KeenTeaThyme

Oh Read My Lips, where would I be without you? I love the spicy chocolate taste! This is to die for, truly.

Starting my Monday morning off with this recent discovery. (Eureka!) This is such a treat, a very tasty chai. I think the coconut flavor adds a hint of sweetness and enhances the taste of the assam tea base. Simply delicious! I did steep for the length of the cup and don’t recommend re-steeping, mainly as it is a bagged chai. But this is a brisk, bold cup, perfect to chase away the Monday blues! :) (Well, almost anyway…)

This is a very unique chai! Picked it up at my new, local Wegmans in Frederick, MD. For a bagged chai, this is quite tasty! I haven’t had hot tea in days. This was my inaugural tea for July and I’m glad I tried it out. I taste plenty of cinnamon and ginger, a little bit of cardamom and a lot of coconut flavor! (For those of you allergic to coconut, I checked the label – there is only coconut flavoring, not actual pieces.)
Wonder how this would taste iced? I got stuck in a meeting so the tea has cooled off considerably and it’s still tasty…

This tea is a new pantry staple. I love the Blueberry Danish one, and this one is just as delish!

Since it’s honeybush, I’ve let it steep for the length of the cup… and since it’s raspberry, I’m reminded of raspberry crisp, like my Oma makes. I taste plenty of summer raspberries. Yum! I don’t get too much of the cream cheese flavor, but there is a richness that reminds me of cheesecake.

This, to me, is the essence of 52teas – a delicious, uniquely flavored tea that within one sip you realize you cannot live without.

Wonder what this would taste like blended with the blueberry?!

This is one of my other go-to-teas when I’m sick. The rating is from previous tastings, as of right now I can barely taste anything, but that’s not the tea’s fault!

I needed more caffeine (I took the drowsy cold meds on accident), so I hope this balances out my mood.

I’d love to try blending this with a strawberry oolong or another flavored black tea – something else that would be strong enough to hold its own against the velvety, cocoa finish of the black dragon pearls.

Got any suggestions?

A side note: I finished reading Game of Thrones and “dragon pearls” made me think of the ending… I don’t want to spoil it for anyone but it’s amazing!

Now it’s my turn for a cold! Since I can barely taste anything I don’t want to “waste” new teas, so I opted for one of my favorite hot teas to enjoy when sick: Crepe Faire. I always score this after the holidays and get a couple bags to last me until the next year. I love the medley of mint and cinnamon. There’s a slight hint of vanilla, more so if you add sweetener (as I almost always add a packet of Splenda). I’ve also made this with fat-free, calorie-free vanilla syrup and it’s divine as well. Makes this cold a bit more tolerable. At least it’s Friday!

I love how refreshing this one is! It’s my first green oolong, that I can recall, and while the base tea is delicious and crisp, it’s the orange and ginger awesomeness I love! Each sip is refreshing and delicious, crisp and citrusy. Can’t wait to try this one iced! I agree that the ginger is subtle, it enhances the citrus orange. But it’s refreshing and taste bud pleasing. A new cupboard essential!

I bought the loose version of this, not the bagged as pictured. This was purchased on a whim; I love honey, I love tea, I’d like it, right? (Hence my purchase justification…) I tore open the bag and was immediately greeted with a deep whiff of honey – sweet and delish! (I imagined a bee flying right out of the bag…no worries, nothing did.) I brewed for five minutes, as it is a black tea and you know me, I like my teas bold, strong and hearty. While brewing, the honey smell was still fragrant and strong, but turning a bit floral… The first sip tastes like honeyed tea, like two teaspoons of fresh honey was dipped into a cup of floral-like tea.

OK, floral tea haters, you can breathe easy – it’s just slightly like floral, like honeysuckle, ironically. The taste is pure honey and pure delicious, there is only a twinge of honeysuckle on the end of the sip.

I did add one packet of Splenda, but I think the flavor is enhanced by that additional dose of sweetness.

I don’t know how this would taste iced and I think I would shy away from it iced anyway. A honeyed cup of warmth this is; it reminds me of autumn, and colder months approaching. It also reminds me of my youth; I would dip spoons into honey all the time. Now I just use the packets! :-D

This is soothing on my throat, too, not that I need that. But I can only imagine how wonderful this would be on a sore throat, with added honey for an extra throat soothing effect.

Yeppers, this is a new cupboard essential!

I found Sir Jason Winters and his company online; the Web site described a healing cup of herbal tea and explained his story. Intrigued, I emailed them to find out if I could include him in a story on my blog. Not only did I get permission to do that – and access to Sir Raymond Winters, his son! – I was also sent a variety of their teas to try.

I have since finished the story – and am hooked on their teas. I am not just saying that because the company was so nice to me and the teas were free. I’m saying this as a fan! I wrote the story for my blog here:
http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com/2011/05/simply-helping-people.html

Now, with all that disclaimer out of the way, on to the rating.

I have the bagged tea version of this (but am in the process of ordering the loose tea for myself). So while it is bagged, and pre-brewed (check out my story why), it is very tasty.

First off, I taste a strong oolong/black tea base. Second, the herbal taste: it’s hard to describe. Kinda minty, kinda soothing, refreshing, etc. This tastes like spiced tea – but it’s not overly spiced, for those of you who don’t care for spiced tea. The ingredients in SJW tea is trademarked and relatively secret, but I can tell you that after enjoying a cuppa SJW I feel more energized. I have the other varieties to rate as well (Raspberry and Peach are delicious).

