Popular Tasting Notes
Mmmmmm… this is a lovely Butiki tea to end my evening with! I’m just on the 2nd of my two planned Supernatural episodes, drinking this, and knitting some silly mitts for my poor cold kid.
Then I’ll start my GoT Winter is Coming scarf! :D
I found out today that I was the lucky winner of the Butiki contest! I’m so stoked. I picked the blue bird jar because I’m a sucker for birds, and now I’m drinking Butiki tea to celebrate! I’ve only got one cup of this left, and one cup of Caramel Vanilla Assam and then I’m totally cleaned out until my order arrives. That’ll be… odd.
Let’s talk about how awesome Stacy is. I allowed myself ONE small order for my birthday because mostly people forgot and it was from stacy because of the red Queen Cupcake and the limited Edition Boracay Breeze. included in the package that i picked up from my tea mule were a couple samples of some of the teas that stacy’s working on. So of course….i came home and have started in on them :) This is the first one i tried – let me tell you, this smells SOOOOOOOOO delicious. The Caramel is really present while the apple is hanging out in the background. I made my other half stick his nose in the cup and his response was…caramel…fruit? smells like a baked good. soooo he couldn’t place the apple but it was close.
Brewing this up – no steeping paramters really so i opted for “oolong” setting on my kettle and let it steep for about 3mins. Initial sips i get caramel! OOLONG! and then apple. it’s roasty oolong, so that’s ok with me. The apple is mostly present in the after taste and currently, the oolong is the dominant flavour. But there is for sure, both apple and caramel here.
not sure how far along stacy is in the process, but i WILL be buying some of this when it comes out because, while i am not a fan of oolongs, i can see how delicious this one is going to be. Thank you Stacy! soo good!
Sounds so good! I love caramel apple. :D
That sample is close-ish to the final product. That will be one of the new teas we are releasing on Friday! :)
oh god.. you’re killing me Stacy. Want Moar!
Hooray! I will definitely be ordering some then! :D Are you going to be releasing the Mimosa one too?
Sil-Hahaha :)
Cameron B-Nope, sorry the Mimosa one just isn’t going to make it in time. Not sure if that one will work out. I can’t get it to stop tasting like bubblgum but it still tastes good.
And… I’m away this weekend. Leaving Friday morning. Hope you start the sale bright and early, Stacy! :)
Hah! Well I’m glad you’re not going to release it tasting like bubblegum, ew! So excited for the sale. :)
nomnom. I have never really found a good apple tea. If anyone can do it, it’d be Stacy!!
Also, happy belated birthday!
OMGsrsly-We will be previewing the sale on our blog on Thursday and everything will be available by midnight on Thursday for purchase. :)
Cameron B-I was actually thinking about just calling it orange bubblegum. It’s a really interesting flavor but I also may just scrap the mimosa idea for the puerh at least.
Indigobloom-I think the apple works so well with the Gui Fei. Delicious!
So excited for caramel apple! (I still think you should do Caramel/Pear, though; Butiki needs a killer pear tea!)
Roswell Strange-I was desperately trying to make poached pear with caramel sauce and the pear and caramel flavoring just clashed horribly. I wish that one turned out. Maybe Pear Bellini?
That could be good too; I don’t know if I’ve ever had Peach & Pear together…
Rosewell Strange-I wouldn’t add peach to that one. I’ve seen “bellini” used for things other than peaches though that is a traditional bellini. I went to this fantastic bar in NYC that had so many types of bellinis that were amazing. I think I would try doing a pear and champagne flavor but maybe add a little brandy flavor and possibly some dried rosemary.
I’m still sad about the poached pear one :(
I’m tired of eat each, so I’d much rather see something like apricot heh
I’m ordering it today Stacy, I can’t wait!! :D
I had to get some of this one, even though my BFF hates caramel and the order was (mostly) for her birthday. I’m really hoping I like it, or I’ll end up sneakily sending it to someone. :)
Thanks to Indigobloom for passing along a sample of this one yesterday! Also, sipdown!
I’ve had a lapacho orange (without vanilla) before, and don’t recall being terribly enamoured with it, but after giving her pouch of this a sniff, I felt it was necessary to try this. The orange flavour here is quite strong, and combined with a lovely creamy aroma (vanilla), which came off as almost a yogurt-type smell when I poured the leaf into my infuser.
Flavourwise, this is actually rather good. Very orangey, in kind of a cross between orange pop and fresh orange sort of way (but thankfully not orange peel!), which is tempered by a creaminess. (I really seem to like citrus cream teas, though I don’t much care for citrus in tea by itself despite loving lemons/limes!) The lapacho isn’t even really causing “scratchy throat syndrome” too much (maybe a little), which it usually does for me.
I don’t think this would be a tea I’m too likely to purchase for myself, only because I’m wary of lapacho for a few reasons, and don’t like that it makes my throat feel scratchy, but the flavouring is pretty great here. If the base was honeybush or something, and the tea tasted the same, I’d probably knock my rating up to about 90, but given that it’s not a tea base I favour, it does lose a few points. I’m curious, however, how this one would be iced and/or made with milk and frozen into popsicles… (it tastes like a creamsicle, and how awesome would it be to have healthier creamsicles…)
ETA: Re-steep in half the water still has flavour, but I’m not in love with it.
Preparation
Hehe funny thing is… I believe Dan does custom blends :P
I may need to pull this out of my box tonight…i love me some orange flavoured things and i don’t mind lapacho
Also if you’re worried about smells, this would be one to drink. It’s potent! I kept it apart from my other teas (I separated all the swaps from you guys into unflavoured, flavoured, and contaminating, haha).
Indigobloom – something to keep in mind!
Kittenna – Yeah i’m doing that tonight… right now it’s two boxes: smelly and not so smelly. I need to get all organized tonight
I really love the combo of orange and lapacho. but I think it’d go well with honeybush as well. Another thing to go on the spreadsheet :P
So, the Lapacho in this is Pao D’Arco, correct?
IB does that mean you’re getting rid of yours or you meant rebuy on the spreadsheet?
oh sorry! I meant the private blend from Herbal Infusions, same flavouring but with a honeybush base maybe?
aaaah i love the existing blend. No need for custom blend here! to the point where i am actually contemplating picking up more…soon…like i need more tea. lol
Terri – I actually have no idea! Google time…
Yes, that would be right. Do you have info that might interest me/us? I’m curious :)
Kittenna/Terri: All I know is, it’s tree bark… and it’s good for treating asthma :)
Sil: yep this base is amazing for me! but… I also don’t make it the traditional lapacho way. steeping in boiling water for 15 min!
I know it’s not good during pregnancy, and I think it’s in the legume family. I just make it my usual herbal way, i.e. boiling, 5+ mins.
Here’s what (little) I know (LOL):
Lapacho is also known as Pau d’arco, or Taheebo. It’s a south american tree, & you use the bark for tea. It’s main action is strengthening the immune system, but some people have used it as a cure for cancer, fungal infections, etc.
When using it therapeutically, as in drinking it daily, you have to take a break every couple of weeks, because it does contain some toxins that can build up in your system. The herbalist I know recommends alternating between Lapacho, Echinacea, & Astragulus…It’s been awhile, but I think it was 2 weeks on each one. Since they have different toxins, that keeps you from having any side effects, & since their action on your immune system is slightly different, you’re strengthening your body in different ways. I have some Lapacho here, it’s horrible, LOL :) I haven’t drank it in awhile.
Thanks for the info! Luckily I rarely drink it, so I should be good :D I have not tried it plain, just in a few blends, of which this one is by far the tastiest (but as I said, I would be happier with a honeybush base, haha).
I’ve tried the plain version, from Tea Emporium. It was decent! but then I love pu-erh and they have similar profiles in some ways.
Thanks for the info Terri! I have a friend that drinks Lapacho for her asthma and I don’t think she knows about the side effects or rotation option.
Lemme start by giving a great big ‘thank you’ to JacquelineM for a VERY generous sample (I mean, she must of bought a truck full and got sick of it “generous”). I really will resist the desire to rave on and on about the share package I recieved from her and will get on with the note.
I had a high expectation after reading several of the near forty posts on this tea. It seems, generally speaking, we like it- actually more than the creator who gave it a 75.
