Paper & Tea

Cold Brew!

I made a whole pitcher of this to bright over to a friend’s this weekend for an afternoon and arts, crafts, and zine making. I’ve never made a zine before, but it turns out it’s basically a book of collages and they were honestly really fun to make. I ended up making mine into a birthday card for Marika (it’s her birthday today)!

The tea seemed like a safe pick for a bigger group, but I also kind of just liked the thematic pun of choosing a tea from Paper & Tea for a craft-making afternoon. It was very smooth, black tea forward and citrusy though, with pleasant notes of bergamot, lime, lemon, and dare I say the gentlest touch of vanilla!? It felt more like a medley of different citrus fruits than specifically an Earl Grey, though the bergamot does cut through fairly clearly without getting too heady and intense.

I do fully intend to drink this one gongfu at some point, but for now this was a Western style mug of tea. I think my water was maybe a bit too low temperature because the tea leaves didn’t fully unfurl and the tasting notes here were delicate in a way that was more understeeped than it was gentle and soft. But, the bones of the brew were substantial enough to tell that with better steeping this could be quite fragrant with a striking balance of minerality and florals. I will do better next time.

Sipdown (3258)!

This one made me a little nervous, but it actually steeped up quite nice and balanced. Rich notes of cocoa with a bit of spice and earthiness from the turmeric. Quite a cozy cuppa without being too sweet/sugary or too raw and muddy feeling. I bet it would latte up quite well if you wanted to push it into a bit more of a decadent zone, but it does also retain a sort of wellness vibe when sipped straight up like this too.

This was nice! Light and mellow with a balance of fresh, zesty citrus and toasty golden grains/nuttiness. You definitely distinctly taste the yuzu as well as the kukicha, which is just roasted enough for my personal tastes.

I brought these back from Germany and though they’re definitely more intended for travel I had to give this a shot as part of my morning matcha routine. I ended up using two of the stick packs, since they’re dosed pretty lightly compared to how I normally make my usucha…

When I first tried this, my immediate thought was that it was flavoured in some way. However, as I continued drinking the matcha, I really don’t think that’s actually the case. It’s just a very naturally sweet and aromatic matcha with quite distinct notes of white chocolate and woodruff or even tonka bean. Really, really smooth and pleasant tasting with a soft and buttery mouthfeel. There was such a familiarity to it, as well, that I just was never really able to place while drinking this.

Anyway, it was just shockingly so much better than expected!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYfu-ltiYE4/?img_index=1 (Fifth Pic)

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2zbnOz7x9Q

Steeped up as a Western style mug! More in the light to medium bodied range with soft florals and a gentle taste of sweetgrass. The osmanthus shines through in its peachy finish and lingering sweetness. Delicate but beautiful!

Gongfu!

Normally, Ya Shi Xiang, aka “duck shit oolong,” as it’s more often referred to, isn’t really my go-to style of oolong. However, I found this one to be especially fragrant, floral, and fruity with really lush notes of plum and lychee alongside a fresh, clean earthiness and lightly roasty finish of sweet almonds. The undertones are a touch more honeyed, with notes of wildflowers and magnolia that gradually increase in presence. What it really reminded me of was the intense sense of calm and serenity you get walking through a flower garden in the early hours of the morning when everything is still dewy, the flowers are just starting to bloom, and everything is just cool enough you can see a hint of your breath in the air. A still, peaceful, and quiet moment frozen in time.

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYSz1ohiRBt/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5F04Uj9a-Q

Sipped this as a late night cuppa, but to be honest I was only half paying attention to it. I remember thinking it was unoffensive for such a chamomile forward blend with some nice albeit gentle citrus notes. I’d like to try it again in a more attentive way, but as a wind down bevvie it certainly served its purpose.

One of the teas I brought back from Germany!

I’ve been waiting to try this tea because I wanted to share it with my friend and her partner since they are probably the biggest consumers of milk oolong that I know. They both really enjoy it (flavoured and unflavoured), but he is especially into it and has an ongoing ranking list of the best/worst milk oolong he’s tried.

