Steam Tea House

Bold and clean with little to no astringency. There seems to be hints of a savoury note in the background here as well. These black breakfast teas I’ve been steeping at 200° F rather than boiling and I think it does wonders for lessening the astringency.

I ordered 100g of this because I loved the wee sample so much and have been drinking it daily. I cold brewed it through the night and had it cold this morning and it was just as delicious cold as it is hot. Winning!

Wow, this smells so peach juicy. Like concentrated peach juice, but somehow not cloying. Almost like the Tim Horton’s peach drink I enjoyed as a kid, but not fake.

There is the most subtle hint of astringency that I almost can’t decide if it’s really there. The peach flavour is much lighter in the taste, which is nice because it doesn’t come off artificial (which in my experience, often happens with peach). The apricot is subtle and I think just adds a bit of a boost in the background and helps the peach come off more realistically.

2021 sipdown no. 1

I used the last of this to make milk chai on the stovetop, so this is a sipdown! Just in time for our new Vahdam chai to arrive.

I absolutely love chai and need to drink it more often. This tea today is PERFECTION. I’ve put it back on my wishlist to order again once it’s back in stock.

We add 2 tbsp chai, 2 tbsp coconut sugar, 1.5 cups water, and 1 cup plant milk (almond today).

So this tea is fairly old, we picked it up when we were last in Vancouver, which I want to say was 2016 (that in itself is just sad). However, it’s kept quite well!

I feel like I’ve lost it this evening with all these teas and nothing really hitting the spot, so I turned to chai — which I almost never want haha! When we do make chai, we make it in the pot on the stove with milk.

Tonight I brewed this up like any other tea in a mug and with the kettle. I did add half a teaspoon of simple (coconut) syrup just because.

The spices here are not too in-your-face, but yet very chai-like. They mesh nicely with the background tea. I added such a small amount of simple syrup I’m not really tasting it from what I can tell. I’m actually really loving this right now and I’m thrilled (so much so I’m thinking of ordering more chai as this one is almost gone and I had no plans to replace it)!

Couldn’t tell exactly what this was supposed to be, but it was delicious! I definitely needn’t have put off trying this as long as I did. Definite nutty flavour, and the pu’erh base was earthy but not fishy. There’s supposedly strawberry in here too, but I didn’t really notice it – maybe a general fruitiness. Strawberry is usually pretty distinct, so that’s a bit surprising. The nuttiness here reminds me of the nuttiness in some of Butiki’s teas, actually, which is a very positive association.

Thanks for the delicious sample, OMGsrsly, or whoever passed on a sample from you to me!

This. Steeped short (2 min) and strong (4 tsp per 2 cups) and iced, with orange juice. 4 cups total final volume – add ice and OJ to your preferences!

So good! I think that any vanilla EG style tea would be great iced with OJ. Tastes kind of like an Orange Julius.

If you need it sweeter, add some honey…

Pretty good. Very very strong, but it does have a tonne of bergamot oil in it. Nice with cream. It’ll make an excellent Earl Grey chocolate cake…

This is the one.

Still working on perfecting the steeping time, but enjoying this tea nonetheless.

I’ve always had trouble with Earl Grey and I thought this sounded perfect when the lovely employee at Steam told me it was without bergamot. Yes!

The base is a touch finicky with steeping, but the other floral ingredients compliment it, even when I don’t manage the perfect steeping. I can only imagine how delightful it will be when I do.

For the moment, this is on my desk at work. It was a nice treat at work this afternoon.

Thanks Sil for including this one.
Not sure why I’m drinking Irish Breakfast at 8:00 PM but oh well that’s how I’m rolling today.
This is a little bit of everything, a bit tart, a bit astringent, a bit malty. Not my favorite blend, but pretty good. Yep – I’m ok with this tonight.

Tart, tangy, a little edgy, this is a rich cup. It’s potent! Tasting of wood, leather, malt, tobacco, sour rye. It would best be served with breakfast, but instead I had it with a sweet treat:
2 apples, dices & sautéed in coconut oil, then sprinkled with cardamom (or cinnamon, or both…nutmeg is another option). Add a little vanilla & melt a couple T of coconut butter, or just add a little coconut milk…or other kind of milk…
Meanwhile, dissolve 1 T of gelatin in cold 1/4 water, or some kind of milk.
When the apples are tender & everything seems just right (and the planets are perfectly aligned) stir in the gelatin, stir it around to make sure it is all dissolved, then divide everything between a serving dish or 2 & refrigerate for an hour or 2.

I’m in love with gelatin right now. I bought some frozen peaches today to make a peach & coconut milk one tomorrow. I think I’m gonna make a banana coconut milk pudding in a little while. I just can’t get enough! Perfect with a robust cup of tea!

Thanks to Sil for this tea, and that’s another Sipdown, folks!

PS. I should have drank this yesterday, since it was St. Pat’s!

Mmmmmm I LOVE pear and I don’t hate rooibos – so I was pretty happy to see this in the box from Sil – and I think she got it from OMGsrsly. LOL I just find it so interesting how teas just get passed on and around. This is an amazing community of generous people.
I’m finding this to be more pear than rooibos, but there is some woodiness in the background. I would like this to be a little more tart – it’s pretty sweet, like over ripe pears or maybe canned pears – but tasty none the less.
I’ve spent most of the day napping and snuggling with the cat – I think he really missed me while I was away. He’s being a little cranky, wants to be mad at me but the need for Mommy snuggles seems to be winning. Nice relaxing (recovery) day with some good tea from friends. :))

I’ve been mia a bit..but i’m stilll drinking tea. This one was finished up this weekend by mom and I on our quest for the shitty weekend dress shopping experience ever. there will be more of this in my future but not in 100G size damnit!

too lazy to write notes tonight…esp in light of ppl saying they’re having issues.

this is the oldest tea in my cupboard…and it’s lasting forever! no matter how much i drink it lol. Once this is done, my cupboard is basically 6 months old. not much else to say about this one beyond the fact that i love it with a little maple. and it’s NOT a smokey tea

this + maple = yum! not much else to say that hasn’t been said before..i’d totally get this again but 50g please! haha not that i’m done my first 100g yet

mmm had a cup of this earlier today as well with a splash of maple syrup. I still wish they had let me pick up 50g instead since this 100g is taking me forever to finish up haha

whoohoo! finally on today’s teas lol this is pretty much my last day in november to drink teas given the travelling that’s coming up, so i’m trying to enjoy it. the snow is falling outside, and i’m sitting (in between working) in our kitchen nook watching it fall, drinking my tea. perfect only marred by the absence of my other half since he’s at work and can’t exactly do that from home. I do still enjoy this tea – it’s bold and strong and delicious. I just wish that steam would do 50g instead of this 100g crap. even if i adore a tea, i’d rather pick up 50g and place another order when i get through that amount – if only to keep my cupboard under control! thanks agin though for introducing me, omgsrsly :)

mmm..happiness is a cup of this one in the afternoon sun while i read my book. My other half is going to be working as much as possible over the next few weeks, which means that i’ll have a lot more time on my hands to be hanging out alone at the house. Suits me just fine as it forces me to slow down and do things like open up my books…sit…relax…drink more tea! haha.

what i have successfully concluded after a few cups of this tea is that i don’t like it in a travel mug. There’s something about this tea that begs for a giant ceramic mug….something to wrap my hands around and feel the warmth while i savour this one. Because i DO like it..but it’s not a brew for anyone who likes meek teas. This one says HAAALLOOOOOO in a deep booming voice. it’s great. :)

ugh quick..before it breaks again. must get reviews/number counts in