American Tea Room

This tea was a surprise from out of the blue for me. I really didn’t expect to like it, which is a bit unfair to the tea. Even more unfair is that I willingly chose and paid for a sample of this tea, only to think mean thoughts about it.

On ATR, the description says, “An earthy blend of Organic Pu-Er, Figs, Dandelion Roots, Coconut Flakes and Fennel.” The big turn off to me is the “Pu-Er” part. The rest sounds interesting.

So, today I decided this was the tea for me. I opened the packet and smelled the tea. It smells like brandy. Like a holiday fruitcake. It has that thick, syrupy, molasses-like scent. Pu-er. Fruitcake. It’s all feeding into my aversion, but yet I’m going through with it… and thank goodness I did! 195F(90C)/1.5 min.

Once steeped, yep, fruitcake scent, although less now. I take a sip. And another. It’s really, really good! (Lesson learned.) I can definitely taste the figs and now that I have the flavor in my mouth, I can completely identify the aroma as coming from the fig component. Yes, there is still that brandy taste to it, but it’s not very strong. (I’m very thankful I took such a light approach to steeping. I’m a black tea sissy.) The pu-er, I have to say, does not, thankfully, taste like dirt. Yes, there is a slight earthiness to it, but it’s not at all offensive. I think it’s a fine example of how a pu-er should taste. I can still get a sense of this being a tea and not a chunk of mud. The coconut is nice because instead of making it taste tropical, it lends a creaminess to the flavor. It’s a fine mix of tea and other ingredients. I’m very pleased with it and happy that my tea fairy didn’t let my preconceptions get in the way of tasting it. I think I’ll be ordering more to keep in my cupboard to share with guests, too.

I was looking forward to this tea – warm, nutty rooibos with a hint of cream. The problem is, the vanilla was so heavy, there was no “hint”-ing involved. I felt hit over the head with the vanilla instead. Good quality vanilla, to be sure, but not a seamless enough marriage of balanced flavors for my taste. Perhaps a different kind of vanilla would have been better?

I love this tea. Earl Grey is among my favorites, as is rooibos for its warmth and the phenomenon that you simply can’t oversteep it. So, to have an Earl Grey that is difficult to oversteep, and yet has all the complexities of the traditional without the heavy-handedness of black tea, it’s like a dream come true. I’ve tried several Earl Grey rooibos teas, and American Tea Room’s is by the far the best I’ve yet had. It really does taste like Earl Grey – an improvement on it even, if you like rooibos.

Upon opening the package, I was pleased by the strong lavender scent. I love the smell of real, fresh lavender. However, I do relate it with potpourri, so I had some misgivings about whether I’d want to drink something so strongly floral. The steeped beverage was very nice – as I inhaled it, the experience seemed more like aromatherapy, as if I shouldn’t actually put it in my mouth. Surprisingly, when I did, the flavor was subtle, gentle, soothing. The lavender was the strongest flavor, but made more complex by subtle mint and lemon accents. Very nice tea. Very unusual in a good way. I wouldn’t choose to drink it nightly because I have American Tea Room’s Lemncello for that. But I would brew this when specifically seeking to have my nerves calmed.

Just as I expected. Cozy rooibos with fresh mint. Lovely aroma. Nothing extraordinary or offensive. Not the most dynamic or surprising mint tea, but a nice, soothing tea to enjoy just before bed.

A new perspective for summertime. This was my new favorite when I discovered Lemoncello during the wet and cold of an unseasonably long winter. But now that summer is suddenly here in full force, it’s the one tea that has bridged the weather with me. Lemoncello is excellent chilled. It’s not the bold, tangy zing of other cold citrus or fruit teas, though, and it shouldn’t be iced if you can help it—but if brewed to its strongest and let to chill in the fridge, it’s perfect. At its strongest, this tea is not ever bold, which is why I don’t dilute it with ice. The lemon makes it refreshing enough, but the vaguely creamy, sweet quality gives one the impression of luxury, indulgence, relaxation. As a matter of fact, after trying this cold, I literally moved my hammock into my bedroom for the summer, and have been relaxing on it with a chilled glass of this in my hand as I wind down on these hot summer nights. Aah, a revelation of a tea, I tell you.