So, we made a few cups to sip on while catching up and I think we all actually felt kind of the same about it. Very smooth, a little buttery and particularly floral with undertones of sweet pea blossoms, lilacs, and pandan. We thought it was good, but not the best we’ve tried either. Ended up pretty solidly in the middle of the ranking, which I think is pretty fair all things considered.

Very smooth notes of mandarin orange with subtle floral undertones and a bit of a more black licorice-like finish from the fennel in the blend. It’s impressive to me how Paper & Tea gets this to taste specifically like mandarin oranges and not just a generic orange note. Not too sweet, tangy, and acidic either. Just that perfect tender citrus note. It’s an overall pretty elevated and sophisticated blend.

Finally trying this tea I brought home from Germany!

It was very familiar tasting in a way that I just can’t pinpoint. I’m not even sure what it was reminding me of was specifically a tea and not some other food/beverage I’ve had in the past. Lots going on, with a brisk and tannic bold black tea base that was malty, rich and woody with subtle undertones of cocoa and smoke. The fennel was very prominent with its licorice-y herbiness, and I felt like I was also getting a more savory spice like carraway as well. The orange was pithy but also a little bright and sweet in a way that REALLY tasted like mandarin, and I appreciated that balance of sweetness and bitterness quite a bit. Very, very natural and authentic. The finish was rosy and floral in a lingering, heady way but not too perfumey.

I don’t know – everything was soooo distinct tasting and yet clicked together very cohesively too. Curious if those qualities will be consistent with each cup, but if they are then I can totally see this becoming a new favourite from Paper & Tea!

Sipped on this one yesterday!

It does steep up a pretty pinkish red hue, and the flavour is approachable and pleasant. Red fruit and a bit of sweet apple. Fresh and juicy with a bit of tartness and sweetness but not too much of any one thing. Do I wish the red fruit notes were a bit more clear? Yeah, sure. But it was easy going and simple and I also can appreciate a blend that doesn’t make me think too hard while drinking it.

This tea was sent to me by Martin – many thanks, Martin!

I had this on the patio after breakfast. Although I looked at this listing for it a while back, I had forgotten what the flavors were so I had fun trying to see what scents I detected. I thought I was smelling lemon, but not tart lemon. It was a soft and slightly citrus aroma. There was a fruitiness as well. I asked Ashman to sniff the tea and then sip it and he said he detected fruit and he liked the tea.

The more I sipped the more I thought it was reminding of something with lavender that I have had before…and I realized I was tasting fig! The fig flavor really built up throughout the several small cups that I drank. I have Fig and Lavender from Tea Grotto and this reminds me very much of their fig flavoring. I liked theirs so much that I put it on my wishlist a while back, and Superanna bought me some.

The fig in this was so very similar to that one, minus the lavender. It was delicious. I think perhaps the base was giving the lemon vibes, but it was not at all astringent or sharp. It was quite smooth. The base tea was full of middle notes, lacking really sharp high tones or deep bassy or cocoa tones. It was a great carrier for this lovely flavoring.

Sipdown (2926)!

I was hoping that this would be a little bit of a stronger orange flavour, either in a more creamy and dessert like sense or just juicier and more bright. Instead it’s, well, just a kiss of orange in an otherwise incredibly chamomile forward cup of tea. Not unpleasant tasting, and I think the soft note of orange does compliment the almost honeyed florals of the chamomile blossoms. I just don’t reaaalllyyyy like chamomile a whole lot, so it didn’t make a super strong impression on me personally and isn’t something I’d really feel compelled to revisit…

This tea made me think of Mastress Alita while I was drinking it. Probably because it’s really, really licorice-y and if I remember correctly Mastress Alita is a fan of licorice teas. Definitely fennel forward but also anise notes and a bit of the lingering sweet flavour you might expect from licorice root, too. I happen to like the taste of black licorice (even if I don’t love licorice root) and so this highly fennel-y blend did appeal to me a lot.

Gongfu!

