Blue Hour Tea

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Recent Tasting Notes

drank Canadian Breakfast by Blue Hour Tea
2170 tasting notes

I woke up to our coldest morning of the season (so far). My fingers are stiff and slow to move. It’s also my first day back from vacation. And a Monday. I’m glad a breakfast blend is the one I pulled from the tea cabinet this morning. It’s strong and a touch bitter, but it has really good flavor.

Flavors: Bitter

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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drank Spicy Honey Chai by Blue Hour Tea
2170 tasting notes

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drank Spicy Honey Chai by Blue Hour Tea
2170 tasting notes

This is such an interesting blend! I’ve never seen anything quite like it. I opened the pouch and thought at first that there was something wrong with the tea, but after a bit of searching I found that this is a sticky tea with honey mixed right in. So different! I steeped according to the package recommendations, mixing clumps of tea with milk. Or I attempted to. I completely forgot about the tea on the stove for probably ten minutes or so, so when I finally remembered it was nearly bubbling over. One sip told me I’d completely botched the cup – it was sooo bitter! My fault entirely. I’m intrigued by this tea though and will give it another try, next time treating it with a bit more care.

ADVENT SWAP UPDATE – If you would like to be part of the advent swap, please let me know ASAP! Some are matched up already, but I am extending the signup deadline in case others would like to join. I want to be sure everyone gets their packages by December 1st, so if you’d like to participate please message me or join in the discussion at 2020 Tea Advent Swap on the discussion board. Last day to sign up will be November 5th, due to anticipated shipping delays.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more 2 tsp 0 OZ / 0 ML

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80
drank French No. 7 by Blue Hour Tea
1226 tasting notes

Do not store this tea without proper storing equipment! Open the bag and you will literally be blasted with the essence of bergamot. A plastic bag will not cut it. Now that I’ve warned you would you like to know what it tastes like? If you like Earl Grey you need to try this blend. The first flavor sensation to hit your tongue is the bergamot with a subtle touch of the earthy black base. Then the lavender comes strolling along and it all flows down so nicely.

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96

Built on Assam, constructing a smooth black tea base that supports the fine taste of whole roasted spices. The spice mix does include cloves, however it’s just enough to notice the flavour, not too much to overpower and completely dominate. The “sticky” element of the tea is the addition of honey into the blend, adding a sweet edge and enabling the flavours to fuse seamlessly. The proportions of these sweeteners is also bang on perfect, again being enough to be detectable, not too much to overpower. Spicy Honey Chai contains some additional spices; black pepper and ginger, to create fiery, peppered middles notes that carry long into the finish. Its’s warming and extremely enjoyable

My Fva of Blue Hour Teas Sticky tea

Flavors: Ginger, Honey, Pepper, Spices, Spicy, Sweet, Tea

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70
drank Agave Chai by Blue Hour Tea
259 tasting notes

Built on Assam, constructing a smooth black tea base that supports the fine taste of whole roasted spices. The spice mix does include cloves, however it’s just enough to notice the flavour, not too much to overpower and completely dominate. The “sticky” element of the tea is the addition of agave into the blend, adding a sweet edge and enabling the flavours to fuse seamlessly. The proportions of these sweeteners is also bang on perfect, again being enough to be detectable, not too much to overpower. The brands inclusiveness of organic agave nectar has enabled the creation of a vegan friendly blend, so all are able to consciously enjoy this fabulous creation. Agave Chai has a well-balanced classic chai taste.

Flavors: Cardamom, Spices, Sweet, Tea

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 15 sec

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100

Every time I would pass by the Blue Hour booth at the tea festival here, I would get a sample of their freshly steeped in soy milk chai. Seriously delicious.

I’ve been off dairy, except for the occasional tiny and brief indulgence, for months. I don’t tend to use dairy substitutes such as soy, almond, or coconut milks all that often, so I don’t usually keep them at home. All that is a preamble to say that I steeped this and am drinking it straight up and unsweetened. Despite the killer humidity out there still and yet again.

