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I left the tea ball in this time, and it steeped for a good long while because I got distracted by work. This was very pleasant. I think I got more of the butter pecan flavor earlier in the cup, and a lot more pecan later. There is a tiny bit of sweetness from the tea itself, backing up the pecan-y flavor. There is a little bit of an aftertaste of butter pecan left on my tongue after I finished drinking.

I was sure I’d like this the moment I read the description. Ever since I’d tried a lapsang souchong, I’d wondered how a lapsang chai blend would be. I steeped this mostly according to the instructions. The temperature didn’t quite make it as high as recommended, but it was a temperature I like to brew at. And after letting it steep for 4 minutes, I let it cool while I took a shower (probably longer than the recommended 10 minutes)

This chai is a little different, I’ll grant, since it’s heavy on the cumin (I think cardamom is usually the most predominant flavor I get from most other chais), but I do get a bit of the chai flavor, and the warmth of the cumin blends beautifully with the smokiness of the lapsang.

I think I’m going to want a larger bag of this one. Or two. It’s so fiery and warm. And again, different from anything I’ve had before.

second steep of the sample I tried yesterday. Steeped at 160 F for about 20 seconds, I think (I used about two cups of water this time, since I wanted extra for my homemade shampoo).

This cup was flavorful and much less bitter than yesterday’s steeping. There’s still a touch of bitterness, and a round floral edge to it. It reminds me more of jasmine green tea, with a slight cherry aroma instead of jasmine. Very nice. This is definitely a tea where you need to follow the instructions.

Got a sample of this from a BPAL sale. It smelled great, and the little pieces of dried cherry blossom looked so pretty against the green tea.

I let it steep for a little bit in the Zervo and let it drain into my cup. And then I might have gotten distracted with making breakfast, so it cooled down a lot before I drank it.

The cup has a distinct bitterness to it (maybe I should have let the water cool a bit more before steeping than after). It has a floral edge and aroma. As I keep sipping, there’s some subtle sweetness to it – it’s very fitting of my image of cherry blossom. And the green tea… how do I put this? It tastes like a very BRIGHT green tea. It’s like it’s been boosted with sunshine.

I don’t know if I’ll search out more of this (I used up my sample this time), but I probably wouldn’t say no to a cup.

Edit: after reading a bit more on the page, it looked like I oversteeped it. I might try a second or third steep before tossing the leaves. :)

Needed a green tea so pulled this one out. Brewed it at a slightly higher temperature than I normally do for green teas (Set the microwave for 2 and a half minutes – usually, I set it to about a minute and 45 seconds). It came out at about 178 degrees when I poured the water over the tea leaves.

I’m still getting the bitter vegetal taste I got last time I had this tea, but this time it was less bitter and more vegetal. Which I find a little odd, since it’s brewed slightly higher than last time (or maybe it’s the same and I’m a little thrown off because of the 5-degree increments on Steepster).

It’s a little like liquid spinach. That may not sound too appealing, but I’m enjoying it a lot. Heh, I ought to find a tea that tastes like liquid tomato (not tomato water – too weak on the tomato flavor).

How have I not logged this yet? I could have sworn I had.

Well, my fiance brewed it for me today, so I can’t tell you what the temperature was, but this is probably one of my favorite Earl Greys at the moment (and not just because of the tin). There’s these little scraps of lavender and visible bits of bergamot in it.

But it is tasty. The bergamot and lavender have an…… what’s the taste equivalent of audible or visible? presence. The lavender sort of softens the bergamot, but both are definitely there, blending into the tea. It’s very calming.

If this is what Federation issue tastes like, I’d be happy to join!

So, I decided to try this today. It steeped about 4 minutes at 177 degrees.

The mint and green tea are definitely the strongest flavors in this one. The mint reminds me of spearmint gum. However, I’m not getting much watermelon or limeade flavor from this at all. Would sugar bring those flavors out? Maybe. It is a nice tea (I definitely enjoy mint teas, but I was hoping for more of a mix of flavors. It is a little bitter and astringent, which balances nicely with the mint. I probably could have avoided the bitterness by brewing at a lower temperature like I often do. It makes me wonder if maybe the higher temperature might have killed the fruity flavors, too.

Update: Interestingly enough, as I let the tea get cold, and started taking bigger gulps, it lost some of that astringency and bitterness I was getting at the beginning.

I’ve had a fondness for genmaicha since WorldCon 2013, when I got fairly liquored up, then headed to the Japan party and had the most wonderful cold green tea with a toasted, nutty flavor. That tea is probably what kept me sober enough to be able to drive back to my hotel at a somewhat reasonable time. And it was freaking delicious.

This takes that toasted, nutty green tea and adds mango to it. I love mango, but there are definitely different types (I’m talking flavor more than variety here). There’s the ultra-ripe, sweet mango that’s like a dessert in itself. This mango is greener, not overly sweet, with almost a hint of tartness and mango skin (I wish I could find green mango more often. There are some things it works perfectly in, where the sweeter mangoes I find in the store just don’t quite cut it). It blends beautifully with the rice and green tea, adding the mango flavor without overly sweetening the green tea.

I think I need to get a larger pouch of this if it’s still available. This is another winner for me from 52Teas

So I asked my fiance to make me some tea today (something black, as I need the caffeine), and he chose this one. Not sure what temperature he got it to, but the tea ball it still there, and it got lukewarm by the time I got to drinking it (Note: This is not a problem for me).

There’s that beautiful smokiness that reminds me of hickory or mesquite wood smoking a barbeque. There’s an extra warmth to this flavor that comes out at a cooler temperature, along with that tiny hint of sweetness that comes out when you brew at lower temperatures (it actually adds a little to that barbeque feeling). I get the feeling I’ll be drinking a lot more of this in winter.

So according to this company, yaupon is the only caffeinated plant native to North America. I got this tea as a gift from a friend who knows my love of chais.

The first sip, I get a subtle, unsweetened coconut backed by spices, giving this ba lovely sweet and spicy flavor. I think the rooibos adds to the sweetness as well. That flavoring persists through the rest of the cup – coconut soft and center stage, backed up with the tiniest bite of ginger and chili. None of it overtakes the tea itself – I’m still not sure what the flavor of yaupon it, but there is a slight tartness along with the sweetness of the rooibos.