softrevolution

I had this yesterday morning for the first time in quite a long time. It’s one of my favourites but I think I overdid it on chais and spice based teas for a while, and kind of drank myself sick of them. That, and I used to brew every black tea I owned at boiling for 5min. Ummm…no. 5min is much too much for a lot of black teas, flavoured or otherwise. So needless to say I’d often end up with a cup of bitter, overly flavoured, sorely oversteeped tea, which I blamed on the tea itself rather than my bad steeping parameters. I think this blend was a victim of that.

So at a 3.5 minute steep, I’m enjoying this a lot more! The vanilla and orange notes come out, whereas before I was just getting straight up sweet cinnamon. I’m almost finished my tin but I might have to get a bit more to play around with. Made a tasty, warming cup.

Drank this in a frenzy yesterday morning while trying to get myself (and my apartment) ready for a visit from the parents. They’re not in town often but they always seem to catch me at a super busy time when my place happens to be a mess. Sigh. I got everything in order just about in time though, and obviously I couldn’t skip out on my morning cup of tea.

I love pumpkin teas and this one is nearly perfect. I love the rich spices and the addition of caramel. I’m really glad I picked up a pouch. Especially since I’m kicking myself for getting 3 pouches of Butterbeer, which I swear has changed. I keep getting bitterness. Sigh. At least I have lots to experiment with I suppose.

So glad to have this back in my cupboard. It makes crappy mornings a little more bearable. It’s what I reach for after a draining day. Pure, sweet comfort. Hello again, friend!

Della Terra Dubbele Chocolade + Caramel Creme

Sipdown on the Dubbele Chocolade! And not quite enough left for a mug. So I tossed in some Caramel Creme and was blown away by the deliciousness. These two seem meant for eachother, soo much more tasty when paired (which is saying something, cause I loved them both individually). The result is sweet-but-not-too-sweet dark chocolate and burnt sugar with an ever so slightly creamy quality that rounds it out keeps the darker flavours from being too much.

Second tea of this lazy morning for me. Enjoying being curled up on the couch by the window with hot tea and a hefty book & happy to have some quiet time all to myself while my love sleeps in.

This is a nice coconut tea. I don’t taste much cream, or any pie crust notes, but as a coconut tea it holds up pretty well.

I think I’ve realized I like tropical coconut notes (like in Buttered Rum, for example) better than bakey coconut, as in this tea. This one tastes like toasted coconut flakes and reminds me of a toasted coconut covered donut.

Most days I find it to be really tasty, but on others I can find it really overwhelming and it makes me feel a bit nauseous. This morning I made a perfect cup though and it’s suiting me just fine. 4 min steep seems to be just the way I like it.

This was another late night new years brew. Strangely enough, this time as soon as the water hit the leaf a strong, juicy orange was the only note I could smell. How strange! The last time I had it I remember it being distinctly pineapple, but orange is the only association I’m getting today.

Yep, the flavour is orangey-citrus for me too. If I try really hard I can convince myself it’s maybe pineapple. My tastebuds must be off, this isn’t how I remember it at all! Not bad, but definitely different.

I had the second steep this morning when I finally rolled out of bed, and it held up nicely. Doesn’t resteep as well as the Canteloupe & Cream, but definitely worth having at least 2 infusions.

Mm this is quickly becoming a favourite. So smooth and refreshing yet creamy too. I had a cup of this earlier this afternoon, and really enjoyed the first steep. Lots of juicy melon flavour that really highlights and compliments the white tea. Lovely clean finish.

I left the leaves in my infuser and a little after midnight I was feeling a bit tipsy and plenty sleepy, so I brewed up a second steep. I was surprised how much flavour is retained in the resteep – I haven’t had much luck resteeping flavoured teas in the past. Anyway I’m not sure if it was the hydration or the caffeine but my cup of tea did wonders in waking/sobering me up :D

This will definitely be a reorder for me, I’ve never had anything quite like it.

Had some of this one for the first time after the big dinner. It was nice and soothing on a full belly and went down nicely with no additions. The scent is of bright, intense lemon with a hint of spice from the cardamom. I was kind of surprised this made it into the 12 teas box; it looked a little ho-hum next to some of the other blends Frank is famous for.

I was wrong, though! This is pretty nice, and definitely holds its own. All of the flavours come together nicely and it made a nice after dinner tea. Not a favourite but still quite good.

Ooh lovely lovely! I knew this would be amazing as soon as I smelled it. Soft mint! Creamy sweet marshmallow! Black tea! I’m not big on minty teas but I like it when it’s subtle and done well. That’s the case for me in this one. It really is a perfect Christmas morning tea. I have loved all of Franks blends with marshmallow so far. Keep them coming, please! Adds such a yummy sweet creamy feel.

The taste of this blend reminds me of those peppermint drops that are made of white chocolate and come in pastel colours. Do those have a name? Hmm. Well this is like those candies in black tea form, and I am really enjoying this. Think I might grab a pouch when it comes available.

