902 Tasting Notes

80
drank Chestnut by Adagio Teas
902 tasting notes

Another sample from MeghannM. Thanks so much!

I’ve got another snow day today, though it could be classified as an “ice” day. So far, this winter is shaping up to be a record-breaker in terms of wintery precipitation. And winter weather = being cold = drinking more tea to warm myself up!

Okay, let me begin by saying that I’ve never eaten chestnuts. I’m not sure why, but it’s probably because my mother refuses to eat them and, thus, I never had access as a child and have never thought to go out and get them as an adult. Mom grew up a few houses down from a small-time chestnut farmer (he had 4 or 5 trees), and she abhores the smell the flowers emit whilst blooming. I don’t mind it so much; then again, I also didn’t spend quite as much time around that smell as a child.

So, having no prior chestnut experience to fall back on, I can’t say whether or not this tastes like one. It’s got a strong black tea base that is very nice, and an earthy, roasty flavor that’s a touch astringent. There’s a hint of something I’d define as ‘nutty’ and perhaps similar to walnuts that have been a bit too roasted. It seems like something one would drink curled up in front of a warm fire and wrapped in a crochet blanket that your grandmother made. As for me, I’m just going to tuck in with my Snuggie and throws, find something to watch on Hulu, and knit a little something to tuck into my Steepster Secret Santa’s gift (that I’ll hopefully be able to pick up at Cuppa tomorrow so I can get it mailed out)).

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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100
drank Chai With Chocolate by 52teas
902 tasting notes

Okay, a serious bit of backlog…had fully intended on copy/pasting this last night. In prep for the potential snow day we had coming (and we got), my coworkers and I stayed late to make sure payroll was put in correctly, and by the time I got home, I was just too tired to do anything but sleep. Didn’t even make a pot of tea! So, copy/pasting now:

So, in the middle of cooking the fudge this morning, I realized that I hadn’t opened the tea of the day. So for the 20 minutes or so it took to finish it, I was obsessing over what this could be. Would it be new to me? Would I enjoy it? If it was caffeinated so I could make it now, or decaf and I’d have something to look forward to tonight?

I’m so excited that this one is the tea of the day; it’s one that I haven’t had and have been wanting to try! Frank’s cheesecake chais are the teas that convinced me that I do, in fact, like chais. And this one smells so much like the chocolate cheesecake chai! Before, I avoided chais like the plague. Now I’m pretty much willing to try any chai available!

This is smooth, creamy, and perfectly spiced. Very similar to the cheesecake chai, but this doesn’t have the creamy undertones. The spices blend together really well, and I can’t really taste one over any of the others. It’s certainly warming me up from the inside out this morning! Going to resteep these leaves for my to-go cuppa…too good to not resteep!

Second steep yielded a fantastic, fantastic cup that seemed to be even smoother and the spices and chocolate even more melded together. In fact, I think I preferred the second steep (5 min)!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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60

Meh. It’s not better than the Christmas Spice, but it’s not worse either.

This bag is better than the sample bag that came with the catalog. There’s no grit/funny mouthfeel. vanilla_bookworm sent this to me. Thanks!

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec

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60
drank Christmas Tea by Twinings
902 tasting notes

Today’s the Christmas party at work (yes, technically, to be PC it should be “holiday” or “winter”, but sometimes we’re not very PC). So, to start getting in the celebratory mood, I’m sipping on this (I’ve got a bag of RoT’s Comfort and Joy steeping to have next).

I can already smell the food cooking in the kitchen, and my coworker left her homemade pecan pie on her desk and then left the building. I love pecan pie. It looks really good sitting over there all lonely…

Tea! Back to the tea: this blend is softly spiced, and not very strong if you think in terms of chai blends. I wish there was more citrus and cinnamon here. but it’s not too bad. Probably wouldn’t invest in it again; Christmas Nutcracker by Praise Tea is a much better Christmas blend to me!

