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Most of my lovely samples from Just Organic tea have been waiting patiently for my return from travel and then a bit more for life to be sane enough to actually sit and enjoy my tea. The dry tea in its little sample bag must be scented from the other samples as it smells like incense. I’ve eaten a lot of “holy basil” in curries and like it a lot with fish but never drunk it. And after 5 minutes brewing the whole sample in 8 oz of 195 degree water the incense is gone it smells of basil and red clover. The taste also has hints of the clover sweetness. Its clearing the fumes and confusion from my mind with a gentle warm summer breeze. The flavor is a bit sweet and a bit buttery or maybe that’s me remembering the village in Nepal where they poured ghee offerings on their tulsi bush? Its also soothing to the stomach and head! I will try this one again although I often dont’ like straight herbals this one is differnet it doesn’t taste like grass!

I was just headed to the kitchen to brew up some Fortnum Ceylon/assam blend when the mail arrived with an envelope chock full of Just Organic Tea samples. I brewed this one up and was delighted with the smell, woodsy and really Ceylon like clarity. It doesn’t smell sweet, the tea is a bright orangey color but the taste is a little honey, malt and citrus. The color and taste bring me to a wooded pond where the oak leaves soak and turn the water dark. I sipped down half the cup then added a dab of avocado honey which enhanced a small molasses and large malt taste I was getting. This is a perfect afternoon cup, clear and smooth a good pick me up without hitting you hard with the edge and roughness of many straight blacks. I had always hoped to find a Ceylon blend that was less (dare I say) insipid but not so harsh as the assams, well no blend needed. I’m excited to try the rest of the samples!

I think I’ve reviewed this tea before, this time I had a tummy ache all night and having found nothing to make it better I decided to try this and it worked! No more sore tummy and now into my third infusion for a nice smooth cup that is helping me ease from a cool morning to a hot (in weather temperature) and fast paced afternoon. I will probably get 6-7 infusions before the malty and earthy tastes disappear.

The description of this tea sounds wonderful and much like a tea I should like. So as I was leaving Leaf & Kettle without the teas I wanted (they were sold out) I had them throw this in. Why do I do this to myself, I hadn’t’ tried it the aroma of the dry leaf was unremarkable. All the same I’ve tried brewing it twice with boiling water the second time even overleafing it and I get..colored slightly sweetened water? Is that a hint of honey? It tastes like corn syrup but so slight. I expected more well anything, not sure why but I thought I would be more like a good Ceylon. I will try once more with cooler water but I gave up and threw out my second cup because I really need something cheering and bold this Monday morning.

So I must upload a photo of this canbecause I love this tea. I bought it in the duty free shop in Taipei airport when stuck due to some travel issues. The tea: beautiful brownish green knots with strong floral and lighter smoky aroma. A small spoonful untwists to fill the pot. The first sip is both floral and milky then butters and that hint of smoke over the hills. The tea is drying to the mouth though so you keep brewing and sipping keeping the same floral notes into the 4th brew. The scents are captivating reminding me of a tea route high in the Asian mountains in spring. THe tea is getting older, I’ve been hoarding it but decided to break some out for this quiet “good Friday” afternoon as a special treat.

The second time around went better. Somehow the first time I just didn’t get all that much out of this tea which surprised me because the green tea was one of my best ever experiences with green. Tis time carefully brewed in a prewarmed pot. The initial aroma was quite kelpy to me but the leaves unfold in the three full minutes I gave them to release their flavor and aroma helped. I still smell kelp but something that reminds me of the mountains of Nepal and a nearby tea house, a hint of soil or smoke, I’m not sure. . The taste is bread and a touch of honey and that same nearly smoky taste. The second steep brings more floral and honey notes and the slightest mineral taste.

Mary’s English Kitchen is a brand new tea shop that opened over the weekend. They are selling loose leaf and bulk teas as well as by the potful. I was thinking about gunpowder yesterday so that’s what I opted to try first. I will have they highly touted English breakfast when I’m up for a black. The tea was brewed in boiling water for 3 minutes (they give you a cute sand timer with the pot) It was more astringent than some gunpowder’s with a yellow=green liquor. The initial taste was astringent followed by a peppery punch with some grassiness to the finish. Not my favorite but I’ll enjoy it again on an afternoon. I porblaby won’t buy any to take home though.

Alas, I love this tea as an afternoon treat. I started drinking samples without knowing the ingredients. I like bag teas for ease in transporting and for others to make for me. So I kept purchasing more until I realized it has artificial ingredients (flavor). I don’t think that should be in my tea so now I must find a replacement. The tea when lightly steeped in cooler water (150 and under) tastes of green tea, warmer water releases the cherry flavor I like so much. Sweet, fruity and a bit of tobacco when steeped this way and some honey taste on the back of the tongue you wouldn’t know it was a green tea unless you steep it with the cooler water. If brewed lightly its a floral green with some grassy qualities. I remember a cherry sakura tea I bought many years ago in Virginia (and smelling the blossoming cherry trees then) this reminds me of it but with a much stronger cherry taste (less scent).

Alas I am going through my stash of Infusions of Tea final sale items and opened up the Tieguanyin. When its gone I’ll have to venture farther afield for a replacement. THe first sips are light with a hint of honey and grass. Deeper in the pot a flowery fragrance contrasts with an oaky dry taste. The second steep is more Oak and Honey but the third returns the first impression of grass. I like a light tea with gently unfolding flavor to unwind in the afternoon.