Steepster

This looks like coffee when brewed, the liquor is a dark brown color. The scent is smoky chocolate and so is the flavor! This is really good. It has a tiny tiny hint of pine in the finish and gives a bit of tannin.
The smoke gives essences of wood burning but it’s subtle. There is cream in the scent but not in the flavor. As it cools, a sweetness is coming thru like a blackstrap molasses. Very interesting procession of flavors, I liked it!

From the Steepster Select box, February 2014

I’m not an expert, this is my first rating but I thought it was okay

I was so excited to see that my Steepster box arrived today! This was the first tea that I tried and it’s pretty tasty. I’ve been reluctant to sample green teas because I find most to be too acidic, in that the tannins can be a bit overwhelming for this new tea drinker.
This is my first time trying the select box and I realize that the teas are beyond my newbie tea palate to fully appreciate. It reminds me of when I was only familiar with milk chocolate and was introduced to really good dark chocolate, in that at first, the flavors were overwhelming but I grew to appreciate the complexities…and now all I eat is dark chocolate.

This tea isn’t very impressive at first sniff or glance -it looks and smells a lot like hay. I was preoccupied with typing out a previous tasting note that I accidentally steeped this a little over 3 minutes so I was hesitant taking the first sip. Worried that I’d messed it up, I was surprised by the mellow taste, it’s not as bitter as I was expecting. It has a robust earthy and roasted nut flavor. It’s such a smooth tea that I could even see this being good cold.

Best tea so far on steepster. I used a percolator and boiled it once then poured in more water to boil it again to really bring out the tasty flavor within.

My third steepster box arrived this afternoon, so I blindly reached in and Jasmine Pearl was the tea I pulled out. I can’t say I’m a fan of Jasmine teas, but I thought I would give this a go. The first steep is overwhelmingly Jasmine, I can’t taste anything else. The second steep, is still overwhelmingly Jasmine. The third steep is a bit more astringent at the end, and I almost taste the tea underneath the Jasmine. I would not recommend this tea to someone who is not a big, big fan of Jasmine.

I suddenly need a Nat Sherman.

Another Steepster Select sipdown.
This is a really tasty Keemun, per my previous review.

This tea arrived yesterday in the Steepster Select box, conveniently in time to be part of my Qimen Quandery for today :)
I followed the steeping suggestions of 4 min. I’d say there was roughly 1.5 tsp in the packet.
The cup is rich, sweet, & earthy, with a light smokiness. It’s also somewhat bitter & kind of tart, like the peels of red grapes. As it cooled, the taste of Cacao nibs became more noticeable. That was the first steeping. I suspect it would be really wonderful with a little maple syrup added, but I already drank the whole cup, so obviously the bitter edge didn’t bother me too much. The re-steep is nice enough as well.

When I steep the 2nd serving, I’ll probably play around with the steep time a bit, maybe going for 3 minutes instead of 4.

2/20/14 Steepster Select tea, prepared as per the packet instructions,
1 packet/10/212F/4min.

A very enjoyable tea, but again, one that I haven’t enough experience with to describe well. The first steep ran a touch bitter, so I brewed the second with 12oz water, and that smoothed it out nicely.
I like getting to try teas out of my normal range!

Backlog:

Of the five teas that were in the December Steepster Select box, this one was definitely my favorite. It’s a seriously good tea.

I got two awesome infusions out of this tea. The first was rich and full-flavored. It tasted and felt smooth as it washed over the palate. The second infusion was less astringent than the first, making it a smoother, silkier experience.

Smoky, sweet and sour notes, caramel-y undertones. A really wonderful tea!

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/01/10/wuyishan-black-tea-steepster/

Hmmm, new tasting note procedure, it has thrown me all off, tea good? tea has taste? Might remember by second steep

Stix and stems!! I had read about this one a bit back but forgot until I opened the package!! The scent of the dry leaf is hay and Earth.
The tea does not have an appealing scent as it brews. Bits get into the liquor thru my stainless little mesh infuser, lol.
Surprisingly, this tasted WAY better than it smelled. There is a good bitter (not bad) aspect with notes of cacao and over-roasted walnuts.
I definitely liked this one for the novelty!
I got the idea while drinking this to taste some cacao nibs (which I happen to keep on hand, yum) with it. This brought out more of the cacao notes.
I was glad that I tried this alone in the afternoon for a snack time and was going to eat a banana afterward. I wouldn’t taste this with a meal.
Also, if you keep your nose out of it and just taste with your mouth,,,,you get good flavors and not the scent which is very strong with hay bale.
So glad I got to try this and cannot wait to see the other reviews!!!!!!!!!!!!!

From the Steepster Select Box, February 2014

This tea is light yet floral. It is delicious and smooth. I tried it hot and cold and it was still fabulous. The aroma of Jasmine filled my kitchen during the steeping. Great tea!

This tea might be good for converted coffee drinkers, but is definitely not my kind of tea. It tastes and smells like a rather lightly brewed sweetened coffee. There is a little lingering fruit in the finish, but other than that, I’m only tasting coffee.

Backlog:

This was the first tea that I tried from my December Steepster Select box. I like that the new Steepster Select boxes offer true “samples.” There is one serving in each little package. Nice.

My full-length review can be read here: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/12/26/guiyuan-roasted-dong-ding-oolong-steepster/

This tea: Sweet and smooth. Silky. Nutty and a delicious creamy note. This tea reminds me of toasted coconut. Notes of charcoal develop in later infusions. Notes of flower and hints of freshly roasted coffee are also more apparent as I continue to steep.

A really nice Dong Ding.

This is EXCELLENT. It strikes a really nice blend between grassy and naturally sweet. The second steep was better than the first.

Nice even-handed green tea with a nutty and earthy flavor. Very little grass flavor.

Smokey and smooth.

This tea is from the January 2014 Steepster Box.

Okay, I really thought I had reviewed this already, but I think I just drank a cup and then read BrewTEAllySweet’s review and agreed with her! I love this. Where can I get more? The first steep was roasty, almost coffee-ish. Very calming and warming on this VERY cold night. Second steep just as awesome. A little less chocolate tasting and more roasty tasting.