307 Tasting Notes

77

This tea smells like an absolute dream. Just like a cookie, sweet and absolutely fabulous.

I actually had it at a friend’s, and remembered how amazing it was, and decided to get some. Trying it clear in a large mug, however, seems to have been a mistake — most teabags I find can scale up well, but this one has left me wanting more flavour. Adding milk and sugar actually helped bring it forward a bit, but I think the true answer would be to have a stronger brew in general. More tea or less water next time it is.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

70
drank Christmas by Simple is Beautiful
307 tasting notes

Finishing off what I have of this tea. It’s been a decent tea, and certainly tastes right for the season (yes, it has orange and spices, though orange isn’t the first fruit listed, nor is it the only one, for once).

From the ingredient list, it sounds like it should be fruit with spices, but instead it tastes like spices with fruit. The strongest taste I get from this is… the taste of mulling spices at the bottom of a cup of spider (cloves mainly, but also perhaps nutmeg and cinnamon), but without the gritty texture. There’s a fruity sweetness underlying, but it’s very much overpowered by the spices.

I was going to try adding milk once the cup was about half-done, but unfortunately the milk didn’t seem to like that much. (Oops.)

So, overall, probably great for someone who is very into mulled drinks, but a little too strong otherwise.

Preparation
Boiling 6 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

88
drank Chocolate Orange by DAVIDsTEA
307 tasting notes

I enjoy comparing this tea to Bossuet from Les Misérables: the two have been through enough different names to warrant the comparison. I’ve enjoyed the tea under under any name, and am glad to continue to do so.

I seem to find that this tea brews better in larger batches than in smaller ones. I’m not sure why that is exactly, but that’s what experience is telling me thus far. It’s also amazing the second and third time around (maybe even a fourth time — this tea really holds up to resteeping well) hot or cold. The first brew is dark and murky between the Pu-ehr and the chocolate, but it grows in translucency with each subsequent steep.

It has a really nice chocolate orangey taste to it. Not exactly like a Terry’s chocolate orange, but definitely bringing both tastes to the forefront anyway, which comes through steep after steep. Some nuances change — I actually think I may prefer the second steep to the first, to be honest — but I’m happy to drink this over and over again for as long as the tea lasts.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

86

Brewed a heaping tsp of this tea in cup using a tea ball, and the old secret I learned of using boiling water and an ice cube to temper. (Thus, temperature isn’t marked as I’m not quite sure exactly what it averages out to, only that it works decently for the job at hand.)

I’m not at all surprised to find orange flowers on the ingredients list for this tea. It seems like most Christmas teas have some sort of orange or another in them. However, this one is not the spiced orange that one finds repeatedly in this tea’s seasonal black cousins.

Almond appears to be the predominant taste, though with the idea of orange on my mind (even if it is just the petals), I found it reminding me of orange and vanilla. There’s a nice hint of sweetness and fruitiness as well, and while I can’t quite taste the tea, I think it has a depth that comes from the flavour that doesn’t quite catch the attention of my tongue.

I would like the taste to perhaps be a bit stronger, but I’d be afraid of brewing for much longer with the green tea. Perhaps I might up it to two or two and a half minutes another time, however.

Overall, a nice, mild tea with an almond taste that stays with you long after you drink. I can see it going horribly wrong and turning into perfume very easily, but this tea has managed to stay on the good side of the line and for that, it’s done an excellent job.

Preparation
1 min, 30 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

54
drank Kokomo Green by DAVIDsTEA
307 tasting notes

This tea smells like a tropical paradise. Warm, fresh, fruity, wonderful.

Unfortunately, it tastes rather like perfume.

I’m wondering if it has to do with the fact that it’s green tea, and yet a temperature of 92 degrees Celsius for over five minutes is recommended. The information.. doesn’t seem to make sense together. I will have to try it again later with a more apt green tea steep.

However, based on what is suggested…. it tastes like perfume and that’s about all I can say. Good perfume, kind of fruity… but perfume nonetheless.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 30 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

88
drank Vanilla Caramel by Bigelow
307 tasting notes

There are two things that experimentation has taught me about this tea:
1) it is best served with milk (perhaps some sort of sweetener, but definitely milk) as directed.
2) it is also best served in as big a mug as possible.

I’m not sure why this is, especially the second one. But… it just seems the most fitting to drink this mug out of a large mug. The size and feel just… fit the taste.

The taste itself is rich, just a little sweet, and with a strong caramel flavour that hits right as you sip. The milk adds a creaminess to it, which makes the mouth feel match the flavour quite well. Are there ways that this blend could be improved? Probably. But it’s a nice, robust, strong-flavoured tea and I love it.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

70
drank Raspberry Royale by Bigelow
307 tasting notes

I first got hooked on this tea when I was visiting a friend in the USA, and it was one of the more welcome decisions at her local 7-11 (which she frequented).

I’m drinking it clear right now, though often I will add milk. Admittedly, I feel like it’s calling out for some right now. Having brewed for a minute longer than recommended, it does seem to have a slight bit of bitterness to it, though I still consider this a short steep for a black tea. The raspberry is a nice touch, though it does blend into the bitterness a bit — it lingers after the tea taste disappears though, a mild but pleasant aftertaste.

Overall, it’s a mild flavour, but with a decently strong base. A good tea, and one I’ll never mind having a cup of, but not a great go-to #1 choice either.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

73
drank Green Mate (Organic) by DAVIDsTEA
307 tasting notes

High caffeine and with a primarily grassy taste, this is a good energy caffeine, but not quite a replacement for a good, strong breakfast black tea.

For what it is, straight green mate pretty enjoyable. On its own (with 4tsp brewed in my 2-cup teapot), its got a moderate strength of flavour, closer to a green tea than a black in robustness, but I feel less afraid of overstepping than I would with tea proper. I love mixing this in with less caffeinated things when I want to give it a bit of a kick — it tends to blend with other teas well.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 5 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Profile

Bio

A Canadian girl interested in the arts, books, geeky things, and tea. Especially the tea part.

Currently engaged in a tea drinking challenge of epic proportions. (1001 teas, 1001 days. December 1st, 2013 – August 28, 2016)

I’ll be adding a few teas to my cupboard — if anyone would like to swap for something in there, please feel free to contact.

Location

Canada

Following These People

Moderator Tools

Mark as Spammer