Michelle select Send Message

It’s a dreary, wet day out – not raining, just wet. I’m so tired from traveling last night, and just kind of sad, that sad that slips into your bones and just hangs off of your skin.

So, soft white tea time. The little buds of this are fuzzy and sweet-smelling, with just hints of jasmine and a little peach as well. It’s a little lemony in taste, and I don’t taste an overpowering amount of jasmine, which is good. It adds to the tea without overpowering it.

I should mention that I haven’t found a chai that I really like – they’re usually way too spicy for me. When I was placing my last order with Adagio, I figured I’d just try one at least, and this one didn’t seem too bad.

The dry leaf smelled fantastic – apples and cinnamon.

The tea itself is not to my taste. It’s too spicy, and a little too bitter for me. May have steeped poorly. I’m going to try this as a latte, and I think that’ll make it better – it needs milk, I think.

EDIT: Turned this into a latte with a little sugar. Not bad, but still not my favorite.

Yumm. This came as a free sample with the UtiliTEA I just bought – they sent me one of the bags, but I split it open so I could drink it in the tasting cup – I really need to get a gaiwan.

My first impressions of this were really, really good. It’s kind of warm and malty with chocolate overtones, and I think what I like most is the smoothness of it. It’s not astringent in the least.

It’s not as good anymore, since I got distracted and the water cooled, but I got 3 good steeps out of it, and since I brewed it in the tasting cup I’ve still got about half the sample left, so I think I’ll try again tomorrow!

The leaves in the tin are beautiful – small, evenly chopped, smooth and silky, sort of like confetti. I have to confess to running my fingers through it like a child :)

The tea straight I don’t love. It’s not bad, but it’s not really a flavor I go for. I don’t know how to describe it… A bit vegetal but without the spinach overtones. Sweet, in a sense.

I’m drinking it iced right now with a bit of spearmint and lavender honey, and it’s a fantastically invigorating summer drink. Even if I don’t like it plain, I’ll definitely order more.

I know that hibiscus has kind of a bad rep, but I love it. So when I opened the little pouch from the sample that Fusion Tea Room so generously sent me, I got super excited. I was also hit with a really strong apple/hibiscus/vanilla type of smell, and it’s just so tantalizing.

I knew I wanted to have this iced, since it’s currently about 80 degrees out and I’m laying in the grass writing a paper on the nature of truth (what a lib arts college student I am, ha) and I didn’t want hot tea. So I brewed it double-strength and then flash iced it. It takes me a full tray of ice when I do this, but that’s okay.

It’s delicious. This is going right on my wish list. The hibiscus hits the palate first and the apple sweeps over, sweeter and smoother in its wake. There’s a lingering hint of vanilla and something cinnamonny too. I think the warmth of the vanilla does a lot to knit the whole thing together. Very appetizing.

I’ve never had anything like it – but I like it! I taste the mineral taste that everyone says is so characteristic of rock oolongs. It’s earthy but not in the same way that a pu’erh is – it’s very light. Delicious! I’m brewing gong fu and I really enjoy the different flavors which emerge as the leaves open up.

“Oh, what a pretty one you are,” I whispered as I opened the bag and peered inside.

This is one of the few teas that just look beautiful dry – tiny little thin curls of black and gold, like tiger stripes.

Steeped, it’s great. It’s a medium-bodied black with a smooth mouthfeel and just a little bit of astringency – just enough, but not too much. On a second steep, the earthiness comes out. I definitely think I’m getting more of this.

A sample of this has been sitting in my shelf for about a month now and I’ve been hesitant to try it because the scent is so smoky, it’s off-putting. It smells, honestly, like burnt gunpowder and campfire. Which, don’t get me wrong, I love the smell of gunpowder – reminds me of the model rockets I used to shoot off in the summer, before the engines got to be crazy expensive. But I wasn’t sure I’d like it in a tea.

I don’t dislike it, though it’s not my favorite. It’s certainly not as campfirey as it smells, though it’s smokier than anything I’ve ever had. It’s dark and malty and a little bit chocolaty. It brews a darkish red-brown, and I think it would fit in best with a winter snow, a fire in the fireplace and a book I’ve read a hundred times before.

Bought a box of these as filler for a gift box I sent someone, but didn’t get around to trying them until now. It’s… okay. I don’t love fruity infusions, and this one is fairly weak. Still, it’s warm, and smells good, and it’s not worth climbing down from my bed to throw it out and make something else.

Sitting down with some of this and watching TV… last day of classes, a week until I’m back at home… can’t believe it. As much as I love it here, as much as I don’t want to leave… I want this to be over. I want to be home where everything is safe.

I like this tea, generally. It’s not stellar, but I don’t hate it. It’s vegetal, primarily, but there are notes of sweetness and nuttiness that I look for in a green. Especially when you sip it just right and there’s this burst of sugar lingering on the tip of your tongue… fantastic.
(note: I’m drinking this unsweetened. The sugar-flavor comes entirely from the tea)