249 Tasting Notes
Fragrance is lovely – strong but not overly perfume-y. It is a decent black tea, and the flavors don’t feel overly artificial. It doesn’t feel too tannic, although I do get that dry mouth, astringent feeling afterwards that Earl Greys in particular seem to leave me with. I don’t get a vanilla flavor, but truly more of a cream flavor – just kind of a softening and mellowing of the harshness that can be in an Earl Grey without a real change in the flavor. It’s good enough, but just isn’t very thrilling. It wasn’t quite strong enough, although by brewing “rules” it should have been fairly strong. The flavors are all…fine…but nothing special or complex. I’ll drink it, and would be willing to buy it again, but will be very open to something better. And yes, I have gardenias in my tasting notes. That’s not quite the right choice, but maybe someone else will know what I mean.
Flavors: Bergamot, Cream, Drying, Earl Grey, Gardenias
Preparation
Another disappointment from Teavana. It has an absolutely lovely aroma, reminiscent of a Mexican hot chocolate but softer. Very little actual chocolate taste is present, though, and shows up more as a dry mouthfeel and a hint of sourness. The spice is dominant and rather bitter, with more of what I’m beginning to feel is a Teavana trademark “red hots” taste. It’s also oddly weakly flavored, in spite of using plenty of the tea. Truthfully, if it weren’t for the nice fragrance from it, I’d rate it lower. (Drank it with a small spoon of crystal sugar and a splash of milk, definitely both needed.)
Flavors: Chocolate, Cinnamon
Preparation
This one is just utterly OK. It was a bit weak, which is always a negative for me. I added a little sugar and milk, which were nice, but it was just kind of blah. I mostly got the chocolate and strawberry as aftertastes, but they were there. I agree there is a kind of dustiness about these flavors, and it’s a bit more cocoa than chocolate. I do give them high points for not having anything that tastes artificial, though. I have a few bags of this, and may try it again with 2 tea bags in 12 oz or so to see if that helps. It’s worth keeping what I have, and drinking it, but I probably won’t be rebuying it.
Flavors: Cocoa, Strawberry
Preparation
This one is another cupboard staple for me. Relatively inexpensive and available most of the time at my grocery store make it a standby. We’ve called it “tummy tea” for years, and it’s perfect for when there’s a little indigestion or sour stomach. That having been said, it’s also nice on its own. It’s mild but distinctly minty, with just a little softening from the lemon balm. A little sweetener brings out the flavors immensely. It’s one of the few teas my kids will drink, as well. This one is very comforting to us – it’s mild but still has plenty of flavor, without that in-your-face mint jolt many mint teas have.
Flavors: Spearmint
Preparation
Yuck. Very floral, very artificial, and very sweet. It does have an absolutely lovely bouquet and color. However, it really didn’t have any true tea flavor. I will say that it does actually have a lot of flavor – I tend to need a strongly flavored tea and am very critical of those that are just boiled water with a thought of flavor. However, this is a jumble of too many different flavors, and just too artificial and too floral. I have used it in combination with their peach tea at about a 1:4 ratio, and am working on using it up that way, but it’s just not my thing.
Flavors: Artificial, Floral, Grapes, Rose, Sweet
This is a staple in my tea cupboard. It isn’t anything that’s going to set the world on fire, but it’s consistent and inexpensive. I like it hot or cold, but definitely with sweetener either way. Mild green tea, spearmint, and light citrus – it’s refreshing at any temperature. I can drink a ton of iced tea, so this is a good one for me to have in quantity – I hate using my “good” tea by the pitcherful, even though I probably should, just to use some of it up! This is a nice standby and one I’ve gone to for several years.
Flavors: Lemongrass, Spearmint
This kind of tastes like something you should add to apple cider, or a plain tea. On its own, it was all but flavorless except for an artificial “red hots” flavor. I really like the reviewers who called it potpourri water, because that’s really what it was to me. Lovely color, and it was drinkable, which is why I gave it as high of a score as I did. But I won’t be reaching for it anytime soon, if ever. Like another reviewer, this is tea #3 of 4 from Teavana that I’ve tried and disliked. I’m not a tea snob, they just don’t seem to have my taste buds pegged.
Flavors: Apple, Artificial, Cinnamon