Steven Smith Teamaker

This came my way via the previous round of the GCTTB. I haven’t had a chance to try any Steven Smith Teamaker teas though like most I’ve drank teas from his other brands, Tazo and Stash. The brewing instructions on the package made me giggle: “Steep 5 minutes while pondering the Earl’s affair with the Duchess of Devonshire.” Alright then. ;)

It’s a fairly standard earl grey though the base is most robust than most, in any event it’s quite enjoyable with milk, but I wouldn’t consider it to be anything remarkable. It’s more the sort of tea that would be a cupboard staple for anyone who wanted a good, basic earl grey.

RIP Steven Smith

Thanks so much scribbles for this sample in our last swap! I like Ceylon tea, and this is a great blend. Through the tea pyramid you can still get a great sense of honey, malt and citrus. I highly recommend following the directions exactly.

Actual review here:
http://sororiteasisters.com/2015/04/25/no-23-kandy-black-tea-steven-smith-teamaker/

I killed this off this morning, and it was ok.
I never really warmed up to this one, so I’m not sorry to see it go.
Sipdown!

First cup of black tea since Tuesday, and I’m feeling a little tentative about it.
I decided that I needed to go back into black tea very slowly. I needed one of my weakest tea.
I keep on not caring for this blend, unfortunately. Its weak, though, so that’s alright.
Still, I may only have one cup of this as I go.
Curse you stomach! Get better!

I am working my way through my stash of this, and am always hopeful that its going to be better than it is.
My hopes are now, as I move to the bottom of the tin, that I’ll get more tea, and a bit less flotsam and jetsam. I love additions to tea, and like floral, but this is just too much. Too many addtions! And they don’t seem to be helping. Frustrating.

I can never get this tea to work!
I am one who likes floral tea. Rose teas? Lovely! Especially floral black teas- they can have a gorgeous flavor.
So I really want to like this. This has got chamomile and rose in it, which sounds interesting, but tastes… sour.
Its not unbearable, so I’ll work my way through it, but, after being blown away by some of Smith’s other special edition teas, I am not very impressed here.

I cannot commit to liking this one. It should be something I really, like, and somehow it just falls short of a full appreciation.
What is it? I love floral teas, so theoretically its not that. The chamomile? Maybe that’s whatis giving this the sour note? Argh, tea, behave yourself!

I cannot for the life of me get a handle on this tea. It sounds so good! So interesting!
And yet I cannot make it dance the way I think it should.
Todays brew had an almost sour note, which was annoying. I feel like this could really be something interesting, if only I could work out the secret steeping code.
Next time a shorter steep, and see where that takes me.

Its a week to fiddle with teas that I have not yet made up my mind about, it seems.
This is growing on me. In this steep I’m finding a hint of citrus. Lemon, I think, not bergamot, though I could be wrong.
The rose is only a suggestion, not a full on floral, and the chamomile adds…. well, this I’m not sure on. Its certainly a rounded tea, so manybe the chamomile is what takes the edge off the astringent black base. Hmm.
Overall, my impressions are improving.

Ah thank goodness, I’ve got internet again! Turns out, my neighbors, who are landscaping, accidentially cut open my cable, so that needs to have replaced. But they’ve patched me through for now. Huzzah!
In tea news, I still can’t make up my mind about this tea. Its a black tea, but you’d almost not know it. Its so delicate, so gentle. I’m torn. Fortunatly I’ve got a lot of the tea, so I’ve got a while to make up my mind.

So this interested me. A black tea with chamomile? How strange!
I didn’t get so much chamomile in this, but I did get a very nice flavor of rose. More research is needed.

Not really an earl grey, but certainly in the same bergamot family. I found it to be utterly delicious when prepared exactly as on the package despite it being a longer steep than I normally prefer.

My favorite Earl Grey that I can buy in bags.

I tend not to like Chai very much, but this one is very drinkable. I had it sweetened with honey this time, due to a cold, but am very much looking forward to adding milk, I think it will do very well that way.

