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I think this is a tea that I probably shouldn’t like, but I do. I can’t help it. It reminds me of the Hawaiian Tropics suntan lotion in a dark brown bottle that I used to love when I was in high school. That stuff was so awesome smelling. This tea makes me want to get some.

Coconut is the main flavor here but there’s also a pina colada-y taste and a darker taste (which I’m guessing is the actual tea). It feels a little oily but not in a that-pizza-needs-to-be-blotted-off-nasty way but more of a spaghetti-sauces-made-with-oil-are-always-tastier kind of way.

So yeah, that sounds delightfully appetizing, right? Oil and suntan lotion. See what I mean when I say I don’t think I should like this? Because honestly, I don’t think it is a good tea, but the experience of drinking it, for me, is good. It reminds me of summers spent poolside, which, considering I have been accused by multiple people of being solar powered, is something that always make me happy. So for me this tea is like a summer vacation in a cup.

Predominately a darker chocolate taste with hints of cream and cherry. There’s a slight astringency to it that isn’t unpleasant but that keeps this from screaming ‘dessert tea’ to me. The flavorings are smooth and mild and that keeps it from being overly rich. Not bad.

So, now that I’m out of this tea, does that mean I’m going to go through withdrawal?

(Ha! I’m so funny!)

I wasn’t overly in love with this tea at first but then I discovered more is more, at least as far as steep time goes. Now I’m sad to have to de-cupboard this tea. At least this is one that I can get again! So one day the sweet but fresh candy-ness will be mine again!

I was prepared to be disappointed with this tea because of how the dry leaves smell – there is a strong extract/alcohol smell plus a fair amount of calendula, which I am discovering I dislike because it makes my tongue tingle. But actually, this tea isn’t that bad. Once water hits it there is a maple smell to it, which is reassuring. And the taste, while not overly maple syrup-y, has a high, sweet taste that isn’t quite but almost a sugar-esque sweet. I’m not 100% sure I would have been able to peg this as maple if I hadn’t known that’s what the taste was but it’s close enough for hand grenades so whatever. The calendula tingle/taste was there but not too strong so I’m okay with it. This really isn’t an awesome tea but it’s good enough to drink and enjoy.

Dude, what happened? The first time I had this tea, it was seriously awesome. It must have hit my happy spot or something because it made me almost euphoric. The second time was a total let down. So I’ve been hesitant to try this one again. But in my desire to de-cupboard more tea, I figured I’d bust this one out.

This third tasting isn’t starting very promisingly – I overbrewed it. Oops. The chocolate taste is still not really there except as an afterthought, but I’m okay with that. The chili taste is nice and tingly – on the border of a bit too spicy but nice. It’s a fairly thin bodied tea, feeling a bit like a second steep from a regular tea. The oversteeping has made it a little rough but a dash of half & half has fixed that and given it a slightly more luxe feel.

While not as enjoyable as my first perfect cup, this is a likeable tea. It’s different and, oddly enough, makes me think of gourmet hot chocolate – the kind that doesn’t taste actually like chocolate but you probably paid nine dollars for it. At the hoity-toity ski lodge. In the middle of winter. Even though you don’t ski.

I’m not back to being in love with this tea, but I’m giving it a slight point bump. It’s different and is fairly successful in its different-ness. This isn’t a tea I’d need to have on hand but I could see the occasional (if rare) desire to have a cup.

A combination of noisy construction taking place right outside of my office and difficult graphics has led me to require tea at an earlier time than usual. I’ve been thinking about this not-lapsang some the past day or two and just the thought of it makes me happy. So this is the perfect time to have some of this happy-making tea and attempt to destress.

This is such a mild smoky tea but it is still a smoky tea. Perhaps it is because the smoke is so smooth that it just makes it taste rich. Today this is very chocolaty to me, with a hint of almost sharp smoke in the last bit of the sip then a delightfully sweet and smoky aftertaste fills my mouth and I can’t help but smile. Ah yes, perfect happy tea. I feel much better now (though I do have to give Marvin Gaye the assist).

Giving this a bit of a bump because really? How can I not when it makes me feel like this?

I think the caramel and the red fruits in this tea combine in such a way that makes it taste like tea lightly flavored with red berry syrup. There’s no tartness usually associated with things red berry-ish and it ends on a sweet, light caramel note. Quite a tasty little tea, one that can handle a morning in my travel tumbler without additives (which seems to be a bit harder than succeeding in an additive-less state in a cup). This tea won’t be the reason I place my next Kusmi order, but when the time comes I will certainly be adding a tin of this to my cart.

First off, it is easy to tell that this is related to my much-loved Hawaiian-Grown Black/Makai Black. The flavor profiles are pretty similar, but the flavors seem softer, slightly muted in this tea. There’s also a hint of greenness, almost rawness that reminds me of a Neela (but not quite since I dislike Neelas for that rawness but find this pleasant). Also, this one still reminds me of shampoo ginger.

So this is a tasty tea but having such a similar taste profile to Makai Black (plus shampoo ginger and a little crispness) just makes me want Makai Black instead of this. Which would make me sad except I got an email from Eva that my tea was sent off Monday, so I will have Makai Black with me soon! Yay!

Bumped up the steep time on this from 3min (my first time having this) to 5mins. That’s my happy spot. It’s still a subtle flavor but it no longer feels weak. There’s the sweet, vanilla/creamy Easter candy taste from last time but also a little fresh citrus, though not so much a citrus taste but a citrus freshness that is really nice because it keeps the sugary sweet Easter candy-like flavor from being too sugary sweet. Tasty stuff! I’m (once again) bumping my rating a little bit to reflect the increased happiness this gives me.