Orange Dulce

As I’ve said before (and you might be tired of reading about), I have a nasal infection. As such, I have decided to not drink any new teas (that is, teas I’ve not tasted before) because my taste buds are a bit impaired (although I am able to taste more flavors lately, and not just powerful, peppery flavors). Because I am able to detect more flavors, I feel more at ease writing about some of the favorites in my cabinet.

This is a long-time favorite of mine, although I have noted in previous tasting notes that it somehow does not taste quite the same as I remember it tasting. Some eight years ago when I first became familiar with Mighty Leaf teas I remember this tea being quite Earl Grey but with a hint of sweet orange. Like someone added a squeeze of blood orange to the bergamot orange.

The vanilla taste is different than a typical Earl Grey Creme in that it doesn’t come off as really “creamy” but more of a soft, sweet note – a very delicate soft, sweet note. And the jasmine… really pushes this blend over the edge into a place of pleasant indulgence.

But, as I said, while the blend today is still quite dreamy, it tastes different… like someone replaced some of the bergamot (but not all) with more orange, and it is more orange and less bergamot orange now. Still good… but not as good.

Keen sent me a bit more of this! Thanks a bunch! I still really like this one for a bagged tea! YUM! See other notes. I had two cups today!

It is a beautiful day outside, full of sunshine and a soft breeze. I am going to try to get a lot of homework done so that I can take the dogs for a nice long walk this evening. This is the first time this year that I’ve felt like fall is just around the corner. I walked outside this morning to leaves blowing around and that chill in the air that always says fall is on it’s way.

I got this tea in a variety box of Mighty Leaf blends, but I believe this is the first time that I’ve tried it. I like that Mighty Leaf uses such nice tea leaves – the little pouch always expands a lot in the water and the leaves are a nice size and look just like a loose-leaf tea. But conveniently in a pouch, it’s perfect. I wasn’t expecting anything special with this one, but it is delicious. It has an almost Earl Grey like quality to it, but more of a sweet orange and cream flavor. The jasmine flowers give it a little floralness which is nice. I will definitely pick up another box of this one the next time I see it in the store!

-Square silken tea pouch with medium black tea leaves and twigs and white petals.
-Teabag smells lightly of sweet orange. Tea liquor aroma is of vanilla and citrus.
-Tea liquor is a thick dark brown color.
-Soft orange and Earl Grey flavor and finish. Light jasmine and vanilla aftertaste.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Very good tea. A creamy cup. Soft orange and cream flavor with a hint of jasmine.

This is actually the tea I bout my little Mighty Leaf variety pack for. Sure, there are a few other teas I’m interesting in trying, but this is the one that made me actually buy it. I love oranges.

This is for the teabag version. The teabag weighs 3.2g – I realize it is a bit dorky to weigh my teabags, but I find myself curious as to who skimps on leaf and who does not. Anyway, it smells creamy and orange, like orange sherbet. I tossed it into a cup with some water and waited for 4 minutes.

The smell reminds me of SpecialTea’s Earl Grey de la Crème, though I admit, it’s been a while since I’ve had that so I’m not sure how accurate that memory is. The taste is different from the smell though – bolder, not as sweet or soft as I was expecting. More of an unsweetened orange gummy slice with cream over it. That’s to say, not an actual orange – it’s not tingly citrus enough for that – but more orange candy, but without being hurt-my-teeth sweet. And the cream taste is changing on me, seeming to switch around from cream to an almost light caramel flavor that reminds me of Haagen Daz Dulce de Leche. If I slurp I get a bit of a floral taste that is almost perfume-y mixing with the candy orange taste and that combo makes the flavoring taste a bit unpleasantly artificial. Not enough to ruin my enjoyment of the tea but enough to make me not want to slurp anymore.

Not a knock-my-socks-off cup but enjoyable. I could see having a little stash of this in my pantry for times I feel like an almost dessert tea or something orange.

Headache city, right now. I don’t mind perfumy teas, normally. But right now my apartment is a mess, my cat is hiding under my futon which I’m scared might break at any moment, and this tea is just making my head feel worse. I probably shouldn’t have chosen this tea for the moment…I have an aversion to vanilla (but not cream, strangely) so I have no idea why I picked this out.

I can taste jasmine, followed by vanilla, followed by orange. I added too much Splenda, and it is just too, too sweet.

This tea almost reminds me of a very perfumy Earl Grey with cream, but without any of the characteristic lightness. The liquor is heavy, almost syrupy. It’s hard to swallow. On the plus side, it’s quite smooth. I can’t detect any bitterness or sharpness.

