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Another lovely tea that Plum Deluxe sent me to review! Thank you Plum Deluxe!

This has an ok flavor. I will admit when I first cracked open the pack, I was concerned because it smelled like dirt. It’s unfortunate, but it translates over a bit. There’s a dusty quality to this that isn’t the best. The main flavor is heavy on the floral. I added two splendas to this but it still has the dusty flavor. It’s depressing. I really wanted to love this. It’s decent enough, but I can’t get past the dustiness.

I mean it’s not bad. But it’s not great. It’s drinkable, but considering how wonderful the last one I tried was, I’m disappointed. Oh well.

Thanks again Plum Deluxe!

This was sent to my by the lovely derk!

Ok, so I’m going hard for the music right now and left my kettle (you know, the one without the keep warm function) sit for 15 minutes after boiling. And then, after that, I still didn’t turn down the music and I don’t know how long my beeper was going off before I went to get the tea. So while I aimed for 212F/8min, it’s probably wildly off.

Anyway, this tastes like coffee? I’m so confused. It tastes like a roasted, nutty coffee, and I don’t know how that works? I’ve really been jonesing for coffee lately (I know, revoke my login), and getting the new Keurig machine has led to me buying a bunch of coffee and drinking it. So yeah, this hits the spot. Very VERY much like nutty coffee.

So thanks for the sample derk!

OK, so another one of the discount store ones. This one is actually labeled for somewhere around November of this year, so despite there being “Milk” listed as an ingredient, I think we are good there.

This is… well it’s a spicy chai all right. Much spicier than the Cafe Escapes one, which in comparison is rather one-note cinnamon. This one actually tastes like it has a profile. I’m getting cloves, cardamon, and a bit of other miscellaneous spices. I swear there is a touch of anise in this, but it could be just me. Sadly, the black tea base is mostly missing, but that’s to be expected for these things. It certainly isn’t as sweet as the other one. I don’t know how to describe this. It’s more complex than my other one, but also the flavors don’t pop as much. So it’s complex but subtle. I really don’t know which one I like better. At first, when I sipped this I thought it was gross, but I’m only halfway through the cup and it has already grown on me.

For chai k-cup? This has a surprisingly rich profile. There’s a tingle to it in the mouth, like a good chai should have. Overall, if you have a Keurig and want a quickie Chai latte, go for it. That’s what I bought it for. (A surprising number of my cups are quickie cups). Most people on here though, I don’t think it would suit. It’s good for a K-Cup… which is even less impressive than saying something is good for bagged. In my experience, loose tea is usually better than bagged, and K-Cups are usually lower on the spectrum than bagged. The only thing I’ve had that K-Cups consistently beat is powdered tea, and that should speak volumes. That said, I have a rather unrefined palate, and I can easily stomach things most people on here never could.

So yeah, for a K-Cup? It’s a C
For tea in general? Fail.

Another of the lovely samples that Plum Deluxe sent me! Thanks!

This is a lovely Earl Grey. The rich but smooth bergamot, blended with flavorful vanilla leads to a wonderfully blended cup of EG Cream. It’s just so dang smooth. I love this! It’s kinda like a warm hug wrapping around my core and smooshing me. I wish I had the words to express this but I don’t. Smooth smooth smooth. And yet not overly subtle. The flavor is strong, yet kind and loving at the same time. So yummy.

Def recommend!

Wow, so this is the first of many lovely samples I received from derk!

There was no water temperature listed on the teabag, but the time was listed as 8-10 minutes. Seeing as how it is an herbal tea, I did 212F.

This tea has a lovely flavor. I taste strong cocoa, caramel, and cinnamon as well as an underlying sweetness. I can definitely taste the mushrooms, and I love it! I may have to find some of this for myself, it’s mighty tasty. And caffeine free too!

Overall very tasty. Thanks a bunch derk!

Well, I wanted to try this, but I didn’t want to commit to a full box. Luckily I found sample packs of this at a local discount store. I want to draw attention to that- I bought this at a discount store. The date reads 8/20 but I still am not sure as to the quality of the K-Cup. It could be iffy. Then again, I bought coffee (gasp) K-Cups at the same time and they were remarkably good, so there’s that.

As far as the quality of THIS K-Cup goes, I’m not sold. It tastes like tea dust. It’s very bitter and tannic, even with two Splenda’s added. The bergamot, if not artificial flavored, is forced. It just doesn’t flow as a tea. To be honest, it tastes similar to the loose-leaf Twinings Earl Grey, just less pleasant. I can’t say I’d recommend this at all. Seriously, if you are going to make tea, at the very least commit to a teabag. I have found K-Cups to be abysmal for non-instant tea. Those chai lattes are still tasty, but anything other than those seem to be just bad.

I’ll continue to experiment, but don’t hold out much hope for a tasty “T-Cup”

So Plum Deluxe sent me some samples to review! How nice of them!

This was just a mini sample, and unfortunately contained less than I usually use to leaf my earl greys. I tend to do 1.5 tsp for my 12 oz mugs. This was only 1 tsp. So naturally, it’s going to be a bit weak. That said, this has a lovely flavor. The strawberry and bergamot play well together, giving it a gentle berry/floral flavor. Luckily, it’s a natural flavor though and not artificial at all. That said, I’m not getting much of the straight orange flavor that I was expecting, or would have liked. (This supposedly contains orange as well as bergamot). But I love the strawberry. It’s very fruity. I would recommend adding a touch of sweetener to this, as it really makes the strawberry POP. I will likely order some of this if I ever make a full order from Plum Deluxe. I really want to.

Good stuff. Solid B.

So I’ve wanted to try this for a while now. I kept putting it in Adagio carts but never pulling the trigger.

So finally I have it.

Naturally, I added a couple splenda’s to this. It’s supposed to be butterbeer, after all! Sadly, it tastes almost exactly like the Adagio butterscotch tea. Like, spot on for that other blend. I almost want to brew up both side by side and compare. And it’s weird because the butterscotch tea is just that – butterscotch tea. This one is caramel, cream, and vanilla tea. But then I suppose that’s more or less the flavor profile breakdown of butterscotch, isn’t it?

Now, don’t get me wrong. This is tasty. I almost want to try it as a latte. But for as hyped up as this was in my mind, for it to be this one-note is a bit of a letdown. If I wanted straight butterscotch tea, I’d buy that instead.

The tin is stylish though.