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I was recommended this tea because I like Buddha’s Blend. She probably suggested it because they both have hibiscus. But they do not taste the same. Unfortunately this one tastes like watermelon and I hate watermelon! Oh well, at least I only bought a very small amount. Moving on.

Got this tea in my February Tea Sparrow box. It’s a lovely tea! The black tea gives the vanilla a very round, full flavour. I don’t sense the ginger so much, but I’m not all that bothered by it, it’s still lovely.

Thanks so much to Vari Tea for sending a sample of this. Unfortunately as much as I’m learning to embrace fruit teas, this one is not for me.

Raspberry? There’s raspberry in this? I don’t get raspberry at all. Coconut? Yes. Chocolate? Yes. Even butter? Yes. But no raspberry. Which is disappointing because I really like raspberry. Oh well, if you want coconut, this may be the one for you. Buttery and smooth…

Got this in my February Tea Sparrow box. Very excited about the pineapple and coconut although it doesn’t come through much. Definitely a nutty flavour and quite nice with no milk/sugar

I forgot Bulk Barn sold loose leaf tea. This is one of four that I picked up and it was the one I was most looking forward to trying. I was very saddened to see that it was the lowest rated of the four on Steepster though!!
Well, I’ve since tried it and it’s not bad. The orange tastes a little artificial and the taste isn’t as orangey as the scent was, but I wouldn’t kick it out of bed for trying. ;)
Still very drinkable, I just wouldn’t steep it too long in case it becomes bitter or too astringent.

Received in my Advent Calendar. Nice, clean toasty rice taste. Very comforting.

This tasted different than I expected! Not as peachy, but not in a bad way, just subtle. It doesn’t smell as nice as it did dry, so I was worried I had made a terrible mistake.
The taste is nice though! More apricot with a hint of nuttiness. Lovely on its own. I’m also finding I LOVE oolong teas. ;)

2nd Steep: I had a cup the next morning from the same leaves. I definitely get more ‘fruit punch’ this time around. Still the apricot too. A little weaker, but not by much. It makes a good 2 steeper.

Received this in my Advent Calendar. The first time I tried it straight with no milk/sugar and didn’t like it. It’s only when I came back now to do a review that I noticed licorice listed amongst the ingredients. I’m not a huge fan of licorice so maybe that’s why I didn’t like it the first time around.
I had one last little bit of this so I thought I’d do it as a latte. I steeped a tsp of the tea in about 1/3 cup of boiling water for about 4 mins. and added 2 tsp of brown sugar to that. Then steamed a cup of 1% milk and added it to the sweetened tea. It tasted much better this time around. It’s not as spicy as a standard chai is. Quite light in fact. I guess because it was a ‘vanilla’ chai anything else would’ve overpowered its delicate flavours.
If you like the idea of chai but don’t want the strong peppery flavours, this may be the chai for you.

I tried this tea a long time ago because I was trying to replicate Harney & Sons ‘Paris’ tea. This is nothing like that. So I’m reviewing it again because a) I wasn’t on Steepster when I had it the 1st time and b) I want to give it an honest chance.

Aroma both dry and steeped is very vanilla-y. I’m having it black, but I suspect this would be good for a latte. A friend passed by my desk and I asked her to smell the steeped tea. She said it smelled like a pastry, which to me seems like a good thing. ;) The taste is definitely bold because it’s a black tea. The vanilla is very pronounced and there is no nasty lingering aftertaste. Much better than I remember this tea being.