IrishBreakfastLass

The smell of this one was surprising when I opened the packet. It’s very apple-y, with cinnamon and orange and sweetness. I love the smell! It’s almost like apple cider, but better somehow. Hopefully it doesn’t disappoint after steeping.
Well, I’m pretty disappointed. It’s nearly flavorless. I’m wondering if I somehow didn’t put in enough leaves? I’m going to reserve my number rating until I can try again with a stronger infusion.

After already trying several other rooibos and really only caring for the chai one, I was skeptical about trying this one. But I needed a no-caff tea for the evening, and didn’t want to use up the last bit of my sample of rooibos chai from Upton. So out came this very generous sample. This tea smells absolutely gorgeous(can a smell be gorgeous?)! It is a strong citrus, but not the candy kind, more of the peel- that nice bitter acidic smell. I cannot smell any rooibos in this one at all at first. Steeping, I start to smell the rooibos, and now I’m a little worried that it won’t taste as great as it smells, but I leave it for the time prescribed(7 minutes) and return when the timer goes off. The first sip is definitely rooibos-like, but the more I drink, the less rooibos I get, and the more citrus there is. It’s wonderful. I put in a couple of sugar cubes to see if I could brighten it up a little, and it works wonders. I really like this one! This one could be a candidate in my night-time line up for sure. It’s definitely helping with this sore/scratchy throat- lemon is one of my go-to flavors when I’m sick, and they aren’t joking about the high lemon content in this one. It’s very nice. No sourness that I can find(before the sugar of course, and certainly none after). It’s overall a pretty good cup! And it’s a rooibos, which is a bonus for me! This one is going on the Chado shopping list too, it looks like!

Thanks go to KallieBoo! for this(and 6 other samples currently burning a hole in my cabinet, so to speak!) Hmmm… I’m not getting much vanilla out of this one. It smelled like a pretty stout vanilla when I opened the bag, but it’s just not translating. I wonder if I steep it a bit longer? I did the recommended 3 minutes with 212* water. I’m hoping it’s just ‘user error’ here, and I’m going to reserve my rating until I get to try this again.

This is my first Scottish breakfast blend, and let me tell you, they are serious when they say this one is a hearty one. It’s very in-your-face, but in a good way. The complexity is a nice suprise for me. Nice and malty, full-mouth feel, with some almost-fruity sort of sweetness in there and maybe a bit of nuttiness. There’s a bit of astringency there too, but it adds to the experience overall. This is a great breakfast blend.

Decided I needed a comfort tea after falling early this morning and being in pain all day. Upon opening the packet, I’m greeted with a very lovely anise scent, and immediately I’m in love. Brewing, it smells just as lovely, but more scents start showing up- orange, cinnamon, and slight hints of the rooibos. Christmas in a cup! It tastes generously spicy, and within the first few sips, I know this is MY rooibos. This is my first Chai with pepper, and it lends itself well to this blend. The first notes I taste are cinnamon and a slight orange taste, followed closely by ginger, cloves, and finally the pepper in the finish. It’s really a lovely, relaxing cup. I definitely see another order from Upton in my future, and this one is in the box!

I got this sample in yesterday, and I could smell it before I even opened the box! It’s a very sweet fragrance, and it smells exactly the same when brewing. The taste, with no additives, is heavy and complex. I taste the rose, maybe a bit of vanilla, but I think I’m mostly getting the passion fruit flavoring and the rose. There is no bitterness, and very little astringency, if any. It’s ok, but not something I’d seek out. The rose is a bit off-putting for me, and combined with the strong scent, it’s just not my thing. It’s quite possible that the addition of sugar could save it, though.

A spot of sugar does seem to lighten it up a bit, but I think it brings out the rose even more. I am getting a touch of black tea now, though. I think this must be one of those things where you either love it or you don’t. I may try it again, but I’m definitely not loving it right now.

Oh. My. Goodness. This tea has totally changed my opinion of rooibos! Before this tea, I desperately wanted to like rooibos, but every one I’ve tried just didn’t do anything for me(and some I couldn’t even finish!). The almond, the tiny sugar hearts, the rooibos- it’s all perfect! It smelled much different than the previous rooibos I’ve had so far, so I thought there may be hope for this tea, and decided to have it tonight! I’m SO glad I did! It was not an in-your-face flavor, the almond is subtle and smooth, and the taste is crisp and bright. The almond is most prevalent in the finish, and it definitely made me want to keep drinking. It’s a perfect evening or afternoon tea, in my opinion, and I’m so glad I found a rooibos I can drink!

