Steepster

Tremendous woody / charred smell that’s not quite backed up by flavor as full. But still delicious!

well, this one was an accidental leftover from a past steepster box, and i don’t even remember drinking it before…WOW, this is delicious! usually the chinese non-oolong greens underwhelm me, but this? this is made of rainbows and light and sparkles and unicorns! yet, somehow it ISN"T overwhelming, it is a light light flavor, even if strong. like drinking sunshine filtered through spring green forest canopy onto a dappled forest floor covered in spring wildflowers.

yep, that’s exactly it. darned good stuff. now i need to figure out who made it and where i can get more, coz also? it’s like crack.

A very warm and cozy tea, like a fuzzy blanket or a hug in a cup. The subtle sweetness in the finish complements the roasted and malty quality of the tea. A touch of nuttiness rounds out the well-bodied flavor. Even though I have never had a tea from Laos, I find this tea in a way very familiar, as if I have already enjoyed it before. 9/10, a wonderfully enjoyable tea for colder days.

Oh My…what a lovely tea this was. I’m so disappointed that it is not available. The balance between the toasted flavor and the matcha flavor was masterful.

This tea is so beautifully green! The aroma is peppery and mostly exhibits roasted nutty tones above all.

The dominant flavors are of algae and seaweed, with obvious toasty notes from the toasted rice. At first this tea tastes very briney, oceany, even fishy almost, but as I drink more of it and become more familiar with the taste, this effect diminishes and it is mostly just vegetal. The aftertaste is a little astringent, but not very noticeable.

This tea is a little on the uninteresting side for me. I brewed it in a 10 oz porcelain mug with a built-in porcelain infuser basket. I almost always brew gongfu method with a gaiwan but thought this would be more appropriate for this tea because of the matcha and because the packet just recommends to use 10 oz of water.

All that considered, I feel the taste is rather forward and not very deep or complex. I feel sort of unmoved.

Ahhhh… Good. I love this right now. The roasted barley taste is really yummy. I saw some reviews on how it tastes like honey smackers and thought yeah! That’s it! I’m happy this was the first tea I tried from the free steepster select box I got. Don’t know if I can afford to keep the subscription going but if I like the other tea samples as much, I think I’m in trouble :)

This is my first Lapsang Souchang! Yay Steepster Select always introducing me to new things!

I went on the light side for brewing this because I was a bit scared of overwhelming myself. I don’t consider myself much of a dark tea person (though they are growing on me). The scent of the dry leaves immediately reminds me of a campfire. The aroma of pine and smoke is very dominant, and the tea leaves themselves smell very similar to the type of black tea used in Thai tea. The taste is of pinewood and smoke, and yet again the taste of the black tea is very similar to the type of tea used in Thai Tea. There’s a peppery, spicy quality at the end of a sip. I’m guessing the similarities are there because both teas use “lower quality” leaves (4th and 5th leaf) to make the tea, then blend it with flavors to make it more palatable. Chai can be in the same boat.

I can’t say this is a favorite for me. It doesn’t really gain complexity with repeated steepings like higher leaf teas do, but it induces a nice warm nostalgic feeling that reminds me of a campfire glow and all the memories of nature and the outdoors associated with it.

So you have to kind of take it for what it is. The best premium tea out there? Not really. Still good in its own right? Definitely. I think it earned a few extra points just for nostalgia factor though.

I got an offer for a free month of Steepster Select, so I broke down and got it. This was in the March box which I received.

It’s really interesting, I can see why it was noted as being a common companion to ramen. It’s a tisane, not tea, so it doesn’t check that internal box, but it’s likable, and I will definitely brew the second pouch.

Very foodish. It’s like drinking breakfast.

Now, this is a tea I could totally have in my cupboard most of the time!

Dry leaf didn’t look too promising, seemed somewhat broken – into more pieces than was necessary. Perhaps it was because I might have accidentally squeezed the bag ;D The color of the liquor is impressive though! Deep, deep mahogany. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a tea that would look quite like this.

The aroma is a little bit understated, but what you get is sweet honey notes that are yet a little floral, the kind of honey you’d find on bees’ legs (lol!) and not necessarily in a jar. For some reason I was afraid that this would be too bitter, but it’s one of the sweetest blacks I’ve had. Extremely full bodied, it almost makes you feel like you’re drinking syrup or honey.

It’s such a pleasure to start a day with a tea like this one!

Not a huge fan of the Soba Cha. It smells like Sugar Smacks which is a lot of fun but the taste is just too bitter for me.

When it comes to Oolong teas I’m pretty persnickety, but this tea hits all the right notes. A roasty Oolong with sweetness at the end of the sip and light, but distinct, floral notes. I like. I’m really enjoying the grain flavor followed by burnt sugar (I almost said caramel, but it taste more like burnt sugar me). Right now I’m working on my second steep and I’m letting the tea cool a bit to see if the floral notes become more apparent. I think they might.

I still wouldn’t call myself an Oolong lover, but I could see myself keeping some of this in my cupboard and enjoying it.

I received this tea in a complimentary Steepster Select box.

I haven’t had too many Sencha teas. This one is very smooth. The first infusion was nice, not bitter, a nice vegetal flavor. The second infusion was surprisingly bitter. I shortened the next infusions and it was better , but not as good as the first.

I would love to try this cold brewed but I don’t have enough tea left and I didn’t love it enough to make a purchase.

Well I was happy that this was a sip down until I saw that I never added it to my cupboard. Sigh! At least it’s effectively one since it’s gone from my kitchen.

Even steeped for 2 minutes this is so astringent, it makes me want to go drink some water. It’s not bad tasting but my mouth is absolutely pruning up!

Also, my Aroma kettle arrived today and I had a lot of fun boiling water in it. How sad is that? What was the highlight of your day? I boiled water!

Sipdown! I’m wondering about the value of the Steepster box versus other subs. I would trade all of the neat-o packaging for more tea…

I thought this was fine but unremarkable. It reminded me the most of the Ambessa breakfast tea. A nice black, not one I feel compelled to order again though. I wish I had more to write about it but I just don’t.

as it turns out, i don’t like Lapsang Souchongs. i thought this one might be better, considering the source, but i think it’s just me. do not like. but then, i don’t really like smokey flavored anything, really. except beef. and pork ribs. but smoke where it doesn’t belong? ew.

ON EDIT: 2nd steeping was a tiny bit milder on the flavor i’m not enjoying, but only a tiny bit. i must say, this is an incredibly smooth tea, considering, and lush and deep and full, but that smoked quality just. ugh. can’t get over it. no third steeping for me!

brewed as per directions on Steepster Select packet, April 2014 mailing.

A very mild black tea. Smooth flavor but enough astringency to remind you that it has a well-deserved home among the black teas. I actually really enjoyed this tea and i’m not a huge black tea fan. The description is well suited.