KeenTeaThyme

This is one of those teas that makes it hard for me to frown in Teavana’s general direction. I really enjoy the medley of peach and papaya, with the underlying vegetable green flavor. I enjoy this hot or iced…or lukewarm as I am enjoying it now (had a meeting and walked away without realizing I was leaving this behind). I have yet to taste a tea as tropical and flavorful as this – but I’m always open to suggestions!

I received this as part of a Christmas present to myself (I deserve it, right?!), in a cute stocking with other selections from Rachel’s Adagio blends.

Immediately opening the sample bag I am transported to San Diego, my early childhood years, making cinnamon and candy cane treats for the tree – and for our bellies. :)

This reminds me of HOME – which is so comforting and wonderful. Another sip and I’m transported to Brockport, NY, home of my beloved grandparents, another spot for holiday happiness.

The vanilla flavor is on the edge of the cinnamon and candy cane flavors – which is perfect. It’s subtle and sweet, rounding out the edges of typical holiday spices.

This is a true gem. I will be ordering more – around the holidays or in the midst of summer when I crave holiday memories.

Yums yums! :)

Love this cinnamon and plum happiness! It’s seasonal and hard to find. Can’t wait for the next holiday season… Or perhaps I’ll jet out to Colorado and visit the flagship store to stock up on fresh boxes!

This is terrific in the afternoon, to wind down from a stressful morning, or ease into a calming evening. It’s slightly sweet – a hint, as a result of the licorice. If you don’t like licorice, avoid. I love it, so I enjoy. :)

Nom nom. Love this tea! The more I drink it, the more I taste different flavors (reminds me of Dr. Pepper in that regard). The cinnamon and cola flavors are definitely the strongest.

I am in need of a pick-me-up as winter is the season I dread the most. Why can’t the holidays be at the END of the season so it doesn’t seem as long?!

I really do enjoy this cuppa. I’m starting my day with it as I crave some chai in winter. I’m trying to eat better and drink better, so that means drinking more tea. Now this is a resolution I can keep!

I love the hint of honey with the regular chai spices. I still don’t taste too much vanilla, but that’s OK.

No rating as this is my own blend.

I absolutely love the combo of cinnamon and plum so of course I had to attempt to make my own. This is a limited edition blend with very limited supplies. However I’m working on a new blend to replace it.

Limited supply available if you want to try it:
http://keenteathyme.teatra.de/store/products/wish-upon-a-star/

This is a tea that’s hard to mess up – mint and gunpowder green. It’s also one of my faves. This version is OK. Nothing that says WOW but a decent cuppa nonetheless.

I don’t taste the lemongrass too much – which is OK. It’s also not as minty as I would like. But it’s a nice standby; it’s a fave to take on-the-go in my travel tea caddy.

Pancake Breakfast, how I love thee.

This is seriously working well to clear out that awful Double Spice Chai from Stash I had minutes ago. I added a sweetener to it, which really brings out the maple syrup yumminess.

Please see other notes – this is my favorite tea by 52Teas, and I seriously hope and pray it will be added to the permanent collection. (HINT HINT, Frank! lol)

By the way, if anyone wants to try it, I will be selling three sample sets of Frank’s 52Teas, including some of the selections from the 12 Days of Christmas that I did not consume. The collections will include at least two servings of the following:
-Pancake Breakfast (gotta get more hooked on it so my campaign for permanency is successful)
-Rainbow Sherbet
-Marshmallow Treat (the non-vegan kind)
-Smores Chai
-Peach Blackberry Crumble
-Vanilla Mint Mate
-Cinnamon Roll Honeybush
-Strawberry Lemonade
-Ginger Ale
-Buttered Popcorn
-Milk & Cookies

All include free samples (at least two servings) of my new Let it Snow blend and TWO of my Adagio signature blends, of your choice including:
-Toasted Marshmallow
-Vampire Lemonade
-Merry Cinna-Berry
-Wonderland

I will be selling them for about $14.99 each, with free shipping to the USA. PM me if interested, or stay tuned to my blog & site:
http://keenteathyme.teatra.de/store/products/
http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com

Disclaimer: this is the bagged variety. But based on the BLECH-ness of the bagged kind, I won’t even consider the loose variety.

