Just Organic Tea

Another sample from the generous bunch Just Organic Teas sent me to review. Thanks!

Nice malty Assam for my morning. I definitely liked the flavor on this one, but not something I just have to have in my collection.

The dry leaves of Just Naughty ’Nilla, as of yet untouched by the water that will steep them, let off a sweet-but-not-cloying aroma of vanilla and slightly-malty black tea. The vanilla scent seems solid throughout the blend, and I begin the steep. A recommendation of 195ºF water, steeping for 3-5 minutes, leads me to the happy median of 4 minutes in water that is just off boil.

Sniffing at the steeping tea, I am surprised at how subdued the vanilla aroma has become. The blend now smells much more of the black tea, which reminds me of a Keemun. Finished steeping, this tea smells slightly sweet, and I wonder greatly about the taste.

My first sip is very, very smooth. The subtle sweetness surprises me. I was not expecting the natural sweet flavors, but they are much more pleasant than artificial vanilla flavoring. When I say that I was not expecting them, I mean that I was not expecting just how natural the flavor would be. The carob in this blend lends some molasses notes. However, to be sure, these are not unpleasant. Molasses in black tea can be very hit-and-miss. In this blend, it is subtle and not a primary flavor. The tea itself has light, malty notes. Many black teas with vanilla use either malty or quite weak black teas. Just Organic Tea has chosen a nice base for their blend. It will not overpower your senses, but the sipping experience will be a pleasant one.

On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea an 87/100.

Just Organic has impressed me so far, I’ve joined the Kickstarter. There’s only 70 hrs left!

This seems a rather delicate green by the brewing instructions (175*, 2-3 min). My kettle is always set to 195, so I just splashed the leaves with some room temp water, and then added my 195* water and brewed as normal. I don’t know if I made it all the way to 2 min though, I was a little distracted while brewing.

This green though, it really IS, Just Pure Green. I think I’ve gotten used to (spoiled by) flavored and blended greens lately. This is a just a really nice solid green. There was no astringency, maybe a touch of bitterness (which I expect out of nice greens). The mouthfeel is full, and it isn’t drying at all. I could do with it being a bit stronger.

Is it phenomenal? No. I’m not even sure it would ever make its way onto a shopping list for me, but it seems like a nice everyday drinker that would work nicely as a base if you wanted to get into blending yourself. Also perhaps a nice intro tea for people that aren’t very used to greens.

This is my last of the sample pack from Just Organic. Thank you.

I think tulsi and I are just not meant to be. As much as I really really want to like this because I love holy basil in my food, in my tea, it is just too much for me. When I do herbals in the evening I want something calming and not over powering. This has enough of a bight in it that it over takes my mouth. I am grateful for the opportunity to try this, but this one is not my cup of tea.

I receieved a sample of this from Just Organic. Thank you.

I am not sure what to make of this one. It has lemon, it has a hint of mint, it has a solid base, and then there is this kick of pepper/spice at the end of the sip. It is a nice calming evening cup. I could see drinking this when I am sick, but I am not sure this would be something I would run to. All of the components of the tea seem to be nicely balanced. Thank you for allowing me to try this one.

I received a sample of this from Just Organic. Thank you!

I haven’t spent a lot of time with straight white teas. I have had a few here and there. This was a nice light slightly floral cup. Like some of the other white tea I have at home I would up the leaf to bring out more of the flavor. I enjoyed this cup. Thank you.

I received a sample of this in Just Organic’s sample pack. Thank you

Green tea scares me. I have had way too many bitter cups of green tea that was suppose to be really good that makes me scared to brew up a cup for fear I might have to dump it down the drain. This cup, was awesome. It was everything I hope for in a green cup of tea. This was light, but packed a taste punch, it was not bitter, and it was almost sweet. This is a little sweeter than other green teas I have had, and not as buttery. This was a solid green tea. I am really glad I pulled this one out tonight. Thank you!

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!

Just grabbed a random baggie from the packet of samples from Just Organic Tea, and came out with this.

