French Super-Blue Lavender

Just gave this a try at Harney & Sons, SoHo. I have to admit, I am not a fan of herbal teas, and I didn’t even think I’d like it. I just wanted to see purple tea!

However, I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor’s depth. I imagined the lavender would be overwhelming, but I was completely wrong.

The way it was brewed it came out a beautiful purple color (5 minutes, not sure what temperature). It wasn’t brewed super-strong, so it wasn’t punch-you-in-the-face lavender. It really had a lot of unexpected subtle notes. It was very calming and soothing.

Not for everyone, but definitely worth a try!

This is one of the one of the only herbal teas I can stand to drink on a regular basis. I like to drink this before bed. This is very strong lavender. If you don’t love lavender, don’t try to drink this infusion. Seriously. I like it because it’s not cloyingly sweet like so many herbal infusions, but the flavor isn’t weak like so many of the not-sweet infusions.

I’m not a big herbal tea drinker, but I received this as a gift, and it’s quite lovely. To me, the smell and colour are more pleasant than the taste (although the taste is by no means bad). It smells and tastes quite strongly of lavender, if you hadn’t guessed already. The colour is a nice blue, although it isn’t particularly vibrant. Overall, it is a nice tea which I find suitable for when I’m reading before bed, but there are better tisanes out there.

I like this tea a lot because it helps me to feel calm at night when I have the most anxiety. I’m not usually a big floral fan, but my tastes may be changing. This reslly does make me feel so relaxed. I only had a tiny bit of this and Harney’s chanomile left so I mixed them together and loving it!

I do not normally buy many herbal tisanes but this one intrigued me. I think it is because I love the smell of the lavender oils my wife uses around the house. Oh, and the beautiful purple liquor in the picture on the Harney website!

That said, my brew turned out green! I was a bit disappointed by that. :(

The drink itself is very good. Naturally, one first notices the lavender aroma and flavor. Behind that, though, I am also tasting a chamomile flavor and a slight sweet mint note—reminding me of a brewed peppermint tisane. The combination of these flavors makes this a wonderful drink to have right before bed. It is quite calming as expected.

I am glad I bought the sample and will likely purchase another shipment of this sometime. I won’t drink it regularly, I’m sure, so I can’t imagine buying a whole tin of it, but it is good to have a small quantity on hand for those occasional evenings when I am in the mood for it.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t expecting much from this one — threw it in the cart on a whim as I was picking up some lapsang souchong. Sounded like a nice, one-note, caffeine-free tisane to sip in the evenings — how interesting could it really be?

I threw 4 tsp in my 450ml Hario glass teapot, which ended up being a very good idea, because the color development was incredible. Pouring boiling water over the flowers yielded a ridiculously bright blue-green; after 5 minutes, it had turned into a grayish purple; after 10 minutes, it was a mix of purple, gray, and gold that could honestly be the most beautiful color I’ve ever seen. I decided to leave the lavender in the pot for the whole session, which lasted about half an hour, and it held that color the whole time.

It smelled, unsurprisingly, like lavender. Sipping it, this one had a medium-thin body that’s a perfect match for the flavor profile. It was floral, of course, but beyond that there was a gentle sweetness and notes of sea salt, spice, and pineapple. The finish was crisp, cool, and lightly drying. The flavors were light but present after 5 minutes, and a bit more assertive after 10, but never got overwhelming or bitter, even after ~30 minutes. Toward the end of the pot there was a fair bit of gritty sediment, in spite of the super-fine Hario filter; I’ll probably toss that last bit in the future.

This is a really beautiful tisane that will have a permanent spot in my roster.

French Blue Lavender. Sounds good right? Bright green seed shaped buds, tipped with soft purple and cream petals. While it didn’t steep to the bright purple I expected – It’s got a pleasing scent: bright, clean, and floral – like perfume.

First impression: this stuff is pretty & POWERFUL. The cup I had was rather pungent, invading my sinuses with it’s too soapy touch. But the flavor under the salt & soap seemed light and pleasant – like sage with more sweetness. The soapiness spoiled it for me – I’m told it makes a good latte though.

To be fair, the cafe I went to serves 2-3 table spoons to 1 large carryout cup.
Depending on the barista: It can get a lot of steep time waiting on the counter, so I can’t vouch for what the actual flavor profile of this tea might be. If you feel like braving a cup, I’d try half the steep time and maybe 1/3 of the leaves recommended. Thinning it out with more hot water didn’t help much much in my case.

I am not a huge fan of floral teas but this is an amazing blend. The lavender itself is gorgeous in the tin. This is is a slightly sweet tea that really relaxes me at the end of the day.

This is my first Lavender tea and I am SO glad I bought it from Harney and Sons. I’ve heard great things about this company and I am really happy I got to try this tea. The lavender scent is powerful, and I could smell it even through the tin! The flavor is very floral but not overwhelmingly so. I think the flavor and aroma of this tea makes it very relaxing. This makes for a GREAT bedtime tea! I can’t wait to try to blend this with some rose tea!

’Here’s Hoping’ traveling teabox Round #2 // Tea #25
Steep #1 // just boiled // 5 min steep
I’ve always wanted to try this one! I’m not sure if I shouldn’t have used boiling water or if a teaspoon was too much but the flavor isn’t delicate like a flower… it’s pretty tough and astringent. I like it anyway. It certainly tastes like lavender… but with a bite to it. Somehow the next day when there was a little bit in the mug, it seemed much tamer. The steep color was a light periwinkle. This would be great to mix with other teas.