PIPER & LEAF Artisan Tea Co.

This smells odd. The berry aroma is really nice, but the coconut adds an unpleasant smell.

The coconut is less noticeable in the flavor, but the hibiscus is strong here. Really tart, berry. It’s fine, but I was hoping for more of the berry flavor to be present.

A bit boring. Orange/cinnamon. Lots of hibiscus.

I love a unique tea blend, and Piper & Leaf definitely have a nice variety of unique blends. So it’s been fun tasting through the couple samplers I purchased.
This is incredibly savory smelling. Smells like oregano soup. Not getting any spices in the aroma.
Tastes savory as well- I’m getting mostly oregano, with some of the dill and fennel. Just a touch of ginger/cloves. Really interesting and not something I’ll drink all the time, but it’s still enjoyable.

I love sweet potato teas, so was really excited to try this. It smells like a spiced sweet potato pie.
But, there’s something strange about the flavor. I think it’s the licorice, which is giving it a vague artificial sweetener flavor (like monkfruit or stevia). The bit of sweet potato I can taste is nice, but it’s overwhelmed by the licorice.

This is fine. Generic red fruit black tea. Probably wouldn’t purchase again.

But, realized this has catnip in it. One of my cats absolutely lost her mind trying to steal the used teabag and stick her head into my brewed cup.

This is just okay. Not getting any apple. Slightly caramelly, with some licorice in the background.

This is a really lovely pumpkin chai blend. Nice balance of spices, with a really nice level of squashiness. I like the touch of orange rind as well.

Decided to purchase a couple of the Piper & Leaf samplers- they have so many unique sounding blends and I couldn’t resist trying them.
This is not a flavor profile I usually like in tea. Particularly the chocolate, which is more often than not painfully artificial tasting. This was a pleasant surprise though! The chocolate was not plasticy or artificial at all, and the mix of berries was a nice compliment. Can definitely taste the most strawberry, with a touch of raspberry.

This is such an interesting blend. Tastes like a redwood forest. A smoky redwood forest. Slightly fruity, but mostly quite earthy. Not an everyday kind of blend, but definitely something unique to have occasionally.

Almost gave this to Superanna since she loves mint and I usually don’t reach for it, but decided to make it today because a student of mine dislikes almost all tea except mint tisanes.

Did not like. Yes, it was purple. The mint was muddy. Tongue is still muddy minty tasting long after even though I didn’t feel like the mint taste was clean and fresh, so I would have thought it would have gone away by now. No fruitiness.

Not for me.

Strange. Thought I had reviewed this one already. It’s hot out. So this one just made sense. Thank you Shae for the sample! It’s a good blend for a hot day. Brisk black tea along with hints of lemon and slight varnish under tones that linger with the bits of astringency. It was okay hot this morning but I’m liking it better cold.

February Sipdown Prompt – National Pancake and Sticky Bun Day

I thought I had written a prompt that I couldn’t fulfill! I finished Eleven and Mornin’ Waffles and wasn’t sure what to drink for this, so I went with tea the flavor of a pancake or sticky bun.

We haven’t made pancakes in ages, but I do make Dutch Babies, which are also called German Pancakes around here. (Maybe everywhere?) I make caramel apple or blueberry ones, so this tea fits the bill nicely. To boost the correctness of my choice, I ate French Toast Girl Scout cookies with it. All breakfast themed!

I like this tea, and it will be a sipdown next time I drink it. It is over a year and a half old but tastes much the same as when I first got it.

It is a deep, dark, rich tasting tea. This is a burnt caramel flavor to me. The apple hides a bit while the tea is hot, but comes out more as it cools. I did make a second steep (and got a second cookie) and I think I liked the second steep even better. It was still a dark burnt caramel flavor but slightly lighter and with more discernible apple.

Another one I could have sworn I had made a note for.

I had this for breakfast and thought it was pretty good, lots and lots of rich, burnt brown sugar flavor and a decently strong black tea base. But I kept wondering where the apple was. I only drank half of the small pot.

Late in the afternoon I wandered by the pot and gave it a sniff. APPLE! There it is! A little sip confirmed that the apple was really there. Whether the flavor was covered up by the food I was eating (just oatmeal) or whether the apple doesn’t come out while the tea is piping hot, I don’t know.

