KeenTeaThyme

Thanks to the awesome JoeCool (Nichole) for sending me some of this tribute to Jane Austen. I am in LOVE with this blend! I’m a nut for anything Jane Austen (well, maybe not the movie adaptations of some of her works), plus I go crazy for blackberry so this blend will always have a place in my heart – and in my cupboard!

I brewed this up longer than I should have the first time around, so I ended up with more blackberry than vanilla. (What a shame.) 2nd infusion/cup I carefully brewed for about four minutes and now the flavor is the perfect balance…although I still taste slightly more blackberry. Whatevs. It’s delish regardless. A must for blackberry fans. An essential for Jane Austen tea drinkers. This one rocks!

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2nd cup. I figured out what this kinda reminds me of – the glue on envelopes. When I was a kid I helped my dad out with his company’s mailings and often the glue would taste good – a little like licorice candy. I’d lick a couple and then give in to my mom’s pressuring of using a wet sponge instead of my tongue.

Anyhoo, that’s what this tea reminds me of, and it brings back a happy childhood memory – although I realize now I was working for my dad for free – he had free labor! ;)

This is in teabag form, of course, so I wonder if I should have a different rating system? What do you think?
http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com/2011/02/bagged-tea-versus-loose-tea.html

Back to the tea. First sip there is a lot going on. Almost too much. It’s spicy – whoa, there’s the licorice. I love the sweet aftertaste of licorice, but you know it’s there. So if you don’t like licorice, you may want to pass on this tea – and possibly all Yogi teas. It’s a fave ingredient of theirs.

I can see why this would be a popular tea for someone who is sick – especially if you can’t taste anything.

A few sips in and I’m thinking this tea is kinda nasty. Yet I keep drinking it. It makes my throat feel good – all the flavors of helping one feel better when one is sick.

It’s soothing. And kinda making me sleepy. I think I’ll re-evaluate and re-rate later, after I try another cup…

About 15 mins later: I noticed the brew is kinda foggy and I’m concerned about consuming a foggy tea. Nonetheless I keep drinking it… and now it’s starting to taste kinda good…

This is an interesting tisane. I drank it hot – love the hot pink color! There are so many layers of this tea: first it starts out tangy and citrusy, then becomes floral and fruity, but ends like a sweet, candied apple.

I’ll have to try this iced, but hot it is delicious. I didn’t steep it for as long as recommended, only about five minutes. However I have a dislike of hibiscus; I don’t like tea that it too tart or too tangy.

At five minutes, this brews up perfectly pink and deliciously smooth.

I’m not going to rate this tisane just yet, as I’m still on the fence. I love how minty, refreshing, fresh and calming this brews up. I drank one cup on this relaxing Sunday and the tisane tasted nice. Decent. But afterwards I felt thirsty – this has never happened before.

So I’ll brew up some cups during the week and see where it stands…

I’m settling down for my daily video game addiction to be satisfied (I’m playing Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood for those interested). This will keep me mellow when the *#$# enemies try to get the best of me! :)

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Ending my work day with this gem so I can do one more power kick through my work and then toddle off to non-work-related activities. :)

Got these in the box from my SweeTEA, the lovely Meghann. (Thanks!) I was a bit concerned that I would not like them due to my love-hate relationship with rooibos, but I can never turn down a cookie. (Just ask my coworkers.) These were surprisingly delicious! I plan on ordering more, and am excited to try the other varieties.

These are buttery with the rooibos tea flavor there – obviously – but instead of me running away in horror from the wood/sawdust taste, I LIKE it! It’s spicy and woodsy, which makes no real sense, I know, but combined with the sugar and buttery tastes, this rounds out to be a darn good cookie!

Adagio says you get about 15 per bag but I think I got at least 20-25. I have been spacing out my enjoyment; tried these with my usual Chai Blend from Teavana and the experience was absolutely decadent!

I have had a love affair with lavender thanks to my grandma’s garden. My Oma has had lovely lavender growing in her garden for years. So I am completely biased about any and all things lavender.

Lavender tea is one of those weird things that you’re not sure if it will actually taste good. Like the illusive Bacon Diet Coke. Lavender is an herb, something you use in soap, bath salts and other bath products.

But this tea is wonderful! It brews up purplish – which tickles me – and is soothing and comforting. I taste lavender and sweet black tea. As with most of Joy’s Teaspoon teas, you can infuse at least two, if not more, times.

Third infusion – still going strong. Strong lavender, strong cup of calmness, strong love for lavender.

2nd infusion. I actually left the teabag steeping for the entire length of me enjoying the cup. So this is more like a fifth infusion. ;)

Still watermelon-y. Still summer in a cup. A bit weaker than the first infusion, but since it steeped for almost 20 mins, I’ll let that pass.

I will be placing an order for this in the near future. And I’m glad I found a honeybush that I get along with! :)

Oh, Watermelon Honeybush, where have you been my entire life?! Thanks to the lovely Meghann for splitting with some from her stash. I am in watermelon heaven!

This is summer in a cup! The leaves smell like fresh watermelon – like a natural flavor not artificial. Once brewed – and I steeped for at least eight minutes, although the bag is still in my cup – the watermelon smell becomes irresistible!

First sip tastes like a bite from a summer watermelon. OMG! This is summer in a cup. I never knew honeybush could be so pleasant; we have a sordid past, honeybush tea and rooibos, with me. But this tea erases the bad memories.