Being this sample resembled a purchase rather than an act of kindness (I’m just dying to reveal how much there is, but I’m sure that would be uncouth-not that I’m overly couthy) I elected to make a pressful= 8 cups. We normally reserve full pots of anything for the Asian grocery oolongs due to the cost effectiveness. I haven’t broken down the pennies to cup ratio as I’ve seen a few do, but it’s cheap. What the heck, I’m living it up this morning.
Where was I, oh yeah the tea. The tin, when opened, (another bonus, it came in a tin! I’m getting so big time with tins and everything! Thanks again Jacqueline) smacked me upside the head with the smell of a barn! Yep, a barn. It smells like dry hay that’s also very malty. Immediately when the water hit the tea my very ampley proportioned nose was filled with a leather like maltiness that made me think “this is going to be a strong cup”. Again when bringing the cup to my lips the malt smell was so apparent, yet when I took the first sip I was greeted by an amazing mix of flavors/impressions. There is a baseline of subtle malt that shares the stage with some smokiness and a faint creamy sweetness that actually stays with you as an aftertaste. Gentle yet bold.
The dry hay is there too, and thankfully it’s not a wet/green hay or this would not be the same tasting note at all. There’s almost a pu’erh thing going on in the backside if the sip (who am I kidding, it’s more a gulp). I can see where most other posts leaned toward a green/grassy descrition as one of the characteristics, though I have to stick with the dry hay choice. For me, it lacks the bitter,sometimes astringent, note I seem to get out of greener tasting teas.I went ahead and steeped this a second time with fair results. It definitely lacked the complexity and the smokiness that it started with, yet was still considerable as an easy drinking tea. In other words, this second steep was better than some first steeps I’ve came across, and by no means was comparable to the initial infuze.
I’m so thankful that several- Jacqueline,Azz,and LiberTEAS have been so kind as to help me experience many other facets and types of tea that would have taken me months, if not years, to visit. AmazonV, MissMylin, and Autumn Hearth have all pledged to send samples my way as well (unless I already recieved AmazonV’s, which is still to be determined). What a wonderfull community to belong to (sniff sniff) and I appreciate it very much, so many kind and helpful people. OK enough with the sentimental mooshy junk, I gotta get another sample going-this will take weeks to get through.
tunes-the Black Keys=Little Black Submarines/Run Right Back/Sister…turns out the whole El Camino album. It’s all great, as nearly everything they put out is. I have a hard time naming who has more talent between them and Mumford&Sons, yet Black Keys have 7 albums whereas Mumford are just releasing their second.
Preparation
I can not hear the song “Good Life” by One Republic without salivating for this tea. A couple of years ago, not long before I was diagnosed with cancer, I got in the habit of making a JoeMo full of QC and walking the track at the gym where my youngest daughter was taking swim lessons…every week day. The two became firmly associated! Then I drank to pull myself up by my bootstraps during radiation. I have a lot of respect for the Queen, and I hope she will always be on my shelf.
I am glad you met Jacqueline!! My girls were talking about tea the other day and I told them Jacqueline is the Queen of Steepster! :)
Wow that’s great! I’m not familiar with the tune, but soon will be. Hadn’t heard about your diagnosis yet, but it explains a portion of the spirituality you exhibit. Hope to hear more of your story as time goes on. Also, didn’t realize that I had brushed shoulders with royalty, Queen Jacqueline it is!
Oh, no worries! Other than the fact that I have to get poked and prodded a lot, my treatments are over and I have the all clear! But my girls can look at me some mornings and know whether to make a pot of QC or EB!
I like the Black Keys :)
You are so sweet!
I’m blushing!
This is just sex. Can I say that? Well anyway its better I dare to say.
Its like drinking a cup of maple syrup mixed with sweet cream and milk because I mixed this matcha powder with those things. I am going to do this review super fast because I want to go enjoy this cup alone in my room – yup its so good.
I mean the maple in this is A MAZE ING!
The flavor lingers on the lips causing a lot of licking to go down.
This is sinful.
As soon as my gift certificate is updated for reviews I am order a REALLY BIG size of this!
I get robust flavor because I like my matcha to be ROBUST!
If you are more shy you could go delicate but I dare you to go bold with this one!
You won’t want to share.
This is the matcha you don’t introduce to your friends out of fear they will take it from you!
Now to be fair I had my daughter try it and she said “Meh I’ve had better” to which I cracked up laughing as she has no idea the tone of my review and she is only 17 so what does she know right?
She only tries a sip of my matcha now and then anyway but she said she liked almond better.
I mean who can really compare one to another – life is full of flavor and we shall have it all thanks to Red Leaf Tea!
YUM!
Get yours here!
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/maple-syrup-matcha.html
Steepster (in little kid whine) Azzrian keeps teasing me with the maple matcha tell her to share! (just kidding I’ll order some soon)
LOL Helena! :)
LOOOOOOL! You crack me up. Glad to see you like your matcha!
:) Glad I made you smile!
Everybody on Steepster is in a flavored matcha craze lately, what’s with it? Haha. I want to try it but all of the flavored teas I’ve been having just don’t taste very good for one reason or another.
@Scatterbrain, We’re all trying to review our flavored matchas before the promotion ended (Which was yesterday)
And don’t feel bad – flavored stuff isn’t for everyone.
But remember you can still get credit with them on the new program! Its on the site.
Scatterbrain PM me if you would like a sample!
Sista!
Noted! :)
I have a question about this matcha. Does it taste like maple as in Aunt Jemima, or as in natural maple?
I’m hoping for the latter, as I go absolutely CRAZY over maple (I’m sucking on an all natural maple candy as I type this… xD)
Well since I can’t say for SURE that I have had REAL maple syrup and if I have it has been YEARS ago – I have to say it is more Aunt Jemima. So sorry. It is good though!
Ah darn. I’ll probably make my first matcha purchase the caramel then in that case. Thanks for answering :)
My pleasure! The caramel is wonderful.
Okay finally some snippits from the full review which will be on http://sororiteasisters.com/ on the 26th
Stacy of Butiki Teas and I communicated via email for weeks developing my dream tea. I knew I wanted a tea modeled after my favorite Lambic brew. It was a peachy, sweet, and hoppy beer. What Stacy created not only brought back that exact flavor but she did so in a natural, organic way that makes this tea just BURST with ripe juicy flavors! Now I know many of us tea drinkers love to eat our tea! We pick out the pieces of fruit, nuts, herbs, etc from our steeped leaves and chew on them. Often times we end up spitting it out due to being either bitter, or chemical tasting, or whatever but when I pick out the big, sweet, juicy peaches from my spent leaves, they are so very very good! Just like I picked them from a tree in an orchard! This flavor is not only noticeable in the aroma of the cup but in every single sip! Big, ripe, juicy, natural, bursting with flavor peaches!
The hops, they are not bitter as many people think of bitter, they don’t make you pucker up like eating a sour candy. They are herbaceous, a tart sharp note on the middle back part of the tongue.
Now there are several companies that do the custom blend thing. Only a couple that do it in an interesting way. Most custom blends are made by selecting some elements from a drop down menu and thats it. Now not to knock those types of custom blends as I actually have made quite a few from various companies and have loved them! The difference here however is that Stacy will really work with you one on one over a period of time, until the exact idea of your blend is captured and you agree with the outcome!
There is a sweetness that was imperative in this blend yet the only sweetener in this tea are the peaches themselves! The hops are the exact species I had asked for, and the base works in perfect harmony.
Its a really long review so be sure to check it out! :)
This sounds like it could be incredible.
I want… I need… :)
Maybe Stacy will make up a batch sometime and see how it sells.
I do have this on the list of teas that will be added to our website though it will be slightly modified.
Awesome!
Yay!
Odd – I thought I had made a comment on Azzrian’s other post about this tea… I have some that she sent me, Sil – and I’m bringing it next weekend as I didn’t care for it at all. Do not like hops, it seems!
Dibs! I call dibs!
Haha, I think there’s enough for each of you to have a cup? As always, Azzrian was incredibly generous with the sample she sent! I only drank a cup’s worth, and that was all I needed to satisfy my curiousity, haha.
I’m going to start with a little story. Yesterday, members of my local family (my Momma, Grandma, Aunt), went for Mother’s Day brunch and we had a good time. I passed on the horrible restaurant tea and opted for….wait for it…COFFEE!! Egads! It was bad too-only a little sugar made it tolerable. As the conversations moved along, occasionally, I thought of my good tea at home and my fellow Steepsterites. Then it occurred to me-while I am not a huge fan of Facebook (extremely rarely on), I love Steepster. :)) Steepster IS my Facebook! Then I smiled. :)) I spent the rest of the day with my Momma.