Upon opening the packet, the first scent that hits me is… Thin Mints? I dunno, I’m getting a chocolaty minty scent. And when I pour the water over the tea, I get a scent of rice. Just plain rice.

First taste, plain- I’m getting a bit of astringency, but it’s a nice, full-mouth, stout flavor. I always take my chai with milk and sugar, so…
Hmmm… I’m getting less chai, more black tea…. the addition of another sugar cube or 2 really brings out the subtitles of this tea. No more minty scent, only a lovely, soft vanilla fullness. Pretty good, though not quite what I expected. Still a lovely cuppa!

This is just heavenly. It has just the right amount of lemon flavor, and it’s just SO GOOD!

I originally made this tea for my 7 year old, who had a sore throat, and wanted something warm and soothing. Nothing more soothing than mint when you have a sore throat, right? I sweetened it for her, and she loved it but could only get down about half. So I’m finishing the cup for her. It’s really good! It smelled like Wrigley’s Spearmint Gum straight out of the pack, which is interesting since I love Spearmint :) It’s much tastier than the Stash Peppermint tea which just overwhelmed me. I think this will be my go-to when I want a minty tea!

Sadly, I just don’t think this tea is for me. I love the idea of this tea, and the ingredients sound so good, but it just doesn’t translate for me. It smells like hay or tobacco, and tastes about the same. Just not my thing. I want to like it, really, but I just couldn’t finish the cup.

So this morning marks a milestone for me- my first cup of loose leaf! I chose this lovely Irish Breakfast, since I love it in the bagged version, and I was not disappointed! It is definitely a more complex flavor, with a less harsh edge to it. There were nuances that I didn’t get with the bagged version, too, and I can tell you this is my go-to tea. For now, anyway.

I had this tea for the first time just a couple of days ago, but forgot to submit my review. I love it! It’s a nice, light tea, with layers of orange, lemon, and bergamot over the black tea. I found it quite refreshing as an afternoon tea, and it’s definitely one of my favorites.

I’ve always thought hay smelled SO good, but I was a bit skeptical when I tore open the bag and smelled a strong, fresh hay smell. I’m still not too sure what I think of this tea, but it’s not exactly horrible, either. It does taste exactly like it smells, though, so if you’re not into hay, this might not be for you. This was also my first Rooibos ever, so I don’t have anything to compare it to in terms of quality. I will be trying this one again to see if I warm up to it.

Well, this tea definitely showed me what ‘malt’ was like! I love it- it’s a nice and clean flavor, strong but not bitter, with a lot of good malt. I like that it doesn’t have a ton of astringency to it- just a touch. This is one of my favorites, even though it’s ‘just Twinings’. lol

The jasmine smell was nice, but pretty strong for a cup of tea. I also got a pretty bitter flavor. Not one of my favorites, and I definitely won’t have another cup of this one. I’d be more than happy to try other brands of jasmine green, though.

Let me start by saying that I am definitely a licorice fan. I tried this tea for the second time this morning, thinking that maybe I was just too off-put the first time. I was wrong. I still don’t care for this tea. The flavor is overpowering, and the aftertaste, while pleasant at first, becomes a bit cloying after a few sips. Just not my thing, which is disappointing since I love all the ingredients individually(usually).

No notes yet.

Got this one in a round robin, and I LOVE IT! I’m new to tea(I’ve drank tea all my life, but always the same kind lol), so this is opening up a whole new world for me! I loved the bold taste, and there was no bitterness to this one at all. One of my favorites to date.

I didn’t associate this with Magnolia. I grew up with several magnolia trees here in the south, and this was definitely not it. Disappointed.

Loved this one. I got it in a sampler box, and wish now I had just bought a box of this instead! It was a nice full flavor with sweet, non-cleaner-like bergamot. I got no bitterness or dusty flavors, and it was near perfect for me. I may just be deprived, though. ha!

I enjoyed this tea. It was strong enough, with just the right amount of chocolate and mint(which was very light). I didn’t get any dusty or musty flavor from mine. This is one I’d definitely try again if I had it on hand, though not sure I’d go to the trouble of finding it to buy it myself.

I tried this one this morning with pretty high hopes- I enjoyed the chocolate and mint of the last Wally’s I tried. This one just didn’t cut it for me. I liked the nice citrus scent as I was steeping, and I liked the bite of the citrus when I tasted, but the black tea was just too weak for me. It wasn’t in an overly large cup, either, just your typical 6-8oz mug. I will try it again, just because I had such high expectations, in hopes that I was the error here.