Steepster

Really pleasant White Peony with a good ratio of leaves to buds (silver needles) which reminds me of high quality White Peony I’ve had in the past. After a first quick brew as recommended it was very light, subtle and a hint of lemon with nutty tones emerged and slowly evolved with more steeps into a more earthy green flavor.

Really nice cup of earl grey with solid bergamot notes and a warm savory finish. After telling one of my coworkers about it he mentioned his habit of brewing it with a rooibos tea … something I’ll have to try next!

Lovely, nutty goodness. My fav from that month’s shipment. Easy to oversteep though.

This was nice for a fruity black tea. I liked the apricot flavor and it was well balanced with the tea. Would probably make an excellent iced tea, though I had it hot.

This tea was ok, but sencha isn’t my favorite. I liked the added matcha, but wished three was some toasted rice in there too. Would have made a pretty good genmai cha.

This tea is from my swap with KiwiDelight. I figured I’d try this one first since there was only enough for one cup. I wasn’t sure what Obukucha meant, so I looked it up. It means “good fortune tea” and apparently it’s a Japanese tradition to drink it during New Year’s. However, the actual type of tea depends on where you get it from, so really it doesn’t tell me anything about what kind of tea this is. Sneaky! Looking at the leaves, it’s definitely a sencha of some kind. The leaves are wider than a lot of the senchas I’ve tried so far, and they look very flattened, almost like they were pan-fried. Smells like alfalfa and sweet grass. Yum!

The brewed tea still smells like alfalfa to me, but that familiar steamed spinach aroma is there now. This is probably the most savory sencha I’ve tried so far. I definitely get the spinach taste, but there’s also a prominent mineral quality that is very interesting. I also find seaweed, which I’ve seen a lot of people list for green teas but I’ve never really tasted it myself before now. There’s also a touch of pleasant bitterness. I think you could add salt to this tea and use it as a vegetable broth! .

A strong lemony good tasting tea

Don’t think I’ve had straight rooibos before. It has this tinge that reminds me of something…medicinal? Also is very woodsy. Not so much a fan…but not undrinkable either.

Super tasty! The combination of green teas makes this one really good. It’s thicker than just tea and more savory. I think that matcha makes it have a cool slightly cloudy green look. Only thing was that it seemed to suck up a lot of water while steeping leaving less than I thought I’d have in my cup. More water next time?

Very subtle. Almost to the extent that I wondered if I steeped it correctly. I did pick up some flavor notes.
I’m so new to white teas I don’t think I can recommend it or not.

I tried this tea iced, and it was excellent. Perfect for summertime.

If you are into British teas, this is a true classic. Very good taste!

High quality White Tea with a very smooth aftertaste.

A nice, strong black tea with an appealing fruity note. I want to try it iced next. I bet it will be great.

Origin: Cederberg, South Africa
Dry Leaf: Looks and actually smells like sweet sawdust (in a good way). Very fine auburn and orange sticks.
Method: 1 tsp herb to 12 oz water ; Western style- classic oval teapot; 212F for 4 minute steep.
Wet Leaf: Tiny little sticks that are a deeper auburn now. Scents of honey and raw rhubarb.
Liquor: Deep auburn color and clear. Also with scents of honey and the raw rhubarb. The sawdust scent is subtle but steps back in.
Flavor: Sweet, woody, rhubarb. Interesting flavor. I have not had straight Rooibos before and it’s pretty good. Wouldn’t favor it over tea but I like a caffeine free herbal option for night time.
It is good with a cookie, it brings out its sweetness. Now I know what straight Rooibos tastes like so I can distinguish it in herbal blends.

From the Steepster Select Box; June, 2014

Origin: Sri Lanka
Dry Leaf: Pretty dark dark brown twisted tea with bright orange flower pieces mixed in. Really smells like fresh apricot and dried peaches!
Method: 1 tsp tea 12 oz water 212F 3 minutes steep
Wet Leaf: Very fruity scented and the orange flowers have remained fairly orange and pretty. Tea is still fairly twisted but unfurls to be cut then twisted.
Liquor: Deep clear orange with apricot/peach scent
Flavor: Very unique tasting. It isn’t dominant in the peach/apricot flavor, it lets the tea come thru as well. Doesn’t need milk but I added a splash to create a creamy apricot dessert a la mode flavor!!
Very enjoyable flavored tea.

