August Uncommon Tea

Home – 8:00 PM

So I made another sample order from August Uncommon. I mostly wanted to try Dark Iris and Arabesque, but ended up choosing several teas. I didn’t love all the teas I tried from them previously, but there were some I enjoyed and they offer samples with free shipping. What more can you ask for? The leaves here looked quite broken and I knew it’s Assam, so I only steeped it for 2.5 minutes instead of my usual 3.

Oddly, the dry and steeped tea both smell like either coconut or cherry cordials. Which is strange because neither coconut nor cherry is in ingredient here.

It’s a somewhat brisk and malty black base with a big hit of caraway. I do get cocoa as well, and it’s definitely the unsweetened variety. There is some bitterness even with the shorter steep, and also a bit of astringency. Honestly, it smells so much like cherry cordials that I’m disappointed it doesn’t taste like them. I get a hint of maraschino cherry or amaretto near the end of the sip. But it doesn’t really make sense with the caraway.

To me, it’s a bit discordant. Also, there’s too much bitterness and astringency, which takes away from the sweeter notes. I may try a 2-minute steep next time.

I think perhaps I would really like this one if it weren’t for the caraway flavor.

Hot, this one tastes a lot like Teavana Pineapple Kona Pop. I wish I could taste more of the barley! As it is, it’s just a grassy, sweet, fake pineapple. I like it, but I wouldn’t buy more.
EDIT: Actually, as this cools, the fake pineapple fades, and it really does taste like caramel and cake. I think I’ll bump up my rating because I’m really enjoying this now.

Home – 8:15 PM

The Great Cupboard Excavation
Untasted teas remaining: 8

This is the last of the samples from my August Uncommon order. I would really like to try their Dark Iris and Arabesque blends, but every time I check their website one or both of them are out of stock in the sample size…

Based on the other notes on this tea, I was expecting it to be horrible. In fact, I don’t taste truffle at all here, which is a relief. I do taste banana and an earthy smoke flavor. There’s a bit of very burnt caramel as well.

I think the ingredient that makes it weird for me is the blackberry leaf. It makes it oddly sweet and that in turn makes it taste artificial. I think if the blackberry leaf weren’t included, it would be fine.

As-is, it’s a “no” from me.

Home – 3:00 PM

The Great Cupboard Excavation
Untasted teas remaining: 25

Ahhh first tea of the day… Well, besides a matcha milk this morning. I slept in and then went to visit my house-in-progress for a bit. This is one of the teas I chose in my sample order to August Uncommon Tea. I admit, their teas have been extremely hit-or-miss for me. I really enjoy Dots and Loops, Tropic of Capricorn, and Psychocandy though, so hopefully this one is more in that vein.

Hmm. This reminds me vividly of these Japanese plum candies that I once bought at an Asian supermarket. They were almost like smarties in a way, sort of powdery and disc-shaped. But they were plum-flavored and somewhat tart, and they tasted exactly like this! Which is funny because it’s an unusual sort of plum flavor. It’s certainly very candy-like, and I’m not sure I would immediately guess it was plum if I didn’t know what it was meant to be.

I feel like they over-advertise the Earl Grey aspect of this. There is a little bergamot, but it’s very little and I’m not sure I’d notice it if I weren’t expecting it. It’s a bit overwhelmed by the strong, tart candy plum and the floral notes. I don’t get clove at all. Perhaps I missed getting a clove in the steeping basket?

I’m not sure I get this one really. To me it mostly tastes of candy plum with a bit of floral, and not much else. The base tea is very light, so I can’t really taste that either. I would like it better if the bergamot were strong, and the plum weaker.

Is it just me or are their Dark Iris and Arabesque teas chronically out of stock in the sample size…?

Home – 10:00 PM

The Great Cupboard Excavation
Untasted teas remaining: 27

I’m actually running out of caffeine-free teas to try in the evening. I only have a couple more untried ones to go, and then I suppose I’ll allow myself break into the swap samples in the evening.

I actually ended up using the whole sample packet of this for my 16-ounce pot, because the fruit chunks were huge and heavy so there wasn’t that much volume for the weight.

This is… not what I expected. It’s barely sweet at all, and there’s an interesting slight tartness. I suppose it must be from the apple and pineapple? I guess I was expecting it to taste more like melon, since that’s the primary flavor mentioned. There’s definitely mint, but it’s more of an herbaceous peppermint which isn’t my favorite. It tends to taste a bit… musty? Or something? I’m not even sure how to describe it besides “sort of like a wet dishrag”.