I am sending a huge Thank You to JenW for this delicious sample. :)) Beautiful long and slender leaves that are a combination of colors-some black, some black/beige, while most are a tippy golden beige color. The aroma is terrific, with a sweet honey aroma, and lighter chocolate notes.
The wet leaves exude a toasty, woody, medium to dark chocolate sweetness. The thought of sweet potatoes crossed my nose (maybe a little). Then came the smell of musty/earthy fallen leaves. Ahh….the sweetness…I inhaled so deeply, so many times, I was nearly hyperventilating! Is it true? I was picking up on a lighter candy sweet cherry note. Maybe it was just the lack of oxygen to my brain, because as the leaves cooled I couldn’t detect it. Now, I was detecting toasty and wood-like sweetness.
The cup was a dark brown. Where was the bottom of my cup? The cup revealed aromas of sweet honey (raisins?), combined with a musty, earthy aroma. The flavor was quite malty, earthy, and dark chocolatey, with a mild sweetness. The feeling on my palate was smooth, with no bitterness.
Then other aromas in the kitchen invaded my senses :-//, so the review will be continued…….
At 9:30 PM tonight, the Horseshoe Casino is opening in Cleveland. I’ll get there sometime soon. I steeped the leftover leaves from my last steep with about 2 tsp of additional leaf (190 for 3 min.). I hope my leftover tea leaves aren’t too much of a gamble for my intestines! :-//
My second steep unearthed honey, earthy sweetness while steeping. The wet leaves also had honey earthy aromas, cooling to a more earthy than honey sweet aroma. The cup was even darker-or seemed to be. I was thinking, “Is there anybody in there?!”. Oh yeah….there was…I saw my own reflection! :)) My sinuses were really bothering me, so my cup aromas were hampered. I did detect darker honey, slightly earthy yunnan mustiness, and some malty aroma. The flavors I noticed were slight & thin (sinuses), with some mild astringency-not bitterness. This is in large part due to steeping the previous leaves again.
This was not quite the review I was hoping for, but I will review this tea more after dinner with my Dad and a friend of ours at a local sports bar called Bootleggers. For now, I have to bolt (as in Thunderbolt). :)) Steep on steepies…….
Had a great dinner on an outdoor patio with lots of sunshine, but it did get cooler before we left. It was also very calming listening to a water fountain. :)) Good conversation, laughter, and music (Led Zeppelin, Journey, America, Def Leppard, etc.).
So for my third cup (2 tsp, 185 for 2:20), I did read some reviews after my first cup. Some people got (baked) sweet potatoes, or a raisin quality. Dry leaves smelled of honey, malty sweetness with chocolate notes. My sinuses were clogged AGAIN, so the wet leaves smelled mainly honey sweet (possibly raisins), mild chocolate, and some sort of baked sweetness. The cup smelled malty sweet, chocolatey, and earthy. Flavors in the cup were mainly malty, chocolatey, and earthy.
My last cup was similar (boiling for 3 min.), and I added the rest of the sample to the steeped leaves from the third cup. I tasted less sweetness, and it was mainly full of musty earth, and less chocolate. I was hoping to taste some of the baked qualities. :-// The feeling on my palate was smooth and quite full without bitterness!
What a great and delicious tea! I will definitely be ordering some more. This tea reminds me more of Autumn, but it is awesome anytime! Thanks again JenW-this was much appreciated. :)) A perfect end to another beautiful day! I’m gonna go…….seems I keep rambling on…and on….and on. :))
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3HemKGDavw
Cupped & Reviewed: Monday, May 14, 2012.
Preparation
You are a good son! :)
I understand about steepster being your Facebook. Steepster is better because we send each other tea. That doesn’t happen on Facebook!
Um good discription of the flavors! Steepster is a relationship about tea and people! Tea should be about community or something is wrong!
I also prefer Steepster if you have to compare! although they serve different purposes, I find Facebook to be more about the individual as opposed to Steepster where you find a true sharing community! That’s what happens when you put a bunch of poeple together with the same passion!
Oh! Ohio!
And u post photos on facebook which sometimes I wish u could have a couple here for personal tea shots or tea cats /dogs etc.
I know Bonnie thats why people blog tea reviews elsewhere, so the can include photos. i am considering doing it, but I’ll stillreview teas here. :))
cheryl= Ohio?!
Yep :b
If you care to read, update is complete. This seems appropriate:
Sil and Bear With Me were talking about root beer lattes earlier, so I had to make one with what I have in my fridge!
Root Beer Noel Nog (soy this time) latte. I broke into my last packet of Root Beer Float for this one! So sad. It’s one of my favourite honeybush teas as it doesn’t taste sour to me.
Anyways, you might not think that root beer would go well with eggnog, but adding the nutmeg and rum to the vanilla and cream… this is an amped up hot root beer float. Really really delicious. :D
(12 oz tea, 8 oz nog added in stages, 16 oz mug)
Preparation
Nice!! You should try it with the other root beer float and report back :P
(Or I should go search for any remaining nog locally. Hmm…)
I don’t have any of the other one left! I found it at my Safeway two days ago. They had soy, and some 50% off milk ones.
I meant to make this as an eggnog latte and I keep forgetting. Soon…
Lamesauce on both fronts! Boo to none of the other one left (i have just under half of the 750g I picked up before it went away again…) and boo to safeway (ours are all gone. They’re save on foods now)
That is so weird, Bear With Me! But stuff here is all turning in to Price Smart foods, and even Shoppers carries Presidents Choice, and I can’t remember who but something else got bought out by the same company as IGA. Thrifty’s and something else…
(I got 100g of the other one and enjoyed it, but not enough to get more!)
Thrifty’s is owned by Sobey’s now (and theh actually bought the property my old high school is on, and will be building a grocery store there once the new schools open and the old one is torn down). Superstore I think carries PC as well as no name. But yeah.
Sobeys owns Thrifty’s and Safeway now.
Yeah! That’s it. There are “Compliments” things at Safeway and IGA and Thrifty’s now. Blah. Safeway is even more expensive, and the accessible Thrifty’s is now a Price Smart.
I don’t like it because all the stores are carrying the same things. It’s boring. :)
Weird! If Sobey’s owns Safeway too, then why are the island ones all Save Ons instead of Safeways?
I’m glad our Thrifty’s are still the same awesomenesses, despite being owned by Sobey’s. A few of them are open 24hrs now which has come in handy a few times.
Rumour has it we’re getting a Whole Foods at Uptown soon. Hello expensiveness.
Maybe I have it wrong idk. I thought it said Safeway when I looked up Sobeys. I still miss the thriftys brand salsa. :( Cheap and delicious and in large containers! And surpisingly some things are way cheaper at Whole Paycheque Foods. I know, it doesn’t seem like it because all the new expensive fancy stuff tempts you and somehow finds its way into your shopping basket… but some things are cheaper. :)
I just wish Trader Joe’s would come here. Mmmmm cookie butter
Boo cookie butter. :(:( But yay wine in the grocery store. :D
Sobeys owns safeway and the competition bureau of canada made them sell off certain stores in certain areas re fair competition. Here several safeways became co-op foods. Loblaws owns both superstore and shoppers hense presidents choice appearing in shoppers…..
Sobeys has two “in house” brands – Compliments and Sensations. They’re similar to/the equivalent of “No Name” brand. Not sure why your Safeways are becoming “Save Ons” though (never heard of that company/chain). Personally I don’t mind the compliments brand – I think it’s definitely better than a lot of grocery stores’ private brands/labels. But maybe I’m a touch biased since I work for Sobeys now…
Save On is Overwaitea. Compliments gluten free stuff isn’t super great and is even more expensive than the known good brands. Makes me sad because they’re carrying more of their brands and less of the brands I want to eat. So I buy more at the local independent grocers.
Thanks, Dex. I thought Shoppers was going weird. ;) And they are! More PC stuff and less ‘Life’ stuff.
Sobeys also owns FreshCo, IGA, Foodland, and Price Chopper – and partners with Lawton Drugs for the in store pharmacies in many of those stores.
Whoa, Shoppers merged with PC?! This is blowing my mind! Will I even recognise my home and native land when I move back?!
40% off 250g on david’s website haha…
It’s so weird! And the only one we have is IGa. Idk what price chopper etc are.
