Popular Tasting Notes

Sipdown (192/194)!

Thanks VariaTEA for the sample! I’m a little sad it’s gone now, but not too torn up over it.

I brought this one to work today too. The heat was actually out this morning all throughout the store (it’s being fixed sometime between now and the opening on Friday, thankfully) so I was actually VERY thankful I had hot tea to keep me warm while working. However, my co-worker Bobbi wasn’t so fortunate – and she was freezing the entire time we were doing pricing, so I lent her my hoodie to keep warm and we split the tea 50/50.

It was good; thick and creamy. She said she liked it too, which made me happy; I’m sure I’ll make a tea drinker out of her yet!

Also, I’m super pumped because I set up a tea drinking station in the staff room today! I have a mug, measuring spoons, large teaball (and I mean LARGE – lots of room for expansion), and then I brought one of my two pouches of Butterscotch Banana, my tin of Buddha Bamboo, and a whole bunch of assorted tea bags! Hooray!

I feel like I’ll be very “at home” at my ‘new’ work place. That’s a good thing, right? ;)

This is so nice to drink when I have a headache/migraine. I don’t know if it cures me or just makes me not care, but it’s good stuff.

Please see other notes – this isn’t my first migraine rodeo. :(

’Here’s Hoping’ Teabox Round #4 – Tea #3

Oh my gosh why does this one only get a 68 rating on Steepster!!?? It is so delicious! The most root beeriest of teas. Maybe others are brewing it as an iced tea and not liking it? Or brewing it hot and not liking it? I used quite lot of the blend, steeped for a few minutes right after boiling. The description here doesn’t seem like it includes everything… there is a ton of cinnamon pieces.. more than the black tea leaves. There is a ton of sarsaparilla flavor! I’m not sure what the sarsaparilla should like as an ingredient. I think there should be mallow root instead of the white chocolate chips, which I don’t see anyway. I’m surprised there isn’t more cinnamon flavor. The color of the brew is light brown so the black tea itself isn’t very strong. But whoa it just somehow tastes so much like root beer. I would drink this instead of root beer! I also added some rock sugar. The second cup was just as tasty but slightly more cinnamon. I might keep the last couple of teaspoons of this one if it is so underappreciated. :D
Steep #1 // 2-3 tsps. // just boiled // few minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // few min steep

I think “Mmm…” is all I really need to say about this tea.

I had this at work the other day, my last sample from Bluebird Tea Co (boohooo).

I wish I would have thought to bring some of my Davidstea’s Earl’s Garden, because I really like that one, and the two blends are definitely similar.

Unfortunately, (but not really) I did get distracted when drinking this when a coworker who had to leave work a month or two ago due to a cancer diagnosis came in for a visit, I hadn’t seen him since he left work abruptly and it was awesome to see him again.

By the time i got back to my tea I had to finish it cold…. I really did enjoy it though! I would order a small amount to try it again and compare the two. I would have to figure out if they’re different enough to justify having them both. The ingredients are slightly different.

I regret not being able to really pay attention when drinking this one, but…. Not really, given the circumstances :)

Thank you again, Bluebird Tea Co!

I enjoy the flavor profile that 52teas has in most of their spiced blends. They’re similar to each other, but they’re good. I taste ginger and other mild spices. I don’t distinctly taste blackberry, but there’s a sweetness that could be the fruit there. It reminds me most strongly of a blueberry spice tea from a while ago. This is tasty – I’d drink a full size bag of this easily if I had one. I don’t think it really tastes much like its name though.

TTB

I really dislike ‘detox’ blends. It’s just…not a thing and I hate brands that try to sell any kind of detox to consumers.

Despite my annoyance at the name, decided to give it a try, as the combination of peach, cinnamon, and clove sounded interesting.

Alas, this is just cinnamon and clove- maybe a touch of ginger? Meh, it’s a spiced herbal, not something I need to have again.

Another sample from Leafhopper, thank you :)

This is an Wuyi tea I can get behind. It’s too tannic and drying to want it everyday but it has a great expression of heavenly orchid, rainforest, and gingerbread aroma. The actual taste is cedar dominant and can be a little clunky at first as I work my way around the tannins and tartness but it smooths out in later steeps into a gently sweet, rounded character of hay, gooseberry, squash, leather and chamomile. The orchid and spice-rich aftertaste and energy spread throughout my head and upper body, eliciting a mellowed, unfocused mindstate. It’s like the way a high quality incense trails with a weightlessness through undisturbed air, wrapping its resinous tendrils around whatever comes within its path, infusing, permeating. A mood-altering tea with dense meditative energy.

Taking a break from my office cleaning (it’s coming along). My biggest success of the day so far is that I finally got my Paypal account working again! Since January my account has been frozen to receiving any payments. After numerous phone calls & sitting on hold for hours, one wonderful guy got me through the redtape of setting up the ability to receive payments on my iphone/ipad & fixed my account. Whew!

