639 Tasting Notes
Sipdown #24
The dry leaf aroma is interesting because I feel like I can smell every ingredient in the list: sickly sweet rooibos, maple, caramel, apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I didn’t realize this tea was a rooibos blend when I picked up a sample teabag. I’m not really a fan of its medicinal taste. But I’m willing to give it another chance!
The flavor is VERY strongly rooibos. The apple and maple notes are about equal. The cinnamon and nutmeg are surprisingly absent. If apple cider and rooibos tea had a kid, this cup is what that kid would taste like. Okay, that came off a little more cannibalistic than I had intended. :P
If you love rooibos, this is probably a stellar tea for you! But I’m sadly still not a fan of this red bush tea. So feel free to ignore my low rating and grab a sample of this to see for yourself!
Preparation
Sipdown #25
The dry leaf aroma of this teabag is cherry liquor. Yes, I’m talking a strong alcohol odor here. Alcohol is not a thing I enjoy, so an alcoholic flavoring in my tea is probably not going to go over well. The brewed tea aroma is more chocolate and maraschino cherries than liquor, so that’s good.
The flavor is a lot like the aroma. I’m getting chocolate and cherries and something slightly alcoholic tasting. The cherry in this is not natural cherry. It’s like drinking grenadine or the liquid that comes in those jars of sweetened, overly processed maraschino cherries. The chocolate flavoring also isn’t very good. Again, I get the impression of something overly processed.
Overall, this tastes artificial and flaky. It’s not an enjoyable cuppa for me. And I can’t really say that I would recommend it to others either. Life is too short to drink bad tea!
Preparation
I made this with Truvia and half & half for a special treat. It is creamy, and coconut-y, and super delicious!!! Yum yumm!! Soooo good! I love it! Big thanks to Courtney for sending me a sample!
This is staying on the shopping list though because I seriously need to purchase a pouch, when I’m back under 100 teas that is. ;) By the way, second steep for 5 minutes was just as delicious as the first. Yes!
Preparation
My brain feels fuzzy. I watched The Hobbit 2 today in the higher frame rate of 48 fps. It was like watching a video game. Super weird, and my brain hasn’t recovered yet. I don’t know how Peter Jackson could get this story so wrong. The second film is worse than the first. Someone described it to me as “fan fiction” and they are totally right! Jackson’s The Hobbit is pure fan fiction. Anyway, because of my fuzz brain, this tasting note may not entirely make sense. But here goes!
ON TO THE TEA!
The leaves look dark to me. Is this a Formosa oolong? The brewed tea aroma is chocolate, oolong, and maybe a hint of coffee. Mmm, the flavor is a lot stronger than the aroma. That’s a change for the better that I’m not used to. It’s usually the other way around with the aroma being more potent than the flavor.
The flavor is chocolaty, creamy oolong. I am getting a hint of coffee too. Overall, the cup is becoming more muted as it cools. This is one to enjoy piping hot! I still can’t tell if this is a Formosa oolong or green. I guess I’m leaning towards green, but it’s not very vegetal.
This isn’t sugary sweet or cake-like. So, I don’t think it could take the place of real tiramisu should you have a craving. But it is a delicious tea, and I’m glad I had the chance to try it. Thank you for sharing, Courtney!
Preparation
oh, thanks for the warning about the hobbit! no need to watch from the sounds of it!
LOL! I can’t not watch it. It’s like a train wreck. At the very least, I don’t recommend watching it at the higher frame rate. It’s impossible to get sucked into the film. Everything just looks so fake it kept pushing me out and reminding me that I was watching a movie. I can usually really get pulled into films, but not when it’s shot like this. Blech.
Geez, I haven’t even watched the first one yet. :/
OH, that makes me so sad. I saved the first Hobbit movie to watch on my birthday as a “treat” because the hubby would not normally consider it.
It was painful. It was so awful. I guess I won’t bother with the other two. I prefer to read my fanfiction. :P
I’m still watching it Christmas Day. I’m a bit of a completist when it comes to book series and movies, much to my brain’s dismay. :) (Yes, fanfic! Party elves! (Ooh, maybe I should dress up.))
I really felt like a green tea today, and this just arrived from my swap with Courtney. Woot! This is a delicious green tea. It’s just the right mix of grassy and vegetal. Overall, it has a mild flavor with a natural sweetness. Very yummy and hitting the spot perfectly for my current mood. Thanks, Courtney!