Sil, I do not need 250g of it! I’m happy with what I had. :)
I must be weird…getting a huge kick reading about all these chains I’ve never heard of :)
heh
Grocery stores are FUN! When I travel, I like to check out new shops instead of eat at restaurants. :D
I had this in the afternoon as well – i’d forgotten how much i love this, which i think i say nearly every time i drink it haha. Just a happy tea to drink when i’m looking for a non black tea.
I am so jealous how you get through so many teas in one day. I envy you!!!
Heh well work from home days and weekends yes :) normal days = not as many. I’m also lucky in that caffeine doesn’t see. To affect me….at least in tea heh. Coffee is another story :)
I seem to be the same way with the caffeine in tea. Ha ha ya coffee gives me the shakes ha ha. I try so hard to at least drink one tea a day. My 2 days off….. oh man! All hell breaks loose and I’m a mad man with tea!
It’s been awhile since I had this one. I think I liked Watermelon Xylo better, but they were both tasty!
I really love this one.
I agree with Terri, Watermelon Xylophone was the better one to me (even though they were both good). Although, that might boil down to my preferring watermelon to cantaloupe in general as far as actual fruit goes.
See, now I prefer this over WX.
It just doesn’t get any better than this!
Perfectly blended flavored black.
The description tells you all you really need to know but let me just say I am totally amazed at this blend. THIS is a keeper!
AND a MULTIPLE re=steeper!
Oh yeah I made a rhyme! :) haha
Sounds YUMMY!!!!
It is! A full review will be on http://sororiteasisters.com/ on the 14th at 6 eastern time!
So good!
Now I need to try this!
Yes yes you do!
And I need to get more of it!
I think I am in love with it.
Yum sounds great!
WANT!
oooh sounds yum!
oh wow yummmmm
sounds delicious!
oh MAN I really want to try this one. I just had a oatmeal raisin cookie yesterday, it was so good.
If you do their 10 dollar sampler packs it is SO worth it! The “samples” are pretty large! And there is a mix your own so you can pick the five flavors you want!
You could even get TWO of these :)
OH MAN! SOOOOOO GOOOD! Seriously…So when i first pulled this out of the bag i was like hmm..expensive trail mix anyone? It’s a heavy tea AND it’s 3tsp per cup….and there’s giant coconut strips in this…but MAN OH MAN. love it. My other half is making banana bread tonight..and this is like liquid banana bread. I even convinced him to have some and he was like oh hey…that’s really good. It even smells like banana bread baking in the oven… and the coconut? totally not overpowering and likely just adding to the delicious creamy banana taste. I dunno what else to say…this tea? sooo good. I had originally picked this up because i like banana flavoured teas and because i figure i’d try some teas that didn’t have tasting notes to help RiverTea out since i won their contest. I’m SOOOOO happy i did.
This isn’t the same sort of banana from foxy’s roxy’s tea…this is honestly…liquid banana bread. so it’s sweet…and very much banana bread..and so good..and did i mention it’s like drinking banana bread? holy god i love this smell… lol
Preparation
Gaaah liquid banana bread. Must buy!
it’s stupidly good courtney…it’s expensive because it’s a heavy tea..but i am going to love having this as a caffeine free option. guess you could eat the pieces after too haha i’d send you some but uh….there might already be something in the mail on it’s way to you lol
WELL THEN. :P Hah, I’ve been waiting to do a RiverTea order because I wanted to see reviews first. I may actually have enough to place an order soon though.
the pear one is pretty nice too for a fruit tea. I’m finding i like their fruit teas a bunch. Their puerhs are pretty puerh-like so stay away from those if you don’t actually like the earth puerh sort of taste..
Awesome. I need more herbals. Always.
Hmmm…This has me thinking…I have previously tasted a banana tea I liked…
hmmm….now what was it? I need to go through my tasting notes.
I love fruity teas and puerhs…
celebritea…i love puerh, but i’m not crazy about the puerh that RiverTea uses. :)
Sweet Helen was awesome; my favourite of the three fruit blends I got. Personally, I really dislike Dynamite of Fruits and I’d recommend staying away from Chocolate Kisses Chili if you dislike spicy teas. The spices in it are not subtle. I’m eyeing up this one (wondering how similar it is to the Banana Chocolate Fruit blend that Tea Desire carries) and Swedish Cocktail (I think that’s what it’s called…).
Thanks Sil…it is amazing to me how different puerhs can be.
While you are supposed to get many re steeps from them,
I am finding that I enjoy the first couple of steeps the best when
I seem to get the most earthy & smoky flavors from some ;-)
Sweet Jebus, that sounds good. A hell of a lot more promising than David’s Banana Bread last year.
tra la la la shopping list
keychange I laughed when I saw that ^.
I wonder how this tea compares & contrasts with
Plantain Coconut Raw Green Bush Tea by The Republic of Tea.
That was before I ever thought I could like banana in a tea…lol…
never had it so i can’t say. :)
It is a good one, Sil :-)
I am in the process of creating a recipe book for my kids for Christmas – my daughter requested this – meals they grew up on many of which I also grew up on. My eyes are crossing and I am beat! Making a recipe book is a real challenge for me as I never measure anything! Still I am over joyed that my daughter asked for something like this and that I can give one to both of them for the holidays! They will of course get other things haha but this will be special! Especially as my son lives in his own place now and my daughter is about to turn 18 this December! Lord the time flies by!
Anyway I needed a break and decided this was the next tea on my Butiki Experience list!
These remind me of Unicorn Horns!
I love unicorns and yes in MY world they do exist! :)
So the first infusion was a little bland, but good, it just was not all there yet and I figured maybe this tea needed it as a rinse so I infused again. The little “horns” are starting to unfurl, they are pretty.
The tea is still light but with a little more depth than before a lemony hue which is very pretty.
Not much aroma … but the flavor is there.
Its different. Bright mouthfeel and juicy.
Slightly buttery but not like other greens by any means.
Vegetal but VERY subtly.
Its strange but some sips have such a POW of flavor while others taste a bit like rain water!
Yes I have sipped rain water back in the day thank you. :)
What a curious tea.
Please don’t take this the wrong way but I swear every great now and then I get an earthy like flavor of soil! Not contaminated yucky soil but fresh clean soil from the woods.
Strange – this isn’t a pu-erh is it? LOL I realize it is a green tea but it is the most unusual green tea I believe I have ever tasted.
I will need to get my hands on some more of this to work with it longer but at least for now I have many steepings left to experiment with!
For now, back to the recipe book and enjoying this tea!
BUTIKI!!!!
LOL Tommy! <3
Hahaha
By the way, 99.9% of people pronounce it wrong. I don’t even correct people anymore.
I pronounce it Boo-Tee-Kee!
Its boo-ti-key. Pronounced correctly here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4UvdMUGNhk. Weird video but its not easy finding a video where you can here butiki being pronounced. Don’t worry, the butiki is never in any danger. She says it twice in the first 30 seconds. The second time is easier. Tommy, I’m totally imagining you jumping out from behind a wall shouting boo-tee-kee in a Beavis voice. Hahaha
OOoohhh Azzrian! I love your idea! I have to ask my Mom to do the same for me! :)
You are so welcome! :)
Cute video Stacy!
Azzrian-I was a little worried by the title. I was hoping the butiki could get away.
LOVE the recipe book idea! Sounds like something your children will treasure for years to come. By the way, does Butiki still sell this tea? I can’t find it on their website…
Thank you so much CHAroma! :)
@ Butiki – I honestly didn’t watch to the end – out of fear of what may happen :)
OHMYGODbestestnight
So I wrote the above last night then left it because I don’t know. I drank the tea and then I wanted to roll around on the floor but I did not have enough space to do that but I wanted to. That was partially this tea and partially my favorite hockey team winning their division (which doesn’t matter, we are snobs who do not need silly division banners).
And then what makes me laugh even more is that Ysaurella found I logged it and is probably waiting to see what I have to say already!
So shmiracles being fantastic sent me some of the teas she picked up in Europe and AHHH this one, ahhh. A couple weeks ago I discovered the entire Héritage Gourmand collection on the MF site and I wanted them ALL. If I get to France next summer, that is most definitely happening now.
I had to try this one first, it’s just a fact. It smells amazing. It doesn’t smell as sweet as a macaron, but it has that same sweet almond smell. And it tastes so good! I don’t think it has the same macaron flavors as the Dammann Frères macaron tea (which has a green base not black), but I mean, I am drinking and enjoying a tea that is heavily almond. And tastes like a cookie at that, well, I do like almond cookies, but I have never had success w/teas flavored like them.
