Nicole

Almost forgot about this one. We went out for a nice brunch last Sunday at Lydia’s (really, really good Italian). I asked for hot tea, expecting Lipton, hoping for Twinings, and they brought a box of Harney & Sons! Bagged, sure, but at a restaurant that isn’t tea oriented, I’ll take it!

I actually don’t drink English Breakfast much at all. This was good. A nice well rounded black. Smooth and hearty. My palate is not so advanced as to be able to pick out Keemun vs Assam vs Ceylon so I can’t speak much to that. All I know is that it was a bagged tea at a restaurant that exceeded expectations.

If I could have kept the server from wanting to refill my cup with coffee it would have been a perfect brunch. :) She actually did it once. I thought maybe she was bringing more hot water so I didn’t stop her. She remembered about the time the coffee hit the cup that I had tea, even though it looked like their coffee! She almost did it once more, but caught herself in time. It was actually kind of funny.

This smelled of malt and hay when I opened the package.

From the description of “full leaf” and “whole leaf” I had expected a bit more unfurling of large leaves but they pretty much stayed the same size they were when dry. That’s okay though. Possibly just me not understanding what a full leaf tea should be.

This tastes like it smells. Malty and faintly of hay. A nice, standard golden reddish brown liquid. It is a bold and basic black tea. Hearty and full bodied, I’m certain it would stand up well to milk and sugar if one desired such. Smooth and with a hint of dryness at the end of the sip.

I almost forgot I had samples coming to me from Teajo! Thanks for the samples, folks!

This is a very good Earl Grey. Very smooth. Creamy, almost like it has vanilla, though there is no overt vanilla taste. Really strong bergamot but not acidic or bitter. If you are not a bergamot fan, this is not going to be for you.

Ingredients say cacao, but I taste only bergamot and cream.

A really high quality Earl Grey. I’d definitely keep this in my cupboard over other Earls. Maybe it’s the Indian base – I do love Indian black teas.

So, happily, I lied on my last review. I did have one more tea that was untested. :)

Smells strongly of allspice to me. I have only recently gotten into chai. Many of them that I have tried in the past are very weak. This is not. Very good stuff. Heavy on the allspice, as I have noted, but tasty. I brewed in the Indian method, by steeping in hot milk (half-and-half for the added creaminess). I used 2/3 milk to 1/3 water. Not a bit of bitterness in this and I can still taste the black tea.

Good stuff. This is a keeper. A close tie between this and Harney & Sons black chai blend. H&S has more cardamom, which puts it a nose ahead for now. :)

Smells strongly of rose and violet upon opening the package. Steeped liquid is light yellow and delicate. Very floral taste yet not overpowering. This is totally a garden tea party tea. I am not a huge floral person except for jasmine, but I like this a lot. I think I taste violet more than rose but the rose is still present for sure. I will keep this on the list for next time I order from Butiki. Another win for Stacy. Perfectly balanced and lovely. I’m glad I requested this sample and thanks to Butiki for offering samples!

Sadly, this marks the end of samples and new teas. I’m trying to drink down my cupboard and actually figure out what I want to keep around all the time. So… this may be the last review for awhile. :) I shall have to live vicariously through the rest of you!

Hm. I think I will need more than one try of this to get a full, fair review. First impression upon smelling the dry tea is “Wow- this is really coconutty!” Next impression as I scoop tea out of the bag is “Hm. Is there any tea in here or just coconut?”

So I shook the bag up, and even poured it all out to see if maybe it just settled oddly during shipping. No, while there is indeed tea in there, it’s about a 50/50 mix with coconut flakes. Guess that should make for a really coconutty tasting brew!

Well, steeped it is a cloudy, milky white, which isn’t appealing to me. It isn’t bad. I can taste vanilla & coconut without a doubt but black tea? Not really. It is sweetish, like I would expect coconut to be. Definitely in the dessert tea category.

I want to revisit this with maybe a bit of cream added. I’m still not sure I’m going to call it a tea. Maybe if I throw some plain old black tea in with this blend it will be more tea-like :) I don’t regret trying this but I don’t think I will get it again.

