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Thank you to Rosanne and Tealated for the large sample of this Moroccan Mint tea. I’ve been meaning to try this for a few days but since the weather has been so cold here I’ve put it off in favor of heartier black teas. Well, the cold isn’t going away anytime soon so now is as good a time as any to put this in my cup.

This tea smells mostly of spearmint and the dry mix is made up of bits of green and brown leaves of various sizes. It looks like there might be a few stems thrown in as well but that’s fine by me – herb stems typically carry some of the flavor of the leaves. The green tea is rolled into compact little pellets. I’m guessing that’s the gunpowder green though I’m not sure since I don’t think I’ve tried it before.

The flavor is a slightly cooling mint, but it isn’t at all overpowering like some mint teas I’ve tried. I’m not really picking up on the green at this point – just mint. The aroma is reminiscent of a dewy spring morning when everything is starting to thaw and peek out through the dirt. I love how refreshing the scent is. That fresh quality transfers over to the taste and has brought a faint smile to my lips. This really doesn’t need sweetener but I’m going to add a bit of honey to see if it will draw the flavors out.

Wow, I’m really enjoying this. The honey adds some sweetness, of course, but doesn’t do anything to develop the flavors. It’s good enough on its own. This one is definitely above average for me. I’ll be ordering more once my sample runs out. Thanks again, Rosanne!

. . .

I’m trying a re-steep of this and it smells like pickles (??). Strange. I’m guessing I burned through most of the mint during the first steep. I’m tasting more of the tea and much less of the mint. I’ve left it unsweetened this time since I can’t imagine honey going well with pickles. :)

The weather when I woke up this morning was 7°F which, if you’ve ever been to Alabama, is COLD. Those of you who live up north will laugh but they actually delayed opening schools this morning! No ice, no snow, just cold. I grabbed this tea out of the cupboard at the last minute because I knew it would be cold and I would need something strong and warming.

Upon opening the bag, the first and most prominent thing I noticed was the smell of bergamot. It was almost overwhelming. It had a bitter edge to it and still does now even after steeping. It is drying but sticky, and it leaves a burning sensation on my tongue. It’s also perfumy but not at all in a good way. I let this one cool and it’s a bit easier to drink now but not by much. It’s not like any bergamot I’ve experienced before. It’s too much, too harsh.

It’s funny, the brewing instructions on the back of my sample advise me to brew the full sample with 16oz of water – that’s for a full ounce of tea! Granted, this blend does have rock sugar included, but I’m still thinking that’s a lot of tea for two cups. This one may be on par with the strength and sweetness found in their store samples. Even so, I only brought an 8oz mug to work this morning with my small tea ball so that won’t work for me. I’ll just fill up my tea ball and see where it takes me.

This blend smells very spicy – there is some cinnamon here and a bit of sweetness. Looking at the blend, there are very large pieces of sugar along with lemongrass, coriander, dried and candied fruit pieces, and a mix of green-colored tea leaves. Steeping, this smells like cinnamon candies, but more sweet than spicy. The flavor is unremarkable – it tastes only of cinnamon.

The sachet is tea and blue petals. I’m not sure what the cornflowers offer to this mix unless it’s just for color. It smells like a strong black tea which is exactly what I need on this cold, frosty morning. This tea is dark and strong. It’s a touch drying but perfect for what I need today – I wish I had another. I would definitely buy a box of this.

I wanted something today that wouldn’t be too fussy, something I could pour a little hot water over and be on my way. An herbal tea in a sachet seemed like the best option. The sachet and tea appeared to be of good quality but it had the strangest smell. It was almost like feet. Once I made it past that initial “aroma”, the only other scent I noticed was that of berries.

After steeping, the liquid became a deep red color. It has something suspended throughout, something that looks quite a bit like citrus pulp. And I’m not sure if my sense of smell is off today or what, but the brewed tea smells like a wet dog. Something is off with this one. It’s not at all appetizing. Thankfully, the taste of the tea is better than the smell. It’s tart and astringent and has a generic berry taste. I’m not really picking up on the blueberries specifically though. This has little flavor to me and falls flat in my book. Thank goodness there were only two sachets in my sample pack.

This tea came to me in a bubble mailer with my name and address handwritten on the front. I thought at first that it must be a late Christmas gift since it seemed so personal, but when I opened the package I was delighted to find two very generous samples of tea alongside a handwritten note. I hadn’t expected these to arrive so quickly! My husband opened the bag almost immediately and began making himself a cup of this tea. I, however, had just polished off more than a few Christmas chocolates so I abstained until this morning.

My first thought upon opening this bag of Green Delight is that it smells almost exactly like the little chewable Tylenol tablets I had as a kid. It’s not at all an unpleasant smell; it just smells extremely sweet and very fruity. There is also a slight hint of peach. Looking at the dry mix, it is mostly green tea leaves with a few red bits thrown in, likely the rose hips and the dried raspberry. The fragrance tones down a bit after steeping and leaves the tea tasting somewhat floral. It’s a little bitter, but I may have over-steeped so that’s certainly my fault. I attempted a re-steep and found the flavor to be much the same as the first. No new notes to speak of, but no dulling of flavors either. I fully expect my rating to go up after I get the steep time where it needs to be. For now, I consider it to be a consistently good tea and one that I feel will continue to grow on me with each new cup.

Side note: By the second steep, I really started to feel the effects of the caffeine. I’m not sure my new tea ball extracts the caffeine as quickly as my previous one so I may need to do a longer pre-steep or use this one for herbals only.

Well, it’s back to work after the holiday. Everything is still and quiet here so it seemed the perfect time to make a cup of this tea. This cup is much better than the last – it’s still a little bitter, but it seems more flavorful. The white teas I’ve tried seem to be so temperamental that just a few seconds or degrees off one way or the other has resulted in a bitter steep. I guess I just haven’t found that perfect spot yet for this tea. I still think this would be best chilled so I do plan to try that later on.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I’m still in full holiday mode. Not quite ready to give up the lights and paper for the cold, dreariness of January. But at least we’ll still have tea to keep us warm. :)

Backlog from December 25th:

I went to bed on Christmas Eve with a plan. On our first Christmas morning in our new house, we would wake up, turn on the holiday music and the Christmas lights, and sit down to open presents with steaming mugs of sweet-smelling tea. It was romantic and idealistic. Picture-perfect.

In reality, our morning was much more sensible. There were crumbs on the kitchen counter from a week of holiday baking, torn paper and ribbons on the floor after gifts had been pulled from under the tree. We did have steaming mugs of tea, but mine was so hot I had to wait until after the presents were opened before I could even attempt to drink it. We’ve been in our house for nearly a year now and I’ve come to appreciate that, while it’s not always pristine, it is certainly a lived-in space full of love and comfort. What a relief to finally see that for something to be perfect it doesn’t necessarily have to be flawless.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

I felt like something predictable and reliable today. This one is always a comfort. The aroma is calming. I think I must love it so much because it’s one of the first teas I really started drinking on my own. It’s sentimental.

A friend at work mentioned to me yesterday that on special occasions she drops a single bag of Earl Grey into her pitcher of sweet iced tea. The way she spoke, it changes the flavor dramatically and really elevates a simple glass. I may try it this weekend with this Earl Grey. I’m having family over for Christmas and I love making tea when they are here.

Speaking of, how is everyone’s holiday planning coming along? I’m making a lot of homemade gifts and am starting to feel the pressure to get everything finished on time. Is anyone else making/giving handmade gifts? What about tea gifts? I would love some ideas for next year!