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The first thing I noticed about this tea was how small the leaves are. They look like they have been chopped into the tiniest of pieces. I’m not familiar with the different methods of processing tea so perhaps this is one way to do it. However, the pieces were so small that much of it came out of my tea ball and settled at the bottom of my cup. Alongside the tea, there were long strips of yellow leaf (presumably the calendula petals). It smelled sweet, though there was also something sour that I couldn’t place.

The tea was a beautiful amber color after steeping and tasted of cake batter before sweetened. After adding a little honey, the rooibos really took center stage. This blend was barely fruity and I detected no mango. It’s a nice rooibos, but it’s definitely missing any kind of fruit flavor.

The first tea I remember drinking (and actually enjoying) was a sweet and frothy chai latte from my university cafe. A professor of mine encouraged me to try it, and for the remainder of my freshman year I must have bought one every week. I loved the warmth from the spices and the creaminess of the milk.

I picked up this tea a while back, hoping to recreate the experience. I made this cup at work so I wasn’t able to brew it as a latte. Instead, I added cream and sugar once the tea had finished steeping. I’m pretty sure this contributed to the lackluster taste. The tea smelled of Red Hots candy and tasted mostly of anise. It was watered down and bland, but definitely spiced. In fact, I tasted only spice and no tea.

I will try this again, but will definitely be making it a little differently next time. If it fails as a drinkable tea, I’ve found a recipe for Chai Latte Ice Cream that should serve as a nice way to use up the rest.

After yesterday’s poor attempt at re-steeping, I was happy to enjoy this full strength today. It is full-bodied and creamy, perfectly sweet and satisfying. This is absolutely becoming a new favorite.

I saved my tea leaves from yesterday’s brew in an attempt to steep this particular tea twice. I kept the leaves covered in the fridge, but after reading some info online I think I may have kept them too long. I steeped this for the same amount of time but used water heated to a higher temperature. The result was a very watered down cup, not really much flavor at all. I won’t be trying this again in the future, at least not until I learn about more about the re-steeping process.

A friend of mine gave me a sample of this after I told her about my negative experience with Teavana’s Berry Mint Cassis. I was very hesitant to try another mint tea, but she convinced me that this one was much better (having tried both).

The tea bag smelled of spearmint, specifically the Freedent gum that my grandmother used to chew when I was younger. Once brewed, it smelled more like buttermints with a hint of grass. The flavor was mostly green tea with just a slight mint taste.

This was a good cup, though I do not see myself buying a box of it. It was certainly a nice change from the Berry Mint Cassis and proved to me that mint teas can actually be quite pleasant.

The first thing I noticed upon opening this tea was the strong smell of menthol. It was overwhelming and reminded me of the lingering aroma in an empty pack of cigarettes. The tea itself has large pieces of dried citrus (oranges, perhaps?) and what I think might be bits of apple pieces. I brewed enough to fill my 16 oz. tumbler and noticed again the menthol scent mixed with a little berry. The tea smelled mostly of mint though once it was finished steeping.

This tea is slightly bitter and very astringent. It also produced an uncomfortable cooling sensation in the back of my throat. I could taste the rooibos, but was mostly distracted by the way this tea made my mouth and throat feel while drinking it.

I managed to finish all 16 oz. but it took me a few hours of sipping to get it all down. I do not like this blend at all and cannot imagine wanting to drink this again. I still have plenty left so instead of letting it go to waste I will most likely try mixing this with other teas to see if I can bring out something good in it. If anyone has any suggestions for this one, I would love to hear them!

I see small bits of dried strawberry mixed in with the tea and when I open the jar it smells just like strawberry bubblicious bubble gum. I’m not saying this is a bad thing; it actually smells really good. The scent is much milder once the tea has been brewed, not nearly as strong and no longer smelling like candy. I can actually smell tea now, with just a hint of berry.

I like my tea sweetened (and black teas with cream as well), but I wanted to taste this one first without anything added. I’ve read a few comments that the pu-erh teas generally have a strong flavor. I saw one note that described it as “fishy”. I don’t get that here, but perhaps it’s because this tea has been blended with other flavors.

Adding sugar brought out an artificial taste I didn’t really like, but once I poured in a little cream it felt more rounded. I can taste the strawberry slightly and it seems like a good balance of flavors. I’m not getting any of the earthy or fishy tastes I’ve read about. Just a nice black tea with a pleasant berry finish.

My husband doesn’t like this tea at all so he has sweetly “given” it to me. :) I just finished my first cup and really enjoyed it. It’s a nice change from the Earl Grey I usually drink. I think I’ll keep it.