Pumpkin Irish Cream

I’m sure I’ve had this before, but this is my first time rating it. I think it’s a good idea to try a “pumpkin spice” tea with a puer base, since I often find with that kind of tea the flavour just totally overwhelms the base, but this puer can hold its own. :) It’s earthy and full-bodied and maybe a bit sweet, which works well with the pumpkin spice flavour. And adding the Irish cream also a great idea, because the cream balances well against the spice, and the boozy notes balance well with the puer. Having said all that, I like this tea, but I don’t love it. I’m not sure what the problem is, maybe it’s just that I’m drinking it black and it’d be better with milk and sugar? Or maybe I’m just not a big fan of pumpkin spice in general? Anyway, I’ll probably try it a couple more times, but might need to rehome this to someone who will love it more than I do. :)

So, I received a fair bit of this one from Starfevre a little while ago, and I’ve been sort of scared to drink it because this is one of those Butiki blends that I really loved when I first tried it – like, I gave it a ‘100’ rating degree of loved it. So the fear is that revisiting it, especially after such a long passing of time, I wont like it at all/it wont have any familiar and delightful tasting notes…

Gotta rip the bandaid off and just do it, though.

So, this smells amazing still as dry leaf; very pumpkin-y with some clove and nutmeg notes and then a soft earthiness. Steeped it’s basically the same, but maybe a touch more earthy smelling. Don’t worry, I made sure to give it a rinse. I’m nervous; it smells great but will it live up to past memories of it!? Well, the simple answer is… yes! This still tastes pretty bomb; lots of pumpkin, a very light touch of spice that thankfully does not detract from the pumpkin notes (nutmeg/clove), some creamy but faint vanilla notes, and then the pu’erh base. I have a feeling the overall flavourings have probably lost some punch over time – which makes me thankful that there’s actually physical pumpkin flakes in the tea itself. I also DEFINITELY have a much stronger appreciation and love of pu’erh/shou tea in general now compared to when I first had this so stronger notes of the pu’erh base are not a negative at all for me. It’s got that some delightful petrichor note to it that I first observed years ago, but also notes of undergrowth, wet wood, and sweet smoke. Not a lot of smoke, though. This was a big relief, and now I can happily revisit this tea whenever I want and revel in how delightful it is!

Confession time! I didn’t know this was pu’erh when I requested it from rosebudmelissa and had I know that, I probably would have passed but since I asked for it, I have to at least give it a try.

Thankfully, the smell is far more delicious creamy pumpkin as opposed to earthy pu’erh. Luckily that seems to hold true. This is far more pumpkin than pu’erh. The base does give the tea am overall thickness that lends nicely to the notion of a creamy pumpkin tea while not impeding the flavor. The pumpkin itself comes through as rich thanks to the delicate balance of spices. The one component I am not really getting is the Irish cream. It is a sort of creamy tea but had I not known it was meant to be Irish cream, I would have just attributed that to the pumpkin.

Anyways, thank you rosebudmelissa for the chance to try something new!

Another from the mystery box! Really I wouldn’t mind trying every Butiki tea, but this one seems similar to the Pumpkin Cider. Though I must admit the pumpkin spice flavor works better here with the pu-erh than with the Sansia black. I don’t think I’ve ever tried a Butiki pu-erh except for the Japanese pu-erh. I was worried I would rinse the flavor away, but the flavor stays consistent throughout all three steeps. The base seems delicious enough, the leaves are bigger, so they might have less flavor than the pu-erh I love (tiny tiny leaves). I must admit I like the finely chopped pu-erh (probably lower quality) that results in a deep coffee cup. The mug stays deep red through these steeps. The pumpkin spice flavoring isn’t my favorite… not really pumpkin to me. It’s surprising how it tastes so much like cinnamon though. A nice squashy flavor would have been awesome. There also isn’t very much cream flavor either. An enjoyable tea but not Butiki special.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 tsps // 6 min after boiling // rinse // 2 1/2 min
Steep #2 // few min a.b. // 3 min
Steep #3 // just boiled // 4-5 min

Sipdown! 268/365!

Full disclosure: I have more than one package of this, and used up one plus part of another for this latte. So, as with many of my teas, it’s a kinda sorta sipdown. (I have yet to inventory my Butiki teas… I wish I knew exactly how much of this I had!)

Anyhow. I’m feeling grumpy tonight, so I decided to make myself some sweetened latte-ish things. AKA lots of milk, but too lazy for frothing. This one, I made with 2% milk and a rather large dose of maple syrup. I’ve always appreciated the flavour of this tea, but it was never really a favourite for me…. but dang does it make a great latte! I think it could stand to be a wee bit stronger, with a touch less maple syrup, but the pumpkin and light spicing are just delicious this way, and the pu’erh flavours I don’t care for are entirely masked. It’s probably a billion calories, but I’m enjoying it and I don’t care. Looks like, if I remember, I’ll be finishing off the rest of this latte-style. And – I’ve pulled out a couple other Butiki pu’erhs to try like this as well. Her flavouring was fantastic, but I didn’t care for the base… so this might solve that problem! (Blueberry Champagne, I’m looking at you next!)

aaah the unmistakable smell of stacy’s particular pumpkin smell haha. This one is nice since i didn’t restock her other pumpkin tea, though it’s not my favourite of the last batch of stacy teas. It’ll be enjoyable to drink but i won’t be upset when it’s gone.

Thank you ThainofBuckland for this sample!

Nice creaminess with a touch the alcohol flavor you might expect. Not much of pumpkin flavor. Still it was a very lovely cuppa.

It’s the beginning of tax season for my accountant husband. He has started working 7 days a week, 10 or more hours a day. :( This will continue thru April. I feel I should be able to use all this time wisely but I haven’t got a clue…

From my very last Butiki box…

There an earthy scent with a lot of spice. The flavour is a nice blend of spices, and a little creaminess. Good, but I don’t really get any pumpkin. This would be good for snowy days.

When Stacey refunded my order of Pumpkin Irish Cream, I assumed it was because it was out of stock and she just hadn’t been able to update the site before I placed my order, but no it was because Stacey is AWESOME and included it in my Mystery Box!! So, I decided to give it a try first since I love Pumpkin. I have been disappointed in most of the Pumpkin teas I’ve tried though, and this is no exception. It smells of Pumpkin, but doesn’t have a strong enough Pumpkin flavor for my tastes. I also don’t really care for the flavors of alcohol and dust that accompany the faint taste of Pumpkin. Oh well, I’m sure I can find someone to take it off my hands.

I like this tea. It’s rather mild, and it doesn’t seem to have a overwhelming Puehr flavor. I’ll write another note when I drink it again with a rating. It is good, though. It does well with sugar.