Chestnut

After my disapointement last time I decided to give this tea another try. I kept the steeping time much shorter and the result were much, MUCH better. Like other people have said, the tastes does remind me quite a bit of hazelnut, although it really has a flavour all of its own; rich and nutty with an almost liqueur-like quality to it. And the smell! I just can’t stop sniffing this tea. :D

I’m already well aware that I like the custom Adagio blends more than the basic teas, however anything chestnut calls to me. I literally can eat a bag of the cooked ones I find in a local Asian grocery store in two minutes flat. So, this tea appeals to me on several levels, even if I had lower-than-normal expectations.

I steeped it less than recommended as I find Adagio’s bases sometimes get bitter, fast. This definitely worked for me. Interestingly, this reminds me strongly of one of the TARDIS blends; this must be the base in it. I’m getting little chestnut however and more of a… hm. Creamy EG, with more cream than EG? Odd. Still tasty, just wondering if somehow the wrong tea was put in the wrong bag – or maybe I’m feeling more off than I thought. Holding off on rating, for now.

EDIT: Looked at the tea again; this is definitely not chestnut. Emailing Adagio now.

Yah….so there may be a few tasting notes today. It’s tea and cleaning day because I need to get through some of the samples sitting in the house. Another one from adagio and while this is better than the last few, I’m still not a fan. There’s a weird taste in there that I can’t pin my finger on that just doesn’t say yum. Ah well…on to the next as that’s half the fun!

Thanks, MissB! This one was really great.

I only steeped about 2.5 minutes, but the nutty flavour was so delicious.

I like this one, but in the same family as hazelnut. It’s a good flavored black tea.

So last year I ordered from Adagio and received this Chestnut tea as one of my samples. Thinking I wouldn’t like it, I gave it to my Mom. She called later and said it was so good, and tasted just like real maple syrup. So I ordered a little sample pack and it is good indeed. I don’t know if the changed the recipe for this tea, because mine doesn’t have any chestnuts in it, and none are listed on the ingredients on the front of the pack? I am thinking that they must’ve just added the chestnuts to the dry leaves that are what I have in my sample. The leaves smell like black tea and maple syrup. There is a nice toasted nut flavor and a sweet maple syrup aftertaste that lingers. I thought this one may be only available seasonally, but it is available now, so hopefully it’s in stock year round. :)

-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves and twigs.
-Dry leaves smell sweetly of maple syrup. Tea liquor aroma is of black tea and maple syrup.
-Tea liquor is a cloudy dark brown color.
-Toasty and nutty flavor and finish. Sweet maple syrup aftertaste that lingers.
-Best with sweetener. Small amount of milk optional.
-Very good tea. Smooth toasty flavor. Reminiscent of maple syrup.

Oh, wow! This smells amazing as it steeps! I received it as a free sample with my last Adagio purchase. It got mixed reviews here, so I had pretty low expectations. But this is great! It smells like chestnuts and cocoa and immediately made me think of Christmas!

Of course, then my officemates started saying, “Something’s burning! It smells like an electrical burn.” I told them I had just made tea, and they claimed it wasn’t coming from that. Then after I insisted they smell it, they started to think maybe it was the tea. Hahaha!

Well, no matter. I think this tea smells great! And not like electrical burning. The taste is very yum! It’s 100% authentic chestnut to me with a really lovely aftertaste. It’s naturally sweet and almost creamy without any additions. I’m also getting a hint of caramel. This is awesome! I highly recommend!

As I keep sipping it, I’m trying to figure out what others didn’t like. I might have pinpointed it. When I raise the cup to take a sip, I am kind of assailed by something off-putting. And I think the lovely chestnut flavor is most enjoyable in the aftertaste. This doesn’t bother me so much, but maybe it does others.

Still, I think this one is worth a shot. Plus, it was free for me, so I’m sure that’s also a contributing factor to my liking it. Who doesn’t love free tea? :)

This morning I’m drinking a smokey variation of this tea, courtesey of Tommy the Toad. I’ve had these samples for awhile now, and then I misplaced them in my overflowing pantry of doom. This one is (i believe) is a mixture of Chestnut black tea and lapsang souchong, which is awesome. I’m not very experienced with smokey teas, but this hits the spot. A touch of sweet caramel chestnut with a nice smokey punch. Love it! Thanks again Tommy!

Another sample from MeghannM. Thanks so much!

I’ve got another snow day today, though it could be classified as an “ice” day. So far, this winter is shaping up to be a record-breaker in terms of wintery precipitation. And winter weather = being cold = drinking more tea to warm myself up!

Okay, let me begin by saying that I’ve never eaten chestnuts. I’m not sure why, but it’s probably because my mother refuses to eat them and, thus, I never had access as a child and have never thought to go out and get them as an adult. Mom grew up a few houses down from a small-time chestnut farmer (he had 4 or 5 trees), and she abhores the smell the flowers emit whilst blooming. I don’t mind it so much; then again, I also didn’t spend quite as much time around that smell as a child.

So, having no prior chestnut experience to fall back on, I can’t say whether or not this tastes like one. It’s got a strong black tea base that is very nice, and an earthy, roasty flavor that’s a touch astringent. There’s a hint of something I’d define as ‘nutty’ and perhaps similar to walnuts that have been a bit too roasted. It seems like something one would drink curled up in front of a warm fire and wrapped in a crochet blanket that your grandmother made. As for me, I’m just going to tuck in with my Snuggie and throws, find something to watch on Hulu, and knit a little something to tuck into my Steepster Secret Santa’s gift (that I’ll hopefully be able to pick up at Cuppa tomorrow so I can get it mailed out)).

This is actually one of the better teas from their holiday sample pack. Sweet and nutty, and fairly smooth as well. Not the best, but drinkable.