41 Tasting Notes

I picked this tea up at a farmer’s market in LA – Sugarbird is available throughout the city, and one of my favorite sandwich places uses them for their iced tea, so I thought I would give them a shot. They had several options available, but this one appealed to me the most, so I picked up an ounce.

It has taken me several tries to brew this mixture of white and green tea correctly, but I think I’ve finally got it dialed in. The dry leaf has a muted fruity smell, and that translates pretty well to the taste of the hot tea. The flavor is very delicate all around. White tea is the predominant flavor, with hints of sweet and tart from the strawberry and acai in the mix. The green tea seems to be giving it a bit more body than a white tea would ordinarily have, which is nice. As it cools, the fruit flavors become more dominant, and they aren’t artificial tasting in any way.

I’ve cold brewed this tea a couple of times as well, and it makes a decent, if light, iced tea. I’ll be trying again with some more leaf to see if that improves the flavor. Overall, though I do like the concept of the tea, I won’t be picking this up again. It’s pretty frail and finicky, and for me, there’s not enough of a taste payoff to make it worthwhile. But I will probably try a couple more blends from this company in the future.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 2 min, 30 sec

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So June isn’t exactly the holidays, but it is cool outside this morning, and I wanted to try this out. I prepared this cup from a sample teabag, and I can imagine it would be even better from a sachet or loose leaf. The dry leaves have a potent scent of cinnamon and cloves, but thankfully they are a little more subdued in the taste of the tea.

Steeped for five minutes, the black tea base is smooth but definitely strong enough to hold its own. As I have found with most of the Harney black teas that I have tried, there is no astringency or bitterness. While the tea is still very hot, the predominant tastes are of cinnamon, cloves and black tea. But as it cools, the citrus and vanilla tastes come to the foreground, and the tea has a creamier mouthfeel. I didn’t add any sweetener or milk, but the tea has a natural sort of sweetness (though not nearly as sweet as the Hot Cinnamon Spice, if that concerns you). This tea is definitely reminiscent of Christmas in every sense – like the potpourri my mom puts out every year, and the cinnamon pine cones at the craft store, and the occasional spiced baked good. I will definitely be ordering this tea come November, because while it is delicious in the summer, it will be absolutely perfect for a cold December morning.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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81

I wanted to give this tea a try because I am a sucker for tropical flavors in any sort of beverage. It smells nice and slightly fruity in the bag, though the scent isn’t as pronounced as it steeps. I have tried this one both hot (steeped at 180 for 3 minutes) and iced (cold steeped for 12 hours), and I think I like it better as an iced tea. Either way, the liquor is a very bright yellow, so much so that you could mistake it for a beer.

The fruit flavors are a little too subtle in the hot tea, though the green tea itself is nice. Cold brewed, the fruit flavors really pop. It will make a good iced tea for this summer, on its own or combined with a black tea for something a little different.

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drank Black Iced Tea by Tazo
41 tasting notes

This has been my go to iced tea mix for some time. Though I have been experimenting with icing pretty much every tea I buy, this is one I know works well and keep a pitcher of in the fridge. Tazo Black was my upgrade from Lipton, after I tried an iced tea from Starbucks one day and really enjoyed it. It has a better flavor, and a slight kick that cold brewed Lipton does not have. My husband enjoys it with sweetener, while I drink it plain, and both ways are great. We brew it as per the directions on the box, which is more of a pain that cold brewing, but I can’t argue with results.

I go through iced tea like it is water in the summertime, and because I don’t add sugar, there has to be a good amount of refreshing, rich flavor to keep me interested. This tea has that, and will have a spot in my fridge until it is unseated.

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Ordered a sample of this, and I have brewed it twice so far. When I opened the sample pouch, I immediately got a strong scent of vanilla, which was pleasant. I brewed the tea in my french press, since I am waiting for my infuser in the mail, and it worked well for this purpose.

My first cup had a really hearty vanilla flavor, almost like a vanilla dessert, and though I don’t add sugar to tea, I wanted to with this one. However, the tea was also very astringent, and I thought that it was likely due to me steeping it too long at just over 4 minutes. So the next time I made a cup, I tried steeping for 3 minutes… still flavorful, but still rather astringent. I am hoping it’s me and not the tea, so I will try again once my infuser comes in the mail, and see if it works better for me.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 3 min, 30 sec

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I cold steeped this for about 18 hours. I like this tea hot, but it is underwhelming cold and I am not sure why. The berry flavors are prominent both hot and cold, but I think the black tea flavor is stronger when it’s prepared hot. Even steeped for so long, the color is pretty pale for a black tea. I think I’ll stick to having this one hot, or maybe pair it up with a plain black teabag for a bit of interest.

Preparation
Iced 8 min or more

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Opening this tea tin, I got a strong scent of ginger and just a whiff of peach. The tea comes in circular bags, and I used one for just over a cup of water. While it was steeping, the ginger scent was almost scary strong. But once it cooled to temperature, it was still gingery but very drinkable. I’m not getting a lot of peach flavor at all, but that isn’t bad once you get accustomed to the fact that this isn’t a peachy tea. I don’t love this, but I do think this would be a great tea for when you are feeling under the weather.

I am curious to see if the peach is a more prominent flavor once the tea is iced. I’ll be sure to update once I find out.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 4 min, 30 sec

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I bought some of this at the grocery store, while waiting for tea that I ordered to come in the mail. My sister recommended it to me, and we have similar tastes in tea, so I thought I would give it a shot. It smells like berries as soon as you open the package, and that smell intensifies as you steep the pyramid bag. The berries are much more prominent than the black tea in both smell and taste, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing if you are in the mood for something very fruity. None of the tastes are overly fake or cloying, as the berry flavor matched the blueberries I had been eating pretty handily. If you are looking for a strong black tea base, I would look elsewhere. For what it is, a bagged, flavored black tea you can pick up at any grocery store, it’s a good choice.

I am cold steeping some right now, because I imagine it will be delicious that way. Will update once I have determined whether or not I am correct in my assumption.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 4 min, 30 sec

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This is the first bagged tea I have really enjoyed hot. Granted, I have not tried many, but the ones I have tried are just too weak of a flavor for me. This tea is a big step up in strength from the English Breakfast blend, and also a big step up in flavor. In fact, it reminds me a lot of coffee. I drink it black, just like coffee, and it is very full bodied and malty without being the least bit bitter. This is definitely my go-to for bagged, unflavored black tea.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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