From the Steepster Select Box; June, 2014

Origin: Uji, Japan
Dry Leaf: Lovely Sencha tea bathed in Matcha tea. This is cool looking and it smells like creamy Matcha. Very Green!!
Method: 2 tsp tea for 16 oz water in a classic oval teapot, Western style. 175F and steeped for 1.5 minutes.
Wet Leaf: Gorgeous, delicate classic green and chopped. Looks like fresh cooked chopped spinach or herbs.
Liquor: Beautiful After Dinner Mint green color. Scents of fresh cooked spinach and matcha.
Flavor: Light spinach and creamy mouthfeel. VERY delicious and satisfying green tea!! Absolutely no bitterness or astringency even when I brewed it Western style!! I usually brew delicate green teas like Sencha in a Kyusu with very short steeps to keep from burning them so I LOVE that this one seems to be protected by the Matcha and you can brew a nice big easy pot of this. I am enjoying a large pot with my little green tea type white cup so I am getting the convenience of Western brew but the beauty of my little Japanese drinking cup.
This is definitely a great tea that I would drink everyday at lunch time!!!!!!!!!!!!

From the Steepster Select Box; June, 2014

Origin: Fujian, China
Dry Leaf: This is a very fresh, herbal and sweet- scented white peony! Nice mix of green leaves and lots of silver needles mixed in too.
Method: I weighed this tea because white peony is so light as a feather that I wanted to get the Steepster parameters in grams bc they always have great brewing instructions. By weighing it (total of 6 grams), I ended up using the whole package in my infuser for a two cup (16oz) pot, Western style. 190F and steeped for 2 minutes.
Wet Leaf: Smell like pumpernickel bread, green leaves and fresh.
Liquor: Pretty pink champagne color, sweet honey scent. As it cools, the scent of butter shortbread or biscuits is very inviting!!
Flavor: Rich, creamy, sweet, very full-bodied white peony!! There is a tiny tiny hint of a vegetal flavor which I will compare to water chestnut or sunchoke,,it is very subtle. This is one of the better white peonies I have tried and I have tried a few because I love white tea!! Wow!!! Steepster is not playin’ around,,they have sourced some really good teas for their new store!!!! Love it!!

Re steeped these leaves and the flavor is still delicious and full, no bitterness or astringency in the second steeping either. Very good quality tea.
Paired some fresh figs from my tree with this tea and that is a perfect pairing bc they have similar notes. Two pots of this on a desert July afternoon,,I am tea drunk now lol!! Good stuff!!

From the Steepster Select Box; June, 2014

This is my first proper cup of Earl Grey tea. I went straight from Lipton and Teavana to Yunnan blacks, Oolongs, etc. so I was very intrigued by the scent of real Earl Grey!! I also got a proper British style bone china teacup and saucer (bc all I had was Asian style tea ware) which I absolutely think is gorgeous and adds to the experience.
Origin: Sri Lanka
Dry Leaf: Black and twisted leaves with the scent of the Bergamot Orange oil
Method: 212F 1 tsp tea for 12 oz water steeped for 3 minutes
Wet Leaf: Cut with scents of the essential oil
Liquor: Smells of some light smoke and has a beautiful light orange color. Very clear.
Flavor: Light with touches of the Bergamot Orange oil that gives the tea a subtle citrus taste. This tea is meant to have milk and sugar if you like. I don’t ever add sugar but I added a splash of milk. How delicious when you do that bc this makes the citrus notes come to the forefront and blend into a creamy citrus tea. There is no astringency or bitterness in this tea so I am very pleased with my first experience with a true Earl Grey. Thank you Steepster!!!

From the Steepster Select Box; June, 2014

A mellow roobios, with more earth and woody notes than flowers. I didn’t feel that the fruity flavor of the average roobios was as strong as I would like it. It lacks the red punch and strong honey note I expected. This tea also didn’t stand up to a second steeping with much flavor.

It’s alright but not a tea I particularly care for. It has that veggie taste but it’s not unlikeable or a taste that I really dislike. It’s a light tea.