319 Tasting Notes
I crafted this inspired by a discussion with my youngest (who has discovered her passion for baking) a couple of months ago about what fruits go best with white chocolate, because to be honest, white chocolate isn’t my favorite flavor. I like it OK, I suppose, I mean, I wouldn’t turn it down if someone offered me some, but if given the choice between white chocolate or either milk or dark chocolate, I’m going for either of those rather than the white.
I think it’s just that white chocolate is a bit too sweet for my palate. So, I tend to prefer it when paired with profiles that have a bit of tartness or some other profile that will offer a nice contrast to the sweet white chocolate. Raspberry is one such example. The berry is sweet, yes, but it is also a bit tart & that tartness offers a really lovely contrast to the sweet white chocolate.
I enjoy the way this tea comes together – the raspberry is bright & slightly acidic but the presence of the white chocolate ensures that it doesn’t end up being too tart. The smoothness of the Chinese Sencha is pleasantly mild. This is so nice – a really pleasant afternoon tea.
I cold-brewed this one overnight – so refreshing! Sweet strawberry, tart lime & just a hint of rum. I’ve never actually had a strawberry mojito (unless you count the mojito drinks at ShareTea? I think I’ve had a Strawberry Mojito from them, although the lime is definitely my favorite.)
Anyway, I’ve never had the cocktail & I’m sure that those who have had the cocktail probably would note differences, but this is the way I’d like my Strawberry Mojito to taste. Light with a lovely contrast of flavors, smooth & refreshing! Even though this one is quite nice served hot, this one is definitely best as a cold-brew.
Another recently crafted tea. I was inspired to craft this one was a web search for something that would combine tangerine with figs & the recipe that caught my attention was one for a Tangerine Fig Jam with Vanilla. So, I decided to create a tea like that. (Even though I didn’t add the “vanilla” in the name, this one still has vanilla. I just figured I’d condense the name of the tea a bit so it fit better on the label.)
Anyway, this tea! I drank it hot this time, but this one would be really good as a cold-brew too, so I’ll have to try that soon. The tangerine & fig are really nice together: bright tangerine, sweet fig, bold black tea & the smooth, creamy note of vanilla ties it all together so well. Sweet but not cloying, just a very pleasant hot tea experience with this one!
I reblended this recently. It almost made its way into the Holiday box last year, but missed it by that much (just barely lost to the Candy Cane Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha). So, I decided to reblend it because it did so well on the poll, that I figured there was enough of a demand for it.
It’s also one of my favorite Genmaicha blends I’ve crafted. I love the combination of the toasty genmaicha with the smooth, sweet coconut & caramelized custard-y notes. The matcha adds just the right umami note to the cup. I had this one hot, but it would also make a nice cold-brew, maybe will have to try that soon!
This is one of my newer tisanes & I am just loving it. I am usually not as keen on caffeine-free choices as I am caffeinated ones. What can I say? Caffeine is my drug of choice & I consume my fair share of it (probably more than my fair share).
So, yeah, I drink quite a few caffeinated teas but not so much on the caffeine free ones. But this – I could drink this every day. I cold-brewed this overnight & it is absolutely stunning. So good. The elderberry is nice, not too tart. The cherry is not syrupy or medicinal. Just a really nice balance of these two fruits.
Lovely! The lemon is in the forefront of this tea, but there is enough vanilla to the cup to soften the tart lemon to a more subdued bright citrus note that was flavorful without being too sour. The lavender is so nice – pleasantly floral without tasting too perfume-y.
Nice!
I just added this tea to the website – it’s one of the most recent reblends! There are very limited quantities remaining of this one though!
Anyway – I absolutely love this tea. It’s a little different from my previous reblend of this tea. I used my blend of Yunnan & Assam teas, but it still turned out amazing. I really love this as a cold-brew. I made it into a boba tea, complete with brown sugar boba & a salted cheese topping! YUM!
So, I am WAY out of order with these countdowns, but does it really matter? I’m behind, you guys all know that.
Good news: my legs are pretty much healed up (my cellulitis!) The skin is really delicate still, though – but at least I don’t have to go to the wound care clinic any more. Going twice a week every week was a bit trying on the soul. I still get bouts of pain with it, I’m still not able to stand very long on my legs, but, they’re definitely way better than they were a couple of months ago.
Anyway – this tea! I love this tea. I don’t work with currants very often, mostly because availability of the fruit is not a consistent thing. But I do enjoy the few times that I have worked with currants – including this! It’s tart, but not too tart. It’s sweet, but not too sweet. There is a lovely creamy tone to the tea. It’s smooth & delicious. Something I could easily drink all day long.
I just updated the inventory for this particular tea, so it will no longer appear as sold out – until – well – it sells out again. :) Grab some while it’s here!
Edited to add: this resteeps well! The second steep is even better than the first infusion!
Countdown To Catching Up – Tea 2
This is one of my faves from my recent blends. It’s warm & cozy without being too spicy – making it the perfect cuppa for yesterday – maybe not today, but I’ll just transport myself to yesterday in my head since I was out adulting yesterday (aka running errands: grocery shopping, doctor appointments, – you know, all that less than fun stuff that still has to be done & I didn’t really have the time to sit down with a lovely cuppa.)
This tea is also incredibly tasty, so even though it’s not “that” season any longer & we are quickly moving into Spring, this is still so good that I’m going to be enjoying it well into spring.
The black tea base is nice & smooth, the spices are warm & inviting & this makes a fantastic latte if you wanna go that way with it, but I’m currently sipping it hot, no dairy & just a little bit of sugar to bring out the spices a little more. There are notes of maple here – while blending it, I decided that if I were having an actual gingerbread scone, that instead of clotted cream, perhaps some maple butter would be more appropriate & that little bit of maple really elevates the flavor of this cup.
I don’t rate my own teas, but if I were to rate this, I’d probably give it an 89. Yeah, not a perfect score & that’s just fine with me. This tea isn’t perfect, but, I also don’t know what else I would have done to make it better. A delightful, delicious tea that brings a smile to my face every time I sip it.
I cold=brewed this overnight and I was actually worried that I ended up cold-brewing a bit too long because rather than it just being overnight, it ended up being more than 24 hours. Yikes!
But, surprisingly, it’s not bitter. The black tea tastes smooth. Surprisingly smooth, given the circumstances. The cherry & almond are nice together. It’s a favorite flavor combo from my early tea drinking days, in fact, my first company [LiberTEAS] also had Cherry Almond flavor – a black tea – sans the “cola” part, and it was definitely one of my favorite offerings from LiberTEAS.
Anyway, I like this. It’s definitely better as a cold-brew than when I drank it hot during the taste testing phase – even when over-brewed.