I’ve enjoyed this Tiger Eye, it’s quite tasty with essence of chocolate, vanilla, & caramel. Now I’m taking a break from my office to go deposit some checks at the credit union, & I’m bringing along the last cup of this! YES, Sil, it’s another SIPdown!! That brings me down to 227 teas!

Sipdown (120)!

I started cold brewing this one last night, before I really knew that my cheek was infected and that that would affect my tea drinking tonight – though to be perfectly honest I wasn’t expecting great things from this cold brew anyway. The more I’ve thought about that initial first hot cup I had of this one the more I’ve realized it was pretty dissatisfying overall. And in general I just find cold brewed EG less tasty as well.

Turns out this one is breaking that trend though; even with ‘mouth impairments’ I thought that this was the smoothest tasting cold brewed EG I’ve had to date: the bergamot seemed to be at a more appropriate strength than it was brewed hot and I actually picked up on the vanilla notes I felt were lacking the first time around. It was silky, and had a rich, full flavour without sacrificing the flavour of the base in favor of a stronger bergamot flavour.

So, I’ve definitely changed my mind about this blend a few times now! Take that as you will – maybe it’s just not a super consistent brew? One thing is for sure – I still don’t think this is as sparkly as advertised; with the cold brew in particular the liquor ended up such a dark amber/brown that you really couldn’t pick up on the subtle sparklies at all.

C’est la vie.

So over here in America, I have no idea what a Treacle Sponge should taste like, but this is a pretty delicious tea. This sure is sweet and if there is butter involved in the dessert, a buttery sencha green base is perfect. I’m not sure how the cocoa shells, cinnamon and aniseed came into the blend… they are a lovely idea for the blend but I think I was mostly tasting the flavoring on the green tea. There is a TON of flavor here, even on the second steep. And I haven’t tasted this flavor with any other tea before. So I’m not sure I had to use 1 1/2 teaspoons to create such a tasty cup.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// 30 minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep
Steep #2 // 25 minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep

No, I don’t know why I’ve been hoarding my last two cuppas’ worth of this delectable, pastry-like decaf. As good as dessert. This could well make the Hall of Decaf Fame.

Paper & Tea 2022 Advent Day 17: Green Rooibos

I’ve never had a straight green rooibos and it was what one might expect. Fine, but nothing special.

this tea better never disappear. Seriously LOVE this one. Perfect for those hot summer days when my black teas are just too heavy for me to want to drink.

Just looking at this tea, you’d think it was a green or white! Very light colored, fluffy leaves!

This is my first decent first flush Darjeeling. Steeped, it smells very citrusy and light.

I prefer the bolder flavors of second flushes but I cannot deny that this is awesome. The natural sweetness is really nice. It is very muscatel, and a bit floral. I’m also getting a bit of lemon. The grape taste is the predominant thing I get. It’s just a touch astringent, which is definitely a nice thing to taste after all the sweet notes. This tea is just all around smooth.

The sample size of this is only $3.50 because the new 2012 first flush of this tea is in, so if you want to try a first flush, the price really can’t be beat.

I’ve had this forever and just opened it this morning. Just had to share it with my co-workers who love genmaicha.

I was able to get 4 infusions from my 12oz mug.

This is basically Genmaicha “to the Max!!” (lol, that’s such an 80’s reference isn’t it?). It’s super toasty, super green, mostly savory but with a little sweetness…and a bit of seaweed?

I enjoyed this because I love genmaicha. But it didn’t knock my socks off. So, while this was good, I’m not sure I’ll re-order once this tin is empty.

But it’s a good tea to share.

(hmm…I wonder exactly why I don’t love this? Since I find it good but not amazing, maybe the Samovar love spell has passed me over? ;) )

Another sample from beelicious thank you!!!

this one tastes like an average genmaicha to me. Not that it’s bad, but the mango flavour is a little lost in the brew. I was hoping for something that tasted much more like actual sticky rice, whereas i found this one to be a genmaicha…with a hint of mango. Still enjoyable, but not what i wanted this tea to be :)

FInal Count: 118 but i picked up 2 of the new teas from david’s to try and received a couple from dex that i still need to add in. :)

Super stressed with buckets of tears requires a jug of this tea and a pound of honey. Pile on the milk and chug it back. Old reliable. Haven’t been tea drinking the last couple of days – shocking, right? Ah well, thank you Yorkshire for being there for me.
I also placed a big tea order today, so I’m looking forward to receiving some new things to try.

thank you for this sample KallieBoo!
i am a dried fruit fanatic i will admit. like prunes and mangoes and currants and dates. all of it.
not so much a fan of lavender to be honest, but it works nicely in this blend. much better than it smells dry to my nose. once brewed it adds a whimsical or slight poetic quality to the scent but it isn’t a big deal in the flavor itself. it makes it breezy!
very fun and interesting cup. i drank my first brewed 12oz very fast. i even surprised myself!