UNTIL NOW!
Oh I am in love I cannot wait to try the chocolate mousse one too, this means the one left that I really REALLY REALLY want is the financier one.
I told my boyfriend the other day that I need to buy a lottery ticket, I have never bought one. I really meant like the scratch off kind but this turned into me with $110 million and how I’d have to change my name and move to another state (Georgia does not allow you to claim anonymously). I was just like I can move to France. I’d send all of you my teas first.
Then I’d get there and buy all these. The end.
of course as you love Macarons so you’re going to drink Macarons ;)
I’m looking forward to read your review on this one – I have always hesitated to buy it (more expensive tins than the otehr MF – and only available in tins)
They have in the same collection a tea flavoured with madeleine, another with mousse au chocolat, one with a financier cake, cannelé, tarte tatin…MF wants us to get 50 kg more just by reading their tea names :D
i have macaron and chocolate mousse and i’m tempted to buy all the others goddamnit! oh noes. Mariage Freres is officially my frenemy.
I want them all too :x One night I went through their entire website adding everything I wanted to the cart. It ended up being 400 euros…
Those teas in the glass jars too, I want them. Of course they’re more expensive that way but so pretty!
yes I see the glass jars ! very beautiful.
But MF is annoying because sometimes when you buy a tea in tin, you just want to refill it…but it’s not possible for this collection, neither for the lily’s series etc…35% of the tin collections are not available in loose leaf ! It was my complaint ! I am French, I need to stick to our moaning reputation :D
omg…mousse au chocolat!?
That is a complaint I have too! I guess they want those teas to be more “exclusive,” but at the same time I don’t think I would want to buy something and have to get another tin if I already have it, even if I had an infinite amount of money for tea.
Sounds delicious! Going to France is my dream too, especially now that I’m in love with tea!!
I wish so much that MF had a reasonable shipping cost. Sigh. I guess if a bunch of people went in together on a huge order it would be doable.
whatshesaid…so i totally just emailed my parents who are currently IN PARIS! and added the mousse au chocolat to my list of teas i’ve asked them to pick up haha I’ve got 2 blacks and marco polo in my cupboard from my mom’s last trip to london but there are about 5-6 teas i asked them to bring back IF they get time. If i get anything from them, i’ll be happy to share since i’ll have likely 100g of each.
LUCKY Sil!!! I love the MF teas I’ve tried so far but that makes me sad because I know they’re so far out of my reach, lol
Schmiracles, meeeeee!! :)
Just saw Ysaurella’s comment above, Madeleine tea? Ugh! Want!
If anyone wants to try these I’d be happy to send some! Chat me up.
I stumbled across a bunch of Mariage Freres teas in Bergdorf Goodman in NYC. I’m not sure if that’s more accessible for any of you, but I thought it was pretty cool to find MF outside of France.
Oh god shmiracles…. Incoming pm lol
Charoma – not accessible to me, but ill check it out if I visit New York like I’m supposed to eventually heh
well : Dear Canadian cousins and American Friends why don’t you post on Mariage Frères FB page to ask where they have partnerships near your home ? Few months ago, a I saw a post of a californian woman who requested and they found a shop selling MF teas in her neighborghood…it may be true for you too !
Ysaurella – usually it’s the standard regular teas that are carried, not that it’s a bad thing. I just want an excuse to go to France and spend the day in the shop buying teas! :)
for information, when I send an envelope of 250 gr of tea to the USA or Canada or wherever in the world (Asia) it costs me 6.50 € maximum (without tracking) _ how much MF requests for sending costs ?
come come Sil and Amanda ! I have a lot of addresses to share with you :)
It’s 25€ :( They ship UPS only
Ysaurella – maybe we can figure out a way to split purchases some day. :)
Shmiracles – incoming PM from me as well! I am going to Paris in July and would love to try this one before I go so I can know if I need to get a tin! It sounds awesome!
No probs Sil, PM to tell me which you would like to buy and I’ll see if they are in my list :) – My shopping list is updated if you want to check
I’m not in a great mood today because it looks like the BF and I have broken up for good, I am feeling very sad but I think it is actually for the best if we just go our separate ways.
I have noticed one thing I enjoy about tea is the ability it has to ground me and provide me with something pleasant to look forward to. I’m revisiting this sample today and it is very light and pleasant. Somehow I am not feeling much bitterness in this tea, only a light floral taste with a hint of coconut.
Ajahn Chah has written a book called “Everything Arises, Everything Falls Away: Teachings on Impermanence and the End of Suffering”. It was a great book that got me through my divorce so I think I will spend some time reading it today and try to do some quiet things.
I might need to get more of this tea, just for helping me out through a painful time. ;)
Preparation
Sorry to hear that – break ups are always hard, even if they are for the best. Chin up!
Very sorry to hear that. I hope you are feeling better soon.
You know, I was listening to some songs entitled “4th of July” today and they are all depressing. Strange.
Thank you…
I will be thinking of you…things will be better soon!
Simple things are very comforting when your heart hurts. Take care of yourself.
I am sorry too. As one who is alone and has been so, tea is a good friend and so are all of us here. PM anytime you want to!
Thanks bonnie!
Oh no. I am sorry to hear that. hugs to you.
I’m really sorry to hear that you’re spending your day like this. I hope the tea helped. You can PM if you need to talk/rant. It might take a few hours, but I’ll get back to you ASAP.
Scott B – my daughter works for a country radio station – this station today is playing all the music for our Spirit of the 4th Festival going on at the lake. My daughter runs the sound board for this. Today ALL the music IS in fact VERY depressing! What the heck??
Amy – I am so sorry to hear this but your right it is probably for the best. You now have the future wide open for a much better one!
oh dear I’m so sorry Amy. Breakups are rough no matter how they happen. hugs!
you seem like such a nice person Amy, happiness is right on the corner for you, I’m sure
:-)
thanks everyone…
Sorry to hear that Amy :( Not a good way to spend a holiday.
Thanks Kittenna! I’ll try to cheer up soon.
I hope the best for you. Life is full is twists and turns and it’s not always pleasant. We are all here for you….
One of the MANY things I am REALLY liking about Whispering Pines Tea Company is that the owner isn’t afraid to be creative! They are NOT afraid to try something new! They appear – to me at least – they are NOT interested in an ordinary or easy or safe tea. This…I LOVE. They enjoy taking a chance and I think it has really paid off!
Black tea, elderberries, lemongrass, spearmint, smoked pine-needle essence are the ingredients in this tea.
Dry aroma was earthy, herbally, woodsy, dark, and had a hint of lemon.
The color of the post-infused liquor is that of a Dark Brown/Grey-ish combo.
The ‘wet’ aroma is a gentle “in the woods” type smell – perhaps – next to a patch of fresh herbs.
The taste…is AWESOME. I really had no idea I was going to enjoy it as much as I am! The black tea base is what I would consider to be medium in strength but the pine, lemon, and mint flavor pairings are at the perfect-for-my-palate level of intensity. The ratios are VERY NICE!
It leaves a peaceful and minty-fresh yet hint of green-herbal goodness left over and behind.
I totally agree with the product description’s end note…
NAMASTE
Indeed!
their teas do look so intriguing!
POST NOTE on this one…Luke warm and Cold temps with this – the elderberries pop out more! Nice and subtle and totally makes sense with everything else :)
That is one funky ingredient list!
my samples are supposed to come today, I can’t wait to try them! I ordered this one!
Amanda! Which others did you choose?
I ordered samples too which are on the way! Glen Arbor, Whisper of the Woods, Blackburnian, and Smores. :)
I really liked Glen Arbor, Whisper of the woods!!! Blackburian sounded interesting…I’m going to have to ask a few questions about the Smores one, tho, if it’s vegan :)
YUP!!!!!! The SMores one IS Vegan! I already heard back from the owner! YAY!!!!!
This one, Black Bear Breakfast, Smores, Jasmine Coconut, and the Coconut White. Braving the heat to go see if the mailman has left yet and see if they’re here!
This all sounds way cool.
In case anyone is interested, I made a product video for this blend :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy0xKilUWZY
Oh Steepster drama – I need to stop finding myself in it haha!
