Floèm (formerly PilKi)

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…and we’re back to savory!

I just don’t know where I land on these pilki labrador tea blends at all. While I said the last one I tried would be forgettable because of the unremarkable and flat flavour, this one was so savory that I felt like I was just drinking bad, rosemary heavy soup stock. Neither of those two options are exactly ideal, right!? I’m just glad to have finished exploring these tisanes, but I can say confidently that none of them are really my thing.

The best, I think, was the Beet & Poppy – and I would maybe try that one again. However, I wouldn’t rush out to do so…

Drank this as a hot cuppa earlier in the day and it was nice! Definitely herbal leaning with that herbaceous, slightly earthy and green labrador tea note and the faintest little bit of dryness to the mouthfeel. However, that feels right at home with the slight tartness and cranberry/red fruit notes that come through from both the rosehip and cranberry combination. Not jammy, intense, syrupy or anything like that are all – more like having an herbal tea with a splash of cranberry juice added to it. Just a splash though since it’s still a lighter flavour/body overall.

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This is definitely the most approachable labrador tea from Pilki that I’ve tried so far; all of the others have had a very savory or brothy type of vibe to them and while this is still quite herbaceous it, at least, doesn’t taste like you could swap it for soup stock. I think it’s also my least favourite!? As approachable and easy going as it seemed, that ends up being the con too because there are no flavour notes that really stick out in my mind so it’s just not as interesting or memorable. It also, in my mind, fails at being a cranberry blend…

Oh well.

This weekend I rewatched the Sense8 finale because I just needed something familiar to revisit, and this is the tea I was drinking throughout it. If I’d stopped and thought a moment about it I probably wouldn’t have picked this tea because it feels like a sort of weird fit, but actually the softer and soothing herbal and earthy beet profile wound up being quite comforting and cozy. Not something “on equal playing fields” with some of the really intensely choreographed fight scenes or very high energy and colourful moments, but deeply emotional and somber moments? Oh, this was grounding and exactly the right sort of profile for those moments.

Had this one in the evening a couple nights ago. It was very, very savory with a pronounced earthiness from the beets. Definitely thick and coating on the palate and not something I would recommend to just anyone as a casual cuppa. Very distinct notes here. I liked it though! Even though beets are quite earthy they also have a natural sweetness to them – it’s why they’re used to make sugar! So, the cup never really got to the point where it was too savory because it had the gentle undertone of sweetness to support it.

Embracing a lazy and low key day by digging into Sensor from Junji Ito with a mug of Beet & Poppy labrador tea this afternoon! It’s been a moment since I had a chance to sit down with a good manga and some tea, so this almost feels indulgent. Truthfully I find Labrador Tea rather hit or miss but the subtle sweet earthiness of the beet is feeling rather grounding right now, which is sort of exactly what you need when reading horror!

Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/CWJhCdOLJVY/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5krylQ-Z6KY&ab_channel=Autoheart

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I don’t know whether I enjoyed this tea or not – much like the other tea I recently tried from Pilki I found this one was also really savory and herbaceous, however it also had a deep earthy and distinctly beet note to it that differentiated it. It’s not a “mellow” tea per say, but it is “mellower” – with a VERY SLIGHT natural sweetness from the beet. I don’t think I tasted anything I’d be able to identify as poppy, though.

It was interesting and certainly not bad, I’d drink it again – but would I ever actively want this flavour profile again if someone wasn’t setting it out in front of me already brewed? I just honestly don’t know…

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My manager was recently at the Atwater Christmas market and this company was there sampling some teas – he liked the tea so he picked up a pack of four sampler and brought it in to the office to share. It took me a long time to figure out why the company name sounded familiar; they were at the MTL tea festival and included a sample of tea in the giveaway bags. I don’t think I liked it…

This one is… Interesting!? And I don’t mean that in a bad way, but there’s just a lot going on and I don’t think I was properly braced for it – however once I adjusted to what I was tasting I liked it A LOT more!

It’s just a very savory and herbaceous tasting tisane. It’s got a bit of sweetness from the slight amount of apple coming through but I’d describe the rest of the taste as a savory/umami mix of rosemary, pine, and other herbaceous flavours. It felt more like it should be the foundation for a really bomb salad dressing or like a poultry seasoning!? However I got used to it, and after that I really liked it!

I’m definitely excited to see what the rest of the sampler tastes like.

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One of the free samples I received in my free goodie bag from the Montreal Tea Festival, in a little single serving packet of loose tea. No provided information, but opening up the packet this appeared to be a mix of lavender, mint, fennel, labrador tea and fir tree – among other things. All herbal, though! It steeped pretty strong and herbaceous – and something about it reminded me really of another blend I’ve had but I couldn’t put my finger on which one. I thought it mostly tasted like lavender and licorice root or something else comparable (fennel, something else maybe?) giving it that coating sweetness. Not amazing but for a free sample I thought it was pretty good!