Devilish

Things have got better and better since Teekanne’s Fruit Selection. The smell of the dry leaves put me off because it had the intense aroma of liquorice. I was prepared for another total disaster, but a small miracle happened after steeping the tea for 5 minutes! The tea was no longer “smelly” and the liquorice had turned into subtle sweetness. It actually tasted quite nice! Peppermint gave the tea an additional touch of freshness and coolness. And oh, it’s fortunate that there was only a small amount of anise and fennel – herbs that I usually avoid. It’s a truly soothing tea… I think I am going to bed now after a cup :)

Continuing on my German tea tasting adventure! This tea has a mild minty aroma. As for the taste, peppermint certainly stands out among all other herbs but even so its taste is rather weak… not a very flavourful tea I must say. The addition of liquorice root is a slightly special touch to this otherwise completely unremarkable tea; it produces a pleasantly sweet aftertaste which saves the tea from being a total disappointment.

A fairly complicated tea to me… the taste is unfamiliar and rather hard to describe. Perhaps it’s because I have never tried anything like lemongrass + tea before. I can’t recognize any fruity flavour in this honey-brown liquor, instead the notes I can get are cardamom and ginger, with a faint hint of cinnamon. The spiciness is, fortunately, only mellow despite the presence of many spices. While I don’t find this tea particularly uplifting, it will do a good job in warming you up in a cold morning. Perhaps that’s why the tea company describes this tea as “like sipping sunshine”?

A chamomile tea sweetened with licorice. Tastes pretty generic.

Bought this tea in a market in Augsburg, Germany. As I couldn’t read German, I had no idea about its ingredients when I bought it, but I had very high hope for it cos it had a really lovely, fresh apple aroma when dry. Sadly, it has turned out to be a let-down. The tea is very light and has a very faint yellowish green colour. I can barely get any apple flavour out of it; the major note is lemongrass instead. Not for anyone who wants a fruity or sweet cuppa, but worth a try if you like exotic or herbal tea because it tastes like summer in Thailand.

Finally, a tea from Teekanne that tastes normal…!!! No weird artificial flavour, no horrible hibiscus, just plain black tea. Sometimes, simplicity is the best.

I can’t imagine a worse tea. I totally disagree with the description above because there is neither strawberry-raspberry flavour nor anything fine about this tea!!! It’s very acidic and kinda tastes like rotten tomatoes. Yuck!

This tea has a deep red colour attributable to hibiscus and rosehips rather than “blood orange” (cos the ingredients do not contain any real blood orange). As for the taste, I’d say it’s like those fizzy vitamin C tablets… or over-the-counter cold remedy drink. It’s not so bad that I would immediately pour it down the drain, but I don’t think I want another cup.

A simple flavoured tea that you can get easily. I usually drink it when I feel full after a meal but still craves for something sweet. I like the fact that it does not get bitter or sour after the second steep.

Eilles is one of the greatest finds in my recent trip to Germany. It’s said to be one of the most traditional brands for fine gourmet products in Germany, and even King Ludwig II was one of their first aficionados! And after trying this tea I start to understand why even the king was a fan. Right from the very beginning it makes you fall in love with its candy-sweet aroma. Then – wow – you immediately notice that each sip is bursting with fruity (though it’s kinda like strawberry rather than dragon fruit/kiwi/raspberry) flavour! Enjoy the clean and refreshing taste of the tea leaves at the same time. Mmmm just so yummy!!

This tea is not bad. The mint and bergamot flavours are well-balanced, but I was expecting something more exciting and brilliant as this is after all, from Mariage Freres! If you just want a good after-dinner mint tea, go for it; but if you want to have the real Mariage Freres experience, Marco Polo or Opera will be the choice.

Sorry, but I don’t think I can detect any yogurt in this tea… without this sweetener, all I can taste is the tartness of hibiscus! Which means it’s a failure given that it’s marketed as a strawberry tea… :( Not recommended.

