PureAromaTea

sipdown!

So i don’t like a lot of oolongs. But since this was a shared sample, i thought what the hell. Kittylovestea has done a great job with her review and i don’t have much more to add other than this is a pretty decent oolong with a nice subtle orange flavour. I’d consider ordering this again for the occasional flavoured oolong tea time. there’s just enough of that roasty oolong flavour to make it my preferred type of oolong and then the addition of the orange is a tasty tasty thing :)

Sipdown! Which i think puts me at about 271? or there abouts. In a perfect world i could get through 20 sipdowns over the weekend but i’m not sure how doable that will be given that i should probably leave the house at least for a little while :)

I picked up this tea to share with Raritea in one of our joint orders. Not because i thought it would actually taste like black forest cake, but because the description was cherry cream and it was a herbal tea. I need more of those in my cupboard since i think 80% of my teas are black teas. I’m not sure exactly how long i steeped this for, i kind of stopped paying attention to it. I suspect for anyone willing to try this one out, that 6 mins might be sufficient if you want to avoid having the hibiscus be as present. still though? This is delicious in my opinion even if it does taste similar to other herbal blends of this variety that i’ve had.

I do have to say though, purearoma is shaping up to be a pretty decent option for teas. Even though they’re across the ocean, it only took 6? business days to arrive, shipping is only 3.50 (pounds) or free after 30$ AND their sample sizes come in these fantastic resealable extra heavy duty silver envelopes. They’re like 5-7g! don’t ask why i know that :) Additionally the sample sizes are 10g, which leaves enough tea to play with and get a sense of whether you like the tea. And they’re reasonable priced.

so…yeah. enabler here :)

SIPDOWN!

I tried the last of this sample as a cold brew to see how it fared. Bumping up the rating slighty as a result. What i like about this is that it’s clearly a black tea brewed cold, but it’s not bitter or astringent, and the lemon adds just a touch of interesting to make it a good cold brew. I’d have to add a bit of sweetner to get my other half interested but i think this should be a nice one over summer when looking for something that’s not overly fruity or sweet. just refreshing!

mmmm so this one, confuses me a little. This is clearly a lemon tea. It smells like lemon, it has lemon peel in it but when i brewed it, it totally reminded me of drinking regular old “red rose” tea when i was little and mom would put a splash of honey and lemon into a cup for me with the tea when i was sick. It’s a happy tea for me, but the memories that it evokes are totally weird since i’m clearly NOT drinking red rose :)

mmmm i think i can get behind purearoma’s teas so far. Which is likely a good thing since i have about 25 samples to go through after i get through the shared samples that i split with the girls here :)

I wanted to try this one because it has bilberry in it, and i had a feeling from another tea that i tried that i don’t like bilberry. This tea smells deliciously fruity when it’s dry and even more so when it’s steeped!

I can get behind this tea, though i wish i had a bit more to try as a cold brew since i think the fruitiness of this would work out quite nicely as a cold brew. The only down side to this tea, and to be fair i’m not entirely sure it wasn’t something left over from a tea before hand is the oily film on the top of the surface. I was not a fan of that, since i could stick my finger in the film and make holes where the tea would come through….it did amuse me drawing faces in it though lol I’m hoping when Kittenna tries this she can confirm or deny the oily film.

anyway…this flavour? it’s fruity and light and blends quite nicely with the flavours in the tea. it’s not an overly black tea, but it doesn’t quite come across as a totally fruity tea either.

SIPDOWN!

Oh! We purchased a sample of this one to split between 3 of us and now i’m wishing i had more of this. This is a delightful raspberry tea that i’m sure would kick some serious butt as a cold brew. No idea what ginseng is supposed to taste like but this is not a wimpy white tea. This is a really decent, slightly tart raspberry tea.

It’s finally starting to feel like spring, so a sakura tea seemed appropriate.

Dry leaves have a very heady, sweet cherry-floral fragrance, and appear to have flower petals (rose?) mixed in. Liquor is greenish-gold and cloudy with a similar aroma to the dry blend. The vibrant cherry flavor is well balanced between fruity and floral, and doesn’t overpower the smooth sencha base. I got three infusions out of one teaspoon. Very pleased with my first PureAroma experience!