Made up a small pot of this tonight since the hub is out for the evening learning Russian. That means I can sit with the cats in one place and read long enough to do a whole pot justice. :)

Still very good. I brought down a bit of fat free half-and-half in case I thought I might want to experiment. I’m very glad I did. The milk ups the creamy factor a lot and mellows out the jasmine. It was good before, now it’s really, really good. I have sugar on the tea tray as well, but haven’t felt a need to use it.

Okay. Last sample from The Tea Merchant! I feel like I’m sloshing. Between trying all these teas this weekend and rediscovering my love for raspberry creme Italian sodas I have been full of liquid! :)

This smells luscious. Like raspberry and pomegranate. Liqueur is slightly sweet and strongly flavored of those fruits. A very mild floral note hiding in the background. As it cools, an astringency creeps in at the end making me feel like I need water to wet my mouth.

A very nice tea. The green tea base seems to be fine. Nothing less or more than standard green tea, but I am not a normal green tea drinker, so perhaps others can comment on that with more authority. The tea is, however, just a conveyance for the fruit flavors in this blend. Nothing grassy or vegetal – just fruit!

Thank you to The Tea Merchant for the sample. Three down, one to go!

I do so love Nilgiri tea and this blend with Yunnan is very, very good. A nice, honest black tea that is somewhat peaty and malty. I can actually get the hints of cocoa when cooled. Not a sweet tea at all. I can see where it could become bitter if oversteeped. A good, classic tasting black tea.

Thanks again to The Tea Merchant for this sample!

Many more leaf colors than I am used to seeing in darjeelings. There are some leaves that are somewhat reddish, even. Very pretty.

I did forget about this while I was sorting laundry and it brewed for a few minutes longer than recommended. That said, I expected a huge hit of astringency at the end and it was only really a medium one. No bitter taste, either.

A bright, clean taste. Very nice. A not unpleasant bite to the scent of the steeped cup, but that may come from oversteeping.

Thanks, The Tea Merchant, for providing this sample!

Smells absolutely heavenly. Light yellow liquid that smells very vanilla-y. The vanilla is indeed strong in this tea, which is just fine – I love vanilla teas! I don’t notice a citrus to this at all, though. The oolong isn’t strong, either.

I do love how oolongs look when brewed. This one with the marigold petals looks almost like dragonflies. Perhaps “Silk Dragon” is a very apt name. :)

Oh, and I love the packaging. The sealing wax was a great touch!

The mint is indeed very intense. It actually cools my mouth, even with the tea being hot.

I cannot get over how huge the leaves are!!! Amazing. A very light brew and if you need to freshen your mouth after a meal, this is one to reach for. My only problem is that it is so minty (and I do love minty things) that it reminds me of the dentist. I won’t keep it on hand but I’m glad I got to try this sample. I think it is a quality tea, but not for me.

And now I am out of new teas to sample. Until my Harney order comes in, anyway… So much for clearing out the cupboard. I couldn’t help it. It looked so empty…

Yum! Creamy, definitely pistachio. Such interesting leaves – thin and long. Looks almost like rosemary rather than tea. More body than I’m used to finding in green tea. This could well make it into my regular rotation. Delicious.

Okay so I steeped for less time than previously. Very nice. Definitely assertive. I don’t notice as much astringency as before so perhaps I got the time down for this one finally. :) It’s almost a little peaty, which is good.

This is amazing. I rarely find greens I want to keep in my stash. This is one.

Smells of sweet, heavenly pineapple. Almost more like juice than the fresh fruit, which is just fine. The tea leaves are super huge when they unfold.

Pale, pale yellow with a taste that lives up to the smell. Such a rarity. :)

This goes on the list to buy more. I can see I’ll go through this pretty quickly. Plus, I have to have some to share!

I like this one quite a bit. I don’t think my palate is advanced enough to pick out the white tea, though, so to me it just tastes like a fruit tisane with more body than normal.