After supper, I decided to rock out back and have some graham crackers. I heated the leftover tea to just above warm but definitely not hot, and the apple is quite apparent now. I will have to keep playing with this one, as I like it, and I wouldn’t mind having the apple flavor and not there, depending on the circumstances.

I’m beginning to suspect I’ve become the home for unwanted teas. Another friend gave me a packet of teas the other day. She could not identify this one but said there is a strawberry hint to it. After checking out the website, I figured out it is lemon berry blush.
I’m definitely saving this one for early summer. I think it will make a fabulous iced tea. I first taste the lemongrass and then I taste the strawberries. Definitely a fruity flavor. I think even the kids would like it.

I have made this as iced tea twice and finished it off by making by the carafe. It is nice, fruity, and made me think of Pomegranate Oolong from Harney and Sons somewhat. I don’t know that I would like it hot but it was quite serviceable cold. We go through a lot of iced tea in summer.

Enjoyed it, but not a re-order for me. There are so many good options that cost a lot less. Piper and Leaf just seems a bit expensive for the amount of leaf.

Although I haven’t posted notes for them all, I have finished off a number of samples lately and my cupboard is getting almost manageable! I do not add samples to cupboard, so there are probably at least fifty additional teas over what is listed for my online cupboard here. Working on it! (So I can order more tea…)

I signed on, excited that I get to remove something from cupboard. Except that I not only never added to cupboard, but there is no tasting note here, so I guess if I ever wrote one it was just for Sororitea Sisters? And here I am finishing it off.

While you have all been doing your amazing sipdowns and I am cheering you on because you are amazing, I have managed to finish off a few sample packs and swaps as well as a small tin or two. The problem is that I never added them to cupboard to begin with, so I don’t really count them.

I got this one around Christmas time, maybe a little before? I am not a chai lover, so it was going to be either latte or iced and sweetened for me, and in respect for the name I chose iced. And I actually really like it! It has great sparkle and the spices make it seem extra cold somehow. I do resteep it and mix the two steeps together with sugar and then chill it in a glass carafe. After working outside in the yard most of the day, it was very refreshing on the patio with supper.

Happy National Strawberry Day! Pulled this last P&L sampler from my stash to drink today, prepared cold brewed.

The green tea itself has a deeply vegetal, spinach-like aroma. I get a bit of a berry fruitiness on the nose. The taste, however, is coming off strongly of the beets in the blend, and I’m wondering if that was a “luck of the scoop” from my little sample bag… I do taste some strawberry, but with the highly vegetal note of the green tea coupled with the strong beet note, it doesn’t really taste very fruity. Grassy, vegetal, a little metallic/earthy, bulldozing the subtle strawberry sweetness in the background. I’m not getting any sassyfras, which is disappointing…

I think I may have just overleafed this, adding to some of the strong green tea notes, and if I’d split the sample into two batches it might have been a little less intense, a little more fruity, and been more subtle on the beet. Ah well, I wanted to use up the full sample packet in one go. Not a particularly good cup, but I can see the potential in it and am chalking this one up to my preparation. That said, I’m still keeping my rating lower than I’d give otherwise since it is called “Sassyfras Strawberry” and I’m not getting one of those ingredients at all.

Steepster Freeze 2021 #3: 02/14/21

I swear the Dashboard freezes are directly coorelated with the Sipdown Challenge days… of the three outages already this year (seriously, it’s only mid-February!) two of those have fallen on those “fun theme days”, of which there are only five a month… what gives?

So, whenever the site is working again, I guess I’ll post this. It’s Valentine’s Day (a holiday that I, as an aromantic asexual person have never celebrated anyway) but I will gladly drink a chocolately tea. Especially as I’m trying to finish off these little Piper & Leaf samples…

This is a black tea with bits of fig, coffee, and lots of cocoa shells/chips. Steeped 3.25g to 350ml for 3 minutes at 205F. The brew has a strong coffee aroma, but also a dark chocolate scent that, together, are making me think of a mocha only darker and sans the creamy milk. Smells a little like spices as well, sort of a mixed chicory/pepper/cinnamon aroma.

Flavor tastes much like the aroma. May be “luck of the scoop,” but I’m getting coffee first, cocoa second. I’m fine with that, as I like the rich and slightly bitter flavor of black coffee, and with the cocoa, the cocoa is presenting more as an extra dark, bittersweet chocolate, rather than something really fudgy and sweet. It also veers the tea away from having that waxy “thin artificial chocolate” sort of taste like most chocolate teas. Still getting a sort of chicory/peppery flavor though neither are in the blend… not sure where I’m picking up that particular spice note.