My girl got me a big ol’ 100g tin of this in my stocking. She knows me well, it’s my favourite from David’sTea and I had just run out of it a couple weeks ago. My tin is absolutely filled to the brim with goodness :D

This was my Christmas eve tea (we couldn’t wait and exchanged stockings early) and it was so nice and creamy and full of flavour. A bit better than the last batch I had.

Lime jello salad tea? How fun! I love the flavours involved here too. Lime and pineapple and marshmallow sounds good to me.

The scent when I opened the package was intoxicating – really strong and sweet and bright. Couldn’t wait to try it. I’m guessing this would shine as an iced tea, but I felt like a hot tea and it was still quite good. The sweet candy-like lime jello flavour was spot on, with a nice pineapple in the background an a faint creaminess from the marshmallow. I steeped for 2.5 mins, but I’m thinking it could probably handle 3. The rest of my sample will be flash-chilled so I get to try it iced. I’d happily drink this one again!

Oh dear, I’ve gotten behind in my 12 teas of Christmas notes once again. How did that happen? Oh well, it’s too far gone now. I’ll just review them as I please :D

I’ve been really enjoying trying a new tea every day though. I’ll be a loyal 12 teas of Christmas enthusiast as long as Frank keeps making them every year! I love a new tradition. Although after seeing everyone’s notes about the 12 days swap, I’m a little sad I didn’t participate. Looks like tons of fun!

This tea smells like delicious malty chocolate cake batter. I like that the tea smell isn’t overpowered by the chocolate, even in the dry leaf.

I tried it with no additions after about a 4 min steep and it was quite bitter. Added a bit of sugar, but still bitter. Time for some milk, and with both the milk and sugar it’s quite nice. Most of the bitterness has been covered up and the tasty dark chocolate and bold black tea notes come out. I enjoyed my cup, but I don’t think I could drink this often. It’s really heavy, without anything to brighten it up. But overall it’s a decent, chocolatey tea.

So the other day I accidently bought unsweetened chocolate almond milk. I am crazy for chocolate almond milk but this unsweetened version is just so disappointing. So it has been delegated to dessert tea duty.

This blend from Della Terra is probably my favourite chocolate tea that I’ve tried so far. It’s really rich and has a great dark chocolate scent and flavour. I used to keep my packet of this at the office and whenever I had it brewing at my desk, without fail someone would ask what smelled so intoxicatingly delicious. Brownies? Cookies? Is someone somehow baking a chocolate torte? Nope, just my tea.

With the added chocolate almond milk and the tiny spoon of sugar I snuck in, this is absolutely decadent. Just soo good. Definitely need to make another Della Terra order soon.

I never thought I’d like this as a hot tea, but it is darn good. Not nearly as tasty as 52teas Butterbeer, but still really nice. I think I actually like it better hot than iced. Who knew?

All of the lovely spices come out really nicely and with a bit of milk and sugar, this strangely enough brings to mind a new take on chai. Spicy, but in a different way. More sweet-spice than heat-spice. Yum.

If I were the type to rate teas (something I don’t do often) this would surprisingly gain a slightly higher rating as a hot tea than as an iced tea in my books. Glad I tried it this way, or else it might have been sitting around in my cupboard for a long time to come.

This smells and tastes exactly as I imagined it! And it is lovely. I steeped for 2:30 and it is nicely flavoured without being bitter at all. I need to try these parameters with sun and cloud mist to see if it eliminates the slight bitterness I got at a 3 min steep.

This was just the thing for me tonight. I had a bit of a tummy ache after too many sour gummies (my weakness!) and spearmint, green tea and marshmallow root sounded perfect. Normally I would have been tempted to add a 1/2 tsp of sugar, but I am drinking it plain tonight because of my aforementioned overindulgence. It has a nice natural sweetness from the spearmint, and a really nice overall light and airy feeling to it. I don’t usually love mint, but it’s really well balanced in this blend.

I’m so glad to be all caught up with my tasting notes for 12 teas! Now on to backlogging a few things I’ve tried over the past couple of weeks.

This stuff smells glorious. Glorious! Rich spices and caramel, and roasty pumpkin undertones. The kettle couldn’t boil fast enough.

Steeped up for 4 min with a splash of milk and sugar, this is a perfectly sweet and delicious dessert tea. I love all things pumpkin so I didn’t doubt that this would be a winner. I taste the pumpkin and spice, and a bit of caramel, but I’m missing the cheesecake. If I reeeeallly try I can find a bit of a tang, but nothing remarkably cheesecake-like.

I am waiting (and wishing and hoping) to find Butterbeer or Earl Grey Cheesecake in my sampler before placing an order for reblends, but if there is still some of this left if that time comes, I’m definitely snagging a pouch.

I contemplated ordering this a while back, but the white base threw me off. Very happy to have the chance to try this though! I am in love with black currant flavoured things. Well, black currant candies in particular. Especially wine gums! And those little pastilles. I also recently had a black currant soda that was an absolutely perfect blend of sweet, tart and juicy.

Bergamot is also a favourite of mine, and sounded like it would compliment the currant nicely. But I’m always a little iffy about white teas. I’ve had them go bitter on me more than a few times, and when I’m drinking a flavoured tea I don’t want it to be fussy.