I was so taken with this tea the first time I tried it that I thought it might be too good to be true. Not so. Upon my second cup, I’m still blissed out by it. The aroma literally relaxes me, and brings a soft smile to my usually tight lips. Lemoncello is indeed one of the most pleasantly unique cups of tea I’ve had, and after feeding it to my family members, I’m buying a large amount and intend to share it with everyone I know who loves tea or lemon pie.

Oh my word-BLISS! Yes, that is the word for this tea. Upon opening the package, I was struck by the aroma-creamy, vaguely minty lemon with the cozy warmth of rooibos. Then I steeped it. The fragrance alone would cause me to brew this tea just so I could inhale it. But the subtle well-married taste is also just perfect. Not at all stringent, acidic, tangy or grassy like most citrus blends. Somehow, with no actual sweetness, it made me feel as if I was eating a fine dessert. I don’t usually like lemon teas, but this one is wonderful!

I received this as a sample with my latest ATR order. It seemed very interesting, very citrusy. By far, the strongest scent in the dry tea was the orange. It wasn’t a pleasant scent, but instead reminded me of orange flavored cough syrup. I was a bit worried…

165/2 min. – Definitely the orange takes center stage. (Reminds me of the liqueur Cointreau.) The taste mirrors the scent. Orange, orange, orange… and lemon. The citrus flavors are so overpowering that I cannot taste the bai mu dan at all. I was worried that the flavor would be a lot like Cointreau or orange cough syrup, but it is very smooth and not medicinal at all. As it cools down, it becomes quite nice. Frankly, this tea would make a great tea for those who are nursing a cold. It screams comfort, but in a sick way. (Now that didn’t come out correctly. Hm.)

This is an interesting tea. It’s made up of flowers. They’re a deep yellow color. They smell like black tea with that savory aroma of an assam. I’m a bit confused about the actual tea, though, because they are flowers and on the website are listed as a non-caffeinated tea. However, on the package, it’s listed as a green tea. I wonder if this is just a packaging issue. (EDIT: To clarify, it’s not a green tea; it’s an herbal infusion as it’s made up of the flowers from the tea plant. Thanks, American Tea Room, for the quick response and clarification.)

At any rate, 165F (73C)/2 min, now the tea smells kind of smoky. It’s not the smoke of a Lapsang Souchong, but rather the smoke of a campfire. More fresh, lighter as the breeze catches it. The taste reflects that smokiness and I’m left with a taste of smoked honey in my mouth. I don’t taste any sour notes, as the description implies, just a nice tea with strength. It’s very unique in terms of flavor and if it’s truly a non-caffeinated tea, it’ll be making its way into my tea cabinet… somewhere. (I’ll make room!)

Just made a late cup. Very buttery and smooth. I accidentally steeped it for four minutes instead of the recommended two, but it was so deep and delicious <3

I’m graduating in a few weeks so I thought it was due time to visit the American Tea Room in next-door Beverly Hills. I got the Afternoon Tea service and ordered a pot of milk oolong without hesitation. I’ve been dying to try a cup of this since reading about it on the Steepster discussion boards.

My thoughts? Delicious and smooth. I’ve only tried the Jin Xuan tea sampler from Tea from Taiwan, so my milk oolong palate is still developing. But this was so good that I paid the $16 to take an ounce of it home. (An impulse purchase on a poor college budget). Hopefully I’ll be able to brew it just as well at home.

I am a fan of mint green teas, so this one is just the ticket. The chocolate notes are light, just barely there and that is fine with me because I am in for the mint and green. This steeps up pretty dark, looks more like an oolong but the green tea is there. After smelling this dry, it gives off exactly the same aroma while steeping. It is a very refreshing tea.

