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I totally have it in mind now to soak a cake in this tea and call it the improved version of plum pudding. :)

The flavor is subtle, but I always found pudding cake flavor to be subtle anyway (though I can’t speak specifically for plum pudding), so the tea is all the more authentic for it. I still might try more leaf next time to see what happens. Subtle flavor works in a cake since it has the texture and weighty mouthfeel to compensate. I think that this tea would be a good as a complement with a holiday dessert, when you don’t want conflict of heavy flavors.

Another tea that I didn’t expect to like. I am not on team leaf-hopper :p

But sometimes I worry that I’ll miss out on an exception if I don’t try some of the teas that I expect not to like.

Anyway, nothing wring with this tea at all, I just don’t like the honey notes (and I insist, as always that they taste more like mushrooms than honey). It’s a 75 for me.

I just revised my rating system and did away with precise points within ranges (see my profile for details). I will be re-rating all teas from older notes as I have time (because I’m too OCD to leave the old ones alone :p )

So this tea, not bad, not bad at all. I’m not much of a beer person, or any alcoholic beverage for that matter. I drink in the rare social setting for appearances and use beer as a functional “supplement” at the goth clubs I used to go to with my husband in Florida (no such fun here in Wyoming :(. . but let me tell you, when Im 40, I’ll still go out when opportunity presents. . no shame! haha!!. .b/c that is what beer is for)

So back to the tea. It definitely has an ale smell about it in the dry leaf and the final brew. The flavor, though, is mostly Vanilla and Rhubarb and this is alright with me! I’ll have to try it with sugar sometime too, b/c I’m not too concerned about where the hops meander off too if I do).

Besides the hops component, I was also afraid of the Keemun base. From what I’ve experienced of straight Keemuns, I don’t like them for being too smoky. But maybe some are moreso than others? Or maybe the flavors here work to tame it. I dunno, but it’s good anyway, so I’m glad that I took a chance.

Finally, semi-ralated to the tea. I got my first glass tea pot! A tiny 12oz one with a metal handle from Teavivre. I had to use my black friday points before they expired, so it was a quick decision. I was worried about the functionality of the swinging detachable handle, but it works if I hold it and the lid taut while pouring. I’d still rather a side handle, but there were no 12oz pots of that design. But enough complaining! I got to set my tea leaves freeeee! and it. was. AWESOME. Like science and art all together in a glass beaker. I’m probably going to brew a lot more tea than usual now until the excitement wears off. . .if it ever does.

As I drank this, I kept thinking, gee this really reminds me of something. what is it? And for some reason I didn’t realize that this was lemon flavored. I’m so used to orange in teas that I forgot about lemons! Well, now that I read the description, it seems obvious. duh. It tastes like those really big vegan cookies, the lemon flavor (the only flavor of those that I like). Despite how much I like that cookie, I’m not sure how I feel about it in a tea. It’s a bit weird. . . like soggy cookie.

You’d think by now I’d stop buying non-roasty dark oolongs. I generally don’t like them. But sometimes I just can’t turn down a catchy name.

This one has the familiar heavy apricot or honey sweetness that I dislike, but with the addition of a nutty undertone.

I’m not rating this one because the problem here is me, not the tea :p

This green is more sweet the vegetal, but different than other “sweet” greens that I’ve had. I can’t quite explain the difference though. I steeped it according to directions with 160F water for 3 min. There’s a very tiny hint of bitterness, but not bad.

It’s an OK green tea, but I prefer a serious vegetal soup most of the time. I have room for some exceptions for sake of variety, but this one doesn’t quite make the cut.

Nothing new to see here, just relocating the note that was hanging out with the non 2.0 version.

I was distracted while preparing this tea and I didn’t use the recommended 170F water. Oh well. It still smelled delicious! I went all out and ate Keebler rainbow cookies with it and got their crumbs all in the tea. . .hey its my birthday!, I’ll do what I want :D (being healthy is not on my list of things to do ;) )

despite the too-hot water and the Keebler additions, this is an enjoyable cup of tea. It’s a little tiny bit bitter, which Im sure is the water’s fault. I’ll do it right next time, I promise. I’ll be finishing this bag off myself, but I think that the Pumpkin Creme Brulee will be my prefered choice next time I order. I like the spiciness of it more than the creaminess of this one, but it’s a close competition.

A sad, very sad fate for this tea. It was my go-to tea when all else didn’t suit me. But, alas, something was amiss with the most recent batch. I tried to pretend that i still enjoyed it, but I couldn’t keep up the act. I threw the rest away. :( I will mourn its parting for a long time. I’m removing the rating for now b/c I don’t know if this is a temporary problem or if future batches will be the same. I’m going to reorder after a season or two, hoping that it will be from a new and better crop.

I’m not getting the caramel or malty notes so much. I used boiling water (I was hesitant about doing that for a white tea though!) and I used two teaspoon, but a bit more than 8oz of water.

It tastes like a delicate darjeeling with some of the hey notes expected of a white hanging out in the distant background. I don’t much care for darjeelings, but the similar characteristics here aren’t too intense to scare me away.

I would happily enjoy another cup, but it probably won’t be a repurchase.

Oh man, look at the time! I brewed this tea hours ago, intending to write a note as soon as I sat down, but got hyper focused on editing my paper draft. I didn’t even plan to finish with that before I practiced piano for a while, but when I get focused, there’s no stopping till the end. And I made it too the end! Despite my disappointment in the hour, I am relieved to be done with it!

And this tea, such a wonderful partner it was while I worked. I was worried that it would be like the grape oolong, which was waaaay to floral for my tastes. This is just the right amount of floral and with a hint of strawberry. I <3 it!