SoHo Blend

first time i met Soho, i smelled him before i actually saw him. his coconut aroma was so strong, i was afraid it might get into the others!

after a while in his intense presence, his sweet scent tried to seduce me. and though i succumbed to a cup, it led me to conclude that i will just swap him away.

and then, in the process of portioning it out, the scent continued to tantalize…and i succumbed again! but this time, it got me thinking…maybe i dont want to swap all of it! maybe, maybe…i might even buy a pound of it…sometime in the future*

so ok, i like him well enough. even though his flavor is not as rich as his scent. and even though the 2nd steep is but a shadow of the first. maybe i will double the tea just to get a strong enough taste next time.

funny how the heart changes in the span of a few weeks.

many thanks to Isabel who showered me with a ton of teas out of nowhere, lol.

*a pound not entirely for personal use but to stock my online tea shop with

Wow! Harney and Sons does it again. I really like their flavored black teas a lot!

This one is creamy coconut and rich chocolate with a nice bold black tea base that is so good with H&S. Like melting a mini Mounds in your tea. A mini one because the flavors are not overpowering at all.
The small pink flowers add a really pretty touch. I want to have a tea party with this tea so we can all ooooooh and aaahhhhh over how cute the little flowers are.

Been latte-ing it up after dinner lately thanks to the frother. Had this (finally!) last night. It smells good, which wasn’t surprising given Florence and Chocolate. But maybe I’m just crazy but I think I might prefer the straight up Chocolate tea from Harney more, both plain and latted. Weird. And not this tea’s fault exactly; it’s good, it just has the same combined profile as so many others I’ve tried my tastebuds sort of glaze over so to speak. I guess I’d rather just have strong, straightforward thin mint coating chocolate, and if I want something more blended like this I’d reach for something else or they’re all interchangeable to me or…something. Huhm.

isn’t it strange how one palate differs from another…

i did not like this blend at all, whereas my son claimed the sample happily. i got no coconut or chocolate, all i got was an overpowering rum? he got the coconut though and proclaimed me to be cracked.

hmph. no numbers, but plenty of perplexedness….

My Harney order arrived today! I ordered Hot Cinnamon Spice, Paris, a sample of Soho and I received a free sample of Organic Green tea. It’s been so long since I’ve had Harney! My husband had never tried any of their tea so that was exciting. I made up a big travel mug for us to share while we ran some errands. We’re cooking dinner for his Mom tonight. Meatball subs and waffle fries. Mmm.

So on to Soho. I was really excited to try this one. I expected it would be similar to Paris, sans hazelnut with the addition of coconut and vanilla. I also thought it would have a floral note from the amaranth petals.

Dry leaves smell heavily of chocolate liquor. That’s really all I’m getting.
Once submerged in boiling water a light note of creamy coconut hits the nose followed by milk chocolate. That’s what’s really different about this tea so far from Florence. This is more of a milk chocolate, even though I taste the same chocolate flavoring as in Florence.. maybe it’s the coconut and vanilla combined with the chocolate that creates a creamy milk chocolate sensation.

Without any additions I didn’t find this tea very impressive. My husband and I just tasted a mildly astringent tea. A good tea none the less, but sugar brings out the chocolate and milk brings out the creamy coconut vanilla flavors. Once the temperature cools it really starts to get yummy. I think this one is like Florence also in the way that it kind of grows on you. I thought maybe this would have a floral note from the petals but their purpose seems to be aesthetic. I wonder if this would be good with a few rose petals thrown in. I’ve never had Harney’s Valentines blend but I wonder what that would be like mixed with Soho. Valentines blend is chocolate and roses and Soho is coconut, vanilla and chocolate. Sounds like it’d be interesting. I’ll have to try it sometime or at least get some rose petals to toss in.

Thanks very much to SimplyJenW for sending me a sample of this, I really wanted to try it!

As for me, well I’m not really sure chocolate goes that well in tea. This blend is nice though, it looks like it has some pink flowers in it, I wonder what they are? It has a light cocoa flavor that seems to go well with the black tea base but is ever so slightly “chalky”. I did not sense a lot of coconut until I added soymilk to it, which seemed to bring out the coconut flavor for me. I’d definitely have this as a dessert tea but I’m not sure I will buy any when I still have a big tin of Florence, their chocolate hazelnut tea, it’s tempting though!

Drinking this along side a brownie this morning. I am really digging this one. The brownie makes the coconut and cocoa flavors jump out.

I arrived back last night after a looong day of travel. In my travels I managed to stop at the Harney SoHo store and pick up some teas – woot! This is the first cup of tea I’ve sat down and enjoyed in over a month and I am impressed.

There’s definitely coconut with a light flavour of chocolate, nothing overwhelming in the chocolate, which is great. The tea base is great too. Overall an excellent tea that’s calming in it’s own way, or maybe that’s because I’m exhausted hah! Either way, I’m happy I picked this one up.

I’ve had a sample pack of this for awhile, and after having a cup I don’t know why I waited so long to try it. This is a beautiful blend with delicate petals in the prettiest shade of pink mixed in with the tea leaves. The coconut flavor really comes out if a little sweetener is added, and also once it has cooled down. It reminds me of a mounds candy bar, and just in time for valentines day!

-Dry blend has black tea leaves and small pink amaranth petals. Petals float to the top during steeping.
-Dry leaves smell of rich chocolate and coconut. Tea liquor aroma is of vanilla with a hint of chocolate.
-Tea liquor is a clear medium brown color.
-Malty vanilla flavor with a wispy coconut chocolate finish.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Very good tea. Chocolate covered coconut flavor.