86 Tasting Notes
I received this as a Christmas present last year. It’s a nice size when I want just a single cup of tea. I like the double wall, especially because I prefer cups that don’t have handles. Now that I have a Steepster from David’s Tea, however, I don’t seem to use the filter as often anymore.
Mmmmmm…one of the great pleasures in life = a huge mug of pumpkin chai on a soggy Vancouver evening :-)
I’m on what feels like an eternal quest for the perfect chai. Ever since I had it made from scratch at a friend’s house a number of years ago, freshly ground spices and all, I haven’t been able to find something close to that wonderful taste. Along the way I do find real gems like this tea. With a bit of brown sugar and milk, Pumpkin Chai is a real winner in my books.
I love how the pumpkin is dominant. Too many flavoured chais that I’ve tried make it seem like the flavour was an afterthought. This is nicely spiced, although it would have been nice to have just a little “bite” to it. I normally steep this closer to the 6 minute mark, but today I was too impatient to get my relaxing time started.
Since I’m just discovering this now, it’s probably too late for me to get a tin to last me through the year. My chai search continues, but this will (hopefully) have a place on my tea shelf.
Preparation
Mmmm…Santa’s Secret! I love this tea. You can’t go wrong with little candy canes in your tea :-)
After the fiasco yesterday with Caramel Spice, I wanted something more familiar, more comforting today. You would think that with the peppermint and spices this would be an uplifting kind of tea, but I find it really soothing. With just a touch of sugar (I definitely have a sweet tooth) and a splash of milk, this tea is yummy deliciousness!
Preparation
Trying Caramel Spice on this relaxing, decidedly non-shopping Boxing Day.
It smells delicious in the bag. The mulberries looked a little odd to me, but then again I’ve never seen dried mulberries before. The whole time it was steeping I wasn’t sure if I should go with the low end of steeping time or not. Previous notes will show that I have a tendency to oversteep.
I have to say, now that I’m halfway through the mug, that I’m not a fan of this one. Like others, I can’t taste the caramel part of the tea (which was the part that I was most looking forward to). It’s very citrusy and spicy to the point that it’s bitter on my tongue. Maybe I did steep this too long. Maybe I should try the hint and add a little something to it – although I’ve never tried adding alcohol to my tea.
I always hate saying that I don’t like a tea, but I don’t think this one will be returning after I’m done.
Preparation
In honour of all the Canucks fans that are still honking their horns and screaming 2 hours after the Game 5 win, I’m sitting quietly at my desk drinking a wonderful mug of Oh Canada :-)
As I’ve logged before, this is one of my favourite teas from Davids Tea. I love the sweet rooibos paired up with the yummy deliciousness of maple syrup, caramel and toffee. A touch of milk and a teaspoon of maple sugar make it the perfect way to end my day.
Hopefully the noise outside will quiet down soon so that I can consider going to bed… ;-)
Preparation
So, I bought this on a whim. It smelled way too good to resist!
I stayed at the lowest recommended steep time because I have this habit of overdoing it with green teas. The tea is very pale. I almost thought that there was something wrong with my infuser. I tend to judge my tea’s “readiness” by colour so I’ll have to remember that this one won’t be dark.
Now, I love sweet teas. I invariably add honey or sugar to my tea, but this one smelled so sweet that I tried it as is. I love this! It smells and tastes like caramel popcorn. There’s a little bit of acidity in the sweetness that I’m guessing comes from the apple. I’m so glad I didn’t add anything to this. Once I’m done the little bag in my stash, this is going to become a permanent tin on the shelf :-)
Preparation
I forgot that I have a little tin of this tea and found it while digging through my tea stash. I bought it on a whim because it smells so good!
I absolutely love this :-) It just may end up being my favourite black tea. Very smooth, no bitterness, just the right hint of vanilla. I could drink this all day and not get tired of it. Now I wish I could remember where I got this little tin because I need to go get more ASAP.
Preparation
Mmmm…lemonade. Was in the mood for something citrusy tonight so I went for this. It smells so wonderful as you pour it into your mug. Warm and lemony…very soothing.
With a dash of honey, it tastes like hot lemonade (go figure!). I love how this tea mellows out the tangy bite you can get with some lemon infusions. With most of my teas, I take my time to sip and savour. I love this one so much that I’m already on my 3rd mug!! This tea is definitely going on my reorder list.
Preparation
Yesterday, a friend and I tried the mini high tea at Adonia Tea House in Vancouver, BC. It’s a quaint little place with a 2 page menu of teas and very delicious little sandwiches and desserts. Once we were done, I bought the chai that I had there and this latte macchiato tea to try at home.
The ingredients listed are black tea, coffee, yogurt crispies and flavouring. The yogurt crispies freaked me out a little, but it turned out that they’re “flakes” of yogurt. Another thing…if you’re a tea house that’s selling loose tea on the side, it’s a very good idea to label the amount of tea to be steeped and the steeping time.
Turns out that this tea is really, really good. Only a slight hint of coffee and a nice creaminess from the yogurt flakes. It really does taste like a latte version of black tea, even with just a tiny bit of added milk and a teaspoon of sugar (because I wanted something sweet).
I’m really curious about if this tea is imported from Germany as is, or if the tea house makes this blend in house. It’s all repackaged with the store branding, so I can’t figure out who the original manufacturer is.