep still packs plenty of flavor too. I give this the thumbs up, especially when sweetened as a dessert tea in the evening.

My Butiki order came today and I went straight for this one because I had sampled it once before and had good memories. It is just fantastic. Leaf hopper teas are all great in my experience. I’m going to try to put a full review in later, but others have described it very well-honey, pastry, waffles. I am already thinking I will have to order it again before Stacy runs out!

I’ve reviewed this previously and am having it again tonight. So delicious. Every time I have it, I like it better and better!

I have not had a single flavored matcha from Red Leaf that I haven’t enjoyed, so I have high expectations with Bavarian Cream, my latest acquisition. I ordered the Classic matcha with robust flavor. One of my favorite ways to start the day is with a chilled matcha latte. I know I need to branch out more, but I just like it this way so much! So today, I’m readying myself for a brisk 2 1/2 hour hike on a windy 40 degree day. I think this will give me a good jumpstart. My favorite flavor thus far has been Caramel, but there are others that run a close second, and all are good. My choice of milk for lattes varies. I’ve used unsweetened soy and almond/coconut depending on what I have in the fridge. I sweeten with some stevia because it makes me feel like I’m having dessert. So I put a few ounces hot water in a large tumbler, then sift 1 teaspoon of matcha into the water. I froth with my trusty Aerolatte for just a few seconds, then add about 12 ounces of milk , and froth another few seconds. A couple of ice cubes and I’m good to go. Yum. This Bavarian Cream flavor is a cup of creamy vanilla deliciousness! If you like the sound of it you can get it at:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/bavarian-cream-matcha.html

Tried this cold steeped for about 16 hrs in the fridge. Yummy! I already knew I love it hot, but since I’ve had good luck in the past with cold-steeping another similar tea, I thought I’d give it a try. 4gm/14 oz water.

Forgot to review this before, so now I’ve had this delicious Chinese Yunnan black several times. This is outstanding! This is a dreary, damp, grey day in Atlanta, and the perfect day to sip tea. (As is every day!) As others have pointed out, the dry leaves are very pretty with their golden and dark curls. In fact,when I first opened the package, just by the appearance, I had an idea I would like it very much. I can both taste and smell floral notes, and yes, it is rich and smooth with just the right amount of maltiness and sweetness. I have experimented with it, and found it to be very forgiving. I’ve brewed 1 tsp./8 oz for 5 minutes, as well as 2 tsp/8 oz for 3 minutes and gotten great results both times. It takes a second steeping well too. Even with a longer steep time, I didn’t get bitterness or astringency. I love good blacks, and this one is high on my list. Glad I’ve got a little left, but it will be time to re-order soon! And I like so many Butiki teas-it will be hard to narrow it down!

This excellent Butiki blend has already been described quite eloquently by others and I agree with the positive reviews. Though black teas are my favorite, I really really enjoy this well balanced flavored green tea, enough to reorder it. I’m not sure I immediately think Eggnog when I taste it, but creamy, buttery, custardy? Yes. The second steep is quite tasty also. I especially enjoy Creamy Eggnog in the evening with a little Stevia. Very relaxing.

I ordered a sample of this and several other H&S teas-I appreciate that they offer sample sizes. As expected, this Single Estate Assam has dark leaves and many golden tips. To me, it is mild, but not without flavor. Sweet, smooth, and easy to drink with the characteristic malty notes of a good Assam. The H&S description says it is strong-I wouldn’t describe it that way. I used 2 gm at boiling, for 4 1/2 minutes and got a second steeping. Worth trying if you like Assams. The reason I didn’t rate it yet is not because I didn’t like it, but I’d like to try it a few more times first. It seems the more teas I try, the harder it is to put a number on it!

I re-visited this a few days ago. I decided to do something I hadn’t done previously with this chai. I simmered it on the stove in milk for 10 minutes, then strained it. I liked it a lot this way, enough to re-order it. The cranberry added something a little extra, but it was still like a chai. The last time I made this tea, I steeped it, then added milk, but thought the flavor was too muted by the milk. Surprisingly, Cranberry Chai also makes a good iced tea, without milk. At the moment, Teajo is having a sale, so its a good time to try it. I like their Classic Chai as well.

See my previous note and Ashmanra’s comment. At her suggestion, I brewed this Western style using 2 generous tsp in 8 oz boiling water, just under 4 minutes. This is how I’ll make it in the future, as there is a lot more flavor and no bitterness or astringency. This is still at the milder end of the black tea flavor spectrum, with some subtle maltiness and sweet potato notes. A very enjoyable cup of tea, nice sweet flavor, and I even got a second steep. I’m glad Teavivre was generous with the samples so that I could experiment a little! (Thanks Ashmanra :)

I agree with some other reviewers, that this is very delicate and light considering its a black tea. I would say its more subtle, and not at all aggressive-a relaxing tea that would be nice in the afternoon. I was pretty generous with the leaf, using 3.5 gms/8 oz water, brewing for 2 minutes, with a 2nd steep for 3 minutes. I have others that I prefer from Teavivre, such as Yun Nan Dian Hong Gold Tip or Bailin Gongfu, I think because I prefer something a little stronger, but this is still very nice, especially for those who prefer a milder tea.

I found my favorite way to have this tea. I cold-brewed 4 gms in 12 oz water for about 10 hrs, and all I can say is yum, just yum! I really picked up on the chocolate notes. I’m sorry that I can’t describe it more effectively. Previously, when I had it hot, I preferred it Gong fu style over Western, but I’ve found the flavor to be much richer and more satisfying cold-brewed. Plus, there is no astringency or bitterness. As a result, I’ll bump up the rating. I already have another one steeping for tomorrow!

Thanks to a sample from Stacy at Butiki, I am getting to try one of the top Chinese green teas, and it delivers! Stacy’s description on the website is on target. When steeped, it produces a clear, very pale yellow liquor with a sweetly floral scent. The flavor is delicate and has a mildly nutty and maybe slightly buttery element. This is a clean and refreshing tea without any astringency. I really like it. Now, I’m going to have some of that Butiki Creamy Eggnog tea, which uses this as a base.