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec
Kaitlin S

I always thought this one tasted like a Christmas tree, somehow. :)

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80
drank Original Blend by Red Rose
902 tasting notes

I woke up this morning in a panic: today is our holiday party at work, and I’d forgotten to make the peanut butter fudge last night. So guess what I did this morning…

Fudge is now cooling (and it turned out ugly, but rather tasty, and once it’s cut into little squares nobody’s looking at it anyway, right?)), and I’m working on the pot that I set up in Chloe last night whilst today’s 52teas sampler is brewing (it’s a new one for me!!).

I think that frenchvanilla sent me these bags (thank you bushels!)…I’ve been hearing all sorts of things about this brand, and how popular it is. My response was basically “really? I’ve never heard of them before”. But I am from the Land of Lipton Iced Tea, so that shouldn’t be surprising.

I find this to be a very solid black tea. It’s not astringent at all, and I’m detecting some notes of vanilla and nuts. Very smooth and lovely!

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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80
drank Flamingo Vanilla Chai by David Rio
902 tasting notes

I absolutely adore this stuff. Adore it. Tonight, I got it blended perfectly: no chunks of powder that didn’t get dissolved, just the right temperature. I really, really want to try some of the other flavors by this company. This is a vanilla, warm latte-like chai that’s DECAF!! Oh, yeah.

ashmanra

Ooooo, a decaf chai that tastes good! Exciting! Sometimes I really long for a bold flavor in the evening but can’t have it because of the caffeine.

Jaime

It’s not terribly bold…I’m not a big fan of POW spicy chais. This one’s more soft and smooth. Want me to send you a smidge (oh, and totally forgot to tell you, but the Queen arrived safely and is awaiting her moment of glory)?

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90
drank Pina Colada Honeybush by 52teas
902 tasting notes

Oh, I do love this blend. It’s almost identical to a real pina colada: pineapple, coconut, all in a warm rooibos base! All I need is some rum. Must remember to get some rum…

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more

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65
drank Comforting Chamomile by Yogi Tea
902 tasting notes

vanilla_bookworm sent me a bag of this…thanks so much! It seemed like a good choice for this afternoon…need something comforting after the busy day that we’ve had! It’s amazing how crazy a little snow and a little cold can make people!

So, anyway, this is your basic, no-frills chamomile. Just chamomile. Normally, I’m not huge on straight-up chamomile tea. I find them to be way too flowery. This one is actually very tolerable, though. I don’t feel like I’m in a meadow with pollen clouds wafting by. Which is a very good thing.

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec

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75

My last bag of this from Jillian. I’ve absolutly loved getting the chance to try it, and really do enjoy it (so long as you expect orange white chocolate, it’s really good).

Preparation
3 min, 0 sec

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drank Through the Grapevine by DAVIDsTEA
902 tasting notes

I wish there was a way to tag/flag teas that have more than one entry. This one has 3 different entries!! I’ve noticed that it’s very common for the teas I’ve had from David’s. (I’ve chosen to log under this one, since it’s the only entry that has another note).

Anyway, the dry leaf smells like grape sweet-tart candies, or really concentrated grape juice. Very, very strong on the grape flavoring. I’ve brewed it to almost-recommended instructions (I did 2 tsp instead of 3 tsp for 16 oz).

As I sip, I can detect the grape flavoring…it’s semi-strong, but I’m also tasting something that’s rather grape-leaf flavored. This blend is very grassy/leafy/vegetal tasting to me. There’s just a hint of flowers at the end of the sip and in the aftertaste.

I think I’ll hold off on rating this until I’ve had it at a lower temp/steep time.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 4 min, 0 sec
TeaEqualsBliss

Drop Jason a note about it – he can merge them – either PM him or email him with the links if you can at [email protected] – hope that helps!

Jaime

Thanks, I think he’s aware of the issue with the company as a whole…there was a thread in the discussions that mentioned David’s Tea as having two company entries. I really don’t want to bog Jason down with repetitive emails…I’m sure he gets enough of them as it is!

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Profile

Bio

My love of tea started in 2001, whilst in an internship in London, England. I shared an office with a lovely man who would make me a cup of tea every morning without asking me if I even wanted it. I drink my tea neat now, because I’ve yet to find the sugar/milk combination that lives up to Pablo’s.

I drink any and all kinds of tea, and love trying new brands/varieties/flavors.

Location

Lexington, Kentucky

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