Straight up, this is a swift and hearty kick in the pants spiced slightly sweetened tea. Surprisingly delicious, even without something to make it creamy.

Flavors: Spicy

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML
Daddyselephant

Ooooooh, I may have to try and get my hands on some of this, I love egg nog.

Evol Ving Ness

It may not taste anything like eggnog unless you actually put eggnog in it.

Roswell Strange

Yay! I’m happy to see Sheldon’s company getting some love :)

Evol Ving Ness

I think they were a bit hit here at the festival. I certainly wasn’t the only one swarming them.

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Latte Sipdown (416)!

Well, I’ve been trying to really work at sipdowns since I’ve got so much Black Friday stuff coming in and this is a pretty fitting on since it’s from two Black Fridays ago! That definitely makes it one of the older teas in my stash as well – so I’m feeling pretty proud of myself for finishing it off!

It was pretty good – very smooth, with lots of cinnamon and clove notes and a strong vanilla undertone. I don’t know that I’ve ever really strongly got “Eggnog” from this one though? Sometimes custard, but not really in your face eggnog. I wonder if there were many others who agreed with me, because Blue Hour Tea no longer carries this one! In fact, in looks like Blue Hour tea has really trimmed down their sticky tea offerings.

I think I’m of mixed feelings in that regard – it was something that made them really unique/stand out even if I think it was a little gimmick-y, but personally I didn’t love the mess of brewing the sticky teas and I don’t think it added to the flavour of the tea at all other than some sweetness. I probably wouldn’t order another sticky tea again; but I think I would consider ordering from the company again now that they carry more than just sticky teas.

Evol Ving Ness

I recall this being a really good one though. A really good one.

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Almost done with this one; which I guess is good because I’ve had it for a LONG time now.

For the record, even though I like the tea overall I don’t think I’d order it or any of the other sticky teas from Blue Hour again – I just find them really messy to work with, and there’s no way I’d want to move them into tins either: it’d be so bad for cleaning out when I inevitably finished them off. This has remained in the original bag I purchased it in since I got it…

Also, one of the things that’s mentioned is that over time these sticky teas can harden and that’s perfectly normal/common – BUT I’ve had this for well over a year, and it’s definitely NOT hardened. I almost wish it would, I kind of feel like that would be a little easier to work with?

Anyway – this cup was with a bit of added Butter Pecan Creamer, because I’ve just found this is a little too brisk and astringent for my personal tastes unless I soften it with some kind of milk based… thing.

I was perhaps a little too generous with the creamer though; with the agave already in here, this was REALLY rich/sweet. It did taste quite good though; like a spiced butter pecan. Tons of cinnamon and clove, and maltyness from the black base were all good compliments to the flavour of the cream. Normally, I think creamer is supposed to compliment the tea though and not the other way around.

Oh well.

I think since we’ll be heading into fall soon(ish) I might find it easier to finish this off; I don’t really love spiced teas, but I certainly drink much more of them in the fall/winter seasons.

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Sipped on a mug of this tonight whilst attempting to bake some two ingredient pancakes. And yes, two ingredient pancakes are a thing. What are the ingredients, you ask? Bananas and eggs.

Honestly, the whole recipe was sort of a mess. Like, it was SUPER easy to mix together: mash up a banana, crack an egg in the bowl you mashed it in and whisk together until mostly smooth. It’s supposed to make three relatively decent sized pancakes. Well, I just could not for the life of me get them to hold any kind of form. So, I ended up with some really tasty tasting “banana scrambled eggs”/goo. As far as flavour goes, I have to call these a success. But were they pancakes? Nope.

Also, I burned the last one. REALLY badly. Filled the whole house up with smoke, and I had to crack open the porch to clear everything out. I still ate it though, and other than the burned bits it was still pretty stellar.

