New Tasting Notes
Minty tea is minty.
I can’t really taste any tarragon unfortunately, so this is basically pure mint. Although the very faint, slightly herby taste I get on the back of my tongue might be tarragon. If you squint and don’t look too hard.
Preparation
I didn’t think I liked white teas. In fact, I didn’t think I liked this tea. But two days ago, I had it again for the first time since I started paying attention to water temperature. Delish. Light, grassy/vegiteal, and easy to drink. I’m adding it below the oolong on my this-is-all-I-want-to-drink list.
Standard mug – blue pottery. 1 tbsp. gently steaming water. 5 minutes.
Second brewing. 6 minutes.
I was hoping to try a third brewing but I fear I might be tea-d out for the evening.
White teas scald and get bitter REALLY easily if the water’s too hot. Also shorter steeping times might help with the taste as well.
Oooh, this sounds good. Rishi and I have been getting along quite splendidly thus far, so this one might have a place on a future order.
You should try a silver needle – I find those to be particularly lovely. Most vendors make one and they’re typically good across the board. Of course, I love the one from my life partner – Samovar.
Jillian ~~ Thanks. I’ll try steeping it for less time next time I make it.
takgoti ~~ I think the only silver needle I’ve had was in pyramid bags. I don’t remember being impressed with it. But it was bagged and back when I was just starting to drink anything other than black teas and flavored black teas. I will remember that though next time I buy white tea.
I googled Samovar because I wasn’t quite sure it wasn’t your gf or bf and you were referring to a tea gifted by them. =)
First time experiencing this pyramidal tea bags… kinda neat.
Liquor has amber red color, smells a bit of passion fruit…. can’t really smell much strawberry, and I still don’t know what rooibos smells like by itself so I wouldn’t even know what odor to look for.
Maybe its because I was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with it, but it did not have much flavor. A faint tanginess that was sort of reminiscent of passion-fruit aftertaste but not much else. I’ll have to try it again by itself to make sure.
Not much of a loss if it IS bland, got it for free.
Considering that I had the teabag version, the tea was very fine. It helps me survive while I’m waiting for the good stuff to be delivered, because to my horror I could not get any loose tea in Madison, WI… Actually I don’t think I’ve seen much of it anywhere since my arrival in the US over 2 months ago…
This was the last of my stash – only bought a sample tin when I ordered – and the last tea of my day. This has a lovely scent and relaxing and light taste. My dogs are even intrigued by the scent but we NOT allowed a taste…silly dogs…TEA is for MOMMY!
My stomach was a little unsettled after supper and drinking this made me feel much better. I added a bit of extra green tea so its taste is more distinct than last time.
Eventually, I need to grow some metaphorical balls and try mixing tea.
Ditto. I’m worried about wasting good tea by making bad blends.
You can always start with mixing herbals. I grow my own mint, camomille, lemon balm, and lavender and make medicinal teas out of them. It’s lots of fun and the results usually aren’t that bad tasting.
I only started mixing tea when I didn’t have enough of one tea to make a full cup. And then half the time I mixed it with Adagio’s cream tea (which is a nice add, btw). Now I’m more adventurous. And I’m out of cream.
Drank this while listening to the Buffalo Sabres Game! YAY! It they keep winning like that I will drink it during every game! I do think this is a tasty minty tea for a cheap brand bagged tea. :)
Maybe I should try that strategy when the Canucks play (god knows they need all the help they can get). ;)
LOL @ Jillian! Let me know if you do and if it works!
Yay hockey! Maybe I need to get some of this to help out the Ducks… I don’t think they’ve realized yet that this is no longer pre-season. :(
I swear Tazo has ben adding more and more sweetener to their bottled iced teas recently. I still enjoy the distinct but not overpowering taste of mint and the touch of lemon in this tea. It’s very refreshing and helps to clear my head.
It was perfectly fine before, so I don’t see why they felt the need to dump a tone of extra sugar in all of a sudden. >:(
Preparation
Appealing to the general public, most likely. Bah.
Bah, I hope Adagio and all the other good-quality tea suppliers never sell out to the man, especially if this is the result. grumbles
Grumble grumble grumble something about corporate bullshit. We need a front porch and some cans to throw at passers by.
I agree!!! It should say “sweet” or “sweetened” in the name if it is!
I tend to not like sugar either, but I did not notice it being sweeter or more-so. I was surprised to find it in database already since folks only review real teas. Perhaps you should try Numi Teas, I am certain it has no sugar the one I tried few weeks ago. It is on the bland side but good when not wanting sugar. Best.
When I was little and would get really sick with anything that left me pale and without an appetite, Jello and ramen noodles were staples in our house. Occasionally, these illnesses would arrive during the colder months, like they do. When they did my mom would occasionally make Jello, but instead of refrigerating all of it to make it wiggly, she’d leave it part of it warm and serve it to me in a little cup.
This tea isn’t as brightly hued as Jello is, nor is it as sweet. The Rooibos is definitely the main flavor I get out of this, but when I swish it around in my month, I get a little bit of that orange Jello flavor on the tip of my tongue. It also lingers in the aftertaste in a pleasant way.
The chamomile is extremely subtle. Subtle enough that it won’t be a deciding factor as to whether I want to drink this tea or not on a given day, which is how I like it.
I’m actually surprised that I enjoy this tea as much as I do because when I opened the tin and smelled it my first thought was, “Oh, Paul Rudd. Why are you so cute?” because I have I Love You, Man running in the background [Sleappin’ da byaaayss, mon!]. But my second thought was, “AHHHH, VICKS VAPOR RUB!”
However, in a surprising turn of events, I quite like it. And I’m a Pisces, so it all seems very fitting. I’ve got a running list on a post-it that I have stuck to my monitor for the next order I’m going to put through for Adagio, and this one just got added to it riiiiight…now.
I just have to say I LOVE your reviews! They are wonderful!
Thank you! Man, this is one of the nicest online communities I have ever participated in.
I’m glad it didn’t turn out to be Vick’s Vapour Rub-flavoured as well as that sounds spectacularly nasty. XD
Any post with a Paul Rudd reference is a good one. Of course I said the quote outloud in my cube…
@Jillian I was truly frightened to take that first sip.
@LENA F. Totes magotes.
Oh no…I had that in my “to buy a sample of” list. You went bold with the 4oz tin, huh? I did the same with Adagio’s cin-apple rooibos and I hate it. Now I just get samples of everything and then order big.
@Lena: you never know, you might like it. My mom is totally in love with the cocomint green. I’m with Xanthia though. Can’t really get behind it.
Xanthia, try again with 2.25g in 6oz of purified water steeped at 175-180 degrees for 3 min. This is my FAVORITE dessert tea. If after that you really don’t like it, I’d be THRILLED to take it:)
LENA F., even if someone says a tea is horrible, don’t let that sway you from at least ordering a sample. I love some teas that other people hate and hate some teas that other people love. If you like chocolate, mint, and green tea, you should at least give it a shot. I did a full detailed tasting of it. Check it out.
@Xanthia, I’ll take whatever you have left off your hands. My email address is in my profile.