Total and utter BLECH! There is too much cardamom and clove and not enough of the sweeter spices – allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon – to round out the very harsh edges of this tea. I do love my chais, but this is a cuppa nastiness. I feel horrid about this because for Christmas this year I gave my sister-in-law and mom both some Stash bagged chais and this was one of them.

I don’t even care for the smell of this – which is appropriate considering this tastes almost as bad as it smells.

I have a couple extra bags if someone else wants to try it… But I don’t recommend it, not one bit! I’m reaching for Pancake Breakfast to get rid of that BLECH flavor…

Grabbed this from Wal-mart the other day…I was seeking my Sugar Plum Spice but can’t find it. Horrors! Thought this was a new tea (it’s not) so I thought I’d try it out…

This doesn’t exactly taste like chai to me. It’s clove-y and spicy, but not overly chai. It’s still really smooth and delicate, thanks to the white tea base. I taste the sweetness of honey and a twinge of vanilla, but neither are overwhelming. It’s a nice medley of clove, allspice, a bit of nutmeg and hints of vanilla and honey.

I don’t know if I’d go out of my way to buy it again, but I’m enjoying this for the most part. It’s not my fave CS (that distinction goes to Sugar Plum Spice) but it’s not bad either.

If anyone cares to try it before buying, please let me know; I love sharing tea, because I can justify buying more! ;) (At least to myself, the hubby is no longer fooled.)

This is one of those teas that the moment I saw Frank advertise it, I knew a pouch had to be MINE. However, I ended up bringing the pouch to work and sharing with friends so there isn’t much left! :(

BUT it’s the Dec. 24 tea in the 12 Days of Christmas for 52 Teas so happiness reigns! YAY! :)

This is one I’d love to see added to the permanent collection. It’s second only to Pancake Breakfast (and many of you know about my love affair with that blend).

This reminds me of a cinnamon sugar blend my mom would make for us to put on oatmeal and toast. (It was the only way I would eat oatmeal…doused in spices and sugar). This blend has just the right amount of cinnamon – no underwhelming and overpowering here.

I steeped it for the length of the cup as I do with honeybush tea. So I can’t infuse but I have one enjoyable cuppa. And I love that it’s caffeine-free; perfect for winding down in the evening.

This is a winner, Frank! :)

I purchased the loose version recently, so I’m upping the rating slightly. This version is much heartier and much more spicy. I taste lots of cinnamon and nutmeg with something sweet… maybe it’s the hint of rum. All I know is that this loose version is much more spicy and flavorful than the bagged variety, which I like as well, but not as much.

I normally sweeten chais but thought I’d try this without sweetener… (shocking!) I actually enjoy it without the added sweetness. It’s very warming and spicy. I imagine sitting by the fire, reading a good book or playing a good video game with this one.

I wonder what it would taste like iced?

I too thought this was the Extra Bold Masala Chai when I first opened the packet. Upon brewing, I taste lots of that delicious chai flavor with just a small hint of vanilla. I don’t taste any caramel at all, but seeing as fresh caramel causes me pain in an allergic reaction, that’s fine with me. ;)

This is very good, but the name isn’t entirely accurate. Vanilla Chai would be better – but who am I to judge?

I didn’t add any sugar to the chai (shocker, I know) and normally I do. Perhaps that would help round out the sharp edges of this spicy tea. I never add milk to chai because I’m allergic, but I also enjoy spicier teas.

Overall, this was a great one to try, but I’m not sure if I would buy it separately. I’m so very picky (OK, snobby) about my chais so that’s nothing new!

This is still a fave of mine, no matter how many other chais I try. There is something about this spicy, hearty flavor.