Smells amazing both dry and steeped. A lovely looking tea. Strong pineapple and coconut finally! The coconut is definitely present after the tea vanishes from my mouth. Pineapple taste is pretty strong in the liquid. There is a slight oiliness to the mouthfeel.

Mildly sweet but I can see how this could quickly become bitter without paying attention to the steeping. I could be wrong on that, though. After all, I didn’t know this was a white since it was thrown into my embarrassingly large purchase as a freebie. I thought it was a green and I probably used a higher temp water than generally advisable for a white? But it isn’t bitter.

This is going to be a nice dessert-y type of tea to keep on hand.

Again, I hope I got the right tea. I added updated info and picture from Tropical Tea Company’s site. Though there were no berries in my blend I could definitely smell them.

I get cranberries through and through. I didn’t expect to notice chocolate – white chocolate not usually having any cacao in it – but I thought maybe a bit of sweet. I don’t get any sweet that can’t be attributed to the berries. Oddly, adding sugar makes it just a bit more sour.

Won’t be getting this one again.

Hm. Smells like cranberries when opening the package. Not cherries, but that’s okay – I like cranberries better! There are indeed dried cranberries in here.

I don’t taste almonds, which is disappointing. Amaretto is one of my favorite liqueurs. I see a trend, though. Simply putting almond slices in a tea doesn’t flavor it enough for me to taste it. Might be different for others, though. I do taste cranberries and what seems like a simple tea base. I added sugar as suggested. It did enhance the berry flavor but still no almond.

It’s not a bad tea, but nothing I’ll get again.

Amazing smell in the dry leaves. Just gorgeous looking as well.

Very fresh, not too sweet taste of cantaloupe with a smooth feel of cream more than the taste of it. I am pleasantly surprised. I had not expected to like this one so much. I think it probably calls for more than just a sample on the next order!

I hope this is the same tea previously reviewed. I added to the description and updated the photo…

Smells a bit off on first opening the bag but it steeps up nicely. Coconut flavor is balanced with the tea base. It won’t be a favorite but it’s not bad. I just can’t find that coconut I dream of!

Amazing smell of blueberries! Again, I’m assuming that is included in the “natural flavors” since blueberry is not listed specifically.

Smells & tastes a lot like a blueberry muffin. This is another to put on the keeper list, I think. However, as it cools I don’t care as much for it. The flavor becomes a bit more tinny if that makes any sense. A harsher tang to it as it cools. Adding a bit of sugar as they suggest does seem to help it a bit, though.

Upon reflection I’m not sure about keeping this around. It’s in their sale area right now, though and they sent 2 more ounces free with my order so they may be clearing it out. Possibly not even something I could order again even if I wanted to. Which is also okay, since 4 ounces of this will last me a looooong time. :)

I’ll admit that I bought this one primarily because of the Lemur in the name. I taste no fur in this blend, though. :)

I’m assuming that the pomegranate and vanilla flavors come from the “natural flavor” ingredient. Wherever they come from, they are pretty tasty. I do like this one quite a bit. Definitely going on the keeper list.

Sweet enough to not need anything added. I don’t notice the astringency but the pomegranate taste is nicely mellowed by the vanilla. This would be a nice tea to have in place of dessert if you are on the diet bandwagon. If not, it would be nice to have with a slice of pound cake or a bit of dark chocolate, I think.

Smells very pinapple-y!

This is a nice blend. Good depth of pineapple flavor – not too much to overwhelm the tea base but enough to taste the pineapple clearly. Plus, the price is definitely right on Tropical Tea’s products! I might keep this around. Still making up my mind.

This is the culprit that made my entire order smell like cloves. :)

I don’t smell any coconut at all but the cloves and cinnamon are very present. I steeped this in a bag as the leaves are very, very small.

I tasted it first without sugar or cream to see what difference adding those things would make. It is a pretty light tea, surprisingly. It took adding sugar and cream to bring the spices to the forefront. Very nice. Sadly, I tasted no coconut either before or after the additions.

I shared with a co-worker who was out of tea today and he pronounced it very tasty. :)