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Steepster is such a dangerous but wonderful place. I was perusing newly added teas the other day and saw a Crystal Malt tea that I just HAD to find out more about. So I hopped onto their website and saw there was a cheap sampler pack. Now, I know company experience isn’t really part of a tea’s rating, but I’d like to mention that I got amazing customer service! There were some issues with my order and they were fixed speedily. Also, my samples cam in this adorable little tin! This is the first of 5 teas that I have to try, but I already know I’ll be ordering again soon.

I decided to cold brew a teabag of this, and something very strange happened. It brewed to a dark amber in ONE HOUR. I know, right! The fastest I’ve ever had a tea “finish” cold brewing was 4 hours, and that’s usually for bagged tea (which infuses faster because it’s all cut up) or I’ll throw a whole bunch of leaves in there. This, though, is whole grains, so I’m amazed it only took that long. And it was strong too! I got a second brew out of it, but I have a feeling you could probably cold brew a bag of this all day long and get 4 cups easy. Which, of course, makes it a whole lot more appealing!

If you’ve ever had barley tea, the taste here is obviously similar. It’s rich and has an almost savory quality, but the corn adds a surprising hint of sweetness at the end of the sip. I am reminded of genmaicha, but with a stronger background taste instead of a green tea. The malty flavor is quite strong, almost molasses-y. So delicious and refreshing!