The tea was good; I kept the steep time pretty short (just shy of three minutes) and that worked well because I got a nice sweetness from the agave in the ‘dry’ leaf and an array of spice/chai elements but nothing too bold to turn me off since I don’t generally love Chai, and none of the astringency that seems to come a little too easily with this blend. Overall, I’d say dominant flavour aspects were vanilla and clove. Cinnamon was up there, though. Also, it went pretty well with my “pancakes”.

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkyrIRyrRdY

Couldn’t resist.

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Gravity Steeper = Lattes that are 100% easier to make = More Lattes!

This one was an almond milk latte enjoyed in the evening after a long shift at Job #1; it felt like such an indulgent treat! And of course, Chai always lattes so well. Even a non-Chai fan like myself is hard pressed to find a Chai latte that I don’t enjoy…

Sweet, lightly spicy, and very creamy – both from the milk and the tea itself. Yum!

Flavors: Cinnamon, Clove, Cream, Spices, Vanilla

VariaTEA

This is why I felt you needed to own a gravity steeper!

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You know what the awkward part about craving a Chai when you’re not a fan of Chai is? That you literally only own one Chai tea. Ok, maybe two; but one is caffeine free and I NEED the caffeine right now. So options are limited; and I like having options…

But this is pretty good, and more than satisfying my cravings right now so I can accept that I was sort of strong armed into choosing this one to brew up. Drinking it hot, with quite a bit of added in coconut milk and it’s really lovely! Creamy, with light coconut notes from the milk and then lots of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove delicousness. It’s also got lighter vanilla/custard notes – and then there’s the sweetness of the base assam tea itself. This one doesn’t always do it for me, but right now it’s exactly what I needed.

Also; pro tip – keep your infusion time short! This gets bitter quickly, so I’ve learned to lean towards less leaf and less infusion time and this change has done wonders to improving the flavour.

Fjellrev

Damn, I actually just happened to walk past their booth at farmer’s market last Saturday but didn’t have the time to stop. Now if I can only get another Saturday off sometime soon so I can get some goods.

Roswell Strange

Ooh; that’s really cool you found them at the farmer’s market. One of the owners, Sheldon, was actually a classmate of mine for some of the Sommelier classes I’m taking – that’s how I found the company. If nothing else, I can assure you that the “sticky teas” they sell are different than anything else you’ve ever tried. Weird; but different.

Fjellrev

Yeah! I remember you mentioned him when you first started talking about these teas but I never made a connection until now.

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Something went wrong here because this was the most astringent, bitter cup of ‘nope’ that I’ve made in a long, long time. Adding a hearty dose of coconut milk after steeping couldn’t even smooth out this mess of a cup…

MadHatterTeaDrunk

That’s never a pleasant experience! Sorry about the horrid tea tasting!

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So, my new commute to work is 45 minutes long as opposed to the the five minute bus ride I was taking prior to moving. It’s kind of a bitch, if I’m being honest – however on the plus side it’s the perfect excuse to brew up a travel mug of tea for the bus ride there which just lets me sneak in an extra cup into the day!

Today was my first time taking the bus, actually. It wasn’t bad at all – I expected to have trouble finding my stop or transferring but everything went as perfectly as it could have. So that was one less thing to stress about, tbh.

And the tea was good! I added a splash of almond milk so it’d be cool enough for my to drink right away on the bus and it did wonders for the tea. It was smooth, with a sweet flavour and rich/creamy mouthfeel and a lovely eggyness to the taste with nutmeg undertones. I’ve become pretty fond of this tea overall.

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Finally tried this one straight/plain!

…But I was helping my mom wrap her Christmas presents and I forgot about the tiny pot I was steeping and it got way too bitter to be consumed. So, not really a successful attempt.

I’ll try again later, though.

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This is a queued tasting note.

So, after the first day I made this as a latte I brewed it up again the day afterwards. I liked the latte, but I also felt like it didn’t taste as nice as it had the potential to be, nor did it taste like eggnog so this time I switched things up. What I ended up doing was brewing this Western style in plain hot water, and then at the end adding a few tsp. of eggnog into the liquor. The idea being that if anything was going to make this taste like eggnog it would be actual eggnog.