If you love watermelon, you need this tea. Bottom line. It’s a must! And it’s wonderful to taste summer in February. :)

Going back to basics after being a bit adventurous this morning.

I truly do love this blend and never grow tired of it. Darn you overpriced chai for making me fall for you!

New must-have for me! Thanks Nichole for sharing some from your stash; I would be too greedy to part with any of this!

I got excited when I saw the pieces of what appeared to be candy canes, only to see they were actually little candy canes! So cute!

The tea smells AMAZING from the bag; in fact I left it open accidentally on my desk and a coworker assumed I had chocolate cake in the vicinity!

From the first sip to the last this tea is strong in mint. I must acquire a full-size bag of this for year round consumption! :)

Thanks to Meghann for letting me try this one! I am lovin’ it; agreed that it’s not so much like ginger ale soda but like ginger flavor. There are other notes there as well which I can’t accurately taste as I enjoyed this tea with my mid-morning snack of strawberry applesauce.

I let it steep for a good six minutes for a heartier flavor – and the ginger flavor was stronger.

OK I’m thinking there is a basil flavor there. Not 100% sure (due to strawberriness) but it tastes crisp like basil does. To me.

Not a fave from 52Teas, but still a decent selection. The ginger does pep me up!

I really enjoyed this sample from JoeCool (Nichole) – mainly because I normally cannot eat Key Lime Pie! I love the company name too. ;)

Immediately from the bag I can smell the deliciousness of key lime, a scent that sticks around after it is brewed. In added a Splenda to this one after the first sip wasn’t very flavorful. This is one of those black teas which is enhanced by sweetener. (TeaEqualsBliss I know you are thinking, “No way!”) But the key lime flavor was much more predominant after the sweetener. Or maybe it’s the power of suggestion. (TeaEqualsBliss nods her head, yes.)

That same flavor stays around long enough for me to finish the cup. And for the most part, I enjoyed it. But there is still an aftertaste that reminds me of A1 steak sauce. Stop laughing; I love A1 so I don’t mean it as an insult necessarily. Not quite sure what to make of this one. I’ll try it again in a little bit.

This smells like grape deliciousness! Immediately upon opening the sample from JoeCool (Nichole) I smelled fresh grapes and thought of Welsh’s grape juice. This isn’t a bad thing; I enjoy juice as much as the next kid-at-heart. And the leaves are so colorful and pretty.

I didn’t look up this tea before trying it; I didn’t want to get any ideas about what it SHOULD taste like.

First sip, there is a bit of a smoky flavor I wasn’t expecting. Second sip, it’s still there. It’s not as grape-y as I would have liked, but the smoky flavor is a bit like gunpowder, so I’m cool.

By the end of the cup, I’m left wanting more grape flavor and less smokiness. Bottom line: a decent tea but not one I’d go out of my way to try. It’s prettier to look at than drink, IMO.

Had to begin with a little extra caffeine today…

I love, love, love this tea – but am slightly biased as its creator. :) The smoky flavor is subtle, just like the taste from a campfire after roasting a marshmallow. I always liked to burn my marshmallows to a crisp so that the inside was extra gooey; this tea captures that childhood memory perfectly.

First off, this tea totally made me think of the incredibly hot – and talented – Ian Somerhalder from Vampire Diaries; vervaine is supposed to help protect humans from vampires. Not that I would ever want to encourage Ian to stay away from little ol’ me…

This tea is definitely tasty but a bit weak. I prefer strong, bold teas with lots of flavor and substance. This tea does have a nice citrusy flavor, calming and soothing. I brewed it up for about six minutes and the citrusy flavor stuck around rather than becoming bitter. I appreciated that. :)

It also had the power to put me to sleep! Granted I have been dealing with a migraine all day and took lots of meds for it, so maybe it was that, and the tea had more of a placebo effect but whatevs. The tea was delicious and soothing and sleep-inducing. Always appreciated at the end of a long day.

Bottom line: this is a decent tea to add to your collection, especially if you need help getting to sleep. It’s stress-relieving and relaxing. (Plus you’re safe from vampires. lol)

Thanks to the wonderful JoeCool (Nichole) for sending along a sample. I may get more once my other sleep-inducing teas run out.

Oh, and I noticed there seems to be some debate about how to spell vervaine/vervain/vervein. But basically it’s the offspring of verbana. Or in the same family of the herb at least. This is something I’ll look into for my blog – I’m fascinated by the mystery surrounding the term…

This tea is great during the holidays – but still awesome any time of year. I love the minty flavor and sensation; the dose of vanilla is a nice touch as vanilla and mint is one of my fave combos. Thanks to Meghann M for parting with a few. :)

2nd infusion: the blueberry and citrus notes have stayed for round two. Delish! Love the pink color of the tea as well. This is one fabulous blend! :)

Thank you awesome Meghann M for sending me this sample. I am in LOVE! This combo of blueberry and lemongrass with a green rooibos base is delightful and refreshing. I love the medley of citrus and blueberry – kind of like blueberry lemonade. :) OOH, gotta try this one iced! This is a definite must for blueberry fans of any age. And it’s a great way to enjoy green rooibos. I must acquire a full bag from Adagio asap. Thanks again for sharing, Meghann! And awesome blending job! :)