I’ve never heard of Tulsi before, Wiki tells me that it’s also referred to as Holy Basil. First sniff of the dry leaves didn’t yield much basil scent, but rather a lemony scent. Like ‘I love Lemon’ type of teas- I’m guessing that’s the Lemon Myrtle coming through. The wet leaves smell more basil-y but still lemony. The liquor smells really lemony at first, but settles down into a nice spicy scent. Like a chai tea with a dash of lemon.

The tea leaves my mouth feeling minty fresh, but a little dry. There’s not much taste really, it’s all aroma (to me). You can’t taste any yummy lemon-y-ness, any of the spices, or even the peppermint because the amount used is so subtle.

I don’t dislike it, it’s not something I would purchase. I can see this being nice as Iced Tea though!

This was a good straight rooibos. I drank it without any milk or sweetener, I usually don’t particularly like rooibos tea but this was a bit more mild than most rooibos i’ve had. I think it’s a great starting point for people who want to explore the world of rooibos tea.

Thanks again for the samples, Just Organic Tea! I’m always up for trying a new chai! It’s STILL annoyingly cold in MAY, so it’s still perfect chai weather. Just Organic Tea suggest 195 degrees for 4-5 minutes. I went with that, though I usually think chai should be boiling for maximum spiciness! The sample size wasn’t as much tea as I’d usually use. The dry blend looks like it has mostly orange in it (along with the black tea). I also added some of the Organic sugar that JOT sent along!

Steep #1 // 11 min after boiling // 4-5 min steep
I like my chai robust and SPICY, and this one isn’t quite that. (Then again I’ve never found a chai that was spicy enough.) But the flavors in this one lead to something unique. I don’t think it’s just the sugar in this that are making it taste like a dessert – I think it’s the combination of the cinnamon and the orange. The sugar reminds me of brown sugar flavor unless it’s something in the tea itself. The base tea has a squash or pumpkin aspect to it. Very interesting! I’m not sure if the pumpkin would be there if I had used boiling water.

Steep #2 // just boiled // 5 min
This cup was fantastic as well – had that pumpkin flavor even at boiling. The cinnamon was stronger – still tasted like a dessert. This is really an exemplary chai. Again, not as spicy as I’d like, but it’s probably impossible. I think many people could stock up on this to fit the ‘chai’ spot in their cupboard!

Pretty sure this was the tea that made my envelope smell like awesome potpourri. The first time I brewed it I wasn’t a total fan. But I steeped it a second time and then put a little bit of homemade vanilla sugar in and boy was it wonderful. I would totally stock up on this. It would be absolutely wonderful for a fall tea. I would like to taste a bit more of the orange though, the spice certainly shines here.

Tea of the morning. This is a nice Assam! Plenty of malt and a thick biscuity note. I like it a lot. If this is the Assam JOT uses when blending their Irish Breakfast then I might have to give that tea a try as well. This tea was perfect as a wake up tea. I’m thinking it’d be good iced as well.

I just got my Kickstarter packet! Wow that took a long time. Between signing up for backing and getting the package it feels like 3 months? Something like that.

I don’t know what I was thinking when I requested more of this stuff, because my previous review of it was quite ‘meh’.

It’s very carob-ey. Previously I didn’t know what carob was. So carob is (to me) like the savory cross between chocolate and coffee with nuttiness. This tea, when I brewed it up was SUPER carob-ey. I still didn’t get much vanilla, which is kind of sad.

My mailbox smells like chai tea. There’s nothing wrong with that, it’s kind of nice. I’m not sure my neighbors appreciate the spicy smell of their mail though.

I got the sample packet from JustOrganicTea today! They send along 11 different tea samples and a sample of organic sugar. The chai smell really overwhelmed the other teas though, ALL the little baggies smell like chai. I don’t know if the taste of the other teas have been contaminated, but since this is a flavored tea as well, I figured it wouldn’t be too bad if it was contaminated just a little. Plus this is one flavor that I actually requested.

The leaves are broken, rather small, the largest maybe a square centimeter. There’s no dust though. The leaves are a dark brown like 60% dark chocolate. The label says there’s carob in the mix, which is interesting, I’m not sure what carob tastes like on it’s own. I couldn’t get much of a dry leaf smell off of this sample. I’m not sure if that’s because the sample is too small, or because the outside of the bag still smells like chai.