It’s lifting my spirit on this gray day…

OK, what the heck?! This cuppa from the 12 Days of Christmas blend from 52Teas tastes entirely different than the blend from months ago. Did my tastes change?!

Now I taste much more of the vanilla and cream goodness described by other teaists. I also let it steep for the length of the cup so more of that delicious vanilla flavor could be enjoyed.

Previously unrated. Now, highly rated. Bizarre!

The more I drink this cuppa, the more I like it! I started my morning off with this as I needed a serious pick-me-up. Winter is the season I dread the most in Maryland as I’m no fan of snow. It’s pretty and all but such a hassle. I’m from southern California, so I’m totally biased.

Anyway… this tea makes a hearty cuppa. I love the cola and cinnamon flavors and the sweetness, which must be caused by the licorice root. I added a Sun Crystals packet because frankly I’m going through sugar withdrawal and my office doesn’t need to be subjected to that reality.

For a bagged tea, this is really decent! :)

No rating as this is one of my blends.

I really get a kick out of the different interpretations of spicy fruit. This one is pleasant, although not very strong; also you cannot steep a second time – there is no cinnamon flavor left.

I enjoyed this cuppa, but it doesn’t replace Sugar Plum Spice as my favorite holiday tea.

OK, so I’ve been sick again and I got behind in the 12 Days of Christmas. I’m not sure which day this is, but I know it’s not today’s, nor one in the future. I’m going to try to be good about this the rest of the time and follow the instructions like a good gal.

On to the tea.

This smells heavenly – if heaven were made of chocolate and cashews, and I think in my own heaven that would be a floor. This reminds me of the turtles I used to get as a kid visiting in upstate New York, stopping by for our weekly fix at Abbott’s (a custard place), back when I could eat such things.

Steeped for about four minutes, since it’s a black tea, and the liquor is a deep choco-brown.

First sip – and it tastes exactly like it smells! (Of course, since Frank blended it.) I down three more sips; I want to gulp it, but it would scald my throat… I’m allergic to an enzyme in milk chocolate (as well as other dairy products) so normally I can’t indulge. This is a real treat!

This tastes like chocolate and nutty goodness. The only problem? Now I want a “real” turtle. I’ll have to “settle” for a second cuppa.

Backlogging…

Got this in a gift pack (bagged). I enjoyed this yesterday while playing RAGE on my xbox 360. (I’m a huge gamer…I should start a series on what teas go with video games!) I started out the day by playing Alice, then decided I wanted to shoot people instead so I opted for RAGE…

Oh, the TEA. Sorry. Easily distracted. ;) This tea is very minty – which I love – and with a name like Candy Cane, it should be. It brews up hearty and strong, and is minty to the last drop.

I think I do like Candy Cane Lane better – but I do tend to enjoy green teas over black teas anyway. Overall, this is a holiday delight – and a must-try for mint fans.

And RAGE is wonderful…

Grabbed this other day to help combat my winter-sucks-it’s-cold-out-there-I-wanna-stay-in-bed attitude, which increases around the holidays.

For a bagged tea variety, this is really good! I taste the cola and cinnamon, a bit of licorice (I think for sweetness) and I’m feeling more awake and alert.

May have to make this a cupboard essential!

Please note: this is the bagged variety, not the loose kind!

This is a decent tea for an afternoon pick-me-up, but it’s no Constant Comment (by Bigelow), which is my standard for the orange&spice combo. It’s decent, but nothing special. I believe this was in a sampler pack so it’s not as if I purchased a whole box anyway.

Are you surprised I’m drinking this? Don’t you know me at all?! ;) I love this blend! No matter how many chais I try and enjoy, I always come back to this one. It’s expensive, but worth it. Love a nice, spicy cuppa. I’m enjoying with my lunch today (a cold-cut sub from Subway). but great anytime.

Started my AM off with this cuppa. Delish! I really enjoy letting it steep for the length of the cup; the longer you steep, the more the spicy flavors pop. And luckily the oolong tea doesn’t get bitter. This is a new fave!