This one is a bit disappointing to me. I feel like the apple overshadows the melon too much, and that it would be nicer with spearmint in place of the peppermint as well as a bit less mint in general.

Nice light melon flavor with a touch of mint. I would’ve liked even more mint, but it was still good. I basically drank this one every day, and now it’s gone, so I’ve been adding mint to my various other fruit teas to get my minty fruity fix. I’ve had better teas of this variety, but I could see myself repurchasing this one day.

Home – 5:30 PM

For some reason, I have had a headache all day. It’s very unusual for me, and quite unpleasant.

Anyway, I added this tea to my sample order from August Uncommon because it sounded so unusual and intriguing. Plus most of the order was black teas, so it was nice to add a green in there.

This is not at all what I expected. It tastes mostly of melon, which is not one of the two flavors mentioned in the short description. It tastes juicy and ripe, and perhaps with a bit of cucumber mixed in. There’s also a creamy grass flavor and slight hint of umami that remind me of matcha. I’m not sure what dragonfruit tastes like, but this does have a touch of tropical edge. The eucalyptus is light, thankfully, and somewhat piney.

Overall, I dig it. I bet this would be amazing as an iced tea.

Home – 10:30 PM

August Uncommon Tea blend of the day!

This is one of only two herbal blends I chose in my sample order. I don’t tend to love red rooibos blends, but I’m trying to give them a chance.

This one is quite good! I can taste the woody rooibos, but the other flavors compliment it very well. The strongest flavor is the caramel – it’s sweet and rich with a nice buttery taste and has brown sugar and maple notes. There’s also creamy vanilla bean that reminds me of custard. It tastes a bit boozy as well, perhaps dark rum?

I’m not sure I get pumpkin at all, which isn’t surprising given the strength of the other flavors.

I find this is similar to Lupicia’s Caramel & Rum, which is also a rooibos. I haven’t had that one in a while, so I’m not sure how similar.

In any case, it’s yummy! I would describe it as a boozy crème brûlée rooibos.

Oh boy oh boy White Puer!

Full passing points in white tea blends done right in my book. I appreciate it so much because white tea is rather difficult to process, so not only was this one completed pu-er fermentation style, it was done with a well selected combination of flavors.

When hot you can enjoy a bold white that holds interests yet keeps its mellow elegance. In a cold brew or iced tea its a lightly refreshing guessing game of fruit varieties. (those cucumber notes really balances things well). It’s pretty loud and has personality for a white without compromising the nature of the tea- a perfect blend of east meets west.

Home – 6:00 PM

I realized that I forgot to try an August Uncommon Tea blend yesterday. Oopsies!

It’s interesting to me how they don’t really mention the lapsang in this tea in the description. I looked at the ingredients, so I knew to expect it, but anyone who didn’t might be quite surprised by the scent! XD

To be honest, I could do with a bit less lapsang in this blend, it does dominate the Yunnan and Assam a bit (even though it’s listed last).

I think a bit more toffee flavor would be nice too. I do get a burnt brown sugar sort of note, but to me toffee has to taste buttery. This is closer to molasses with its dark and toasty sweetness.

The base tea blend does have some nice notes of tobacco, wood, and malt, and it’s definitely rich-tasting. However, I think the smokiness is a bit heavy-handed and it masks some of the other subtleties present here.

Not bad, but could definitely be improved.

Home – 6:30 PM

August Uncommon Tea blend of the day!

Hmm… I’m not sure about this one. The stonefruit flavor is more tart than I would like, which kind of takes away from the richness of it all. I definitely get the booze notes, maybe brandy or even rum. I’m not sure I get white chocolate – there is some cocoa and some creaminess but they don’t really translate into white chocolate for me.

Last but not least, there’s something soapy and combined with the tartness and cream notes, it makes me think of rancid coconut. Not a great association to have…

Overall, it’s a miss for me. I wish the prune flavor were richer and less tart, I think that would make a big difference. And I’m not sure what’s going on with that soapy taste…

Home – 5:30 PM

Yay, I just got my order from August Uncommon Tea. They have so many interesting flavors, I ordered several samples and there were a few more that I wanted that were out of stock. I love the free shipping idea, especially since their teas seem reasonably-priced.

Anyway, after giving all of them a good sniff, I chose this one to try today. I’m really diggin’ it! The fennel/caraway is the strongest note here, and it reminds me of rye or pumpernickel bread. Then there’s cooked green apple and some nice malt and bread notes from the base tea.

