Tabby

Ok, I admit it, I signed up for the Republic of Tea catalog for the free samples. Guilty.

Anyway, it smelled really tart when I sniffed the bag while waiting for the water to heat up. It also, of course, smelled like dried hibiscus without the bitterness that fresh hibiscus flowers have. The second I poured the water into the mug, it turned magenta, then proceeded to get very dark.

Hmm, as far as the taste goes, it’s a little mediocre. I can detect what I think is lemongrass, plus maybe some kind of berry, but it’s very mild. It’s tangy, and something about it reminds of Tazo’s “Passion”. (But it’s not as good.) I wouldn’t pursue this tea again, but it’s not bad.

My first tea by the legendary LiberTEAS!

This is absolutely wonderful. I would never have thought to combine rose and cinnamon, but I love it. There is just enough rose in it, as I’ve had rose teas before that were almost peppery, but this is much better balanced. The cinnamon softens the rose and creates a really warm, delicious taste. The vanilla adds another dimension, especially in the aftertaste, and it’s just icing on the cake at this point. And the vanilla compliments the black tea’s natural taste, which just makes it even better. I’m definitely making a strong cup of this tomorrow morning before I work a double.

I’m actually really sad now that LiberTEAS isn’t in business anymore. Because yum.

I have LiberTEAS to thank for a sample of this!

This is definitely interesting. I’m still getting used to yerba mate itself, so this tasted a little light and foreign to me. I’m used to black tea chais, as one might expect. I like the balance of spices, and it has that chai warmth to it, but I think I prefer traditional chais. Still, I’m glad I got a chance to try it.

Very tired of this, and I still have like a fourth of the tin left. Bleh. Definitely not reordering at this point.

My mom handed me this the other day and I finally got around to brewing it. It’s a fairly strong black tea, though somehow no flavors in it really stand out to me. Essentially, this is very standard, and frankly not bad. I wouldn’t spring for it again, on the other hand. It’s just a little too plain for me.

Made a pot of this thanks to Teafreak, who traded with me. (How are you guys bolding each other’s names?)

I’m really impressed with the way this looks. It’s like silver needle plus some sort of flat-leafed white tea, and then mixed half and half with dried honeysuckle flowers and buds.

It’s very mellow, even when brewed for a little over three minutes. It has a slightly vegetal taste, and sort of grassy also. It finishes with that white tea aftertaste that’s satisfying and mild. I can’t say that the honeysuckle taste is very strong, but it’s there and I really enjoy it. It’s more in the scent of the tea once it’s brewed. Reminds me of spring!

Oh good lord. I’m glad I still had a bit of tea in another cup to wash the flavor out of my mouth. This matcha is apparently soluble in hot or cold liquids, so I went with a small cup of cool water. It dissolved fine, though it did leave some dark dregs in the bottom. The flavor is like oversteeped green tea leaves that sat out for a few days and started to rot. Plus lawn clippings. I basically chugged it just so the herbal content wouldn’t be wasted.

I am buzzing pretty hard by now (not like Red Bull hard, but it’s more than tea usually gives me). But I can get a buzz somewhere else without having to suffer through the taste of this stuff!

ETA 15 minutes later — MY EVERY THOUGHT IS IN ALL CAPS!! Time to clean ALL THE THINGS! OUT OF MY WAY!!

…There’s green tea in this?

This just tastes like a raspberry V8. I am not amused. Especially when it sits long enough to get to room temperature and gains a tomato juice aftertaste.

Backlogging from the day before yesterday.

This tea is so interesting! I’ve never tried pu-erh from a little cake before. Or green pu-erh, for that matter. I used an entire cake for a pot that usually makes around 4 cups and as it steeped, I broke it up with a spoon to make sure it soaked all the way through.

In hindsight, I should have steeped it for longer. I saw that it was a green tea, almost like a white, so I treated it delicately. Somehow the fact that it’s a pu-erh slipped my mind. The flavor was very light this way, much like a white tea, but with the sort of aged aftertaste of pu-erh. The tea’s liquor was a light yellowy green.

My second attempt will steep at least five and a half minutes.

Backlogging from around 2:30 today.

So sad to be at the end of this sample. I had been holding out, but I’m back from vacation and wanted to have something nice on my first day back. My friend had never had darjeeling before, so I was happy to introduce him to it today. He was out of regular sweetener or sugar, so we used brown sugar instead. That made this seriously decadent. I probably should have given it one more minute to really bring out the muscatel flavor, but I’ll know next time.

Yeah, I’m definitely getting myself a bag of this. I’d miss it too much otherwise.

Nearing the end of the supply I bought when I found out this was being discontinued. To make it stretch since I’ve gotten pretty fond of it, I’ve brewed two teaspoons of this and three of Adagio’s English Breakfast in this pot. The pineapple taste is less powerful this way, but I honestly like it better. I can enjoy the Ceylon paired with the standard English breakfast’s smooth malt flavor.

Yum again. Creamy and orangy but in a non-obtrusive way, well-rounded by the vanilla oolong. The chamomile is sort of buried by that taste, along with the faint hint of rooibos. It’s in the finish, like an afterthought. And yet it’s soothing that way. Even with as many different flavors as there are in this, they don’t clash. Really enjoying this after being in the car all day.

Still on vacation, but I needed my tea and review fix… I found a packet of this lying around at my great aunt’s place and went for it.

