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Oh wow! exam tomorrow…. how do i do this quickly?

gong show week.
nevermind, gong show semester.
bought some zen teas because i’ve had to drop my caffeine… tried a chamomile blend? baaaaaaaaad call!
but they threw this is as a sample.
it’s amazing.

if my exam is half as amazing i’ll be very very happy!
BYE!

PLEASE NOTE. ERRONEOUSLY I REVIEWED THE HERBAL VERSION NOT THE BLACK BLEND OF THIS TEA (AND STUCK IT IN THE WRONG SPOT). HOWEVER, AS MY FRIENDS HAVE PAID ME SUCH KIND ATTENTION I WILL LEAVE MY REVIEW IN PLACE WITH THIS DISCLAIMER!! ps: miss you all frightfully. xoxo, JustJames

oh my. this review sums up the end of a long week!

this tea is a pleasant conundrum! i frequently enjoy my teas with cream, but if hibiscus is involved that poses a wee problem! this is a bright pink, hibby strong (my fault on that) strawberry cream. the hibiscus waves and almost whacks me, but the cream swoops in and tones it right down.

truly unique. this tea has a split profile— an acidic, hibiscus fueled strawberry, paired with a very smooth cream opposite.

i’m drinking less caffeine these days and by proxy more zen tea (!!!)…. this is an excellent creation! i feel very zen =0)

i steeped for 5, it would have been perfect if i’d steeped for 4.

it has been a low down dirty week. the powers that be have conversed and conspired… they have planned and plotted. their ultimate ruling? for whatever reason (this week) they don’t like me. i look left— it shows. same if i look right.

although i told myself i wouldn’t try the treats MissB sent my way until i’d polished off my samples i figured i needed something special if i was going to throw a full on pity party. i bailed on class (which i truly never do), i didn’t answer the door, i hid out until wheelchair rugby (which wound up getting cancelled)……. came home and got into this.

i am wracking my brain; was there a reason i thought it more likely you would be able to flavour a not-green as ice cream? i can’t remember. all i know is that i really get this tea. and i think it kind of saved me from another day of feeling like a complete spaghetti monster. (you know when nothing is right and you don’t even recognize yourself?)

this tea is lovely with or without sweetener. no cream. absolutely pistachio ice cream. thanks MissB, and thanks Stacy as always…. xoxo

an interesting blend sent to me by Tabby, thank you!

strangely, the strongest flavour i get is a fruit akin to raspberries. the chocolate i detect in scent, less so in taste. not much spice, but that could be hidden by the heat of the tea itself.

not bad, i would say the smell trumps the taste though. i did a four minute steep- i have enough left that i could try for five… may change numbers then =0)

thanks for the opportunity to try, Tabby!

thanks to MissB for this cool sample!

i have had a thing for currants lately, and the formidable MissB must have noticed because my sample bag has CURRANTS!!! scrawled across the front!

what it should have said was ‘CURRANT CUSTARD, JAMES… WITH WHITE PEPPER SPRINKLED ON TOP!!!’ lol.

quite excellent. i prefer it more once it has cooled down and the flavours can all be detected, a titch of agave… wunderbar! i’ll buy this again.

unbelievably smooth, complex without being the equivalent of plaid with polka dots. very nicely balanced. i think whoever named it did the blend a disservice, the tea is much more complex than the cliche name, but isn’t that what the world has MissB for? =0)

hmmm. this one was an odd mix for me. a light, sweet, SMOKEY, green. an interesting experience, although a strange one for me.

thank you to MissB! not my thing, but how could i have known that without trying? =0)

i think this tea is at half mast for me.

the name, ‘blue chai’, with it having no spices let me down.
the dry smell was very mild.
the colour was striking! haven’t checked…. but i think my teeth may be blue, lol.
taste: peppery on the back of the tongue, strongly legume.

the artist in me loves the colour, but i do not know that i like the tea.
……… i have the strangest inclination the steep up the rest and do some watercolour painting.

not the right match for me.

still, thank you blue chai for the opportunity! what a beautiful colour!

this sample came to me courtesy of MissB.

i found this to be a really striking tea! this was ferarro rocher minus the chocolate. creamy with a freshly ground hazelnut taste. i added a half tsp of agave and a drop of cream. at 4 mins i ALMOST steeped too long— it was nearly overpowering. this blend really was a pleasure.

at some point someone told me adagio was rather hit or miss. i haven’t had enough of their blends to confirm or deny— but i will say based on the tardis blend, reichenbach remedy and hazelnut that i will be investing with them in future.

away i go~ i got a polite email from my prof asking ‘did you deliberately skip the last 1/4 of your exam or would you like to come in wednesday?’ sigh. what can you do but laugh and be grateful for an awesome prof?

i do not…. understand.

i got not licorice.
i got no orange.
i got caramel? caramel…. is that you? where have you been? have you been hiding out with adagio playing favourites with MissB? if so, i will admit my feelings are moderately hurt… but really i’m just glad you came back for a quick stop by!

i didn’t smell caramel either…. i have to conclude it really was taste. i had a sense of nuts (nonspecific) and caramel.

maybe MissB put some sort of voodoo over it? lol. sadly i was so distracted by amazement that my entire review consists of ‘I COULD TASTE IT!!!! WOW!’. not much else. (sorry….. but it was very good!)

it also had a warmth that was not generated from heat or spice. riddles upon riddles!