The liquor is a dark maple type of color, maybe not as red. The dark maple that’s a little more brown and green. It just smells like black tea. It smells like very nice black tea, but I’m not getting a vanilla scent off of it. The blend of black is very nice- it’s very smooth and mellow and not at all astringent. For me it’s like where lipton is too bold, and P&G tips are too smooth, this is a nice medium. It’s a black blend that I actually like very much. One I wouldn’t mind serving to friends with cake. It’s smooth and sweet on the uptake as well as the after-swallow taste. There’s no dryness to it, just sweetness.

I get a teensy bit of vanilla on the gulp. The slightest bit of a vanilla feel in the nose, but no actual aroma or taste. At this point I don’t know if it’s actually there or if I’m just looking so hard for it that I’m imagining it. If I weren’t told it was a vanilla blend, I wouldn’t have called it that. Maybe I should start doing tasting notes without looking first at what I’m brewing.

I like it. I would drink it if it were offered to me. I really liked this cup, unfortunately the sample didn’t contain enough for several cups. I wonder if that’s a good thing. On one hand I can’t really get addicted to a tea I’ve only had once. On the other, I can’t experiment to see if this is really one of those jewels. At this point though, I don’t know if I like it enough to commit to a large amount of it.

Just Blissful Black Oothu is somewhat naturally sweet, certainly a milder black tea. I prefer more mild black teas and this hit the spot.

This is a very delicate chai. It’s not overpowering and well-balanced. It is not spicy, like most chais i’ve had, but very light and very smooth. I enjoyed it because I far more enjoy the more mild chai flavors. Orange peel is listed as an ingredient, it lingers in the background. I’d like to see what it is like with more orange flavor!

Just Pure Green is a very basic, light green tea. It would be a great base for flavoring/blending if you enjoy doing that.

I decided that I would give this one a try this morning out of the samples sent from Just Organic Tea. Earl Grey hasn’t been my thing to date as citrus in tea used to be something I avoided. My first attempt with Lady Grey was a bit of a shocker. Since then, I have come to enjoy a few nice teas with citrus notes, usually orange, although I have braved one lemon thus far, and I’m finding I have a liking to them if they are done well.

This one smells sweetly of orange citrus notes. Steeped, the base is present but not overpowering with a bit of depth. The bergamot comes through mostly as an orange note to me, but I have to say I’m not well versed in bergamot. This cup is smooth and enjoyable with no tartness or bitterness. To my surprise, I think I like it .. :)

Just one week left to be a part of their Kickstarter Campaign… You can find it here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/justorganictea/just-organic-tea-loose-leaf-tea-with-a-conscience

This is very floral and delicate, as a white peony should be. I don’t think this is necessarily all the special compared to others of its type, but I would absolutely purchase it if I were getting other things from this company, which is bound to happen. I think on my own I would add a bit more leaf for more flavor. A great, refreshing cup for a spring day like today.

Another sample courtesy of Just Organic Teas:

I steeped this one in simmering (vanilla) almond milk on the stove and then poured it through a sieve. This method seemed to let the spiciness shine a little more than my previous method, but I definitely will be steeping chais and such in non-flavored almond or soy milk from now on, because the flavoring definitely interferes with the teas flavor. I added a bit of the Just Organic Sweetener to this as well.

It has a nice spicy scent and taste, though I don’t really get the orange at all in scent or taste. If I had to choose I’d definitely pick the Just Charming Chai over this one.

Well this was my first experience with an Assam. It smelled absolutely delicious but I was just not a fan of the flavor. A bit too bitter for my taste.

I received a sample of this in the sample pack that Just Organic sent out. Thank you!

Straight vanilla flavored teas and I haven’t been getting along too well. I want more, and I think the combination of the two, tea and vanilla, may not be meant to be for me despite how lovely it sounds. This however, was probably one of the best vanilla teas I have had. I would like a little more out of the base of the tea, but the vanilla was a well rounded flavor that seemed to compliment the tea. If I would have been at home I might have added milk to this to see what happened. I could taste the base, I got a nice vanilla accent, and there was a nice hint of honey.