254 Tasting Notes

75

I wasn’t feeling like a black tea this morning, so I decided to give this a try. I think last time I made it I used my gaiwan, but this time, in my perfect mug, it was… well, rather perfect for the moment!

My school house tea-making is rather lax in general, so I think this steeped for something like 10 minutes while I made copies. I was kind of on autopilot, so I added sugar like it was a black – I never do that for greens, but in this case it worked out well.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more

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70

Sipdown! I decided that an insanely early Sunday morning (thanks, cat) deserved such a tasty tea. I only had about 1-1/2tsp left, so I tried to balance that with the water in my mug and I think I hit the spot. Not too intense, nor too watery.

It’s just as sweet as I remembered, with a slightly maple syrup component which has inspired me to make up pancakes this morning.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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65

I felt like a little bit of a celebration this morning. The night before we encountered this equation: cat + 7-Up + MacBook = sadness. Last night we took it in to the GeekSquad and discovered I had actually purchased the klutz coverage, so my laptop is going to be brought back to life!

So until it returns from the dead, my activity is going to take a little hit, but I can totally deal with that!

But on to the tea ;)

I don’t remember if I’ve had this before, but I’m getting more of a crème brûlée flavor to it. It’s the flavor of toasted (but not entirely burnt) sugar crust. Hmmm… maybe I should make some up and have an excuse to play with a mini torch!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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70
drank Gemini by Nina's Paris
254 tasting notes

Rooibos and I have an interesting relationship – it has to be pretty well blended for me to get anything but caramel flavoring from it. When this sample came from the nice people at Nina’s Paris I was pleasantly surprised by it. I still get that ubiquitous caramel, but the creamy vanilla and even a hint of the strawberry do make themselves known, and add well to it. A nice cup for a lazy evening.

Preparation
Boiling 7 min, 0 sec

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75
drank Ceylon by Nina's Paris
254 tasting notes

Mmm… I wasn’t sure about this when the sample arrived, because I usually head towards like Earl Grey and English Breakfast when I’m looking for a black tea. After adding my usual 2tsp of raw sugar, this was surprisingly tasty, and I’m glad there’s enough of the sample left to go for another cup!

It’s more sweet than brisk, with surprising fruity notes, but there’s enough bite in this wonderfully malty blend to give you a nice morning hit of caffeine.

This is a finely chopped tea, so the particles have a pervasive way of ending up on the bottom of your cup. Because I’m so picky about textures, this does mean I can’t enjoy the last couple sips.

Other than that, this is quite lovely – and I think I’ll go make that second cup!

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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70
drank Gingerbread by DAVIDsTEA
254 tasting notes

Last night, Jake and I decided to take this for a spin while he made us up some fantastic nachos. I ended up enjoying the nachos a lot more than I did this tea. It reminds me a little too much of a truly terrible pie I made a couple Thanksgivings ago… that I couldn’t get anyone to eat – bourbon molasses pecan pie. It would help if anyone we knew actually liked bourbon!

While this tea doesn’t taste like bourbon, that strong molasses is certainly coming through… after the rooibos and honeybush, that is. That pair are the dominators of this tea, only allowing the gingerbread flavors to pipe up after they have had their say.

You can read the review and see the pictures here:
http://wordsabouttea.blogspot.com/2013/11/gingerbread-by-davidstea.html

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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60

I bought an ounce of this when it was on sale. After trying it, well, I understand why it was discontinued. I ordered the Lime Chiffon at the same time, and restocked my Lemon Chiffon as well. I guess I was expecting this to have the same sort of presence but with the added bonus of caffeine.

While I do get the lime and cream flavors, there is something that’s subtly off with this tea, as if the slice of pie fell on the ground and then they decided to serve it anyway. I completely understand why some Steepsterites compared this to lime Jello and lime Kool-Aid, because it does have that same not-so-fresh, artificial flavor.

I’m still waiting to hear back from the next person for the Traveling Tea Box C, so unless my husband likes it (and he does have an unnatural desire for lime in its myriad forms) it may get tucked inside.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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70

I’m out of the classroom today and headed to a workshop, but I woke up at my normal time and just couldn’t sleep in later no matter how nice that sounded! With my extra time this morning I decided to give this a try. It’s certainly different… I get the chocolate and strawberries, but it’s a bit lighter than I would have liked.

Last night I wasted something like 20 minutes going through my last Della Terra order and marking the steeping directions on the open space of the labels. I really wish they would include that, because I always find it annoying when I have to go and do it.

I didn’t feel awake enough (no tea yet, after all!) to figure out the 1tsp/6oz, so I just used one tablespoon of tea in a 16oz mug. The thing is, I kind of wish I had used more. A dash of milk did give it a little more body, but it’s still a pretty light tea.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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75

Made up a cup of this at school this morning, and it’s surprisingly tasty! Brisk with just a hint of bergamot and no noticeable astringency. I just had the one bag, so this is a sipdown as well.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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75

I’m going to be starting a new blog project soon, so I’m trying to build up a good collection of winter teas for it. We live closer to a Teavana than anything else, so we decided to brave the salespeople to pick up one of their new winter teas.

The experience reminded me why I avoid malls – it was absolutely packed! – but I did have a bit of fun at the salespeople’s expense. Three of them had actually formed a barricade between the crowded entrance and the rest of the store, and when I asked if something was wrong they scattered like startled birds, their aprons flapping in their wake.

When we finally were able to blaze a path to the counter, the very frazzled young lady (she may have been new, because she seemed very overwhelmed) presented us with this tea and their pumpkin tea – well, there was an apple tea, but as soon as I mentioned my allergy she whipped it away with an amazing speed. No, really. It nearly vanished she moved it away so fast! Like being around a sealed tin was going to send me into anaphylactic shock!

It was actually kind of sweet.

But on to the tea! I chose this one over the pumpkin because I was more curious about it. The white chocolate and peppermint dominates the dry flavor, and once I steeped it I discovered that it holds true in the flavor as well. I’m not picking up the rooibos’ caramel notes at all, but each sip is leaving me with an encompassing peppermint tingle in my mouth. The oily film on top of the tea may play a role in this. So far, that’s the only real drawback to this tea… well, except for the price, but with Teavana that’s pretty much always a given.

All in all, I’m really enjoying this and glad that, this time at least, my damnable curiosity didn’t get me into too much hot water… just enough to steep in!

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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Profile

Bio

Feel free to browse my cupboard if you’re interested in swapping, but all the mate and pu-erh in our household is my husband’s.

For swapping purposes, please note the apple allergy. Thank you!

I tried to limit my cupboard to teas that were 1oz or larger, but that was a gorgeous failure in terms of swap communication. It’s all going back up.

Okay, I just feel wrong trying to grade things without a rubric – it’s too inconsistent! So, here is the grading breakdown:

0-50: Dump it!
50-60: I might finish the cup
60-70: Possibly finish the pot
70-80: I may keep this on hand
80-90: Cupboard space guaranteed
90-100: Poetry may be involved!

Location

Dallas, TX

Website

http://www.wordsabouttea.blog...

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