150 Tasting Notes
This tea makes me sad. The aroma of Cherry Potion is intoxicating! I want to put Cherry Potion in a small sachet to be worn around my wrist, and sniff it when I feel that I may swoon from the pressures of the day. I’ll need a fainting couch and a bustle in order to make this look work.
BUT once Cherry Potion is brewed, something goes very wrong. I don’t mind hibiscus in teas most of the time, but hibiscus is a big, bitter, bully in this tea. I can’t taste enough of the beautiful cherries in this blend because hibiscus has beaten the life out of them. The more I drink of this tea the more frustrated I become with it because I can see its potential for cherry(fide) greatness.
You’re a jerk hibiscus. BOOOO!!!!
Edit: My lips looked like this http://www.caufields.com/productimages/Valentine/Images/77885.jpg after I drank Cherry Potion! Not really, but what an oddly specific feature/ selling point.
Organic Vanilla Almond comes in a tea sachet which I much prefer to tea bags. With a sachet I can still see the black loose-leaf tea and sliced almonds inside. I won’t abide by tea-dust!
This blend smells incredible dry! The infusion is a dark copper and the aroma is more almond than vanilla. At first sip, I can taste the almonds. The body isn’t particularly full, but the black tea has a nice enough flavor. The finish is all creamy, rich vanilla, which always works for me. I added a dash of almond milk and raw sugar to my second cup and that really helped the flavor develop.
All in all this tea makes for a decent afternoon cuppa.
Dong Ding Oolong is different than any other oolong I’ve tried so far. At first sip, there’s s a pleasant, vegetal flavor that develops into a rich, roasted grain essence. The body is full and nicely astringent. The finish is lingering with a sweet, delicate floral note.
This was my first exposure to a medium roasted oolong and I quite liked it.
A ding dong moment with Dong Ding! I enjoyed my first one too. The subtleties of oolong tea still amaze me.
dong ding or also known as tung ting….is one of my favorite oolongs…buttery, creamy, sweet and vegital…yummy
Teawing, I enjoyed this Dong Ding Oolong but I’d also like to try one that isn’t roasted to see if I might taste more of the creamy flavor.
Kashyap, I did my research :) Tung Ting translates to frozen summit if I remember correctly, but Dong Ding is infinitely more fun to say. Hehehe…
I have one from the puritea that isn’t roasted. I’ll send it in the next package. :)
you are correct…the legend behind frozen summit is a fav. as well it feeds into a similarity with Big Red Robe
There she goes, spreading tea joy to one and all… :)
QuiltGuppy, you are crazy lady! The best possible type of crazy… but still crazy.
Kashyap, now I have homework to do! I need to find out what the heck this Big Red Robe thing is.
teawing, if we were tracking a disease pattern QuiltGuppy would be Subject X. She has given us all so much and her generosity is contagious :)
Um. I have Big Red Robe, too, if you want…
Jenn This is one disease I am very thankful for…
If Jane Austen Mafia were a band I’d buy every song in their catalog, and I’d wear my band tee long after they sell out and go mainstream. That’s the kind of dedicated fan I’d be!
Jane Austen Mafia isn’t a band even though it is the best band name ever. Jane Austen Mafia is a tea. A pretty damn fantastically grand flavored black tea! Vanilla and blackberry combine with black tea for a marriage built on equality and true love worthy of a 19th century novel penned by an idealistic forward thinker.
This tea sample tasted particularly sweet because it was given to me with sacrifice in the spirit of true tea-friendship. Teawing sent me the very last bit of Jane Austen Mafia that he had left and it’s one of his favorite teas. Who other than a true gentleman would do such a thing? I owe him a huge debt of gratitude!
Ah shucks, no big deal… Just passing along some of that tea joy that has come my way since becoming a regular here. I am so glad you liked it. I agree, it is the perfect name for a band.
I have heard so many good things about this tea…I think I need to hunt down some of it!
I wish this flavor was avaiable on a better quality base. I am not much of a fan of Adagio’s flavored tea base anymore. It is kind of flat in my opinion.
available. It is too early!
And for the record, that last bit I sent Jenn came from SimplyJenW!
That has to be one of the most awesome names for a tea ever.
Teawing, ah ha! I owe SimplyJenW an even bigger debt of gratitude now as well. There’s no such thing tea-debtors’ prison, right?
@Jenn If there was, I would surely be an inmate…
Me too….aren’t we all essentially totally endebted to QuiltGuppy! She has sent me so many wonderful oolongs to try, but I am trying to work out my kettle situation so that I have some temp control! And BTW, I love to share tea, because it makes me happy…the sharing and the drinking. :D (It is funny because I accidentally typed ‘live’ instead of ‘love’, and actually both are quite fitting.)