Dear, sweet, merciful teacup, this was good. I had no expectations of what Rose Congou should taste like, but one sniff, and one sip, and I now have my ideal Rose Congou in my head. Made a cup for Cara and she liked it as much as I did (and also added wisely that it didn’t smell like her paternal grandmother, who always wore rose perfume!). Like drinking not just a rose garden, but a garden full of tea roses.

Hip Hip Hurray it’s the first day of spring today!!! Officially it is anyway according to online sources. I have been saving this Spring Blend for a few weeks now to celebrate with. :)

In raw form this tea consists of dark brown Keemun (Congou) leaves that are shaped into random knobbly pieces that have been mixed with tiny pinkish/purplish heather flowers. It has a sweet and fruity scent that resembles blueberry or possibly even raspberry (but less sour and more sweet). Yummy. (My husband said it smells like blackcurrant which I can smell so strongly now).

Once steeped the tea is burnt orange in colour with a super sweet berry aroma. Very blackcurrant like and thick now, like cordial.

In flavour this is sweet, berry, sour, rich, earthy and dry. The bilberry is the star of the show with it’s sweet and juicy goodness while the Keemun (Congou) adds an earthy depth. The balance is very nice and it lightens very quickly to leave a fruity dryness upon the tongue.

What a welcome to spring this tea has been, not only has it put a smile onto both me and my husbands face but it also brings back memories of berry picking with my family when I was younger.

In appearance the loose tea consist of dark brown an medium brown leaves that have been broken down into small pieces. Amongst the Oolong are light yellow/orange curly leaves that give the blend a sweet an floral orange scent. Orange is a personal favourite of mine in smell and taste and I must say this tea as a whole smells divine!

Steep One – One Minute
Orange in colour with a sweet yet floral orange smell. Very nice start, the orange is dominant with sweet, waxy, floral and creamy tones which overall create a strong orange presence. The Oolong is in the background with baked/toasted and earthy tones which compliment the orange very nicely. I’m surprised by how strong the orange is but it’s a positive thing for me.

Steep Two – Two Minutes
Dark amber now in colour. The orange has mellowed a little now which in a sense makes it taste more like an orange as in fruit rather than flower. It’s very refreshing and still full of flavour. Almost like eating warm orange segments. The Oolong is not very noticeable now but there is still a touch of baked flavour that enhances the orange to stop it from being just another fruit tea.

Steep Three – Three Minutes
Orange in colour. My third steep is still strong and fresh and well worth drinking. More subtle than the previous two steeps but strong enough to be fruitily pleasing. It’s still creamy and sweet too with the waxy element extremely reduced.

This is honestly one of the tastiest orange teas that I have ever tried when it comes to the flavours as a whole. I could not think of any improvements that could be made to enhance my tasting experience and I am over the moon that I picked this tea. I feel like a bit of a suck up but I’m being honest

I will definitely have to buy some of this soon and would recommend to any other orange or fruity Oolong fans. It has certainly warmed up my dark, rainy English day.

PS. I’m on my fifth cup and there is still lots of life left in this tea.

For pictures please view my blog. http://kittylovestea.teatra.de/2013/02/23/orange-blossom-oolong-warms-a-rainy-day/

Today has been relaxing for the most part but I started with an active morning (of shopping) so my energy levels are now very lax. Pure Aroma Tea were kind enough to send me a sample of their lemon tea. Lemon is usually a morning tea to help wake me up but I am in dire need of energy right now.

The tea is Congou based and has that fabulous rich, malty and slightly floral scent which is masked behind the strong and sour but fresh lemon. Amongst the dark brown twisted Coungo leaves are a sprinkle of dried lemon peel pieces which have a pleasing contrast.

Once boiled my tea has a gentle lemon scent with a little floralness that resembles lemongrass rather than lemon peel.

In flavour the lemon (which still tastes like lemongrass rather than lemon peel) is quite mellow with no tartness and only a flash of sourness. The Congou is rich and floral with smoky malt tones which blend nicely with the lemon. Overall the strength is fair and would be suitable for people that do not like their tea too strong but can always be increased for those of us who prefer large flavours. It tastes fresh and of nice quality and is a little different than your basic lemon tea which is mainly due to the lemongrass factor. Still very tasty and a nice every day style lemon tea.

Rose Coungou is one of my favourite teas and I’m craving a cup tonight before bed.