Nothing slows the rapid heartbeat like a nice, hot, soothing mug of Pumpkin Chai latte. I’ve been good to my little tin, I can’t believe it’s lasted this long! The tin is amazing by the way (the orange snap shut one) because the tea is as fresh as the day I bought it. Just as sweet, caramely and pumpkiny. I just used a little squeeze of agave and 2% – luckily it’s a cold rainy day so I can enjoy a hot cuppa!
It was a good long weekend, but back to work tomorrow! For a customer service position, it’s strangely stress-free. Except when people get mad at you for asking for donations to the children’s hospital. You know, the hospital that is no cost to you and runs on donations? Yep, that’s the one! ;) There’s all sorts of people, and they all come to the mall. haha!
Idiot that I am, I went looking for said drama. Further idiot that I am, I couldn’t keep my trap shut. My brain is still not entirely convinced that my eyes really just saw that… O.o
haha I’m totally guilty of doing the same thing! I still remember the magic carpet date sugar episode, and am still shaking my head!
Yeah, that one was pretty bizarre too.
oh I was going to say something the first time around but after reading that response there was no way my brain and fingers weren’t working out a response. shakin’ my head.
Why do I have the sudden urge to pop some popcorn? I remember that date sugar thing…..and what about the one company that was caught with the fake profiles to rate their teas well…
Hugs, DaisyChubb! You are one of the good ones! (I was going to say ‘eggs’, but you know where that might lead….)
Popcorn may be in order!
Hugs to my homies ;)
Hey, if we ever get enough drama to start a sitcom (or a soap!) we could strike it rich! <3
Amanda, I thought yours was really awesome. :)
nothing hits it home quite like ‘come at me bro!’ :D
I’m confused!
A pumpkin chai works really well for calming a girl down when dealing with interesting people. DaisyChubb you rock and don’t let anyone tell you that you don’t. I also saw some of the other nice posts from you other nice people and it was appreciated :D
Ah, nevermind! I see it.
I dunno what happened… but I <3 ya Daisy!!
see thread in discussions Being Judged for drinking tea by Kwinter and Why…? by Lynxiegirl. It’s my posts that started it all… I’m apparently quite the trouble maker
Interesting tea drama but not even related to tea. Sometimes people get a little carried away. Tea is meant to enjoy and share with others!
Pumpkin chai is definitely enjoyed best as a latte! Yum
Lol, I was going to make the first comment on the ‘why…’ post but decided not to get involved, although I meant to email Jason and let him know. I was wondering if Helena/Scott B knew each other IRL, because I couldn’t see any provocation otherwise… oh well!!
no idea who he is, and the being judged for drinking tea came before the why… post . When I saw the cruelty free comment… well I posted the other comment. It was more to justify eating ham, bacon and such. I’m not very good at making my intentions/feelings or ideas clear.
I thought the fact that ‘cruelty-free’ was emphasised and in a direct response to you was the thing that turned his comment into an attack (his second one on that thread was just plain batshit crazy). That made it very clearly aimed at you, I thought.
I was actually going to report his comment on the Being Judged thread, but I never got around to it. Last time I tried to report some spam via email, gmail decided to send it directly to the bin, instead of actually sending it to Jason. And when I then took it out of the bin and made sure it was actually sent, I never saw Jason’s reply because then gmail decided to bin that. I just couldn’t deal with that hassle one more time. But at least the whole thing reminded me that I wanted to ask why the reporting via Getsatisfaction had changed.
No worries Jason knows and has said in his ever calm, firm manner to drop it :D As long as my steepster friends know I’m not trying to be a jerk I’m happy :D Now let’s all grab some of that great Pumpkin Chai :D
Pumpkin Chai for everyone!
Hugs all around <3
Thank you Mrmopar for this Puerh Sample I’m backlogging for a reason.
Here is the beginning of the review of this tea, but the rest of the review can be found on my new blog www.teaandincense.com so please take a look!
Any corrections or suggestions, let me know. I’m a rookie! The music is my granddaughter Megan’s that she wrote when she was 16.
I chose this 2010 High Mountain Charm Pu Erh because of soft earthy floral quality, and smoothness. I was looking for the best tea to pair with my trip to the Scottish Games in Estes Park, Colorado.
Pu Erh is a wild tea in my opinion, and there is nothing tame about a Shu! Something about Shu says Men in Kilts, Pipers, Whiskey, Laughter…and friendship all around (at least it says that to me)!
On the ‘Cameron’ side of my family, joking and golf, singing and laughter (always more golf), bagpipes, the fiddle and dancing are who we were. (We still try to live up to the old ways.)
Grandpa Charlie made bathtub beer during prohibition in San Francisco. His Uncles and Great Grandpa Duncan would drink beer and Whiskey. Jack would play the fiddle, Alan the pipes, Duncan told jokes in Gaelic and all sang loudly half the night. My mother (only about 6) would sit hiding under the dining table listening with glee, laughing with them and understanding not a word.
Yay! Bonnie has her new blog!! Oh, I’m such a gropie already, congrats!
I love your blog, Bonnie!
Thank you. For those of you who have blogs, you know how hard it is to take pictures. For instance, the picture of the tea and incense was taken on my BED! I know I need to add recipes and lots of other things but I have time.
looking forward to checking it out!
Congrats on your blog!!!!!
congratulation Bonnie ! I’m looking forward to see your recipes
If you never go to my blog but once, please read my whole bio. It tells you who got me to do it in the first place and who did the real work kick starting the whole project and deserves a huge thank you! (Prodding from Steepster’s and this person made me say OK)
I was absolutely shocked and amazed when I opened this month’s Steepster Select box (the box we receive in April is actually May’s box. Confusing, I know, but I’m sort of glad that they do it like this, because it makes me feel less pressured to get my reviews for all three teas done within the month’s time frame. Not that I have to do that. But, I like to. I guess I’m a little OCD when it comes to reviewing tea.
Anyway, as I said, I was absolutely shocked, amazed, astounded, delighted, overjoyed and excited to find Yellow tea in this month’s box! OMG! This one tea made up for the fact that there were teas that I was less than thrilled with in the past. I love yellow tea… it is my precious! MY precious!!!
And this is amazingly good. Sweet, fresh, and delicious. Sweet fruit notes, floral tones, crisp and refreshing, I just want to bathe in this stuff. I want to make myself super small, curl up in a ball, and plunge into my Yixing mug and never leave this tea.
A rating of 100 isn’t high enough for this tea.
hee – I want some! Did you get your June Steepster box?
Yes, I did. This is from May’s box, though.
So you like this then?
hmm. I’m till waiting on mine!
OK, let’s see whether this will make # 75 on Barb’s shopping list… is this a mail order only? I shall have to look at my local Snooty Grocery Store.
Dang, just missed. Only # 74.
No box for me I am afraid. Card box maybe. Anyhow, I have seen Rishi Teas but have yet to try them. If I recall they are organic blends, more medicinal incline I think. No yellow teas either. I must try to visit China town one day soon for some Jasmine and other yellows.
I like wording crisp and refreshing but don’t see ‘vegetal’ as descriptor. Even with floral tones it should still yield some vegetal, perhaps not.
I don’t know. good review I guess.
nice
OMGsrsly and I met up today so I could grab my part from the massive Butiki group order we did. Wow, that was a lot of tea (back up to 113 from 86)! Thank you, Stacy and OMGsrsly, for the lovely packaging (and repackaging) of that crazy amount of tea.
The loose leaf smells exactly like chocolate oranges, a seasonal favourite of mine. I’d forgotten that Zhen Qu is the base for this; it’s a neat tea to see and deliciously chocolaty.
Steeped, the chocolate orange aroma becomes a little more subdued and the marshmallow comes out. The orange, chocolate, and marshmallow flavours are all easily distinguishable. The chocolate in particular is dynamic. Through the course of the mug it went from being as strong as cocoa nibs to being as creamy as milk chocolate, with the wax and wane of the prevalence of the marshmallow and tea base. There’s a subtle hint of nuttiness, that when coupled with the citrus, suggests a bitter intonation.
Not that this tea even needs it, but I gave the last of the sample the soy milk treatment. I think it may have multiplied the marshmallow flavour by a hundred. The orange is toned down too, and the chocolate is now strictly milk chocolate. This cup is insanely rich and indulgent.
Mmm, I see myself picking up more of this near the fall, as a healthier alternative to marshmallows, chocolate, and chocolate oranges.
Preparation
the shipping gods hate me….. i’ve been waiting for my butikis for 10 days.
