Wegmans

My morning cup. I needed something that would kick me into gear quickly, so I added some extra Assam tea to my chai. It was less spicy overall, but it was still really good. Definitely got me going.

My morning cup. This is a nice, steady chai. Not overly spicy, and it has a good base tea. A little sugar and milk, and I have a lovely first cup of the day.

I’ve been cold all morning. I thought a cup of this might help warm me up. Here’s hoping it does because I am tired of being cold. Hurry up spring!

This is still one of my favorite everyday chais. There’s lots of spices and a good black tea base. Add a little honey and milk and its even better.

I fell asleep last night wondering which tea to make this morning. Yes, that is the kind of wild and crazy life I lead. :) Anyway, my subconscious got it all worked out because as soon as my feet hit the floor I knew I wanted chai. Specifically, this chai. Good black tea with lots of wonderful spices. I added some sugar but no milk. It was perfect.

Instead of running around like a crazy person and grabbing sips of my tea when I could, I sat down and drank my tea. I was a few minutes late getting my daughter up and moving (She can ignore an alarm clock better than anyone I know.), but it was worth it. I had another cup over breakfast, and now I’ve got enough caffeine shooting through my system to get me through my morning chores. Or maybe I’ll ignore the chores and curl up with my book. Doesn’t that sound better?

It is a lovely 64 degrees outside today. I’m sitting on the porch with a cup of this chai and a chocolate chip cookie (made with dark chocolate chips). I am a happy girl!

(see my previous note for actual review of the tea)

If there was ever a day I needed a good chai, it’s today. Our heater died sometime during the night, so it’s currently 48 degrees in my dining room. Something tells me I’ll be drinking more tea than usual today. At least until the repair man gets here (some time between noon and four).

On to the tea…

I bought this tea on a whim, and I’m so glad I did. It’s amazing. The mix of spices and black tea is wonderful. (side note: When I pulled the container off the shelf I had to use the scoop to mix up the tea because all of the spices had settled to the bottom.) This isn’t a super spicy chai, but it does have a little kick. There’s a bit of warmth in the back of my throat, which is nice. What I really love is that this isn’t a cinnamon heavy chai or a cardamom only chai. The spice blend is very well done, and the tea itself is good. It is strong enough to hold its own with the spices, but it also has a nice smoothness. No bitterness at all.

This is my favorite chai to date. I think I’ll make some on the stove after I take my youngest to school. Anything to help warm up this house!

Ah, Monday. I forgot to turn on my alarm and slept an hour and a half longer than I should have. This meant my daughter also overslept and missed the bus. By the time lunches were packed, kids were finally at school and I drove my husband to work (we only have one car and I need to do the weekly shopping today) I was feeling rather frazzled.

Rather then head straight to the grocery store I decided to come home to make a cup of tea and get myself properly ready for the day (hair, make-up, something other than sweatpants…). This turned out to be a good decision for a few reasons. First, I desperately wanted tea and a moment of quiet. Second, I looked like I just rolled out of bed which is not an appealing look for me. In fact it’s, um, scary. Third, I noticed that my daughter forgot her lunch, so now I can run it up to her before I go shopping.

The high point of my day so far is this tea. It’s hearty and full of malt and bread notes. I added sugar and cream, and I’ve been happily sipping on it while getting ready for Round 2 of my day.

Hope your Monday is going better than mine. Whether it is or isn’t I hope you have really good tea to drink today.

Tea of the morning. Today this tea is full of crusty baked bread notes. Yum. There is also the malty notes which I often enjoy in a morning cup. It definitely has a caffeine jolt. It’s enough to get me going which is good even though today I’m enjoying moving a bit more slowly and catching up on the news before starting on work.

Tea of the morning. I love the flavors in this one. It is biscuity with lots of malt. The kick of caffeine doesn’t hurt either.

Happy Mother’s Day!

I’m sitting at my desk drinking a cup of this malty deliciousness when my son comes in and tells me happy Mother’s Day and that he is so glad he’s my son. It’s going to be a good day. :)

Tea of the morning. I picked up almost three ounces of this the last time I was at the grocery store because I really like dark, malty, biscuity teas when I first wake up. This tea meets all of those requirements and won’t kill my budget. It’s a win win.

If this tea has a downside it’s that I can only resteep it once. After that it is too watery. On the other hand, by the time I’ve had two mugs of this I’m up and moving, so I’m ok with it not being a tea I can steep again and again.

