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This is my old stand-by mint tea. I always have to have a box in the house – when I get sick I drink it by the gallon! It has a nice mint zing, but it isn’t overwhelming. I don’t taste the green tea (or the white tea, which the box says is there "for smoothness.) I am almost out, and I’m sure I will buy it again (though I plan to try a few loose leaf mints first!)

I’m feeling under the weather, so I went with the Bond Street. I prefer Irish breakfast – this is too mild for me, but it is comforting! Any longer than 3 minutes and this tea gets bitter. Drinkable without milk, unlike many breakfast teas, but I still find it rather meh.

I am starting to think that absence makes the heart grow fonder! I finished off my sample tonight. I don’t love the sample bags Upton uses – they don’t close, and besides they have folds in the bottom that tend to hold the larger pieces of the tea. This cup was much better than the last two, which I can only attribute to a noticeable amount of cardamom which had been stuck to the bottom. I also finally tasted the lovely soft chocolate note. It’s still a bit light for my taste, but I can see where the nice reviews come from now. I love cardamom… I must find more teas with that note. And now I know – I’m putting all my upton samples in little tins!

Second cup of this sample. I added more leaf this time (3 tsp to 15 oz of water.) I don’t know how long it steeped, but I’m guessing around 4 minutes. The vanilla seems more subtle than I remember it, and not at all artificial. It’s mostly black tea, but the vanilla is there in the background smoothing it out. This is lovely!

I must have forgotten to shake up the bag for my last cup… this is like a different tea. I’m increasing my rating!

Thank you, Upton for the generous sample sizes – I’ve gotten a lot of use out of this one! I’m about to place an order from Upton, and I’m checking my samples again to see if I want full sizes. I really think this is a nice chai, especially for a decaffinated (non rooibos) version. It’s spicy and warm. But… I don’t think it’s my ultimate spicy chai. I want more cinnamon in my chai, and besides I have Bengal spice filling my decaf chai needs right now. I reserve the right to start missing this in a few months!

When we bought our house it had been empty for several years. The previous owners had allowed their herb garden to run wild, and the most pervasive species was the lemon balm (also called lemon mint… never plant this stuff except in a pot!) For years, every time I cut the lawn it smelled of lemons, and that stuff took over and grew everywhere, until I gave up and tarped the whole lawn until it died. That’s a long way of saying that while I like lemon, I don’t like herbs that are similar to lemon, including lemon myrtle. It gives me flashbacks.

And really, this tea is all about the lemon myrtle. It’s sharp and aggressive, with the jasmine only managing a vague protest in the background. The oolong flavor is missing, but I expected that. I found it undrinkable plain – I could not get over the idea that it tasted of lemon oil furniture polish. Sweetened slightly (with honey) it was a little better, and I finished it, but I will not be trying this again. This was a free sample, and while I didn’t like it, I appreciate the offer to try a tea I wouldn’t usually buy! I have found some great teas that way.

This time I made sure that I saw some rose teals in my infuser, as the last time I made this tea there was no rose in my cup. The result? Success! The rose takes away some of the sweetness of the chocolate/strawberry blend and takes the tea to another level. It’s still a bit like candy, but now it’s fancy candy! I like perfumed teas, so this is what I was looking for.

I drank this while I was teaching (piano) and my student had to stop playing to demand a bit of whatever smelled so lovely. This is a definite reorder for me – next time I will get the tin!

I’m on a quest to try everyday British teas right now. This is my latest, bought at World Market off their St. Patrick’s day display. I hope I like it, because the small box contains 80 teabags (though it wasn’t expensive, so I won’t feel bad if I don’t!)

The bags are tagless and a bit dusty. I started with one bag in my large cup to test the strength. The result was a bit weak, so I tried again, opening up the teabags and measuring out the tea. The tea itself is very dark brown and tiny. I’m glad I’m using my fine mesh infuser! I knew the infusion wouldn’t take a long time because the leaves were so small, so I gave it 2.5 minutes (the same amount I do all similar breakfast teas.)

I drink all my breakfast teas with milk and sweetener, so I added the usual amount. The taste… is like breakfast tea. I don’t know how else to describe it! I was expecting something pretty assertive based on the reviews here, but it’s actually milder than many English Breakfast teas I’ve had, never mind the Irish! It does have a little kick, and it is caffeinated, but it’s not special. I would drink it (though I doubt I’ll make it through the entire box!) The problem may be that it’s hard to find these teas here, except in bags. I love PG tips the most, but I can buy that loose. It may be time to order overseas. In the meantime, I’m still on a quest for a good Irish!

Eh… I’m not a fan of this one. It tastes dusty somehow, and oversteeped no matter how short the steep time. I was trying to stay awake to write, so I thought I’d give this a try (my last cup was bad, as I thought I had oversteeped it.) I don’t know… there’s an unpleasant backdrop to this tea that doesn’t work for me. It is mild, but the bitter taste comes through even with milk and sugar. I don’t think I’ll be finishing my box!