And what an exciting day, I got to add a tea that had not been reviewed!

PS Thanks to QuiltGuppy for another fine tea sample!

This is my third Genmaicha. My first came from the local Asian market (see earlier review), the second was at a local Japanese Habachi establishment. I beamed with pride as I told everyone around the table what was in the tea and it’s mythical origins. QuiltGuppy, my trusted partner in tea sent this to me. From my point of view, the description ATR gives is right on. The other two Genmaicha’s I have tried did overwhelm with the toasted and popped rice. This is a fine balance between the green tea and grain. The sencha is rich and stands up well. In my glass tumbler, the color is bright golden green, very appealing to the eyes. I am impressed, and look forward to this with something off the grill soon.
Thanks AGAIN QG.

What a tea to wake to this morning! It’s lovely. I could smell the cinnamon and sweetness when I opened the packet and it was so nice that I actually pulled it back to my nose to sniff it again. Wonderful!

195/2 min. As usual, I steeped lightly having learned my lesson with several other strong black teas. It turns out that this was perfect for me. I haven’t been really into blacks lately as I don’t enjoy astringent or, even worse, bitter black teas. This isn’t one of them. It’s so nice. It smells sweetly of cinnamon and apples. Kind of like a pie. The taste, however, is just like a croissant aux amandes from my days in Paris. I feel transported. It’s amazing. Sweet and nutty, with a depth that fills your mouth and your senses. It’s really wonderful. I can’t pick out much of the black tea taste, which surprises me. If I didn’t know it was a black tea, I would say it’s an herbal. It’s just really, really nice.

This is a delicious tea. The scent when you open the pouch is intoxicating. It smells like a bakery. The flavor is like a lightly spiced bread or coffee cake on top of black tea. Some flavored teas are just too sweet or artificial-tasting, but Brioche is different. It really brings to mind biting into a flaky pastry or croissant. The flavors are well balanced; this tea contains almonds and cinnamon, but neither of those flavors overpowers the rest.

I really like this tea and plan to keep it on hand as a low-calorie indulgence — a way to handle my cravings for croissants, cookies, baked goods and other things I need to avoid, if I don’t want to put on weight!

Wow. This is fabulous. I am in love with this tea. It is SO tasty!
It’s creamy with a touch of peach like sweetness and behind that, a hint of tartness the way a peach would deliver. It has a very refreshing finish, which I did not find in the Tea Lux sample.
This is complex and stands alone without any sugar added… it has all the things I love in a tea!!
My only woe is that it irritates my throat a bit, but not nearly as much as some greens or whites do every now and then so I really don’t mind.
Thankyou QuiltGuppy, you are my tea hero!!
I wonder what the second steep will be like…

Yesterday I was reading through a thread from some time ago that was about famous tea drinkers. Captain Jean-Luc Picard came up as one. “Earl Grey, hot.” I loved Star Trek: Next Generation. So, in my J.L.P. mood, I selected this Earl Grey to begin my day.

The scent when dry is very bergamot filled. It’s a strong, fresh scent. 195/2 min. Aroma’s still there, so I sip and find that it’s very present in the flavor as well. The Darjeeling, however, is throwing me off a bit. It’s drying. So, I take another sip, expecting refreshment and it still leaves me with a sense of drinking paper. It’s quite drying. I think I would have preferred this as a non-morning wake up tea. Perhaps as an afternoon tea with something to munch. The taste is quite pleasant, fresh, brisk, slightly sweet, but the drying sensation wasn’t what I was expecting.

This tea is amazing! I love toasty, rich green teas and this one just blows me away.

First, it smells of toasty goodness and fresh, woodsy green tea. There are small, toasted brown rice kernels scattered throughout and some of them have popped into what looks like tiny popcorn. Very few of these make their way into my cup. I eat them. They are delicious. In fact, I have been known to eat all parts of this tea.