It’s been months since I’ve had this one because I automatically reach for O’Sullivan’s Favourite when I think of Irish Breakfast. That’s a shame because this is a very solid tea. There is a nice maltiness and the flavor of good bread. It is a bit thick reminding me of coffee (a good thing in my opinion). Of course it takes milk and sugar like a dream. A very nice offering overall, and one that should find its way into my teapot far more often.

Have you ever craved a tea but couldn’t figure out which tea you wanted or even what you were looking for in the tea? (Calm and refreshing? Brisk? Dark? Light?) That was me as I stared at all of my teas. I have so many favorites and a bunch of new teas to try, but nothing was really speaking to me.

Enter Irish Breakfast. It’s basic, sturdy, and strong. There’s a good amount of maltiness and the taste of good crusty bread. It’s nothing I need to over think. Just a simple cup I can sip and enjoy while getting on with my day.

Wonderfully malty and rich. Strong without being bitter. I couldn’t ask for a better Monday morning cuppa.

I do not have enough basic black teas in my cupboard. In fact, until I bought this I had no unflavored black tea in my house. That had to be fixed! I’m fortunate to have a grocery store with a good tea selection, so I picked up a couple of ounces of this on my last shopping trip.

This is a good Irish Breakfast. A strong Assam with lots of maltiness. There was a lemon-y note as the tea cooled. I really enjoyed it, and it makes me wonder how the tea would taste cold brewed. I didn’t add milk to my cup, but I’m guessing it would make a nice addition. Overall, a really nice cup, and something I’ll probably reach for on a regular basis as a morning tea.

A favorable sencha mixed with lavender blossoms. Very simple, and very good. Sips are salty, bright and floral and become smoother as it cools. It’s rather grassy, but not in a bad way. I don’t feel that the lavender is masking a low quality tea. If anything, I might prefer it with a little less lavender for the seaweed-y sencha to shine through even more. It’s a minor nitpick, though. I don’t have much to complain about here.

This is probably one of my favorite daily green teas right now. Really good stuff! Drink it all the time at work.

This is the first Sencha I’ve tried but I really like it. Sorta grassy but I like the taste. This stuff is CHEAP compared to all the other Senchas I’ve looked at. Only a dollar an ounce.

Thanks to Kasumi for this sample! Lavender teas often blend together for me: I’ve tried so many that it’s hard to tell one from the other. But this one definitely stands out from the pack, mostly because of the lovely sencha base. Often sencha blends will use a lower-grade sencha since the flavor will be partially masked, but the sencha in this is divine! Grassy and creamy, with a slightly salty-seaweed-y undertone that’s a pleasant contrast to the floral lavender. Yum!

A gift from Jude! Finally getting around to trying it.

This isn’t a very strong or sharp chai. I’m not really getting any chocolate out of it either, but it is pleasant. Not something I would go out of my way to get, but definitely drinkable. I’m a bit picky about the chai I will drink because a lot of it is too strong or too ginger-y for me. But this one is nice.

Received a sample of this and took it in to work yesterday. It’s pretty good! I don’t really taste the apple pie in it, but it’s definitely a chai I don’t mind. (I am not crazy about 99% of the chais I’ve tried).

Loose
Appearance: broken leaf, med green,muted bi coloration, pale lavender buds noticeable
Aroma when Dry: salty, herby, slight chewiness
After water is first poured: same
At end of first steep: floral, lavender
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: light grassy green
Staple? YES
Time of day preferred: Any, except first cup of the day
Taste:
At first: floral, lavender, faint hint of grass closing
As it cools ? notes get fluffy, much lighter, creamy, slightly sweet
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? no
Lingers? Yes, the lavender stays, gets slightly creamy

Second steep (4 min):
Same notes, milder

want to try chilled

Third Steep (8 min)
basic lavender water taste, light, herby

As the other reviewers have noted, the flavor is much milder than the fragrance. This might be a good thing, though, if, like me, you’re a little wary of the sharpness encountered with some types of chai. Coming from this viewpoint, the first sips of this were a welcome relief: good complement of flavors without any bite. It’s smooth and it has some depth. Good both with and without almond milk. Cinnamony and just barely chocolatey enough to be satisfying, unlike with other chocolate teas where I’m left thinking ‘yeah, right, where’s the chocolate?’ It’s a good low-calorie treat for a winter day!

Not pleased with this one. The black tea is strong, but the spices are too weak – I might as well just buy a box of plain black tea bags.