After a 2:30 min steep though, this wasn’t bitter at all. Yay! Tastes like sweet currants and almost like concord grape juice. Sweet and winey with a bit of that pucker-inducing tartness. I wasn’t expecting to taste grape, but it’s nice! I’m not picking up on much bergamot though, sadly.

This packs a nice punch of flavour, but I actually enjoy the base coming through, which is fairly unexpected. Glad I have a bit more left to play around with.

KITTEN!! I want to squish it and love it. That is all.

This blend smells delicious! I am smacked in the face with lemony goodness upon opening the packet. There is a sweetness to it as well, which reminds me of lemon drops or lollipops.

Flavoured greens are really hit or miss for me, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I think I oversteeped my cup though, at 3 min. Sigh. It’s a sliiiiight bit bitter, but thankfully it didn’t kill my cup. The bright, fresh lemon is the first flavour I get, followed by a bit of grassiness, and then finally rounded out by the marshmallow creaminess at the end. I love that it’s something a little different than your standard lemon/citrus green. The marshmallow root really makes it special.

I was so excited to see this included in the 12 teas box! I’ve been wanting to try it ever since I heard of its existence. Pineapple orange banana is one of my favourite flavour combinations. Reminds me of these dole juice boxes that I used to have in my packed lunches as a child. If I found a pineapple orange banana juice box in my lunch, I knew it was going to be a good day!

When I opened my packet, like many others I smelled sweet, sticky juicy fruit gum. Not what I was expecting, but yum! It smells tropical fruity and delicious. I wish I could pick out the individual fruit flavours though.

Hot, the bubblegum flavour carries through. This one needs a long steep to get a full flavour. The fruits come out a little, but I’m guessing they’d pop the best as an iced tea. There’s a nice smooth thickness to the brew that enhances the smoothie association.

Overall, I am digging this honeybush! Easy to drink and pleasant. I think I’ll cold brew the rest.

I’ve been on a bit of a steepster hiatus lately, what with end of term at school, holiday hours at work, and some traveling to see family. It’s good to be back, and time to catch up on my 52teas 12 teas of Christmas!

I love this blend, and thought it a lovely way to start off the countdown. I cheated and opened it a few days early, as I knew I’d be away from home the weekend of the 14th. The girlfriend and I split a pot of it with breakfast, and it is soo nice and smooth. I love the caramelized sugar notes that come through at the end of the sip. The little sample packet was just enough for a small pot of tea and a sparsely leafed mug. Not bad!

Lovely lovely lovely. Sweet and lightly creamy with a vague fruitiness. The chamomile really brings it all together and brings it closer to a buttercream (ish) flavour. It gets better and better as it cools, and in fact I like it best iced.

I’m not huge on white tea but I really enjoy this. And to think I left it untouched in my cupboard for so long after a bad first impression. I think I must have just understeeped it on my first try.

This was a sample — thanks Stacy!

I really enjoyed this one, moreso than I thought I would. Light, crisp, and refreshing. I tasted fresh green beans with a smooth creaminess, and at the suggested 3 mins not a hint of astringency.

I don’t think I’d drink this on a regular basis; it’s not an overly exciting tea (other than the lovely, fuzzy, and obviously carefully crafted leaves!), but it is simple and satisfying. Really pure and fresh tasting.

I think I’m finally ready to explore unflavoured teas a little more, and this was a nice place to start.

Confession time. I am a t-sac junkie. Here’s how it goes: I buy a pack of t-sacs with the intention to only use them at work, while traveling, and when I’m on the run in the morning, but then I just end up using them for every single flipping cup of tea I make because I am supremely lazy. It’s gotten so bad that I ended up finishing a pack of 100 filters within the span of a couple weeks. Time to stop putting a strain on the environment and my wallet and just use a darn infuser basket! I will conquer this laziness. I just bough two new perfect mugs from DT last week, so now I have no excuses :)

Which leads me to my beloved Mayan Chocolate Chai. This was my first time making it with an infuser rather than a t-sac, and holy heck is it ever spicy! I can’t believe the difference sans t-sac. The pepper is the first flavour I taste and it remains dominant for the whole sip. Yum! Spicy, spicy goodness. I can’t believe how much flavour I was losing before. All the more reason to permanently kick my t-sac habit.

Having a cup of an old favourite this morning. I’ve been neglecting it as of late, after discovering that there’s a whole world of tea beyond Davids. For the longest time, it was the only tea company I had tried that I truly enjoyed every aspect of. The tea, the marketing, the branding, it all drew me in. And Buttered Rum has to be my very favourite that they have to offer. So delicious and rich and satisfying.

I just opened up a new bag of this and it’s quite different from my last batch. I got this pouch on sale, I think they had split up a bunch of unsold giftsets and were selling the pouches individually on the cheap.

This batch is a lot heavier on the smoky rum flavouring, which is not my favourite. I love it for the buttery sweet caramelized coconut notes, which are a little muted by the rum. Oh well, still tasty. I wonder if the rum will fade over time? Either way, this tea and I are old friends, and I have a feeling I’ll be keeping it around for a long time to come.