Waiting any length of time for a Butiki order is a awful, but I’m impatient. I hope it get’s to you by Monday! Did you order this one?
alas i did not! when i spoke to stacy she said i had three samples i could choose… i chose three, would switch one, then two… i was playing three card monty with teas! i finally settled and refused to look any further, lol.
What did you end up getting? I know I find it hard to choose too. :)
I’m glad you enjoyed drinking this one! Definitely not a favourite smell for me. :)
grrrrr… can’t remember… one second….. tick tick tick: rose violet calendula oolong, pineapple cilantro creme and the lychee oolong. these ones! along with 5 guyasas (the sampler), some caramel vanilla assam and something else that i have lost track of.
P.S. i have been told that stacy is the best in the business for flavouring. so i went for so more challenging samples because it will show just how great she is!
James, I’ve been pretty well impressed so far! The base teas are also really lovely.
i am exceptionally excited…. and distinctly impatient, lol.
I will say this: one has never tasted real flavoured tea until he/she has tried Butiki’s. And no one is paying me to say it!
Ooh, this sounds good. I’m always willing to try flavoured teas, but they so often disappoint. (Googles Butiki…)
Did you get OMGsrsly the Pineapple Cilantro Cream for her and I to share, out of curiosity?
I’m probably extremely biased, but it’s hard to go wrong with Butiki, whether they teas are flavoured or unflavoured. :)
@JustJames, I picked up the rose violet oolong for a sample too, this time around. I haven’t tried most of those yet, but have only heard good things about the caramel vanilla assam.
@Heather, yes she has it! ;)
Awesome, awesome!
I haven’t been brave enough to try it yet, Heather! But I’ll take a couple spoonfuls and pass it on. :)
My first tea of the day!
Everyone else is sleeping so I’m sitting with the baby watching the LAST episode of Downton Abbey and drinking dragon pearls. I still haven’t had my dragon pearl-off, but someday!
I have a feeling that I’ll need a comfort tea afterwards from what I’ve heard. :( 15 minutes to go, and I’m waiting for hell to break loose.
God, I love some of these characters so much. Even Mary, even though she’s so complicated. And stubborn.
I have yet to watch a single episode of this show. Maybe when winter comes & there is snow I’ll make tony a decadent breakfast & talk him into spending a day on the couch in PJs, watching every episode of the first season. Cuz that’s how we roll!
yes terri! yes!
Let me know when you do have a dragon pearl-off since I’d love to follow along. One of these days I want to have one of my own. Lol.
Terri – that sounds really awesome. :) I love devouring an entire episode at once.
I just realized that Season 4 starts to air today which is a relief because I don’t like how the last ep ended and need something else. But now I’m stuck waiting for each episode like regular people. :P I hate being caught up.
And will do, Shadowfall!
Maybe I’ll join you guys on the pearl-off as well!
Most vendors’ dragon pearls are actually literally the same tea. No matter the retailer, 99% these things on the market are all made by Feng Qing Tea Factory in Yunnan China (the Feng Qing in the name), any minor differences you pick out will just be batch to batch variations, so get them wherever they’re cheapest.
Really? I didn’t realize that! Maybe I’ll do a visual/smell test first to see if I can see any difference before I brew up a buttload of tea.
Sansnipple – I didn’t realize that either. Kinda takes the fun out of it. Lol!
I know they aren’t all exactly the same. Mandala’s pearls definitely taste & look different from thepuritea’s, for example.
Mandala’s aren’t the same as these either.
Hmmm… I always thought the Adagio and Zen Tea pearls were not as good quality as the others ones I’ve had too. I should go through and see how many types of pearls I have!
Cavo – i JUST found out the season started again tonight… heh so excited but yes… waiting sucks..that’s why i have like 10 shows i watch at the same time..gives me time to get a few episodes ready for when i want to do mini sessions of the show haha
I’m happy you watch it too! I don’t know anyone else that does and I might need to vent or cheer or something!
We usually just blitz through seasons after they’ve all aired but Joe isn’t into this so I can actually keep up.
I do love this tea. One of these days I will place an order for some.
I watched the first couple of eps at a friend’s house who had netflix, but now I am not sure the best source at home to watch with. I don’t have netflix at home.
It must have been American Netflix because I don’t see it on mine. I end up downloading the episodes, or borrowing the dvd’s from the library.
Seems like they’d make Netflix the same for everyone… :/
I think it’s to do with different regulations and licensing. Some of the Canadian broadcasters have rights to show movies/shows in Canada, and don’t want to sell/share it well Netflix. Red tape and bureaucracy are part of the problem, I imagine.
So our selection is much smaller than yours, but for some reason we get the odd show that you guys don’t get in the US. I think we had Walking Dead far sooner than you guys did, as an example. A lot of people I know us IP blockers or something to get US netflix, but I just haven’t bothered to figure it out for my PS3 yet.
i download my tv shows 100% legally….cough
Yes, it was in LA when I was at the Gallifrey One con and I was at my friend’s house alone for a bit.
Another thanks to whatshesaid for a tasty Della Terra sample. Of course, I forgot that I requested this one, so there’s a Try Me size’s worth on order for me currently, but I somehow don’t think I’ll have a problem with that… because this is good!! It reminds me a lot of Pineapple Upside Down Cake in the intense caramelly flavouring (which works perfectly as the brown sugar in crisp topping), but I’m definitely tasting blueberry in here as well, and it’s soooooo good. Not quite as good as DavidsTea’s Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble, but pretty good. Again I’m having trouble tasting it fully due to a blocked nose, but I can tell that it’s really delicious. I meant to steep this for only 2 minutes, but it accidentally got closer to 4, whoops, although that doesn’t seem to have had any negative impact whatsoever.
You know, this kind of tastes like a blend of Pineapple Upside Down Cake and Double Berry Burst, which is totally ok because I like both! Thanks again, whatshesaid!
ETA: This re-steeps well a second time, as I expected. Really tasty. Leaves still had a bit of aroma after that, but I have plenty of other teas to drink, so I didn’t go for a third.
Preparation
I love this one! Such a great dessert tea and plenty sweet on its own. Yum!
totally had to go look and see if i’d picked this one up in our order. I should have known better..it’s blueberry and cakey.. of COURSE i did
Hahaha yeah, this is a 3-way split of an ounce :P The reviews were good enough for it that I figured we could do with a bit more each. I’m fairly certain you’ll like it.
TastyBrew – yeah, I love the teas that are sweet enough to be desserty without adding sugar. Makes them quite satisfying, sometimes!
Yeah, this one and the pineapple upside down cake, very similar in their cakey sweetness.
Sil- I’m pretty sure she uses the same crack for both :-)
tastybrew! OH YAY!!!
I’m glad you liked this! It’s so freakin good. I think I will make some to bring to Evil Dead tonight!
Oh man that sounds tasty, and blueberry!! I can’t recall if I requested this one or not now. Hmph
IB – you did and that’s what the spreadsheet is for :P get a better computer haha
phew. One day… (must. find. job!!)
Greetings Steepsterites!
NaNoWriMo is well and truly over and I made it with 50,010 words at ten minutes to ten last night. The last two hundred words or so were a bit of a struggle but Husband had told me I wasn’t allowed to go to bed until I was finished, so I pressed on. I’ve been unable to get any sort of a decent lead at all, hovering around par all month. Have a look at my stats page to see how close I’ve been! (http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/participants/angrboda/novels/village-on-the-sand/stats) The validator gave me a little less than my other word counter did, but still enough to win, luckily, because my eyes felt like they were full of sand! I can now, with great relief, go back to only 750 words per day and those don’t even have to be novel-y words. They can be anything. This post, for example, counts.
So let’s celebrate this by drinking something I haven’t tasted before, and I chose this oolong from Fleurdelily and I think I’ve found the correct entry in the database. The bag it was in matches the bag on the picture anyway, so I’ve decided it’s close enough.
I’ve been holding off on this one for a while. Not for anything to do with my expectations of it, whether I was afraid of trying it or whether I expected it to be so awesome it had to be saved for later. The real reason is actually as stupid as this; I liked the bag and didn’t want to take scissors to it. There. How’s that for a silly reason? I steeled myself today, however, and am now giving it a try.
The dry leaf smelled wood-y and a bit leathery. A bit like brand new rawhide footwear. A strange association, footwear, but I chalk it up to the fact that I’m breaking in new winter boots which just happens to be made of a rawhide-like material. I think it’s synthetic actually, but they still have that smell. After steeping it’s more wood-y and not a trace of boot to be found. Instead there is a hint of something floral and a good deal of something toasted. Quite nut-like too.