165/1.5 min. The aroma is wonderful. I consider everything about this tea to be a comfort. It smells of toast, and California rolls, and popcorn and campfires all rolled into one. The taste is lovely. It has a roasted green flavor, kind of nutty, kind of woody. It is extraordinary.

I have finally found the perfect tea to grace the fine bone china teapots from Great Britain. Organic Victoria Tea. First, it’s a beautiful tea. The dry tea is a mixture of black tea and rose petals. Such a beautiful contrast. It smells of perfumed black tea as the bergamot is definitely there. Very nice and dainty.

205/2 min – Wow. This is a dark tea. It smells just like a creamy Earl Grey. I can smell the bergamot, the roses and (ack) the vanilla. Okay, vanilla’s not exactly what I like in my cup of tea, but I’ll give it a go… The taste is nice. It’s like a floral Earl Grey. No single ingredient overpowers the others and it’s all very well-balanced. I like that I can actually pick out the flavor of the rose petals. Usually they seem to get lost in the teas that I drink. The vanilla is not as evident when the tea is hot. In fact, it adds a hint of a creamed taste to the tea. However, when the tea cools, the finish is all vanilla. I ended up pitching the remainder of my cup. This was quite a nice surprise.

Dry: This tea is a mixture of small and large leaf pieces. Much of these leaves are already so broken, they could easily fit into a tea bag. Leaf pieces range in color from dark green to pale yellow-green, and there is a vivid medium-green dust that almost looks matcha-like. The fragrance is rich, dense and kind of herbal.

Brewed: The liquor is a vivid shade of light green. Almost fluorescent. A little cloudy. On first sip, I am struck by the intense flavor. There are notes of lemon, a grassy note, and a bit of seaweed. Further sips reveal that herbal note I noticed when I opened the pouch, and a very creamy sencha flavor. Now I’m starting to understand what reviewers mean when they say a tea is “buttery.” I’m getting a bit of spinach, as well, but it’s a fresh, raw spinach, not a cooked one. This tea has a very fresh, herbal feeling to it; it’s not “roasty.” The aftertaste is a bit dry, but not bitter or astringent. I’m the person who adds sweetener to almost every tea, but I did not sweeten this; it did not need it, and adding sweetener would have compromised the complex flavor.

Overall impression: This tea is very vegetal and the flavors are strong and savory. It is neither sweet nor astringent. If you are into flavorful green teas that reveal new notes with each sip, you should give this a try. This is an excellent one.

I have been reserving this for a special occasion, so I declared tonight “special” :) After a fine meal of grilled shrimp and cheese grits, a cup of this, from my gaiwan, on a nice fall evening is just about as good as it can get. Temp here on the front porch, 78, with a light westerly breeze. I have reviewed this tea before, nothing else to say except the right external conditions can make an excellent cup of tea into a tea memory. Did I mention the gorgeous sunset?
As is the case for many of us, QuiltGuppy is responsible for all of this.
UPDATE
One cup was not enough to see the sun disappear, I went four steeps, and like the sun, the Milk oolong faded slightly, until it was gone.

This is a delayed note, I sampled this about a week ago. The memory of it is still in my mind, the taste and aroma haunt me many days later. This was a special gift from my Second Steep Book Club cohort QuiltGuppy, and I have been saving it for weeks until I had a proper gaiwan to steep it in. I love caramel, and this tea gave me much pleasure with it’s creamy feel, and milky, smooth taste. I can understand now, as this is my first Milk Oolong, why it is so highly prized. I burned my fingers slightly using the gaiwan the first time, but after 6 steeps, I had the hang of it. 6 steeps, each a little different, but still so incredibly good. I loved every drop and when it was gone, the experience recalled a rare aged port I had the honor to try at the Ritz Carlton years ago…incredible. THANK YOU QG!

I’m not much for flavored green teas, but this one is done right. Fruity and clean.