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I oversteeped this, not sure by how long but it was pretty bitter. Adding milk and 3/4t tsp sugar helped, but it was still quite thick tasting. and malty! a baked sort of malt that emerged mid sip, not up front or at the back like most others.
Also, the leaves are quite pretty. A gorgeous mix of golden and brown leaves. Tippy!

Hot, this is delish!! A strong but not overpowering note of fresh tart strawberries dominates the sip, with a background of crisp sencha green. I quite like it.
Unfortunately, as it cools the strawberry becomes more candylike, and the green tea becomes floralish. I’m also getting a strong note of umami, which isn’t something I’m generally very sensitive to in greens, atleast not lately. Today? it comes across as fishy, and really lingers in the nose.
I’ll have no problem finishing the sample. I’m glad I had the chance to try this!

This tea is just too darn sweet for me. All candy like and super fragrant. Very cloying. It makes me want to sneeze.
I do enjoy the hibby, as it seems to try hard at balancing out the sweetness. Not hard enough. Yep, that is how naturally sweet this blend is… I’m calling on the powers of that hibby bully, and even that can’t do the job! eeesh.
Anyhow. I added some OJ and that seemed to help, making it into kindof a creamsicle feel. I’ll never finish the entire tin myself. A friend gifted me an entire DT tin of the stuff so I’ve got quite a bit! Maybe I’ll throw little baggies of it in people’s desk drawer’s for April fools day. That would be fun to watch, trying to find the source of the smell :P

I’ve been hesitant to open my sample. This was one of my first tea loves, but doesn’t age well so the last time I had it in my cupboard, years ago, my last few cups were seriously meh. Not exactly the greatest last memory.
Anyhow. It was super smooth and perfectly nutty, with none of the scratchy blandness I was stuck with towards the end of my bag (no tins yet, at that time). Super noms.
Also? three infusions with some mineral notes peeking out on the third!

My breakfast cuppa this morning was perfection. A strange but pleasing blend of cinnamon heart vs what I can only think of as cakiness. Pound cake? some kind of cookie? But more the essence, which I presume would come from the base tea, not the flavouring. Of course I sampled it with and without milk. It was amazing either way.
I think this tea could qualify for most improved of the year. Unless its just a finicky one, and then I’ll be sad.

Holy fizz bomb batman! /O\
I swear it was almost bubbling on my tongue. Pretty cool.
The taste is very mild. Sweet and sugary, and a side of earthy floralness that kinda morphs into a ginseng ish note in later infusions. I’ve seen it before in Chrysanthemum teas before, but not all of the ones I’ve had. I love the fizz factor, but not the odd sweetness.
I kinda get the maltiness but my brain keeps comparing it to gingerale, and confuses my ‘buds. There is no honey, more… stevia? ha.
Not much variation between the infusions, so I agree with pmunney, this is a nice office tea… if I rest it beforehand. I’ll need to break off pieces from the cake and bring them into the office, as I don’t want to keep my cake in my desk drawer.

SO GOOD!!! I love cacao and Assam, so it really is a no brainer. Thanks for the sample Nicole!
Malty and sweet. Just perfection. I kinda finished the cup before thinking about my note, I downed it so quickly I’m not sure it even happened :P

Tea #2 from my swap with Nicole/Tea-Historic. Thank you Nicole!
I’m not sure what to make of this tea. Not being a huge fan of vanilla, I went in with an open mind. The vanilla turned out to be rather mild, and a nice pairing with the malty black Assam base.
I didn’t expect the hint of smokiness though, it was a pleasant surprise as it wasn’t mentioned in the tea description. Perhaps the infuser at my boyfriend’s was tainted somehow? I’d brewed lemon oolong in the same cup last night, so that doesn’t really make sense.
The smoke note came out more as my tea cooled, and after I added milk. An interesting contrast to the vanilla.
Also, being a ctc, I feel rather caffeinated at the moment :P
I’ll have to see how it brews up in the office, under less than optimal conditions.

A friend bought a package of these, and gifted them to me. It came with a mug that indicates how “work ready” I am based on how much of the mug is gone. Cute!
I tried the tea while in the office the other day. It was surprisingly good, but very sweet. Almost as sweet as a regular full strength latte at starbucks. Too much for me!
Looking at the ingredients (all the things that shouldn’t go in a “healthy” drink including hydrogenated oils), I expected a mug of fake matcha flavouring. Except it was actually pretty accurate; a melted hot version of matcha ice-cream. Not the super creamy ice-cream where the flavour is more of a background note, but the kind where your mouth kinda puckers from the dryness in the matcha powder.
I don’t think I will ever be able to consume all of what my friend gave me. While uberly yummy, it is just too sugary for my tastes. Maybe I can find a way to use it up in cooking? baking? I’ve used regular matcha powder in baking, but with all the extra ingredients here I’m not sure how it would work

Thank you for the sample Nicole/Tea-Historic!!
This is a wallop of a tea. Caffeine = yes! what a high. It managed to kick my headache for atleast an hour after finishing my cuppa. It’s back now, unfortunately. (next stop is more caffeine and an aspirin). I saw the reviews indicating how strong it was, so I underleafed at just under a teaspoon. I’m glad I did, as it came out perfectly balanced. My nerves are strung up, so I agree with others here, this is not for anyone who is caffeine sensitive, or consumption in large quantities. Maybe I shouldn’t have had that small mug of coffee shortly beforehand!

Lost track of time but I’d guess I let it go for about four minutes. Really good on it’s own, no sugar or milk added, so a dynamic tea in that regard.
A bit coppery, with a good hit of fruitiness underneath and a pleasant drying sensation. Very smooth, considering the intensity.

With a dollop of cream, it does well too.
aaaand now that I’ve tried it with regular kettle boiled water, I’m saving the rest of the sample to try at work with the water tap. For comparison.
It’s been a long time since I’ve had a H&S tea. I’m sure that is adding to my giddiness :P