484 Tasting Notes
I usually like honeybush teas hot, but this might be an exception. As this cup cools, I’m tasting the strawberry more and the honeybush less, and actually starting to taste the cream that other people have mentioned. It tastes like its getting sweeter as it cools, too. When it was hot, the honeybush was stronger and the strawberry tasted a little sour. This is a decent strawberry tea, but I don’t know if I’ll buy it again. I think I prefer strawberry teas with hibiscus rather than honeybush. I wonder how it would taste cold brewed?
Flavors: Cream, Sour, Strawberry, Sweet, Wood
Preparation
When I put in my order with 52teas, I kept going back and forth over whether I wanted to order this or not. Banana and coconut are both flavors in tea that I’m really picky about, and they’re not always done well. I wasn’t super impressed with the old 52teas honeybush teas that I tried, but I’ve been hearing so many glowing review that I felt like I ought to give it a chance. In the end, I decided not to order this one, which is perfect because I ended up getting it as a free sample! I decided to try it first, because I always try to drink up coconut teas quickly. The instructions say 1 tsp/8 oz and to steep it for 6-10 minutes, which is not at all how I normally handle honeybush. Honeybush is usually really lightly flavored, for some reason, and often goes sour if steeped longer than 5 minutes, but I decided to try the instructions as written first. That was a good choice. I ended up steeping it for quite a while because the boys were demanding my attention, but it tastes good, so that’s not a problem. I’m always happy to find another tea where I don’t have to worry about the steep time. The most prominent flavors are banana and honeybush. The banana tastes natural – like banana chips rather than artificial banana flavoring. The honeybush is smooth and woody, not at all sour or astringent. There’s a bit of extra sweetness, but I’m not really tasting coconut or cake specifically. I’ll try watching the steep time a little better next time to see how that affects the flavors. I’m definitely interested in trying more banana flavored teas by 52teas now. I’ll keep that in mind for the future. And their honeybush teas are really good now, so I’ll remember that as well.
Flavors: Smooth, Sweet, Wood
Preparation
This is next up in my order to try! I likewise find honeybush teas to be very light in the flavor department, and although they’re great as lattes, they require a ton of leaf to make happen.
I usually use two teaspoons for 3-5 minutes to get enough flavor, but this didn’t seem to need it. I don’t think I’ve actually had a honeybush latte. I should try it with the honeybush hazelnut I’m trying to sipdown.
My favourite rooibos latte is Birthday Cake by David’s Tea. But I haven’t tried this one yet.
I really need to get around to trying more of the David’s Teas. I’ve only tried a couple so far. It’s definitely on my list.
David’s Tea shops are strategically located in areas where I often find myself, so it is easy enough to stop in and pick up a small amount of something to try. That said, their online ordering system works beautifully, especially if you order the minimum for free shipping. And you get three samples with your order. Just a thought.
That said, some of their teas can be hit and miss.
I don’t think there are any stores near me. I keep thinking I should put in an order, but I haven’t done it yet. I’ve already spent my tea budget for this month, so maybe next month.
Yeah, I completely get that.
This is the tea I bought from QueenOfTart’s stash sale. Boy was this ever a good choice! It’s a light, sweet black tea with noticeable chocolate and rose flavors. Each flavor complements the others and it tastes very natural. This is just perfect. I’m definitely going to savor this.
Flavors: Chocolate, Rose, Sweet, Tea
Preparation
Sipdown!
I’m going to miss this one. I’ll have to pick up more next time I order from Adagio. I’m not always a fan of Rooibos teas, but somehow I love the way it works with this floral bergamot. It’s a really unusual flavor, so I don’t know if many people would like it, but I really do.
Flavors: Floral, Smoke, Wood
Preparation
Sample from QueenOfTarts. Thankk you!
The dry leaf smelled like juicy pina colada, but a little bit artificial. The flavor after it brews is pretty similar. It does have a pleasantly creamy mouthfeel. I’m still on the fence about this one. I think I’ll probably enjoy the sample I have, but I don’t know if I’ll be interested in buying more.
