Lori

Although I haven’t done a side by side comparison… I think this actually is Almond Cookie from SpecialTeas… just purchased in bulk and renamed.

Note: The above comment is based upon other teas that I’ve tried from California Tea House – and I know that quite a few of the teas they offer are actually SpecialTeas creations.

Are you serious? And I bet CA tea house has a higher price /oz for teas. Though I am not certain that Almond Cookie=Almond Butter. In fact, maybe Almond Butter is similar to Brioche to be honest. When I had the Almond Cookie, it was distinctively cinnamon flavored and this Almond Butter had none…..

You must know the “inner-workings” on the tea blending business….I was wondering about that- meaning when I purchase tea how do I know if I am paying an upcharge just for the name of the company? Especially for unflavored teas- as an example, are other companies purchasing from Uptons, then calling their tea some fancy name and then selling it at a higher price….

I’m sure this is done all the time. SpecialTeas is a wholesaler too and it seems like many smaller tea companies (and even larger companies like Teavana!) source thier teas from them—at least the popular flavors like Almond Cookie, Earl Grey De La Creme and Rooibos Lemon Chiffon. For example, Almond Cookie = Brioche = Almond Butter = Almond Biscotti!

This can’t be ;)!. If this were true, I am starting to doubt my taste buds/taste memory. It really does seem like Almond Butter cannot be Almond Cookie. But then again, with these flavored blended teas, depending on how I scoop my 1 tsp.steeping time/water temp —I may capture more/less of certain flavors….AND each time a batch is blended, some discrepancies may occur.

Maybe this Almond Butter= Almond Pieces from SpecialTeas. I have a sample of Almond Pieces from Doulton. I will compare side by side….

You may be right, though! I hope so! These tea companies should at least tweak the recipes at least, to make it their own! I don’t want to just be paying higher prices for prettier packaging or advertising! Who knows, maybe California Tea House special orders the Almond Cookie with less cinnamon?

I have Almond Pieces and Almond Cookie—Almond Pieces is less sweet and not bakery-like. The flavor is more like almond extract. And Almond Pieces does not have the pretty red safflower petals like Almond Cookie, Almond Butter, Brioche et al.

Being new to the tea world I was sort of shocked to read all this, but knowing a bit of corporate America it made sense. :P Is there a Discussion topic about this where people can list what teas = other teas? I’d find that immensly helpful to keep from repurchasing the same the same teas just repackaged.

True Rabs- this needs to be a thread … I was sort of getting suspicious. I mean as an example, Samovar sells its pu-erh as Maiden’s Ectasy..did they source this tea directly in China or buy it elsewhere and charge a mark-up?

I have heard a bit about this. I think that there are some teas that sell wholesale. One example I can think of is that I think a few tea-sellers out there sell tea from the Metropolitan Tea Company. But do they change anything at all? They don’t use the Metro. Tea Label as far as I can tell. They can use their own label and name but is the tea identical? I’m very curious about this aspect of the tea business.

I am curious about this too! My local tea shop has an Almond Cookie w the safflower petals…I bet it’s wholesaled from the same source…

I can tell you that SpecialTeas does not offer many of their “bits” wholesale (that is, their nuts, etc).

I have not done a side-by-side of Almond Cookie vs. Almond Butter. But, I have done a side-by-side comparison of a couple of other teas from California Tea House vs. SpecialTeas and I can tell you that they are quite identical.

Not all of the small guys out there “resell” tea – I don’t. However, I guess that’s not completely true, because I don’t grow my own tea, and I do obtain teas from wholesalers, as well as additions such as flowers, nuts, fruits, and other bits, but, I flavor it myself and blend it myself.

Another “small guy” that absolutely does not resell their tea is 52Teas/Zoomdweebies.

Definitely CA Tea House uses SpecialTeas. When I looked closely at the SpecialTeas website, I did see some duplicates (blueberry syrup, mango, lemon drop, and pistachio gelato)..but CA Tea House prices are higher..

I have suspected this too. Boo on CA Tea House for not taking the effort to offer original blends! I liked their Earl Grey Creme, but now I know where to buy it direct for less $$.