It’s a nice cuppa, one I’d consider more of a “coffee” tea than a “chocolate” tea, but I’m digging that not-too-sweet-not-too-bitter balance of the flavors.

Happy National Pizza Day!

I’ve been working through what has been left of my little samplers from this company, and this was a milk oolong with some additions (including pineapple) so I saved it for today. I often get “buttery vegetable” notes from milk oolong, particularly spinach (one of my favorite pizza toppings), and the pineapple chunks in the blend are reminescent of another of my favorite toppings (yes, I’m one of those people).

A get a strong buttery milk oolong aroma from both the dried and steeped tea, as well as a fruity aroma from the steeped tea that wasn’t present for me in the dry leaf. It’s giving me a tropical vibe, but I don’t think I could place a specific aroma. Now that the tea has cooled enough to sip from my work thermos, I’m really digging the flavor! A warm and buttery milk oolong base, with a distinct pineapple flavor on the sip, which has just the slightest bit of tanginess to it from this citrusy undertone from the dried persimmon. There is a bit of a citrus zest aftertaste. Also a subtle but indistinct florality. It’s really enjoyable! Warm silky, buttery texture, fruity pineapple, and tangy citrus… doesn’t sound like it should work but it oddly comes together nicely.

This may be a minor thing, but I don’t like that the Piper & Leaf website claims this tea “includes dairy” because the leaf is “steamed with milk”… does this myth really have to continue to be circulated? (I mean, sure, from the flavor this is probably a flavored milk oolong, but my understanding is those flavorings still don’t include dairy? This “warning” seems entirely incorrect and unnecessary and would serve as nothing more than to drive Vegans away from a very nice tea…)

I still have a few samplers from this company in my stash I’ve been trying to work through. The company suggested this one as an iced tea, so that is how I prepared it — I used the full 7.5g sampler to make a quart of iced tea. I steeped it hot, then chilled it in the fridge.

At least with this preparation, I’m getting a rich malty flavor but no drying/astrigent qualities (though I have a feeling it might be a bit bitey if it were steeped hot and drunk right away). This isn’t the sort of bold Earl Grey I was imagining, though I do taste the bergamot; it feels a bit gentler than I’ve seen in some blends (though it could just be the preparation, this may be my first time drinking a bergamot-flavored tea iced!) and is reading more as a vibrant citrusy note, as if I added lemon and lime wedges to my pitcher. What I really enjoyed about this, though, was how the bergamot was blending with the flavor of spearmint; the spearmint was so crisp and refreshing, and made a lovely flavor pairing alongside the citrusy bergamot, bringing out a slight mojito effect. I didn’t get any floral notes from the tea, despite the addition of jasmine in the ingredients.

Not sure how this would compare if taken straight up and hot, but it does make a refreshingly solid iced tea!

Steepster Freeze 2021 #1: 01/12/21

Happy National Kiss a Ginger Day!

I grabbed this chai sampler I still had in my stash, which I should be able to sipdown relatively quickly over today and tomorrow as there was just enough tea inside for two double-sized cups (perfect for the work thermos). It includes the typical pumpkin spice ingredients (including the titular ginger for today!) as well as pumpkin and vanilla on a black base.

The dry leaf aroma of this pumpkin spice chai is mostly vanilla, which gives the spices a very “sweet spice” smell. The aroma isn’t as potent on the brewed cup; I’m getting a bit of the vanilla note and sweet cinnamon, but it seems much more subdued on the nose against the breadiness of the black base, and now there is a distinct spice aroma wafting into my nostrils: clove.

Mmm. This is a tasty chai, and reminds me of Tea Chai Te’s “Pumpkin Spice Chai,” though I do think I prefer that one a bit more. If that one suddenly disappeared, I think I’d be happy with this as a sub, though. The black tea mixed with the sweetness of the vanilla and cinnamon tastes like a warm cinnamon bread, and there is a warmth left at the back of my throat of ginger and clove. The clove, in particular, leaves a lasting aftertaste on my tongue. The flavor is smooth enough to drink sans milk, and the spices, while warming, are not burny/uncomfortable on my spice-sensitive tongue.