09/23/2013
i just felt like saying good bye to this cute tea. it has a bold yet feminine way about it that i really like. smooches little tea!

I chose this tea carefully today. I wanted to make this note and this cup of tea a tribute to a very dear Steepster friend who died last April, though I only found out last week – our own K S, Kevin. Many of the newer members may not have had the pleasure of getting to know him, but some of the long time veterans will remember him.

We had a running joke for a while that started when JacquelineM recommended a book called “I Was A Rat.” Near the end of the book, the rat-turned-into-boy enjoys his favorite lunch, toasted cheese and tea. Cheese toast and grilled cheese sandwiches are a big deal around here, and Kevin and Jacqueline loved them, too, so we started reporting every time we had Rat Lunch.

Kevin didn’t post as much as his health problems increased, but we sent messages back and forth now and then. He truly cared about the community here. It was when I noticed that a couple of messages ent unanswered that I looked into it further.

Today I had rat lunch with Queen Catherine as my tea because she is The Tea That Accompanied Me Through Cancer Treatment and Most of Life’s Other Occasional Woes. She really bucks me up. So it was only fitting that I drink this pot in memory of Kevin. Kevin would have had Earl Grey by Ahmad, or sweet tea, iced.

Kevin’s greatest joys in life were first of all – his family, and second – playing in the worship band at his church. I believe he is using his mad skills rocking away with THE worship band he always looked forward to joining.

Thanks to Teavivre for this sample! Dragonwell is one of my favorite kinds of greens, so I was really excited to try this one. I brewed up a cup of it yesterday – it was morning, and I wanted a nice tea to drink, but I didn’t necessarily need much caffeine. I baked all morning for the tea party yesterday afternoon, and the stress definitely woke me up! I made shortbread cookies, vanilla scones (with the recipe DaisyChubb posted a few weeks ago – delicious!), a fruit salad and a homemade dill and goat cheese dip, and my friend made cucumber sandwiches, muffins and chocolate covered strawberries. We had so much food, and we ended up sitting around the table for seven hours just munching on all the goodies! It was a fantastic day, and the party continued until three in the morning… crazy. And then the next day I went straight to the beach all day and didn’t really get to try any new teas. Anyway, I made this tea yesterday, had a couple of sips of it, and then didn’t get to finish the cup because I was baking so frenetically!

After I drove my sister to camp today, I brewed another cup of this. And oh, it is good. I’ve been thinking about it all day. The leaves are long and flat, a pale grey-green color. The leaves smell beautiful. There’s a very quiet vegetal flavor here – I wouldn’t describe it as grassy, but green. There’s a characteristic chestnut scent there as well.

Sipping it, it tastes just the way it smells. One of my favorite things about a Dragonwell is just how clean it tastes, and this is no exception. Even though I’ve made it with regular old tap water, it tastes like I’ve made it with mineral water. I love it. It’s very light, it’s green and nutty. It’s one of the most soothing cups of tea to me. I’m in love with it. This is going into the order with that black dragon pearl tea… oh, it’s fantastic.

Sent as a free sample in my 52teas order. Flavour/aroma instantly reminded me of Strawberry White from DavidsTea, but there’s something else in here (likely the butter flavouring) that I can taste as well. The base is noticeable and tastes like a standard white (no play-dough smell though, which is good). The tea is extremely fluffy and I was very pleased that it arrived quite intact.

Overall, no issues with the tea but it’s not a flavour favourite for me anymore. I feel like some vanilla/custardy flavourings would have worked very well here (but would have made it a different tea).

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – June 2024 Tea #1 -June 5 – World Environment Day – drink an organic tea

It’s almost hard to believe this is “organic” as the flavor here is so strong and fierce!  I did use an entire sample, but still.  Maybe it is a blend that is supposed to cut through stuffy noses and sinus problems. It’s a functional tea over a “wow, I enjoy this flavor” tea, for me at least. Luckily, I very rarely get colds, so don’t really feel the need to stock up on this one.   It does remind me how much I miss David’s Eucalyptus Mist though. :/  Someone tell me if that one ever comes back…
2024 sipdowns:  43

So, I’ve had tea wish vanilla bean in then before, but this was the first time I ever have seen an actual vanilla bean segment in a tea. It was a few cm big and bursting with the little black vanilla bean seed things, so cool.

I don’t know if it’s because how much straight tea I’ve been having lately, or because of how great the quality of the base tea is, but I’m getting a bunch of flavors from this. There’s the vanilla of course, but there’s also some cocoa and malt and cherries and honey. And there’s a nice long lingering raisin and cherry after taste. I always assumed Ceylon were bland, I don’t know why, but I really need to stop underestimating black teas.