67 Tasting Notes

95
drank Mate Lemon Blast by Teavana
67 tasting notes

Well since Ocean of Tea has pretty much closed up shop, I was on the search for another lemon maté blend to get me going in the morning. As soon as I opened the bag, the fresh grassy smell of green yerba mate hit my nose, and I was in love. The smell is amazing. It’s like fresh cut grass mixed with morning dew. Sweet and vegetal, with a faint brightness from the lemongrass. I brewed up a cup, and I definitely got more mate flavor than lemon. Ocean of Tea’s Lemon Maté Delight had pieces of lemon zest in it, so the smell and flavour was akin to a lemon Life-Saver. This was a different riff on that, and pleasantly delightful. I’m looking forward to drinking more of this!

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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41
drank Cherry Blossom by Harney & Sons
67 tasting notes

I was really expecting to get some light cherry flavours with this tea, but again, H&S didn’t deliver. I got more of the green tea flavor with little to no cherry blossom taste. I got a few floral notes on some sips, but I didn’t know if it was that or the green tea (which was very buttery). Nothing terribly special. I might try another brew at a later date.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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41

My Harney & Sons tea order came in the mail today, and it seemed like a little bit of nostalgia. When I first started exploring loose leaf teas about ten years ago, the first teas I bought were Harney & Sons teas. So I kinda felt like I was coming full-circle having been on this tea journey for a decade.

Anywho…back to the tea.

The tin describes the mix as having extra large leaves of Ti Quan Yin oolong. As soon as you open the tin, you immediately get a strong whiff of pomegranate. Strong and penetrating. I figured that would carry over on the brew, but no…just the aroma. When brewed up, it tasted just like Ti Quan Yin (mellow, buttery mouthfeel, a touch of sweetness at the end). I got very little pomegranate flavor. But then I added more water to the brewed tea (H&S recommends steeping in 2 cups of boiling water, then adding 6 cups of cold water), and the pomegranate flavor started to emerge more. I guess the water drowns out the Ti Quan Yin, so it might be difficult to get a good balance of oolong and pomegranate in a particular brew.

The rest of it is in a pitcher in my fridge, but I’m not too wild about it. A pity.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 8 min or more

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drank Strawberry Matcha by 52teas
67 tasting notes

Based off of a comment here, I decided to try this in some Chick-fil-A lemonade. It was a hot day, so I hit it up before coming home from some meetings. I added a small scoop of strawberry matcha to a medium lemonade. A quick stir turned the whole lemonade a sickly shade of pea green (not unlike matcha itself); the deep matcha taste played well off the lemonade, although I wish there was more of a strawberry flavour. Ah well.

Janefan

hmm, I just used plain Teavana matcha (I don’t have any flavored matcha yet). I bet the plain would be good in strawberry lemonade though – it’s great in strawberry yogurt smoothies! I’m not sure what a good fast food/grocery store strawberry lemonade is though. I just don’t see myself pureeing strawberries and juicing lemons to make my own anytime soon.

Cofftea

Yeah if it’s anything like the orange, it really does not stand up to the addition of flavors, that’s why I do not personally suggest adding this one to yogurt… unless possibly plain- not even vanilla… it’s quite a waste. Although I do want to try some on chocolate frozen yogurt.

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA

Since it went favorably for you, I definitely want to try this, providing I have any Strawberry Matcha left next time I get to Chick-Fil-A.

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67
drank White Licorice by Golden Moon Tea
67 tasting notes

Another Golden Moon sampler (I’m trying to work my way through the pack). Great licorice aroma from the dry leaves, but it is a little strong. The licorice mellows out in the first brew and actually balances out quite nicely with the white tea. I’m a sucker for licorice, but I don’t know if this could be an everyday brew for me. Too much of a good thing, you know? But I’m pleased with this. Very nice.

Preparation
170 °F / 76 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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6
drank Honey Pear by Golden Moon Tea
67 tasting notes

Blech.

Oh, I’m sorry, you probably want something more thorough. Alrighty.

I was excited to try this tea out for some reason, even though I don’t really like black teas or the taste of honey. I do dig pears though, so I figured this tea would be good. When I opened up the package, the thick, pungent, musty smell of honey hit me like a ton of bricks. Almost medicinal.

Then I brewed it up and took a sip. Totally medicinal. The black tea base is too harsh, the honey is too thick, and…well, where’s the pear? Not there.

Dumped the rest. On to the next.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 30 sec

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100
drank Samurai Chai Maté by Teavana
67 tasting notes

A chai maté. Alone, that sounds like either a delicious mixture or a huge disaster. I’ve gotta put this in the delicious mixture category, because I think this will be my new morning maté. Upon opening the package, I got a really strong, spicy cinnamon smell (almost like Big Red chewing gum). After brewing up a cup and taking a sip, I was sold. Aside from the strong, sweet, and spicy taste, I got hints of almond, coriander, orange, and pineapple. And it all worked together beautifully. If you like a spicy, complex tea that’s also a caffeine pick-me-up, go for this one. It’s yummy.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 6 min, 0 sec

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100
drank Scarlet by Rishi Tea
67 tasting notes

It was yet another gorgeously sunny and warm day in Atlanta, and I was going back through my tealog here to see what to try iced, and this was jumped out at me. I had just enough left in the pouch for an iced tea steep, so…here we are.

Wow. Just wow. Deep and fruity, fresh and full of flavor. And it seems like it would be an awesome base for any other tea concoctions, smoothies, sparklers, or cocktails. I’m not really doing it justice with this tasting note; get a sample pack and experience it for yourself.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more

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91

So a few samples in my Golden Moon Tea sampler have now made me want more. I’m already in love with the Sugar Caramel Oolong and the White Persian Melon, so I had to see what was up with this Coconut Pouchong. Now keep in mind that I love coconut. I have a bag of shredded coconut in my fridge just to munch through from time to time. Almond Joy is my favorite candy bar. So a coconut flavored tea (a pouchong, no less!) sounded delicious.

And it delivered.

The pouchong flavor is light and doesn’t interfere with the coconut essence, which radiates from this cup in a beautiful toasty bouquet. Unsweetened, I couldn’t really taste the coconut, but sweetened, it flows delicately and doesn’t compete with the pouchong. It was just what I needed after a long day. Plus, now that this puts my order over $39.99, I can get a free teapot! SCORE!

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 30 sec
Karsh

Turns out the free teapot offer ended on 4/1! Boo! But I’m still getting some great tea. :-)

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97
drank Lemon Mate Delight by Ocean of Tea
67 tasting notes

I found an old tin of this I had stashed away at the back of my tea cabinet (for tea emergencies like today). What an amazing cup. Lemony, licorice-y, full-bodied, yet light enough to be a breakfast tea, and robust enough to be enjoyed iced as well. I need to find some more of this since Ocean of Tea has went AWOL.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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OG blogger (c. 1997), web designer, tech entrepreneur, early adopter, tea aficionado, live event and TV show master tweeter.

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