It’s unusual but tasty. I’m excited to try my other samples.

The flavors go so well together. I add a bit of sugar because…I add sugar to all my teas! So it’s a pleasantly sweet and spicy combination. I’ll be sad when this one is gone, but I don’t know if I’d order again at its current price. I’d be more likely to try to make my own. I’ve got some dried sage leaves, so I’m partway there!

I need to abstain from caffeine for awhile due to surgery, so all the herbals in my cupboard are on heavy rotation. I’ve said in the past that I really don’t care for rooibos, but August Uncommon has such great teas I thought I’d give this a shot. Brew smells like vanilla pudding, and the vanilla flavor was the most prominent for me. A tiny bit of burnt sugar smokiness from the rooibos. A very nice tea, but not in love, despite it being warm, sweet and comforting. Dang, I really miss my black teas!

This starts off nice, creamy and sweet with a booziness to it that blends with the stonefruit flavors that make up the body of the tea. However, as you keep drinking, it starts to take on a burnt quality I just don’t love.

Check out my full review here: http://sororiteasisters.com/2018/03/27/breathless-from-august-uncommon/

I drank this rather distractedly but I do recall the fig flavor at the end of the mug which came as no surprise given the large fig in my filter.

I really wanted to open something new and opted for this tea. I got 4 cup sample quantity of this for 99 cents+ free shipping during a promo that the company was doing. I haven’t tried any teas from this company before but their uniqueness of their blends intrigued me. After This came I looked on Steepster and was disappointed to see that the reviews weren’t very good.

I drank this plain with no milk or sweetener. I actually really liked this unlike the other reviewers. The taste is more complex than just a lapsang souchong tea. It’s smokey but not in your face smokey. The toffee gives it a natural sweetness. It’s definitely hard to describe because it’s so complex. I pick up on some wood notes as well. Overall it has a very luxurious feel to it. I really like the mood of it too if that makes sense.
If Roswell_Strange’s perfume tea pairing didn’t have to be just Davids Tea’s this one would be a great pairing for one. It might lean more towards a cologne pairing though.
I definitely want to buy a tin of this.

Previously, I gave this one a rating of 30. Now I’ve decided to not include a number since I don’t like savory teas, and this tea is decidedly savory. I liked the flavor of real apple in the black, but the fennel killed me. My family members make fun of me because I try to pawn off teas I don’t like on them, and they’ll ask, “Is it savory?” Because they don’t want to be tricked into a savory tea either. I mean, I saw the ingredient list before I bought it, so I should’ve been ready, but I was not. Now I don’t buy a tea if it includes savory herbs in the ingredients.

Looks like I’m the odd one out. I almost didn’t order this due to the less-than-stellar reviews, but I’m so glad I did! It is very fragrant and heavy on the clove and plum especially. A little floral but not overwhelming. That plum note is so syrupy, like candy, and the clove is very present but not to the point that it feels like your tongue is falling asleep. Plus the orange peel contributes to that candy vibe. The description mentions that EG lovers would love this, and while I’m an EG fan, I don’t see much of a similarly between the two flavour profiles.

Yesterday, I discovered this for the very first time though I’ve had it for a while. What an enchanting blend! Very much white chocolate meringue mint with a hint of something else, possibly the citrus freshness of the grapefruit peeking through—though I did not pick up on straight grapefruit flavour here. Maybe in the next cup. The rooibos doesn’t assert itself much.

Really yum. I am a fan.

Perhaps this is now day 14 of cutting off caffeine at 3, or at least, aiming for that cutoff even if the reality is more like 5 on most days. Still, the awareness is positive, as is the discovery or rediscovery of herbal blends and tisanes. All good.

Tried this one as a hot brew first, and was a bit concerned. Although I like the Assam base tea and am definitely detecting the creamy, white chocolate, there is something off about it. I first noticed it in the scent of the dried leaf – overall enticing, but then ruined by some weird, tangy note that seemed very off putting. It showed up in the liquor as well, unfortunately. I usually really like August teas, and the description seemed perfect for me, so this was a little disappointing. I then tried it iced. So. Much. Better. Makes a lovely iced tea and for some reason, that weird tang (perhaps the booziness others are noticing?) was almost completely obliterated. Whew! It’s too bad I can’t really enjoy it hot, but since I do drink a lot of teas iced, this will definitely be drunk.