SimplyJenW, I love to share tea with other excited tea-folk as well! I think that our little group here on Steepster is a particularly generous bunch though, and I can’t even begin to communicate how much I owe to the QuiltGuppy. She’s like our Godmudder :)
I love this tea! The peach flavors are very natural and it’s just a joy to drink. Live Long Oolong is the kind of tea that I could see myself ordering again and again.
I have the lovely DaisyChubb to thank for this sample as well as for reminding that I have a bag of this tea that I’ve yet to open. I’ve been suffering from tea overload recently which is bliss, but I clearly have to pay closer attention because there are gems that I’ve been overlooking. Must drink more tea!
Nope, this is not the chai for me. I don’t taste any of the caramel and vanilla flavor I was so excited about in this blend, and the pepper notes are so over powering for me that I’m unable to taste much else. I’m a huge 52teas fan but I couldn’t even finish my cup.
I feel a bit like the only kid that doesn’t get the punchline to the joke here after reading all of the positive reviews for this tea. BUT truth is truth, and truth be told this tea is not for me.
Please don’t let this terrible picture from Tiesta’s website fool you. Gojiberry Superfruit is a tasty sencha blend with very natural fruit flavors. This tea is naturally sweet without being overly sweet, and it has a power-packed-punch of antioxidant rich goodness.
This is an enjoyable tea that’s also very refreshing, and it defiantly deserves better photographic representation.
I added a better picture Jenn. ;) You’re absolutely right about this tea, and Tiesta continues to amazing me with their quality. Don’t let the super-slick packaging fool you. These people start with good quality tea and make killer blends.
The Tea Show I couldn’t agree more! I’ve reviewed several Tiesta Teas now and I’ve liked them all. Of course, I am a sucker for the fruity stuff :)
I tried Strawberry Zabaglione last night and it made for a fantastic dessert! I’m so pissed at myself for not buying this one when it was still available from 52teas. The strawberry is very natural tasting and the black tea doesn’t overpower in this blend. A little coconut cream and raw sugar made this tea sing! My husband drank 3/4 of my cup when I wasn’t looking because it’s steal from your family good.
A big thank you (((hug))) to Ashley for sharing this fantastico tea with me :)
It’s in the permanent collection now (aka in stock I guess haha)! You should add some to your next order ^^
This is the only one from my order I haven’t tried yet. Maybe tomorrow.
So glad you guys enjoyed it! This is one of my favorites. And yep, it’s in the permanent collection, fortunately, so it’s always available!
And you’re totally right about the coconut cream & sugar. It just makes it. I was going to suggest you added some but I’d forgot!
Yyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeessssssss!
I was wondering if I should put this on the buy list – I think this is my answer. LOL
Do it Ashley. So worth it. So good.
Ashley, it’s so super GOOD! Cattibrie wouldn’t lie :)
This post. I bought 22g today because of this post.
DaisyChubb, that’s just good planning!
Hibiscus IS a big bitter bully in this tea!
You’ve found a perfect way to describe it! :(
lol i love your lip pic lol
DaisyChubb, the sadest part is that you gave me fair warning. Sometimes I just think it will be different for me… and then it’s not :/
ashika, do you think should I see a doctor? Hehehe…
Edit: the saddest part… Grrrrr
Hibiscus and I are also no longer friends…. It is much better on the second steep, though. Hibiscus is a bully for the first steep, and usually not to be found for the second.
Cherry tea can go really, really wrong. Too many end up tasting like cough syrup.
SimplyJenW, I may have to break up with hibiscus too. Such a bitter coward/ bully!
gmathis, true that! Luckily Cherry Potion didn’t taste like cough syrup, but it was a hot hibiscus mess.
lol Jenn- honey,- it better to have tried than never have taken the chance- i’m glad you went out to find the verdict for yourself KUDOS : )
_"BUT once Cherry Potion is brewed, something goes very wrong. I don’t mind hibiscus in teas most of the time, but hibiscus is a big, bitter, bully in this tea. I can’t taste enough of the beautiful cherries in this blend because hibiscus has beaten the life out of them. The more I drink of this tea the more frustrated I become with it because I can see its potential for cherry(fide) greatness.
You’re a jerk hibiscus. BOOOO!!!!"_
Too true! I pretty much said the same thing in my tasting just now. This tea has amazing potential if it weren’t for the stoopid hibiscus.