I’m not getting orange creamsicle from this, but that’s okay. I’m sure this would taste good under other circumstances, but at the moment it’s just not working for me. I will have to review this again when I’m in a better mood. Hence, no rating.

I bought a whole box of this a while ago evidently hoping I would love it, but alas…

It decided to steep some up today to see what I remember of it, an orange jasmine-y tartish perfumish mess. Smells like a perfume my Grandmother might have bought that went rancid. It is definitely more enjoyable with soymilk but now I’m just kind of sad I have so much of it. If anyone wants to swap, let me know. Other people really seem to love this tea!

This is great for tea on the run.

I thought it would be a typical black tea in a teabag…bitter, overly flavored, cloying. Not so! I’m happily surprised. The sides and string of the tea sachet look crocheted. It’s very cute. The tea itself is naturally sweet and perfume-y. The orange and vanilla yield a smooth and creamy taste. The aftertaste is very creamy! The orange flavor is very mellow, not sour at all…but kind of artificial. Other reviews note that this tea reminds them of Earl Grey and I have to agree. The tea seemed a little too light for me to add milk and sugar but it’s fine on its own. It’s won’t knock your socks off but it’s better than no tea at all.

Doulton’s Shakespeare: A Tasting Note in 5 Acts
Act V scene 2

The quality of mercy is not strain’d,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice bless’d;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.
The Merchant of Venice, Act IV scene 1

When I tore open this teabag’s packet this morning I was quite intrigued by the smell. I think that I actually inhaled some of the escaped fannings while my nose was jammed into the packet. I was trying to figure out the scent. I had been expecting a Constant Comment-esque smell, but this was completely different ::sniff-sneeze!:: I had to trust that my subconscous would eventually figure it out. As it steeped I read the little packet and was surprised by the ingredients: Jasmine? Really? Huh…

I swear that for the whole friggin’ cup I was trying to figure out what I wanted to compare it to (so much for subconscious). It wasn’t bad, it wasn’t teagasmic, but it was utterly distracting. The orange was probably the most mellow of the flavors, but I couldn’t tell if it was because it melded nicely with the rest or if it was just barely there. I also think that my mind goes to a default “anise-flavored” when uncertain of a fragrance. I have no clue as to why. It was one of those teas where if someone was giving some away I’d be fine with taking it, but I’m not going to go out of my way for more.

After reading some other comments hoping to find the “mystery association” I found it: orange creamsicle. I think that I’ve had less than 5 of those in my lifetime, so after I removed my palm from my forehead I laughed at my sipping intensity as I had pondered similar tastes.

Oh, but where does this tea fit into the Shakespeare cannon? More pondering! It’s feminine, more comic than tragic (not worthy of a sonnet), not the best but not the worst. What play haven’t I touched upon yet? ::ponder, ponder, ponder:: Merchant of Venice! But all I really know of that play is a few quotes, anti-Semitism, and Shylock. ::research, research, research:: I came close to dubbing this tea Shylock’s daughter Jessica, but I felt that this tea had more oomph of a larger character. Portia! Yup, I’m calling this tea Portia. She’s the catalyst for a lot that happens and then does the whole “dress up like a man to set men straight” deal. I think that nowadays she’s portrayed as a strong feminine character, but back in Shakespeare’s day she would have been seen more as “the Fool” or a lot like Kate in The Taming of the Shrew. Yes, she’s allowed to get some great digs at the men (who are all not the sharpest spoons in the toolshed’s lightbulb) but once the shennanigans are over with, well, she’ll go back to being a humbled wife. NE

Sweet Orange Dulce back in my life after an extended absence, or so it seemed to me. Drinking out of my new Mighty Leaf Tea Top Brew Mug- sleek, convenient, and currently keeping my beloved tea so hot that I can barely drink it! This is just as good as I remember it and even better now that I have my little brew mug that is oh so handy :)

Bleeeaarrrgghhhhh. I got this as a sample, I am not sure but I think it was in Traveling Tea Box A? I had so many envelopes full of samples I dumped them all into a plastic container and now I don’t know what I got from whom. :-(

Anyway, the scent of the teabag was promising enough, I have nothing against orange. I didn’t realize it had jasmine in it too, about which I will quote Heidi Klum on Project Runway, “I don’t hate much, but dat I hate.” What it doesn’t have is anise or licorice, yet to me that is ALL I can taste! It seems overwhelming! And I usually like anise. The only thing I can figure is that since I didn’t know I was drinking a jasmine tea, my mind went to anise instead and was grossed out by too much anise instead of the true gross ingredient which was the jasmine? I don’t know. I’m confused.