My 2nd note on this tea. I think I like it more and more… its apple flavour always reminds me the of the happy moments in my childhood and cheers me up when I feel depressed by work. It’s my happy tea!

As I have mentioned earlier, I bought 4 mini packs of spicy tea from Løv Organic by mistake. :( What should I do with them??? I guess I have no choice but to consume them one by one… this Liquorice Earl Grey seems to be the most likeable among the packs. It’s spicy but at least it doesn’t dry my mouth… and the familiar taste of Earl Grey does give me some comfort as my gustatory sensation is being attacked by various kind of spices.

This tea is only available for sale in Taiwan. It is a very impressive and unforgettable tea. Heavily perfumed by flavouring and real flowers, it smells EXACTLY like a (lily?) perfume! The fragrance is very romantic, but perhaps just a bit too strong… and artificial. While not everyone may like the aroma, the tea itself is wonderful and not to be missed! It’s light, refreshing and has a clean finish, with a slightly sweet aftertaste. Just the tea you want on a hot summer night. Recommended!

I know I know, the aroma of apple is purely artificial…. but still, I find it irresistible! :P I am glad that unlike some apple teas, there’s no odd colouring in it. A nice, relaxing tea to round off a meal.

Finally get to try this renowned tea from MF!! I love it though Marco Polo is still my favorite. It smells of candy and more precisely, bubble gum! But I don’t mean it tastes artificial, rather you can tell the berry and vanilla flavours are all natural… That is the amazing part! Goes really well with strawberry macaroons I think!

Karel Capek is a Japanese tea shop famous for flavoured tea in cute tins. There are real apple pieces in the tea but it’s heavily scented with artificial apple flavouring! When I say artificial I am serious – when I opened the bag of tea, I was greeted by a smell that reminded me of my fruit-flavour toothpaste in childhood! :0 Fortunately, the taste is more natural than its smell… the mellow sweetness makes it a pretty nice dessert tea after all.

I bought this tea (in fact, a pack of 4 mini tea boxes from the brand) because I didn’t notice it’s spicy!!!! :( I knew I bought the wrong tea as soon as I opened the tea box, because the strong aroma of aniseed was suffocating! This tea is practically a blend of spices, though it’s less spicy than it sounds and is in fact on the sweet side (attributable to liquorice). The flavours are really complex and can even appear confusing to non-spicy-tea-fans like me. I am sure this is a pretty good spicy tea, but it will be a problem for me to finish the whole box of tea…

Quite a strong Earl Grey, but I love the bright lemon note and delicate lavender scent! Didn’t know Starbucks had such nice tea!

Ok I think Steepster should let users resize the photos they upload… this tea has a rather lovely packaging but it looks terribly weird in Steepster. :(

As for the tea, it’s my first M&S tea. It’s surprisingly decent! Camomile is usually not my cup of tea because it tends to be overly sweetened with honey (maybe I was just unlucky to have tried some bad ones), but Calming Infusion is a great blend that has a nice balance of sweetness and herbal flavours. It tastes flowery and has a slightly sweet aftertaste. Makes you feel as relaxed as in a garden filled with sunshine!

I will definitely upload a pic of the tea box and sachet later – the design is adorable! As for the tea itself, Dragon Well is my all-time favourite when it comes to Chinese tea. Or Tea’s Dragon Well is great – it has the vegetal and toasted flavour of green tea leaves, as well as slightly sweet aftertaste that every good Dragon Well should have. A refreshing tea to clean your palate!

I can’t drink much breakfast tea because its high level of caffeine often gives me headaches. So I am glad to have found this decaf version! It tastes rather different from the breakfast teas I’ve tried before – it seems to have a nutty flavour! Quite puzzling to me as there’s no nuts in the ingredients… anyway, it’s not a bad choice if you want a night time black tea.

As a mint tea it’s ok, but if it’s a “chocolate herbal tea” as they call it, it ought to have stronger chocolate flavour! Apart from peppermint all I can taste is some bitterness which is hardly like chocolate… it’s not unpleasant, but as a chocolate fan I am disappointed.