Preparation
Sipdown #26
The dry leaf aroma smells exactly like warm cinnamon apples! Mmm! The brewed tea aroma is similar but a bit sweeter now that the hibiscus has steeped. The immediate flavor upon sipping is cinnamon and hibiscus. The apple and chamomile are lighter in comparison and appear in the aftertaste. This is delicious!
The tartness of the hibiscus isn’t overpowering, and it actually pairs nicely with the cinnamon and chamomile. I wasn’t expecting much from this tea, but I really like it! It is soothing and yummy. And man, my cup disappeared fast! I’m going to make a mental note to stock up on this when I get pregnant and can only drink caffeine free teas. :)
Preparation
Sipdown #27
I bought this tea for my husband because he really loves coffee but is trying to drink more tea instead. I love trying new things, so even though I was pretty sure a tea with coffee beans in it would be disgusting to me, my husband kindly obliged to share with me.
Let me just say that this 25 grams went really fast! Unless my husband has been drinking it without my knowledge, which I doubt, then this bag is almost finished. I think we only got about 5 cups out of the whole 25g bag! That doesn’t seem like much…
Anyway, on to the tea itself. This tea has a lot of stuff in it: black tea, roasted yerba mate, coffee bean, black currant, barberry, juniper berry, hibiscus, and a bunch of powders and flavorings. That may contribute to its higher weight and thus not as much bang for your buck. The dry leaf aroma is berries with a hint of coffee bean. The brewed tea aroma has morphed into something berry-like and tea-like with an unusual aroma hanging behind the berry. I’m guessing that’s the coffee.
First sip sans additions…hmm, this really just tastes like a berry black tea with a hint of coffee bean. It doesn’t taste like actual brewed coffee, just coffee bean, which mostly is apparent in the aftertaste. You know, I’m not getting much in the way of yerba mate here, roasted or otherwise. The main flavor is a delicious berry concoction! I added a little bit of Truvia, and that helped to amp up the berry sweetness. This is surprisingly drinkable and yummy! I can’t see myself craving this flavor often, but it’s not bad at all.
Preparation
I’m not a fan of puerh. So, it figures the surprise crowd-funding campaign blend would be a puerh. :P The dry leaf aroma is pure orange creamsicle. The brewed tea aroma is moldy oranges. Yep, moldy oranges. Ugh, I’m not so sure about this one.
First sip…it doesn’t taste like mold, thank God! The orange is very creamy and reminiscent of ice cream. In fact, this is probably the closest to actual ice cream that a tea has tasted for me. But I can’t get past that repellent aroma to enjoy it. This is another one that goes on the swap list!
ETA: My husband ended up finishing the cup. Clearly, he liked it just fine.
Preparation
Pick meeeepickmeeeeeeee
Did you add cream and sugar or sweetener? Kicks the smell.
no no no bonnie…don’t help her..she wants to send it all to me giggling
LOL! I just posted this in the swap discussion, but it’s yours if you want it.
i totally answered you in the swap discussion haha i’m sure we can work something out lol
Just sent a PM. :)
You guys r nuts!
Oh no. Why did I buy this? This has Lapsang Souchong in it! Yuck.
The dry leaf aroma is really weird and not appetizing to my nose. It’s heavily spicy and then the smoke aroma comes in and mixes with the chocolate in a very unappetizing way. Luckily, the brewed tea aroma is significantly improved. It’s mostly chocolate chai now with a hint of smoke. Let’s hope that continues into the flavor.
Oh ugh. This is not my tea. Yuck, and this is not s’mores at all in my opinion. This tastes like black tea with spices and smoky Lapsang. No chocolate, no graham cracker, no marshmallow. Just black tea, spices, and SMOKE! I’m sorry 52teas. I should have read the ingredient list more carefully. I’m going to try and swap this ASAP.
Preparation
Wow, this is just awful. It’s very flat tasting, like a coke that’s lost all its carbonation. Is this supposed to be carbonated? Blech. It’s such an awful sensation to drink something that’s gone flat. Although, I’m not really sure why tea would be carbonated in the first place.
On to the actual flavor, this tastes like barely flavored water. There’s no green tea taste whatsoever. There’s a very slight hint of lemon, but it’s not very distinguishable as natural lemon. It’s just sort of weird and chemical-y. Eww. This is just really bad. There’s nothing redeemable about it at all.
