Arabian Night

Thanks to ToiToi for this sample. I have had this tea before, though it was being resold under a different name by a different company (like many of TeaGschwendner’s teas). I liked it then, but I wondered if I would like it now, so I asked for a sample.

The answer is yes. Om nom mango. This is really very delicious. I don’t remember it being this fruity, but it is a lovely mango flavor that I like perhaps even better than the mango black tea from thepuriTea. Plus those lovely florals… rose and jasmine just work well together with mango. This is a green/black blend, but picking a middling temp worked out well and I was rewarded with a smooth cup that still had some body. Pleasantly surprised by how much I still like this one.

reposting this where it belongs, I had two samples on the counter, and this is the one I finished off, not da.ud.e’s xaeoxn.

Such a pretty tea to watch steep. The rosebuds are quite large, and there are quite long green and white leaves in this tea blend. The tea brewed up a nice amber syrup color. There is a slight molasses/maple taste/scent in this. It is so light in taste I can’t tell if it is flavor or just in the smell alone, but I swear it is there. This almost tastes like a caramel black tea, with a strong floral tone to it. My taste buds are acting very strange today as I know there is no black tea in this. Maybe it’s the combination of the mango and jasmine? I know it was in a bag all to itself awaiting sampling. I think I will have to do a second steep to see what other flavors come out of this.

Rachel! You ROCK! This is another one I have been wanting to try.

Eventho the ingredients I generally stereotype as being floral, bitter, and cereal like…this smells sweet and fruity! This REALLY surprises me!!!

This is a medium brown in color.

I can taste the green tea first followed by the black. I can then taste floral notes and sweet hints throughout. Then it’s fruity and then floral again. In the aftertaste it’s more of a floral green that lingers. This is an interesting tea. Much more to it than I first thought. I like teas that make you think sometimes, ya know!?

This isn’t bad. There is a nice combo of floral and fruity.

Thank you to Rachel for sending me a sampling of this tea.

I knew I had to try this tea when I read the ingredient list. I love jasmine, I love rose, and I even love sunflower… Brewed it at a lower temperature than recommended on TeaGschwendner’s website… and it came out beautifully. The green tea is buttery and soft. The black tea is a softer flavor but I can taste the distinct “brisk” tones of black tea. The jasmine and rose come together very nicely – sweet and floral. The sunflower offers a hint of sharpness in the background. A nice grouping of flavors. I like this!

This tea scared me a bit due to it being a blend of green and black teas, but the leaves looked pretty and smelled lovely as well, thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sharing this one with me! The color of the tea after being steeped is a nice amber/honey color…a medium brown color; it tasted like a green tea with a dash of Ceylon in there to give it a slight boldness. There was a nice mildly sweet taste to it from the floral notes and to me it seemed like there was a bit of a candied cherry taste in there as well. This is pretty good and a nice change of pace for me.

This tea has been in the cupboard for a few months and I finally got around to brewing a cup while riding out the storm in NYC watching weather coverage. What I can say about this tea – It’s not bad.

There is a bit of an odd battle between the fruit component and the herb component which I initially didn’t mind but the more sips I took the less I enjoyed the rivalry. However this is a rare tea in that the green component can be isolated on the pallet from the black, or at least I was able to perceive such. I think this is because, for whatever reason the overall boldness of the tisane components is lower than one would expect (but yet still present enough).

There is a lot going on here, and it’s, well, not bad.

Finishing up the last of the variety of TeaGschwendner sampler bags I picked up recently. On this one, I think I probably should have gone beyond their steeping parameters, which call for 2 minutes at 212. At this point I’m getting hints of flavors and aromas, where I really expected something a bit more fragrant and flavorful. I do get wafts of rose, subtle reminders of the green and black tea base – but would have prefered more. I’ll hold off rating it until I get another chance someday to steep it longer.

Loose
Appearance: long twiggy looking leaf, stems and rose petals prominent
Aroma when Dry: Desert sweet, slightly buttery, floral
After water is first poured:. Desert sweet, floral, powdery
At end of steep: lighter sweet (western) powdery notes mildly floral
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: Med spring green
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: Unsure, first tasting
Taste:
first notes: floral blend, jasmine and rose more noticeable, but all three floral notes are present
As it cools? Gets dryer, and sweeter. floral notes get almost soapy
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No
Lingers? Yes, the sweetness is cloying and builds with each sip

Love, love, love, love this tea :) First tried it at Wystone’s Teas in Lakewood, CO. Went back to Wystone’s yesterday to get more, and they no longer sell it. Bummer :(

Not what I expected. The floral aspect of this tea tasted artificial to me. I was looking forward to the rose and I really didn’t even taste it. It was slightly syrupy as well. I may look into brewing this differently and see if I can get to taste better.

I first drank a cup of this tea and the home of a tea merchant. He prepared it perfectly and I regret that I asked for sugar as I couldn’t fully appreciate the natural flavors of the tea. I went to Tea Gschwendner the next day and bought 100 g for myself.

I drink it without or without milk and sugar depending on my mood. It tastes wonderful either way. As a drinker of mostly black tea, I like that this tea has a specific flavor that is not overpowered by milk and sugar when brewed for more than the recommended time of 3 minutes. If you like strong tea, I’d recommend brewing for 5 minutes or more. For weak tea, 3 minutes if perfect.

A triumphant blend of black and green. I think it’s actually better than the Arabian Days.