I am not one of those people that thinks that “pumpkin spice” (a spice blend) should “taste like pumpkin” (though I do love the flavor of pumpkin). I find pumpkin is one of those flavors I rarely, if ever, taste in tea regardless, and adding pumpkin pieces rather than some syrupy sweet “pumpkin pie” flavoring usually doesn’t do it for me. This doesn’t taste like that particular flavoring (and I’ve had run ins of both good and bad regarding that flavoring over the years, so I’m not very particular about it being present).

I find this a solid vanilla-forward chai, much sweeter than a typical masala-type blend. I would not recommend it to those particular about pumpkin spice “tasting like pumpkin” or those that are clove-sensitive.

I was saving this tea for hot summer days (as iced, cold tea), but they didn’t come this year. Okay, a few hot days were there, but otherwise it was pretty much okay and I didn’t wanted to drink any iced teas.

It was a very nice tea, indeed. Quite sweet, bold and refreshing. I couldn’t notice much of jasmine in particular, but it was some generic floral. Not bad!

Citrusy note was a bit muted today — maybe the age, or just I wasn’t noticing it today. The base was brisk and nice, so a winner for the morning.

Shae’s ADVENT CALENDAR, December 5

Where to start? I am writing this note about 3 hours after finishing my cup. I was in hurry making a picture, so it’s pretty much simple (I like it anyway), but there isn’t any view of blend today. The official image is right though!

I read a note from Shae it’s great iced/cold. I was quite confused as I preapred cold brewed tea once and well, it was pretty much okay.

It’s not plain tea which is a plus and honestly it surprsied me how many notes are already here on Steepster. It seems quite average, so let’s see. The aroma of dry leaf indeed reminded me iced teas available here (read: sugary drinks which aren’t with tea at all, I wonder if it is different over there). On sweet side. But I really like blue cornflowers in the tea. They made me smile right in the morning.

I have used only one teaspoon, to avoid bitterness and too much tannic note.
I think it went great and after 3-4 minutes steep (till I finished the photo session) it was just right. The aroma was same, just stronger and taste was indeed like iced teas! I really think it can work perfectly as iced/cold brewed tea. It was mellow, yet brisk, like with added sugar/stevia maybe and bit citrusy. Not really sure about the bergamot (it wasn’t calling me I am like an Earl Grey), but it was nice. The mint didn’t get any cooling effect for me, but maybe it was too little for me or just not that prominent. I didn’t get any jasmine.

Notes to self: To re-try iced/cold brewed. Keep an eye on clock more carefully.
Photo: https://flic.kr/p/2kdxGyy
Song pairing: https://www.jamendo.com/track/896970/reality-bites

Decided to brew this sampler tonight after my Thanksgiving tradition of ordering gobs of Thai takeout (typically on the Wednesday before when things are open) and then reheating the leftovers, which last me days, for dinner.

This is one of those “turns blue because butterfly pea flower” herbal blends. I don’t really care about “color novelty” in tea, but I actually like the taste of butterfly pea flower and will drink it straight (I particularly like it the traditional way with some lemon juice and honey). I’m mostly used to it paired with citrus, though this is a minty/fruity blend. My blue cuppa smells heavily minty, with a touch of an herbaceous element, but I’m not getting any fruitiness in aroma. And honestly… even though there are blueberries and blackberries in the blend, I am not tasting them either. I am getting a very nice tasting mint tea, with a fresh and tingly sensation from the mints, with the spearmint being the most dominant minty flavor. I am also tasting the ginger in the blend, but it isn’t really spicy; more, it is adding to some of the earthy notes I’m getting in the tea, as well as a slight warming sensation at the back of the throat. It’s actually interesting, as I’m getting a cooling feeling more on my tongue, and a warming more on my throat… despite being conflicting, it isn’t unpleasant. Usually butterfly pea flowers have a sort of vegetal flavor to me, but I’m not getting that, either… instead, I’m getting more of an “earthiness” beneath the mint that reminds me a bit of echinacea or tulsi.

This is actually a nice “I’ve gorged myself” chaser considering the mint and ginger, which are my two main “help my poor abused GI system” teas. In the end, the butterfly pea flower really is just a “color” gimmick as I don’t think it’s doing much of anything for the blend… just a way to try to make a mint blend “more interesting,” really. But if you like mint, I mean… it doesn’t really need to be interesting?

Anyway, I’m fine with it, mostly because I’m not adverse to pea flower flavor. But since pea flower can be one of those easily aversive flavors, really no reason to recommend this over any other mint / mint and ginger / tummy tea sort of blend.