894 Tasting Notes

85
drank China Breakfast by Rishi Tea
894 tasting notes

I had this with a restaurant breakfast. The first cup was lovely and delicate, nice and balanced. My second steeping of the leaves was much bolder and full bodied. I drank the first cup straight, as it seemed that milk and sugar would over power the delicate flavour. The second cup was well suited to milk and sugar.

Preparation
4 min, 0 sec

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87
drank Marquis de Gris by Cornelia Bean
894 tasting notes

For some reason this extremely flowery, dry tea reminds me of Earl Grey, even though there’s none of the signature bergamot notes of Earl Grey. But the flavour has a similarly elegant and sophisticated feel to it.

I like a cup of this to start my day. It’s a pleasant bouquet of flowers on the nose and a delicate but full mouth taste.

Flavors: Floral, Rose, Soap

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML

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61
drank Mom's Apple Pie by DAVIDsTEA
894 tasting notes

Very light, with apples and cinnamon, but a little bit too light for the apple pie it’s supposed to evoke. I want to taste butter and pie crust and a bit more warm richness that just isn’t quite there.

Still, this cup was better than the first one I tried, where I was pretty let down. This time around it was tasty, just not exciting.

Flavors: Apple, Cinnamon, Spices

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 3 min, 0 sec 6 tsp 64 OZ / 1900 ML

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60
drank Little Dragon by Gurmano Tea
894 tasting notes

A pleasant cup to drink, but nothing really distinctive about it. The strawberry comes out a bit, and there’s maybe a hint of rhubarb tartness at the back of the mouth, but it’s more of a generic green tea with fruit flavour (though at least it’s not just generic tart fruit, which I tend to really dislike.) There’s a touch of astringentness that lingers on the tongue after the sip. but isn’t really noticeable immediately.

Flavors: Astringent, Fruity, Soap, Strawberry, Vegetal

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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91

I love how beautiful and fragrant this tea is. The scattered lavender blossoms in the dried tea and the way they float above the tea leaves while steeping is lovely, and the strong lavender and bergamot fragrance carries nicely from bag to cup.

This makes a very dry, floral cup. The lavender flavour is strong but doesn’t overpower the Earl Grey. The lavender lingers longer on the tongue than the other flavours.

This is another one of my favourite teas to start the day with.

Flavors: Bergamot, Floral, Lavender, Smooth

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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97
drank London Fog by Cornelia Bean
894 tasting notes

This tea is amazing. It’s bold and full bodied and has all the characteristics that make a London Fog latte so delicious.

Just straight, it’s creamy and sweet, with strong bergamot notes. The roobos flavour comes out only subtly, not distracting from the flavours that say London Fog. It’s also excellent with milk and sugar, which punch up the flavours even more.

It’s a tea I can drink over and over again, and it satisfies every part of my palette.

Flavors: Bergamot, Citrus, Cream, Sweet, Vanilla

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 6 min, 30 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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85

This has become one of my favourite morning teas.

The fragrance of the dried tea is bold and powerful – very fruity and sweet.

In the cup, dark midsize leaves unfurl with rose petals, and whole and pieces of freeze dried fruit, steeping to a reddish liquor that’s fragrant with berries.

On the tongue, the honey and raspberry notes are strong but don’t overpower the tea itself. It’s a nicely rounded cup with a lot of sweetness and just a touch of tart, making for a very nice whole mouth flavour.

This is such a pleasant, easy tea to drink, that I find myself drawn to it over and over for my first cup of the day.

Flavors: Berries, Honey, Raspberry, Smooth, Sweet, Tart

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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65

The woody flavour of the rooibos overpowers the complex chai spices, leaving only ginger noticeable at the front of the mouth,and some flavour and heat from the pepper in the back of the throat. A pleasant cup but lacking the depth that I enjoy in a good chai.

Flavors: Earth, Ginger, Pepper, Rooibos, Spicy, Wood

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 7 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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93

It’s really easy to brew this tea badly and when it’s not done right, it’s okay, but not noteworthy. But when I got the quality and temperature of my water and the steep time just right, oh my, this tea is distinctive and beautiful. Very strong honey notes but without a lot of sweetness, and at least two good steeps out of the same leaves with no loss of the nuanced flavours. I steep the second cup for 5 minutes instead of three.

This tea is extremely sensitive to brewing conditions. I’ve ruined a few cups with stale tasting water or a small amount of soap residue left in my tea pot, and that amazing honey flavour is the first thing to disappear.

I’m almost out and it’s long discontinued, so I’m hoping I can find a comparable white tea form another company.

Flavors: Earth, Floral, Honey

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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80

On its own this tea isn’t bad – strong chocolate mint flavour without a lot of sweetness. It really shines with milk and sugar though. The sweet, creaminess enhances the chocolate and mint, reminding me of an After Eight chocolate.

Flavors: Chocolate, Mint

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 350 ML

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Profile

Bio

I grew up drinking jasmine green tea with meals, but really fell in love with tea on a trip to Britain in elementary school. My first great love was Earl Grey, and I still adore it and all its variants.

I discovered the beauty of loose leaf tea much later, when, on impulse, I picked up a few teas that were on clearance at a home store. My introduction to loose leaf teas were Masala Chai and Provence Rooibos by the Metropolitan Tea Co and an unknown brand of kukicha and gyokuro (little did I know what a precious treasure I’d stumbled onto with that.)

At the time I was lucky to live in a place with multiple tea shops and several places to have afternoon tea, which is a delight I still miss.

Tea is part of my daily ritual and a nice, affordable way to appease the collector in me.

I enjoy distinctive whites, greens and oolongs, flavoured blacks, and herbals that are heavy on the citrus, lavender or mint.

Rating rubric, to give myself some consistency:
0-15 Yuck, not even drinkable.
16-30 Disappointing, not really inclined to give it a second try.
31-45 Disappointing, but maybe there’s potential? Worth one more try, prepped differently.
46-60 Mediocre, not terrible but not memorable.
61-75 Not bad. I’ll definitely finish what I have and might buy again.
76-90 Very enjoyable. Tasty, complex, it’ll keep me coming back.
91-100 BEST! I love everything about it and I will drink it forever.

Beyond tea, I’m a sex educator, polyamory activist, and radical queer. I love backwoods camping, abstract painting, baking & cooking, nail polish, cats, ceramic sculpture, and home nesting.

Location

Winnipeg, MB, Canada

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