Caramel Vanilla Assam

You know what just makes some black teas 100% better?

Cream and sugar.

The golden ratio of 3:1 tea:sugar (in teaspoons) and a dollop of cream made for one sweet and delicious smooth brew.

So this tea was not my favorite. It may have been my fault because all I had was a sample size and I used a big mug…probably 12 oz. So it was probably underleafed. That being said, I mainly get a buttery taste from it with maybe a tiny bit of caramel. It just tastes kind of odd. Maybe I’ll try a resteep with less water and hold off on rating it until then. Anyway, thanks for the sample, Butiki Teas!

Resteep: I used about half the water this time. The weird taste is even worse now. This is just not the tea for me. There must be something wrong with me since everyone else seemed to be raving about it!

O_O Pancakes. Pancakes WITH syrup. In my tea cup. Mama like. Mama LOOOOOVE.

Wow. Wooooooooooow. I have had a really good run with some really lovely teas the past few days and this one does not disappoint!

At the front, this tastes like a normal Butiki black tea (completely awesome)…but the AFTERTASTE…oh heaven. The aftertaste that hits you two seconds later is a short burst of buttery pancake goodness that has me doing a happy dance at my desk and thinking about a resteep!

Highly recommend!

Light, smooth and we’ll balanced… Those were my first thoughts after drinking this tea for the first time, and now that I’ve finished my second steep I stick with it. Caramel Vanilla Assam, the name is almost more complex than the tea! Those flavors certainly do come through, but never shout for attention. I find this to a great after dinner tea, a great way to cap off the day!

Stacy tossed a sample of this in with my last Butiki order and am I ever glad she did! I think I hesitated initially on this tea because I was worried that there would be too much base tea for my liking. In retrospect, I should have known to trust Butiki blends. This tea was wonderful! Buttery smooth with strong notes of caramel and a touch of vanilla. I added just a touch of sugar to mine, and that seemed like the right way to go. I think this needs to go on my must order list for future orders!

I have been sitting on this one awhile.
At first sip, it reminded me of my caramel matcha.
I thought, why is this so highly acclaimed?
However, there is something about the balance between the caramel
and the vanilla …The vanilla makes it somewhat creamy tasting
and more addictive with each cup.
By the time you have finished the pot, you too are an enthusiast!
It is not especially complex, but it seems to have a lil voodoo in the pot.
The assam somehow gives the sticking power to let you know…
yes, I will be ordering this again…should be a staple.

This tea is rocking my world right now. My husband is actually annoyed with me (we work together) because every time I take a drink, I make an audible, “Mmmmm”. What’s the problem, I offered him some!

The caramel/vanilla flavor in this is really just the right strength. It’s completely noticeable, but not knocking me over either. I wouldn’t call it delicate. It’s just balanced in the right way. I can still taste the tea, which is a big plus. It’s a little bit like a hug in a cup. Cozy and yummy.

I had a little bit of a challenge measuring out the leaves by teaspoons because they were huge! I just sort of eyeballed it.

First steep I think I overleafed (even though I followed pkg directions of 2tsp/8oz)…it just came out bitter and unpleasant even though it smelled amazing and I loved it in the bag. I’ll have to wait and have another try at it later as my tea mojo is busted tonight.

Tea & Cards TTB #14
Before sending off the box, I noticed that there was only one tsp left of this. Plus, I have had it on my wishlist for such a long time (remember when it was a shopping list? haha). So I finally brought this one to school with me. Unfortunately, the water at school was barely hotter than lukewarm. I steeped it anyway, but I will refrain from rating. The caramel kicks off the tea with a very in-your-face flavor. Not to be outdone, vanilla creeps in there as well, though not quite as strongly. I think that there’s something about the base that I may not like as much. Not sure, though, because I’ve never had just straight Assam before. Anyway, I’m glad to have finally tried this tea, even if it wasn’t under the best conditions.

I wanted something sweet today, so I brewed some of this. I usually really love sweet teas, but I haven’t been enjoying them recently as much as usual. However, I like this. At first, I thought it was a bit too sweet, and I still kind of feel that way, but the sweetness is complicated by the taste of the tea which is appreciated. My biggest complaint about this tea, and it’s a small one, is that there are almost no vanilla notes in this tea for me. I only taste the caramel, which comes across quite strongly. The backbone to this tea is the tea, which is a rustic tasting earthy tea. Even though the tea is sweet, the tea is present, which is probably the best aspect of this tea.

Overall, this is a great tea, but still wasn’t exactly suited to my preferences.