The flavour surprised me. I’m afraid my very first thought was ‘fish!’ and my second thought was ‘but nice…’ so it was all rather confusing and peculiar. Now that it has been standing and developing for a few minutes, however, the fishyness has gone away and left behind something quite pleasant. It has a relatively strong floral aspect, not something I usually enjoy much, but it’s not so perfume-y and unpleasant here. Underneath that is a wood-y sort of note that is just default oolong flavour to me, and again something kind of toasty as well. The aftertaste has a mineral note to it, but not overwhelmingly so. I’m rather enjoying it, and Husband just shouted from his room that he did too.
How could you write that many words? I struggle with 2,000 word research papers.
Congratulations!!! That is an impressive accomplishment. I tried Nano two years ago, but there was no way I could do it and stay sane.
Yay! You rock! It’s been fun sharing this NaNo with you!
Congrats!
Yay, congrats on finishing! Doesn’t it feel good to go to sleep without 50k hanging over you head? I love how you’ve described this tea — boots and fish aren’t something I’d ever associate with each other, let alone tea, but this kind of sounds nice…
Congrats – and that’s what I call pulling it on at the last minute.
Accidently brewed this one for over 8 minutes, my bad! However, it doesn’t seem to have suffered! It’s just a toasty oolong, with… wow, a super sweet flavour that reminds me strongly of an ice wine I had recently. Like, very strongly of this ice wine. So delicious! Oh man. I’m drinking this one waaaayyyyyy too quickly now. I suspect I won’t get a second infusion this fabulous, but this is absolutely delicious!!
Wow. I can definitely see myself picking this one out again when I’m looking for a darker tea that isn’t a black but has lots of flavour! Too many times I’ve found darker oolongs to either be super finicky, or lacking in flavour. This is neither!
I just realized I’m the first person to review this one?! Seriously!? C’mon, people!
ETA: Second infusion, not sure how long I let this one go, is still pretty tasty, but not nearly as intense in the syrupy ice wine flavour. There’s a bit of astringency, perhaps, coming out (but it may have been a very long infusion, again), but it’s still very delicious, and the aftertaste remains that delicious sweet ice wineyness. Hopefully I’ll get to #3 tomorrow. This tea definitely hit the spot tonight! Exactly what I wanted, apparently!
ETA again: Third infusion, 180F for 5 minutes, is more your generic sort of woody oolong flavour. Nothing wrong with that, and it’s still quite flavourful, but I definitely enjoyed the first two infusions much, much more. I may try for a fourth tomorrow if time permits.
Preparation
ooooooh, tastes like ice wine? I’m all over that! /adds to shopping list
It was crazy! It was initially that typically woody oolong flavour, but then there’s a huge rush of delicious sweetness that yeah, was bang on the mark for ice wine for me. It may need a long infusion to be like this, I’m not sure!
Wow, I can’t believe that survived 8 minutes. How accurate would you say our description of the tea is based on the 8 minute steeping? Hmmm, maybe I should try a long steeping to see what it tastes like.
I was shocked, to be honest! It would have gone into the cup at 180F, and stayed there for about 8.5 minutes. Not sure what the temp was when I removed it, but it was fabulous! I think the honey notes were intensified by such a long infusion, and there was definitely no astringency. I’m terrible at picking up specific flavours, so I’m not sure about almonds/apples. It was very, very good though!
I’ll have to try the tea with the recommended infusion time and compare :)
makes me think this might be good cold brewed :P
Possibly! I don’t have a ton of it so may not try that since it’s so good this way.
apparently you need more teas that let you make them and be distracted cough
I am innocent!
Very interesting. I’m going to try this at a long infusion.
Sigh. Another sipdown (84). And unless Stacy decides to release this as a permanent blend, I may never have it again.
I drank it after watching the 50th Anniversary special of Doctor Who. It seemed like the appropriate time to finish this off. And without spoiling anything, I will say that I am happy with the episode and the tea. Both do well multiple times. (And now I can scour the net for reactions/reviews and madcap theories!)
Preparation
haha i just finished off my sample too!
i know!!!!! the episode was awesome! (shamefaced) i was so transfixed that it never even occurred to me to steep up my blend. dammit. i can do it now though. i wonder what the budget was for that episode? wow.
so hard to spoil anything….. i’ll shut up now.
i will hurt you….no spoilers!
I must be the only person on the planet not watching this. Ditto for coronation street, not that we’re talking about it. Dude, I wasn’t even conceived when this show first came on, and I am not what one would consider young.
I didn’t get into Doctor Who until 2 years ago, and I started with the 2005 reboot as it was (apparently) a nice easy way to jump into the series. Now I look back at those and cringe a little. :P They’re great fun though if you ever decide to give them a try – it’s on Canadian Netflix!
Series 5, Episode 1 (The Eleventh Hour) is also a great starting place. #nudge
no no no no no…best intro to dr who is blink.
ooooooooooooooooooh. and i couldn’t pick. 2005 absolutely. earlier? gak!!!! i do not understand the obsession with coronation street. not at all.
I don’t understand coronation street obsession either..though i also didn’t get downton abbey…and then i watched a few episodes. happy sigh
Yeah Blink is pretty awesome as well, but then I’d skip to Series 5. :P 2005 had a lot of silly fart jokes and characters who I’m not quite as fond of when I see them again :P I worry that people who start there might not keep going! Haha. Of course my friend told me to start at Series 5 and I ignored her and went to S1 and I stuck around. So, I’m just being a hypocrite.
I really want to watch more of the old ones though. I’ve only seen 2 or 3 of them and I get all my old Doctors mixed up.
haha i make all my friends start with the reboot and tell them it’s a little like the harry potter series…first one was totally childish and then they get progressively darker. I can’t imagine not having watched everything unfold with rose and david tennant…
Downtown Abbey is good now but for the first couple of episodes, I was only watching because I knew it was good. My idea of good. Awarded, critically acclaimed and liked by those with tastes similar to mine. Until all of you steepster peeps I have never even heard of dr. who! More like… Dr who?!?
Downton.
I totally get that! That’s a great way to describe it to people. And I really, really liked Ten. So it would be a shame to miss him and all his companions.
(NXTDOOR – SPOILERS)
I started rewatching DW a month ago and it was just painful to watch Rose/Mickey and her family drama stuff. Mickey wasn’t actually a bad guy at the end of it, and everyone sorta trampled on him. I guess that made me a little uncomfortable, although the first time through I was totally shipping Rose/Ten.
yeah took me about 3 episodes to fall in love with downton…
I really like Downton too! I need to catch up – it’s been a few weeks! :O Are you guys all in the current season? Who’s your fav char? :P
Whoops. I killed this convo.
Cavo strikes again!
I’m on episode 5? Of this season…. There are a bunch of ppl I hate. Lol. I love the old bat. Not sure how I feel about poor Anna this season….
Congrats!! And I think I will finish my Supernatural episode and then finally sleep.
VariaTEA! were you the one that got me started on that damn show? argh! i’ve been trying to remember who it it my head!!!!
haha was I? I did talk about it a lot about a week or two ago. I do REALLY like it.
aw, the first two season were ghastly…. season 4 and 5 are hysterical though.
Congrats! Please post a picture when you’re done with your GoT Winter is Coming scarf (and your jar). :)
Yay!! you won! you won!
Thanks!
Well so far Season 2 is MUCH better than one. I hope that means they just get better. :)
And CrowKettle – if I manage to pull off this scarf I’ll probably spam pics everywhere. :P
OMG. I’m just watching S2 E15, and this episode is cracked. This is ridiculous. I didn’t realize Supernatural was on purpose funny.
wonder if i should pick up supernatural again… hmmm
Don’t do it… It’s full of pain and sadness :( But in all seriousness, it’s really good, I’m just bitter over last night’s episode.
Hahaha Roswell, it really hit you hard. It will be okay.
And Cavo, I think in the first season they were trying to make it more a drama but the seasons for sure get funnier as they progress. Just wait for Castiel. Also I like to watch bloopers and cast interviews on YouTube because the cast is honestly hilarious and love each other so much. It’s adorable.
my sister tells everyone to start with season 3. and we watch the christmas episode Every. Single. Year. and even people who don’t like the show, like the bloopers. It’s true!