Making it this way was definitely an improvement: I thought all the elements I noticed with the latte (malt notes, nutmeg, a solid black base, some sweetness) still were present but because the tea wasn’t being overwhelmed and muted by all the milk and there was a little actual eggnog added in to give this that extra nudge all those flavours delivered a much better experience and the overall flavour was convincingly eggnog-like.

Definitely still need to try this one straight, though.

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The first of my Black Friday orders is here!

Sadly, I don’t think I’ll be getting my second order (from Whispering Pines). I goofed when I placed it, and sent it to my old address in Saskatoon however I didn’t realize that until after Brenden had already shipped it out. I’ve scoured the Canada Post website, talked to them on the phone and on social media and frankly there’s just nothing they can do to get the order to my current address instead of my old one. As well, mail forwarding isn’t an option because it doesn’t extend to packages/parcels. Begrudgingly, I’ve contacted Tre to see if he’d send it to me or hold onto it until the next time I’m in Saskatoon but it’s been 48 hours with no reply; and with the way and reasons I moved out (and so suddenly) I’m pretty resolved in my belief that I just wont get a response from him. Basically, and sadly, that order is a write off. I’m just going to have to cut my loses and hopefully reorder when I can afford to.

In the mean time, I want to really make sure to enjoy this tea which was also a special treat for myself! It’s unique for a couple reasons: the first is that the company (Blue Hour Tea) is owned by one of my Tea Sommelier classmates named Sheldon! Admittedly, I don’t know him well at all outside of class but within class he seems to be a very interesting person, with some really interesting ideas to contribute in class. It’s also very cool to get to support a company owned by someone going through the same learning experience I am! I think my current class (Tea 107) is my final one with him though; after this one he takes the certification exam.

The second thing that makes this tea very unique is the overall idea of it. It’s not your conventional loose leaf; instead it’s a “sticky tea” which is something I’ve only ever seen done by Blue Hour Tea. And as you all know, I’ve reviewed a pretty sizable amount of tea (1000+). Essentially, what it is, is a Chai blend that’s been coated/glazed/whatever word you want to use in agave! Personally, I don’t tend to sweeten my teas but an idea so different had me interested. When my tea arrived and I cracked open the package this was indeed a giant lump of loose leaf coated in agave! I don’t know why, but it’s ‘dry’ look reminds me of oatmeal? In a weird way.

I picked out Egg Nog Chai to try because it seamed seasonally appropriate. I was very tempted to try the London Fog because it sounds amazing but since Chai is what they started with I ran with that. Besides, I was already stepping outside of my comfort zone due to the pre-added agave. I might as well run with that too, since Chai isn’t normally my thing either.

Since Sheldon/Blue Hour Tea recommend this as a latte (‘traditional’ Chai style) that’s how I made this one. I imagine I wont do it that way all the time, but it’s nice to try it ‘as intended’ the first time around. Overall, I think it was nice! I didn’t find it overwhelmingly sweet from the agave like I feared I would and I thought the base was prominent enough that I could actually tell it was an Assam from the medium body, molasses, nutty, and malty notes it gave off. The most noticeable ‘spice’ note was nutmeg; which is as it should be when it comes to an “Egg Nog” inspired blend. That said; my biggest complaint overall is that while the flavour was certainly enjoyable it didn’t remind me of eggnog…

Like, at all.

I’m excited to experiment with this tea though; it’s so incredibly unique and I think there’s a lot of potential to do some very interesting things with it. Perhaps if I try it again in just regular hot water I’ll taste more of that eggnog flavour I’m craving. It is a bit of a relief, though, to be able to say I like the blend created by my classmate.

And I’m not numerically scoring this for obvious reasons that I have a huge bias since I, in a way, actually know the owner of the company. In more so of a way than saying I know the company owners of other popular companies on Steepster.

Fjellrev

Oh geez, I really hope you do hear a response from him. At least you still know the person at your old address, someone who should be able to help you. So frustrating.

Such a bizarre concept: glazed tea leaves.

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