This blend smells like sweet rose petals which reminds me of my dads red roses that grow each spring. There are dark pink dried rose petals amongst dark brown thinly rolled and chopped up tea leaves.

Once steeped the tea is dark orange in colour with a sweet rose scent much like it’s raw form.

This tea is very refreshing and it leaves such a wonderful floral after taste. The Congou is smooth and velvety with light malted tones which is nicely finished with a gentle rose sweetness. There is also a slight sweet yet sour effect but at nice subtle levels.

I made the right choice, I will be tasting flowers as I sleep now :)

It’s been another one of those days where I end up spending the entire day by myself which I don’t mind most of the time. When I do get time to relax by myself I enjoy a cup of something fruity and today the weather has been quite bright for a change so the two will go hand in hand.

Thank you again to Pure Aroma Tea for this sample. I have been enjoying their teas so far but their fruit teas really stand out so I am looking forward to trying this blend.

Upon opening the packet my nostrils are filled with a wonderful tropical fruit tea punch that is both strong and sweet. It smells very fresh and juicy with the mango being the strongest smell but passion fruit not far behind giving a fairly equal smelling blend. Very tropical tutti frutti.

In appearance the green tea is rolled up into little balls that are both dark green and dark brown in colour. It looks like a cross between an Oolong and Gunpowder Green but the smell doesn’t match it’s dark colours.

Brewing one teaspoon of tea in an empty teabag. Once steeped the tea becomes orange in colour with a strong juicy mango scent.

A few sips in and I’m thinking “Wow this contains green tea?” because you wouldn’t know by taste alone. The mango is still slightly stronger than the passion fruit but it seems to be keeping it sweeter that way and juicier. It’s fresh and light too but with the right balance of flavours. The quicker it cools down the more I can start to taste the green tea and it has a slight astringency. I realize I haven’t mentioned the guava which is something that I love and it’s making itself more present once it starts to cool down. Guava has that unique sweet pulpy taste and this has that too in a small dose.

Yep another yummy fruit blend by Pure Aroma Tea and another tea to add to my list to try iced. Sipping this is like being on my own dessert island with me laying on warm sand with the breeze blowing at my warm skin…if only.

This weekend is a thankful break after my stressful week and nothing calms me more than a nice strong cup of black tea. Russian Caravan is a tea that I enjoy when used as an everyday style tea as it can really pick me up.

Pure Aroma Tea was kind enough to send me this sample to review and I am an honest writer. :)

This sample of Russian Caravan is an earthy dark brown colour with leaves rolled and roughly cut to form short and thin squiggly shapes. They smell warm and malty with a rich and dark woodsy scent.

I shall be steeping 1.5 teaspoons of leaves into my Gongfu for this session. I have added the extra half a teaspoon purely for personal preference as I like my tea strong.

Once steeped for 4 minutes 30 seconds this tea creates a burnt orange colour that has a slightly sweet malt scent.

The tea itself tastes sweetly malted and very refreshing and clean tasting. It’s also smooth and very easy to drink especially considering I have not added any milk or sugar. There is also a wood musk charm about it that I can taste in the after taste and the malt just keeps getting thicker and sweeter. Very delicious and it truly does make a very nice every day tea.

It’s also suitable for re-steeps. I re-steeped the leaves for 8 minutes to create my second cup of tea using the original leaves. It’s not as strong but there is still plenty of flavour left. :)

Holy moly…. this smells delicious! Just like strawberry sweets :) It smells rather natural too and very sweet and juicy. I was tempted to eat the raw mixture but managed to behave myself.

This is my lunch tea to help wash down my vegetarian chicken salad cob and watermelon chunks. I decided something fruity would go down nicely.

Once steeped the tea becomes dark red with the same strong yet sweet strawberry scent. So juicy and sweet licks lips.

Just like the smell this tastes sweet, strong and fresh with the strawberry being very dominant, so dominant infact that It’s hard to detect the kiwi. After the sweet strawberry there is an after taste which is slightly sour yet sweet and sharp which reminds me of the taste of fresh kiwi. It’s so sweet that I would never think of adding any sugar, infact I think it would be far too sweet if I did. It still tastes like strawberry jelly sweets or cordial.

I bet this would make a delicious iced tea, I will have to try that theory later.