Fares 1929

March Sipdown Prompt – an evening tea

This is the final tea from a surprise gift from Martin! We have been avoiding caffeine after 3 pm each day, so Martin sent a selection of caffeine free blends a few months ago for us to enjoy.

This one is called Basil and Lemon but it tastes like lemon and lemongrass. Any basil is pretty muted right now. There are no ingredients listed so I don’t know for sure if there is lemongrass or lemon balm or what giving it the lemon flavor. It does not have the oily “Lemon Pledge” affect that Ashman dislikes so much from lemongrass. I find it light and easy to drink tonight, very enjoyable as I settle in for one last chapter of my book. I am drinking it plain but I think it would be excellent with honey if you like to sweeten your tisanes.

Thank you, Martin, for letting us experience all those different teas that we would not have been able to try otherwise!

Edited to add: moved to appropriate listing

Another evening tea from Martin! Thank you!

I usually prefer rosehips to hibiscus and I like ginger as long as it isn’t too hot. This tea hit the spot really well. It is tart enough to be interesting without being insufferable and making me throw in sugar and stick it in the fridge, and the ginger warmth JUST warms and doesn’t burn. I am hoping the ginger keeps us from having any issues tonight from the pizza we ate!

Thank you, Martin! I think this makes sample sipdown number 5 for the year so my sample box is looking really good!

January Sipdown Prompt – a blend made in another country

I received a surprise package from Martin recently! I didn’t translate the tea name first – Martin already told me these were caffeine free – and I picked this one randomly.

I really liked the aroma and picked up rose right away. Funnily enough, I had just pulled a chocolate from an M&S box and it was Turkish Delight so I had a theme going.

I love this! This is way more rose than chamomile and that suits me very well indeed. The chamomile stays in the background. The rose is so sweet and lovely, and I am a fan of floral tea!

Thank you, Martin! It was a delicious tea!

Martin, this one’s amazing! I tend to be leery of rose teas because they can be improperly blended and taste like the soap Grandma kept in her nightie drawer to make everything smell good. However, the rose gets a really nice citrus counterpoint that keeps it from being too cloying. This is another one I think will be really lovely on ice. Thank you!

Is there anything better than a box of tea treats waiting for you at the end of a long day? Even better when they’re from a tea friend; thank you, Martin!

This was the first packet I broke into. The basil/lime combination is sweet and refreshing, and the combination of citrus peels and flavoring pumps up the flavor without a bit of painful tartness. The total combination smells like the tomato plants in our little container garden after a good rainfall! Fragrance is a fitting name.

I’ve got a second steep recycling in the fridge overnight. Garnished with a little fresh basil pinched from our plants, this should be equally refreshing on ice.

Can rose overpower the chamomile and make a tasty tea?

Well, it’s actually hard to say. Because it also contains rooibos and orange essential oil. The latter is fairly strong actually. And rose too. In fact, I don’t notice any of the chamomile, but the flavour is strong and actually a bit soapy. It gives me a soap feel. As a aroma of it I can imagine it as a great mix. As a tea… well, not that sure.

It’s fruity. Distinctly orange, or actually rather a tangerine, but that herbal part is somehow weird to be honest. Well, somehow I have to go through remamining 19 tea bags.

PS: It’s one of the three tea bag boxes I bought in the end of last year during my trip to Romania. Rating on hold.

Although my tea bag wrappers collection is rather on hold and I drink way more loose-leaf tea instead of tea bags; the collector inside me always wakes up when I am going through tea counters in the shops. No exception, and even stronger urge to buy something; when I am abroad. Yes, I have bought 3 boxes of tea while I was in Romania at the turn of the year.

I bought them just because tea bags. They were quite expensive, in comparison to other teas there; like 3 times more, but they were labeled as “NEW” and I told to myself why shouldn’t I?

When I returned back to train, I was checking the flavours. All are herbals or with rooibos.
This one I have opened first and when you know no Romanian, you have to hope that translator services do they work well.

But why to call tea “A Fragance”? What is it with? Basil + Lime? Like what? The box is so aromatic after citrus fruits.

When brewed, well, it is like that. It is quite earthy indeed, but citrus notes are making it light again. Some tea bags were realy juicy and lovely. Some were more earthy. You can steep this tea anywhere between 3-10 minutes.
Sadly, I do not notice any cloves nor rooibos (which can be considered as a pro in pros and cons list). I still have some and I may add some to the TTB if interested.