Cashew Turtle

Yum! I tried this yesterday, and I over-steeped it a bit, and it was a little bitter. Today, it is much better. 2 1/2 minutes in the Breville at 205°F instead of boiling… and it is perfect. Chocolate-y and rich! The Assam is malty and strong, and really adds to the richness of the chocolate flavor perfectly. The caramel is not an afterthought either… it is almost on equal footing with the chocolate flavor. The sweet, nutty flavor of the cashew gives this cup some dimension.

Love this! Awesome!

there is something in this tea that is not alright with me. the ingredients list doesn’t give me a hint… my only thought is that perhaps coffee (which i am nastily allergic to) might have been added as a chocolate enhancer?

in any case… i believe i am done with tea drinking today as everything i put in my mouth makes my stomach hurt. =0(

has anyone else had this experience with this tea?

OK, so I’ve been sick again and I got behind in the 12 Days of Christmas. I’m not sure which day this is, but I know it’s not today’s, nor one in the future. I’m going to try to be good about this the rest of the time and follow the instructions like a good gal.

On to the tea.

This smells heavenly – if heaven were made of chocolate and cashews, and I think in my own heaven that would be a floor. This reminds me of the turtles I used to get as a kid visiting in upstate New York, stopping by for our weekly fix at Abbott’s (a custard place), back when I could eat such things.

Steeped for about four minutes, since it’s a black tea, and the liquor is a deep choco-brown.

First sip – and it tastes exactly like it smells! (Of course, since Frank blended it.) I down three more sips; I want to gulp it, but it would scald my throat… I’m allergic to an enzyme in milk chocolate (as well as other dairy products) so normally I can’t indulge. This is a real treat!

This tastes like chocolate and nutty goodness. The only problem? Now I want a “real” turtle. I’ll have to “settle” for a second cuppa.

Backlog!
So I got a sampler package of teas from the VERY generous Steepsterite, Jenn and oh my goodness! this one was tasty.
It was typically sweet the way most dessert teas are… sort of caramely, with a background note of cashew. I overdid the first steep a tad so ended up with a slightly bitter brew, but it stood up without any sugar (barely, I do wish I had added a sprinkle or two). The second steep was the best, being that I did not oversteep! and the third was a touch weak but I didn’t even expect to get that much out of it so I was quite pleased! I could drink this alllll day.
I doubt I would order this one again specifically, since it isn’t all that different from other dessert teas and I would have to pay shipping. I wish they had a shop in Toronto! I loved trying it. and if I ever put in an order for Pancake tea (which I love!! but I can’t recall the precise name) then I may throw this in.
Anyhow, I’m at work… but this is the only internet time I will have for awhile, since we are switching providers at home and the tech won’t be in til later this week pouts
(My other job, where I am tomorrow blocks this site. Smart ones, they are!)

Surgery went well! As soon as I got home I checked the mailbox and YIPPEE TEA! My Cashew Turtle and Cherry Cheesecake Green arrived. I was SO excited to try this one, I immediately ripped open a package and inhaled deeply. The dry leaves smelled AMAZING. Like… the best thing ever. Caramel makes me weak in the knees.
Steeped 1 tsp per 8 ounces for 3 minutes at 205 degrees in my Breville.
And.. for the first time I’m disappointed with a 52. :( I expected more flavor. I feel like maybe the bold tea base overpowered and drowned out the turtle flavor. I really tried to taste turtle but all I really tasted was bold black tea..that I didn’t particularly like. I did notice a slight aftertaste of turtle but it was very faint. I’m curious if maybe I steep for a shorter time/lower temperature I’ll be able to taste the turtle flavors more. I tried adding sweetener and cream and still no noticeable difference.
If only this tasted more like it smelled! I’d be in love. I’m going to wait to numerically rate this until I’ve experimented with it more. I really wanted to love this :(:(

Edit
(Boyfriend had the same results unfortunately :(, my taste perception was not altered by my surgery.)

52teas 12 Days of Christmas Sampler 2011 – Day 2

Okay, so I’m really behind on these reviews. I should be on tea 5 right now, but life has been a little hectic.

The boyfriend went missing yesterday. He said he was going Christmas shopping, but he didn’t answer his phone all day and was late to dinner with my Dad. He said he lost track of time, but I could also tell he had been drinking. The boy can’t lie to me. He’s completely transparent.

He came clean later and admitted that he had gone to a bar at some point during the 11-hour shopping excursion. But he also came home with no bags or boxes and acted extremely weird during dinner. He hardly ate anything and couldn’t articulate sentences.

I have no idea what’s going on with him. I have a vague suspicion that a diamond might be in my future, since he disappeared upstairs with my dad before dinner. That might explain his weird behavior. I’m not sure though, and I don’t want to get my hopes up if it turns out to be nothing. But something definitely happened yesterday.

