Apple Pie Keemun

Holiday TTB

Cinnamon scares me, since it seems like it can easily take over and cover up all the other flavors in a blend. Thankfully, that’s not the case with this tea! I taste the spices, but I also get a distinct apple flavor (not a fresh-off-the-tree apple, but more of a warm baked apple) that layers beautifully on top of the black tea base. Not really getting anything that reminds me of pie crust, but it’s still a delicious treat!

Monthly TTB. I keep forgetting to add that. It gets hard to remember when I’m drinking a cuppa and feeding my daughter at the same time while trying to write a note. And she likes to try and grab my phone with her food covered fingers.

Anyway. The smell of the dry leaves reminds me of an apple pie you get in a grocery store and not a homemade pie. Or at least not the pies my mom or I make. Dark amber color. Not the best apple pie tea I’ve had (I think Indigo is better). It’s light but still has good flavor. Just not the pie flavor I think of when thinking of apple pie. I’m not a fan of store bought pies so that’s probably why I’m not a big fan of this tea.

Monthly TTB Club.

The apple pie flavor here is a pretty decent approximation. It tastes like sweet cinnamon apple, at least. I don’t really like how it works with the Keemun black tea, though. This is a tea I would drink if it were offered to me, but probably wouldn’t buy.

It’s the Snowpocalypse! Here in British-Columbia we got got plus of 40 cm (that’s 16 inches, for you Americans) yesterday and now we’re sort of floundering around trying to dig ourselves out. The schools and university were shut down for the first time I can ever recall. I’m just lucky I live on a major thoroughfare that the snowplow got to pretty quickly, but with some of the backstreets it’ll probably two or three days before they’re cleared.

I got this tea as part of one of those grab-bag deals though I had been eyeing it beforehand. A couple years back Frank made another apple tea called Apple Pie a la Mode which I really enjoyed. This one isn’t quite apple pie to me although it makes a game attempt, there’s a nice apple flavour and just the right amount of cinnamon (IMO – though I know this is subjective thing) . I’m not quite getting the pastry flavour of the crust anywhere, though the base is a good match for the flavours.

Sipdown (115)!

Ooh, the DT website is down for maintenance right now… That’s exciting!

Thank you Marzipan for including this in our swap like I asked. I have to admit, it was Lauriel’s burning desire to try it that even put it on my radar. Otherwise, I probably would have just dismissed it as another apple tea – and those don’t typically excite me too much.

- It’s ok; black base stays away from the usual, strong 52Teas flavour
- Which is good; I’ve grown sick of that distinct flavour
- The apple is present and sorta soft; actually kinda like pie filling
- I couldn’t tell if it was more green or red apple
- Reading the description now I can see why; this incorporates both
- But that’s mostly where the comparison ends; wish I could taste the crust though
- Little bit of cinnamon thrown in there though
- Surprisingly, better than I expected!

This brews up like a dark apple cider and has a lot of the same scents – you can definitely pick up on the crisp apple and what seems like pie spices layered over a decidedly smoky note that makes my mouth water.

And the tea itself – delightfully enough – doesn’t disappoint. You can taste a fresh apple flavour (with just a little tartness) over top of that smokiness…which really rounds it out and makes it reminiscent of pie that’s been baked just a second too long; you know – when the crust gets just to dark brown and it’s almost burnt but not quite…yeah, that one.

It’s a good flavour. More subtle and spot-on than I would’ve expected from a tea and I’m really glad that I got a whole bag of it from the 52Teas Grab Bag event they had going on.

Om nom nom.

Thank you Marzipan for including this with the 52Teas mystery grab bags we split! The seems like the perfect autumn tea. Keemun with apple and cinnamon. The apple here is a little like red apples, not a dessert apple flavor, if that makes sense. But there is something here that could remind me of actual pie. Just enough cinnamon, much like an apple pie, not like the amount of cinnamon that would be in a cup of chai. The keemun isn’t tough enough for me though – very light, even with a teaspoon and a half. To be fair, I steeped for a short amount of time since I tend to do that with 52Teas to get as much flavor as possible before the base takes over. The second cup was steeped more traditionally, but the strength of the keemun wasn’t there. Not a bad blend, but I would have liked more flavor both from the tea and the flavors. I seem to drink many cinnamon teas in a row so my other teas aren’t ruined by the cinnamon left over in my infuser.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 tsps. // few min after boiling // 90 second steep
Steep #2 // half mug // just boiled // 3 min

Backlog:

Really tasty. I could smell the apple pie as soon as I opened the pouch, and my mouth starts watering whenever I open this one (I’ve had it a few times since my original tasting note/review of this tea, found here: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/04/29/apple-pie-keemun-52teas/ )

I like the way the smokiness of the keemun works with the notes of the apple pie to give it that fresh baked taste. My gramma’s apple pie never tasted smoky … but this doesn’t taste really smoky either … it just tastes crisp and inviting and very … autumnal. A really well-conceived blend.

The first cup I had was about a month ago when I had been drinking a lot of another apple pie tea that was very syrupy liquid pie filling sweet so this one left me with no opinion. Today I’m enjoying it a lot more and it is comforting tonight. The apple and cinnamon are not as bold but still present and I can still taste the tea. I don’t get apple pie but I would consider buying this sometime.

Thank you EvaGrimm for the sample :)

First tea of the day. I am not going to assign a rating because I rather like this tea, but it’s not an ideal first tea tea for me. I like my first tea of the day to be strong, hot and assertive. This one isn’t brewed at boiling so it’s not that hot, and it has a lovely understatement so I wouldn’t call it assertive.

I think this is going to fall in mid day for me. I hope everyone else is as quirky as I am about their teas!

Aside from that, apple? Yes, apple, but not overwhelmingly so. I get pie, but I’m not sure how. The cinnamon mentioned is barely there, I get a glimpse before it rounds the corner and goes out of sight. It’s not very astringent, as I brewed for 3 minutes. The aftertaste is just pleasant apple.