Flavors: Artificial, Coconut, Creamy, Pineapple, Smooth
Preparation
QueenOfTarts sent me a couple of samples along with the Chocolate Rose tea I picked out from her stash sale. This was one of them. It’s one I’ve been wanting to try, and I’m away from home today, so I put it in my purse to try. I have to say, I’m glad I didn’t pay money for this. The smell of the teabag was lovely, but the brewed tea smells and tastes artificial and unpleasant. The chemical taste of the flavoring mixes with an unpleasant flavor from the oolong itself that reminds me a bit of rancid nuts, maybe? I know I won’t be picking up more of this in the future. Oh, well. One less tea to spend my money on.
Flavors: Artificial
Preparation
I’m trying to decide how I feel about this one. The orange is a little on the tart side, and could be a bit stronger as well. I don’t really taste the hibiscus or licorice root for anyone who doesn’t like those flavors. The ginger is definitely present, but not overwhelming, so that’s good. Overall, it’s a decent tea, and it would probably be quite good with some honey, but I try not to sweeten my teas much, so I don’t know if I’ll be buying it again. I feel like this would be better with a sweet orange or tangerine flavor added. But I’ll probably drink most of what I bought.
Flavors: Ginger, Orange, Orange Zest, Tart
Preparation
Somehow I forgot I’d reviewed this before, so I picked some more up – Mostly because I’m super-sensitive to caffeine when I’m pregnant, but I really crave chai in the fall. Anyway, this was just as lackluster as I remember. I may try throwing it in with a bag of the gold cup chai. That will either be a good combination. Ah well, at least I only picked up 10 bags, and I’m putting together an Herbal and Decaf box right now, so maybe someone else will like this.
I’ve tried a number of Stash’s teas and I’ve been underwhelmed by all except for Raspberry Hibiscus (great as an iced tea).
I don’t like many of their fruity herbals since they all contain licorice root, but I’ve tried almost all of their teas now (their sampler packs are great for that), and there’s about a dozen that I enjoyed. I think my favorites were Cinnamon Apple Chamomile, Decaf Vanilla Chai, Black Forest, and Holiday Chai. I picked up most of these with my last order, so we’ll see if I still feel the same way after ten cups as I did after one.
Perhaps I’ll need to try some more varieties of theirs! From what I remember I’ve tried 6 different fruit herbals for iced tea (and as mentioned, the only one I like is Raspberry Hibiscus) and there was an organic green ginger tea which was only okay. Nothing super gross in the mix; just meh.
I tend to keep some bagged teas around. Stash I mostly like for their flavored teas. Especially since they have more variety in their decaf flavors than most brands. (although I did like the Cinnamon Apple Chamomile and Meyer Lemon). For fruity herbals I tend to go for Celestial Seasonings. If you like Hibiscus, I would recommend trying a few of their zinger teas. I loved The Watermelon Lime and Tangerine Orange were favorites this summer. Their (non-hibistus) Mandarin Orange Spice, and Jammin Lemon Ginger are also quite good. Their black and rooibos teas, as well as anything that uses their apple flavoring are pretty much undrinkable to me, so I don’t recommend those.
I LOVE True Blueberry and Black Cherry from Celestial Seasonings as iced tea. Some of the best iced tea I’ve ever had (and my goodness is it cheap!).
Perhaps I should pick up some decaf green from Stash once my Tetley decaf runs out. Thanks for the recommendations!
I actually have yet to try Black Cherry. It’s generally not one of my favorite flavors. I like True Blueberry quite a bit, even though it tastes more like grape to me.
You’re welcome!
This was pretty underwhelming. It was gingery with a hint of orange, which sounds like a good combination but it just tasted kind of bland and boring to me. It really tastes like it’s missing a few things. It at least needs a noticeable taste of cinnamon. Even though that’s the first ingredient, I didn’t taste it all. It wasn’t undrinkable by any means, but I wished I was drinking something better the whole time. It would probably work well to add some ginger flavor to another tea without being overwhelming.
Flavors: Ginger, Orange
Preparation
I’m glad I ordered a sampler pack from Repuplic of Tea because I really don’t like many of the ones I’ve tried. This is no exception. I did oversteep it, so the anise flavor is quite strong. I wasn’t expecting that, and am not really in the mood for anise at the moment. It’s also a weird mishmash of other flavors. It just doesn’t blend into a complementary whole. Disappointing, but another one to strike off the list.
Flavors: Anise, Mint