I don’t recommend multiple infusions; also, I steep for the length of the cup, while SJW recommends 1-2 minutes. I like a bold, hearty, strong tea – and SJW’s Original Blend achieves that when I steep it as long as I want.

Second infusion: just as delightful as the first, although I wouldn’t steep for a third infusion. This is such a refreshing blend, perfect for summer.

I can never resist a mint green tea, so of course I had to obtain this one during my most recent Culinary Teas order! This minty version is unique; it’s made with gunpowder green, so it’s minty with a hint of smoky flavor. I’m a nut for anything gunpowder green…or gunmetal gray for that matter! ;) But this is refreshing and yummy. I’ve tried the cold brew version as well and it is a pantry staple. This is wonderful as well; even brewed hot, the refreshing taste of peppermint cools you. A new favorite!

I’m surprised I’m the first to review this tea. I purchased it in the loose tea version, and splurged on the 4 oz size. I love anything cinnamon so while it appeared to be a gamble, it really wasn’t. ;)
This is crazy spicy! I’d love to mix this with plum in the winter time for a cinnamon plum tea (which I love). First sip was strong – almost bitter, like I brewed too long. I added Splenda and ta-da! It’s delicious, perfectly smooth. Spicy. Delicious hot. Reminds me of autumn, which is the only season I really enjoy around here in MD. I don’t think I could drink this all the time in the summer, but come fall this will be a trusted staple.

I’m using up the last round of this tea, but I will be making it available for sale starting in July. My new place will have a Tea Center, and I’ll start selling on Tea Trade.

This is a perfect comfort this afternoon. Say no to unhappy bosses!

After the blueberry bliss, I opted for this one – but my version, which adds more blackberry dried fruit (my mom found them in her local grocery store, lucky duck) and more spearmint so overall, more flavor. I didn’t touch the rating, though, since Teavana didn’t do it right this time… (boo)
But I love my version. ;)

I am enjoying this one this morning with a blueberry Poptart. Yum! In fact I purchased the blueberry Poptarts to “match” the tea. Hubby thought I was a little crazy, but that’s nothing new. :)

This is my first KeenTeaThyme blend! So no rating as it’s mine. This is terrific hot, but would be awesome iced too. Orange & lemon, perfect flavors for summer.

I will be offering samples at KeenTeaThyme during my 5K hits contest and selling pouches of it on Tea Trade next month. Right now I’m busy packing for a move, but when the Keenans relocate to Frederick I’ll have a tea counter set up so I can really go to town on my blends!

http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com/2011/05/summer-sunshine.html

This chocolate and cherry wonder hit the spot for me today. I’m so ready for a vacation, even if it’s just one precious day off from work when I am not sick! I’d love to try this iced, but it’s so cold in my office today I just need warmth.

I really do enjoy this sweet cuppa. :)

Brewing this one again. I’m not feeling well today (came into work just for a half day) so I need something mellow and warm. Blueberry danish won. I actually over-steeped it accidentally, but no worries. I can’t re-steep it, but it’s a hearty, strong tea now. And I love the smell of blueberries as it’s brewing. YUMS!

Tried this one iced today! Yums! :) (Please see other tasting notes.)

Thanks to the lovely QuiltGuppy I was able to give this one a try…and it is a new cupboard essential! I love the flavors in the chai! It’s spicy but also sweet, without sweetener. It may actually beat Teavana’s chai (which is quite a feat but would be a welcome change since Teavana is…well Teavana.). The black tea is strong and bold, perfect for an AM cup. I love the vanilla flavoring too – it’s strong as well. Pepper, cardamom and I taste a little bit of clove too. Delish! Thank you so much for sharing, QG! I’m hooked!

Got this in a swap with QueenofTarts. I’ve been wanting to try this one, so I had high hopes. Plus I love just about anything 52teas so I knew I’d enjoy this.

That being said, while this is good, it’s not the best. It’s definitely tasty – and if it was blended by anyone else I would be a fan. But there’s something…off about this.

When I think of White Chocolate Grasshopper, I’m remembering these grasshopper cookies I enjoyed as a kid: chocolate-y and minty. There’s not much mint flavor at all, which is disappointing.

However, I normally cannot enjoy white chocolate and yet I can with this blend. It definitely tastes like light chocolate and there’s a syrupy taste I enjoy as well. Plus it’s caffeine-free so it’s a nice dessert tea.

I ended up adding extra spearmint to the blend and liked it much more….although I went a bit overboard on the mint and could barely taste the white chocolate!) Overall this is definitely a good blend, sweet and subtle, but not my favorite at 52teas. (Pancake Breakfast still holds that title.)

I’ll keep trying it with mint, maybe White Choc. Grasshopper and I can reach a healthy medium!

I’m running low! Oh no! This is one of my favorite AM wakeup cuppas. I love the maple-y, buttery goodness. I saw that a competitor for 52teas has maple tea…I’ll try that as I cope with the loss of Pancake Breakfast. (Please see other tasting notes.)

I love that you can re-infuse these. I’ve been working on one all day; I’m on my second infusion and will finish up soon, infusing for a third time and the ride home. I cold brew in a 20 oz cup, so that’s even more than a usual mug size. These are perfect for summer!

Tried this iced today…even better! I upped the rating since it’s multi-purpose! I will be getting a larger bag; if anyone wants to try some from my sample lemme know. Or perhaps we can split an order? I’m no tea pusher (like QG! :) ) but if you’re looking for a perfect summertime strawberry tea, this is it. :) Simply yummiful! (It’s so good, I invent words for it.)