This is a very sweet Korean black tea with a thick, syrupy full-bodied mouthfeel that practically oozes notes of dark chocolate with a liqueur-like undertone of waxy red fruits and honey. The finish is a little bit nuttier and toasty, with roasted peanut elements to it. It just makes so much sense to pair a tea like this with chocolate, and since these milk and dark chocolate bonbons all have assorted fruit fillings they really elevate those undertones of red berries and make them seem even deeper and richer! My favourite, though it obviously comes with a bias, was the Saskatoon Berry truffle. Very nostalgic for me!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DXmlJWQEUQw/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KN4Y_PPCZKc

Gongfu!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DJcqCAcS72Q/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjcC-5s7jk8&ab_channel=TheHowl%26TheHum-Topic

Based on the description of this tea on the overwrap I expected it to be kind of like DT’s Mother’s Little Helper herbal tea, which is very herbaceous but also quite tart with a minty finish. This was actually a lot more minty though with a deeply cooling peppermint note. More like a peppermint essential oil than peppermint leaves, with a slight citrusy edge. I really, really liked the cooling minty flavour and sensation though!

I know this blend is intended to be cold brewed, but I had a hot mug of it yesterday and enjoyed it a lot. I felt like I got the buttery, creamy mouthfeel of the coconut more than the taste whereas the flavour was mellow and tropical with candied pineapple notes. Quite nice!

Cold Brew!

This was quite nice! At first I struggled to put into words what I was tasting because it was a combination of bright, citrusy, and creamy flavours that was familiar but just a little off? Definitely a pina colada kind of vibe, especially with the sweeter coconut cream notes. However, the pineapple component reads a little more generically tropical than specifically pineapple and there’s some lemongrass in the mix too.

Regardless, it’s very smooth without masking the lovely malty floral notes of the black tea itself. The finish has a bit of a sticker, mouth coating and lingering sweetness and that’s the only element I didn’t love. It just clings a little too long. But otherwise I’d call this very refreshing, tea-forward and for the most part nicely balanced.

This is so familiar tasting, but it’s hard to pin point exactly what tea it’s reminding me of. I think I’ve just had so many different spiced lemongrass-based tisanes before. This is a lot of lemongrass too, but it’s fresh and zesty with a really clean finish. I feel like I can tell it’s good quality because of how aromatic and lively it is. It works well with the spice inclusions, which are also quite aromatic but with a tingly sort of heat and earthiness. Sort of has a profile that makes me think of Thai cuisine!? But in a good way.

This was a very, very soft and mellow herbal blend with a mix of baked apple notes with a bit of floral elderflower and then a lot of linden. It wasn’t unpleasant, but I definitely wanted to like it more than I did. The fact it was so gently flavoured wasn’t really a contributing element to why it didn’t land for me: delicate apple and elderflower is actually a really beautiful combination for a calm, quiet feeling blend for the evenings. I just, unfortunately, don’t enjoy the taste of linden very much and there is a lot of linden in this blend. Obviously. I mean, like, it’s in the name.

So just something less for me personally.

Iced Latte!

Added a bit of vanilla syrup (made with real vanilla beans) to this latte. With the sharp layering of the dark brown hojicha powder over the milk that was streaked with vanilla caviar, this was really pretty. Very tasty, too! This hojicha powder in particular is quite darkly roasted so it has strong coffee and chocolate-like notes and a bold nuttiness that really hold up quite strongly against the creaminess of the milk. Much yum!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/DV85FsTjeMs/?img_index=1 (Second Pic)

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrernS5eQ-w

This was the only hojicha powder I had during the week. It’s a very dark roast powder with super strong barley and coffee notes to it. I paired it with this really flaky and buttery pumpkin pastry, and the two went really well together. The pastry had a pretty squash forward filling, and wasn’t overly sweet so it worked well with this thicker and more roasty hojicha. Super, super autumnal feeling and cozy!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/DPrpoNakq3j/?img_index=1 (Fifth Pic)

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3wVlG21kpw