The blueberry flavor is enough to knock your head back. Blueberry fans, this might be worth a try, I’m just saying. Like others have said, it’s definitely a strong and unmistakable flavor, but it does taste a bit processed or enhanced. As if it was blueberry candy or something like that. And the rest of the herbal content might as well not be there. I can sort of taste the apple bits, but aside from that, it’s all muted. I probably wouldn’t pick this up again, but only because I’m not a huge blueberry fan. And I’d rather have black tea with caffeine…

The first thing I notice about this tea is the lemongrass. It was basically all I could see in the bag, and it’s the strongest smell when the tea is brewed. But there is some very pleasant raspberry flavor there, too. It’s a little tangy, and only slightly herbal tasting. Something sort of reminds me of soap in it, however, so I’m a little turned off toward it. I probably wouldn’t try this again.

Also, it’s decaf. That’s like the kiss of death in my collection.

I think I may have stumbled upon a chai obsession, thanks to the previous one I tried by Arbor Teas. I just had to have more chai and my mom had this lying around in her kitchen.

However, this is pale in comparison. A little disappointing. Sure, all the spices are there, but even after 6 minutes, it’s a little too mild for me after a splash of milk. But it would be good in a pinch if I really, really wanted chai and needed something cheap. I would maybe brew it a bit longer, or maybe with 2 bags.

It’s good, but not great.

I am thrilled to get to try my first yerba mate today! I opened the package to peek and sniff last night, and was reminded of a pleasant green tea, just in a different sort of consistency.

Anyway, the taste is unfamiliar and interesting, and yet, it still tastes a lot like green tea. I assume that’s because of the way it was cured. It has a certain spiciness to it, and a taste that reminds me of green leaves. Something about it sort of reminds me of peppers, but not in a hot way, more like the way a pepper tastes on the inside. It’s not like tea exactly, but similar. I like it.

I used a teaspoon and a half to make one mug’s worth. Not really sure if that’s the proper amount, but it seems right. Now that I’ve reduced it to dregs at the bottom of the cup, I’m starting to notice the famous yerba mate buzz. It does feel a lot like caffeine, but without that “I’m going to have a panic attack” feeling. I feel stimulated and a perkier, ready to tackle all the mundane stuff I have to do today before I leave for vacation.

So curious about Arbor’s other yerba now… hmmm.

Nooo, it’s already all gone. D: This is also going to be on my shopping list for when I’ve cleared out my tea cabinet. Along with at least 5 other teas I’ve tried by Arbor Teas.

Tart and interesting, especially when brewed for 6 minutes. It really brings out the rosehips and plum flavor, plus is strengthens the oolong portion of the tea as well. The plum tastes just like the real thing at this amount of time. Like I can almost taste the tart skin but the mild sweet inside.

Oh. I think I’m in love.

This is my first hardcore, loose leaf chai. I’ve only had it in matcha form or bagged up until now. I am most definitely going to buy this! I think I should maybe brew it for a minute longer, but it’s just… it’s a symphony of spices. The mixture looks so cool while it steeps… like a mix of bark, crushed leaves, and seeds.

I did it in half 2% milk, half water and added sugar. I wish I had half and half, as that would make this epic. Someone stop me from buying the pound, please. <3

The taste of this tea is good, the mango essence seems real, but it is overshadowed by something else I can’t place. Maybe it’s the calendula flowers in it, as I’m not entirely sure what those taste like. (This is my first tea that included them.)

I don’t know what it is, I just can’t get into this one. I normally love mango tea.

I woke up this morning and could not wait to get this open. This is such an interesting tea! Rose hips, dried schizandra berries, hibiscus, and of course plum! It looked like potpourri in the bag as I transferred it to a tin.

The plum taste is absolutely vivid. It’s like the tea was soaked in Japanese plum wine, then dried. I admit I find the hibiscus flavor a little overpowering in this blend, but I still like it in all its complexity. The oolong is very mild beneath it all, but accompanies it well.

It brews up to a lovely pinkish-amber hue, and smells like fruit juice. In fact, the tea’s flavor reminds me a lot of juice when it has had time to cool. It’s wonderful. But that’s coming from a plum tea fiend.

Sipping my last cup of this from the tin. In fact, I didn’t have enough for a full cup, so I added a pinch of Adagio’s Snowbud to the mix. Since this blend is made with Snowbud in the first place, it hardly changes the flavor. There is noticeably less blueberry taste, however.

Sad to see this one go. :/

Backlogging from this morning. Another packet I found lying around. Warm, orange zesty, and good. I’m actually kinda curious about the loose leaf form of this… though probably not interested enough to buy it.

I probably should have drank this without cream. The tea simply couldn’t stand up to it. I tend to expect my chai to be strong, but this one is not. All I can taste is a fakey vanilla flavor and the cream. Sort of reminds me of a vanilla-scented candle. There are a few hints at other spices, but they’re indistinct. I don’t like it at all.

Unlike what seems like most of you, I didn’t grow up drinking Constant Comment. In fact, I had managed to live 24 years without trying it somehow, despite my love for tea. Anyway, I made myself a cup before work today.

The tea snob in me wants to hate it just because it’s in a bag, old-fashioned, and common. But in all honesty, I like it. None of the spices are too overwhelming, and the orange zest tastes real, unlike that awful stuff Tazo makes. Also, you can still taste the black tea despite the other flavors, and that’s tasty too. Drinking it this time of year feels festive. It’s a good autumn tea.