Anyway, on to the reason you’re reading this. Get to the tea review already!!

I can tell this sampler pack is going to be dangerous to my pocketbook. I want to buy pouches of everything I’ve tried already! Wow! I just can’t stop saying WOW! The dry leaf smells incredible! I’ve never had a cashew turtle before, but I think I’d love it! I really had to resist the urge to pick out all the chocolate pieces and pop ‘em in my mouth!

Two and a half minutes later, the brewed aroma isn’t quite as fragrant as the dry leaf. But I can still detect the chocolate and caramel notes. Tasting it…wow! There I go again. It’s just wow!

I can taste chocolate and caramel and even a light nuttiness. The black tea base blends well and adds just a touch of bitterness. It’s not overwhelming, and it went away with the addition of a little almond milk. Really yummy.

I apologize for being behind on these Christmas sampler reviews. I’ll try to catch up today. I’m currently surrounded by a large mound of clothing that needs to be washed. I did about six loads of laundry yesterday, but there’s still a lot left over. So, it’s a perfect day to relax, drink tea, and blog on Steepster!

Day 2 of the 12 teas of Christmas…

Woohoo! This was another tea that I hadn’t tried yet! Steeped 2 tsp. tea in 500 ml. water in the Breville at below parameters.

Playing my “guess what it is before you look game” once again had me stumped; and this time the smell wasn’t remotely familiar so I at least knew I would be getting a blend I hadn’t had before. Once I knew what it was, the chocolate and caramel scents were more evident. At first it actually didn’t smell very good, but once I was aware of what I was smelling it became much more pleasant – and mouthwatering!

When drinking with additives, this did the same thing that the pancake breakfast tea does – it starts out tasting just like what it’s supposed to be, but then fades into just the tea taste. Luckily, just like the pancake breakfast tea, adding in milk and sugar brings the flavors back out, and then some. This is definitely like drinking a liquid chocolate turtle! The caramel and chocolate are equally present, with nutty notes from the cashew taking on more of a background note. The black tea is definitely there too, bringing out more of a dark chocolate taste than there would be otherwise. This is so decadent!

I will have to get more of this one – it ranks up there as one of my favorite 52teas blends for sure!

I almost love this tea…I’m beginning to think that a flavoring that 52teas uses isn’t working for me. This one and Candy Corn have both left me with a dry feeling in the very back of my nose that is similar to what happens after you get a strong whiff of perfume (that happens to other people, right?) Maybe it’s just a coincidence or maybe I’m coming down with a cold. I’ll have to revisit them in a few weeks to see if this persists. I’m waiting to rate this until then.

Uggg, had a horrible sleep. My bunny Benson was being an absolute terror all night. He has this wooden house in his cage for hiding out and chewing. I guess since he has been cranky about his shedding, he took it out on that wooden house waking me up multiple times of him clawing and pushing the house around the cage. I had enough and got up and took out the house and he tried to escape the cage. Bratty Bunny! I’m hoping this fun sounding tea sample from Kittena would perk me up!

DRY: lightly nutty smell.. oooh cashew piece!

STEEPED: A classic brown coloured black tea, but with a chocolately nutty smell.

TASTE: Smooth, nutty and slightly malty black tea. Not bitter or astringent.
Sweetened with rock sugar, slightly caramelly creamy with a soft nuttyness. Totally reminds me of a chocolate turtle!

I got distracted with emails and my tea got cold and it’s pretty good cold, sweetened!

COMMENTS: Turtles Turtles, rahrahrah, turtles turtles ha ha ha, I love turtles! (whoa.. does this commercial jingle date me? I youtubed it and I only saw 1980s commercials lol!)

Very yummy, if this tea gets reblended, I’ll probably snag it.

EDIT: resteeped it because I’m lazy and CT became more mellow – still caramelly nutty with a hint of chocolate!

w00t got my iHeartTeas package from Rachel the other day. Thank you so much! I’m going to start out with the Cashew Turtle sample she generously gifted me.

Oh yeah, and I’m sick for the sixth time since September. What gives, immune system? At least it’s a perfect excuse to sample the teas.

The dry leaf smells exquisite. Like creamy caramel and a drop of chocolate. It really does remind me of the bear claws (made of chocolate, caramel, and cashews) that are really popular in the Canadian Rockies.

When it comes to the flavour, this is pretty much what I imagined it to be, which is a good thing! Velvety caramel which blends perfectly into the black base. I’m not picking up on any cashew, but it doesn’t matter because I like it the way it is right now. I also appreciate the fact that the black tea in itself isn’t too loud, so it gives the caramel some time to shine.