Had been wanting to try this one for a while, now that I’ve tried it I can’t remember quite why I wanted it so badly. It’s definitely one of the weirdest teas I’ve ever tried! I really don’t know what to think. 0_0
It’s pine-y, kinda peppery, ever so slightly minty, and has some weird other spices going on that I can’t pick out. It’s seriously so weird. Might be the weirdest one yet!
It’s not a horrible weird, but it’s not an amazing weird either. I feel like it’s the kind of weird that my taste buds will just like start craving randomly sometime for no apparently reason. It’s a weird combo of flavors. But part of it kinda reminds me of a certain food. What food is that, you might ask? I don’t know. xD But it really does remind me of something.
So yeah, not my kind of tea really. But thank you soo much for letting me try it, Rosehips!! :D :D

Basically the Lord Bergamot minus the bergamot. Honestly, not a favorite of mine. The quality is there though. I can totally imagine this being a go-to-tea for others. I still love their sachets, they work wonderfully and are so convenient.

Licorice and Peppermint.
I never thought that those two would mix.
When Rosehips sent me a sample of it, and I smelled the tea bags, I still wasn’t sure. But man was I wrong!
Those two flavors together made for an excellent cup! I can’t even explain how amazing it was! I wouldn’t consider myself a huge fan of either of those flavors alone, but I haven’t had many teas with those flavors in them. I really never could imagine they would mix so well.
PLUS! It’s a chamomile!
I desperately wish that I had tried this before all of this tea was sold out. Now I have to wait a whole ‘nother year to get more of this tea! I’m so sad! Thankfully Rosehips was so generous and gave me three tea bags. I will savor the two I have left!
I seriously had such a horrible day yesterday, and an even worse night. This tea was seriously the best part of my entire day last night. It helped me relax and actually smile and feel a little happier inside.
Ahh! I’m just so happy to have gotten to try this! And it really did cheer me up some last night. And writing this makes me smile because I’m really happy that I still have two more tea bags left! I should save them for the really bad days so they will help me feel more relaxed and a bit happier! (: I can’t wait till Next Christmas to get more!
Thank you, Rosehips!! I’m so excited and happy about this tea! :D

Sample Sipdown!
Had the last of this tea last night. Not bad-all three times I had it it made for enjoyable and relaxing cups. Always happened to be when I needed it the most! I don’t think I’d buy this tea in particular, but it was pretty nice. Thanks again for the generous samples, Rosehips!

I really really needed something to calm me down after this morning when I had to go to the dr to have a horrible test done. My body hurts like hell and I can barely swallow. Seriously have been such a mess today.
But this tea.
This tea totally calmed me down when I got home. Hurt tons to swallow, but it was definitely worth it. Helped me to be able to sleep for most of the day. xD Which was good for me because this monitor in my throat is killing me. xD
Also I really do think that the blend of lemon and chamomile is pretty nice in this tea. One tea bag left. :O

Got a generous sample of this tea from Rosehips! I really did need a relaxing tea, and this one totally worked! ^^
I love how much chamomile relaxes my muscles, it’s like I feel it between the sips. It’s the perfect kind of tea for me. It inspires me to try all of the chamomiles!
I wasn’t sure if I’d like this one when I looked it up on Steepster, but I tried it anyway.
It’s definitely interesting.
The main flavors are lemon and chamomile. They taste almost the same since chamomile is generally pretty sour tasting. Kinda a weird combo since it was a little hard to tell them apart, but I look forward to trying the other two tea bags of this one. It’s interesting. Not something I’d go out and buy, but it really does make for a pleasant cup when you want to relax.
Thanks for the samples, Rosehips!

Another cup this morning. Really enjoy the bright citrus note from the bergamot. Put a little extra sugar in this time and, well, it was sweeter as one might expect. Just right for my mood this morning.

Like this tea quite a lot. Really my first taste of a bergamot but it was fantastic. I’m always a fan of Assam teas which is the base of this tea (with Ceylon). Just fantastic in my opinion. Impressive especially for a bagged tea (though they call them “sachets” which I suppose is accurate as they’ve got plenty of expansion room).

A sipdown! Thank you, Morning Light, for being a bold tea to start off busy mornings.
The almost malty quality and the interesting hint of pine made this a unique experience, and I’m glad to have tried it!