T2

This one is a sugar based tea, so its a instant option. I’ve had one lot as a sample in the T2 store, and its sweet and apple-y. I got given a box (along with the cherry version) for my birthday and they are nice hot when you’re looking for a sweet and tangy instant pick-me-up or treat. I imagine it’d ice well, using a pour-over ice method. Will review again later with an iced glass when its a bit warmer. Not sure I’d actually go out and buy a box for myself, but I’ll enjoy drinking it none-the-less.

A sipdown!

I made a timonlino of this to bring to work this morning as it was viciously windy last night and I got very little sleep. Its a rare day when I’d say this, but thank god for eye makeup. I needed something warming and easy to drink, and a bit sweet to sooth my tired brain and body, and this is doing the trick.

I really enjoyed this one, I might get it again at some point and tried it iced. Apparently its meant to be good like that.

I’ve been steadily drinking this and only just realised when I made my current cup that I’m down to the last few spoonfuls! And even thought I burned my tounge on the cup I just made, its still really tasty. I’d buy this again.

I remember when I bought this with a birthday voucher last year. My other half sniggered because its the name of an adult shop in our city.

Either way, the cuppa is tasty! Not bitter, a lovely sweet hit from the papaya.

Just made a pot of this in my for life 1L pot to share with the other half for breakfast. Tried at 95oC temp this time instead of boiling and I was able to forgo the sugar. Lovely!

My first glass, and the first tea of my birthday! I got this yesterday with a birthday voucher (along with chocolate chai oolong and a sunny t glass. It smelled amazing dry in store, and this morning it smells amazing while brewing.

Oh, and it tastes really nice! The rose is sweet, without being overly flowery, and the black is a great base and isn’t bitter at all.ooh, this is actually really tasty! I really like it. Good birthday pick by me!

After steeping it up for my smoothie, I did a re-steep for my timolino. ITs come out well, but I think the thermos needed a more ferocious scrub after having a peppermint tea in it yesterday, I’m getting green strawberries and mint! Its quite tasty, just unexpected.

I made a standard steeper of this to put in my green smoothie as a base this morning (my Blendtec arrived, so naturally I had to try it out!). I made it up hot, even to go in a green smoothie, because its winter and my TCM Dr tells me I have a cold constitution and I should eat and drink warm things at the moment. No arguments here, it seems to work for me! The strawberry tones of this tea worked really well in my smoothie, adding a bit extra sweetness to drown out the weird fishy taste of my spirulina and chlollera supplements. I might just have to do that again!

I can’t wait until summer, I imagine making iced tea slushies in a Blendtec is pretty easy to do.

Over 40oC. Bushfires everywhere, the smell is drifting in my windows. General ugh-ness about today. Iced tea is a lifesaver, probably actually. I hope everyone is safe on this horribly dry and hot day.

Weird day – I made fabulous sweet potato, aioli and avocado burgers last night, but something didn’t agree with me and I’ve been looking like I’m 4 months pregnant ever since. Ugh.

Anywho, I’ve been drinking this all day, multiple steeps from the same leaves. Holds up quite well! I also think I prefer this at 70-75oC rather than 80. Reduces any suggestion of bitterness. Lovely.

Made this from my T2 Society sign-up sample to go with breakfast today. It has a very strong fresh strawberry smell, but like many flavoured teas, the actual taste doesn’t live up to it (if it had tasted as strawberry-y as it smelled, this would’ve got a 95-ish rating. It smells that good!). IT tastes really nice though. Beautiful soft sencha with strawberry notes. Even the other half liked it, and I’ve not yet given him a green tea he’s liked.

So really nice, but a stronger strawberry taste would’ve blown this into “must have this all the time” territory. Will experiment as summer comes around with adding strawberries (and champagne, thinking it would go well in a cocktail..)

This is my first ever Gen Mai Cha, so T2, please take criticism with a grain of salt (or rice?).

This was interesting. I could taste the sencha, it was soft and a bit sweet, but not overly powerful. I could also clearly identify the rice, it tasted roasted, almost like slightly overcooked popcorn kernals. I didn’t get a popcorny taste.

I’m unsure about this one, it was pleasant enough to drink, but didn’t wow me. Again, unsure if its gen mai cha, or T2’s gen mai cha. Definitely warrants further testing! (Which I’ll be able to do very shortly, as I type staff are unpacking stock in the soon to be opened store in my city. Just in time for my birthday! I think my brain might explode – a real, proper tea store without having to fly anywhere!!!)

I’m used to steeping my green teas around 80°C, so when T2 called for the Strawberry Bliss Chai (with a green base) to be steeped at 100°, I scratched my head a bit but I believed them. It worked out fine. Don’t steep for too long or it gets too bitey (damn cardamom) but after a short stint of steeping it’s a chilli sweet dream.

Love it. Very smooth and nice like all chai. T2 recommend having half chai and half milk with a touch of honey for traditional Indian chai. It’s really soothing. The longer you leave it, the better and stronger.

It’s 1.45am and I have made myself a cup of Sleep Tight to shut my brain up. I am not the biggest fan of herbals but this is mostly drinkable – especially the new season batch (look for the darker lemon balm leaves!).

OH YEAH, this is what I want a hearty tea to taste like! MMMMM. YUM. The dry scent is lovely, with the fruity sweetness of the lemon and blueberries, but then the pu’erh comes running through like a steamtrain. The wet scent is a bit off-putting, kind of almost like mud. VERY, VERY EARTHY. I was a bit scared off once I’d poured it, but thank gosh I went for it anyway. This is my kind of kick-in-the-guts tea.

So essentially this is Sencha Sprinkles without the Sprinkles… still nice and toasty but missing the “oomph” that comes with the matcha in the Sprinkles. Happy to have some on hand, though – and maybe I’ll experiment with adding some matcha to it!

Not-too-sweet, refreshing and cleansing. Great with milk and honey. Brew for maximum time to release all flavours! An absolute favourite in the evening after dinner. It’s a sweet treat without the guilt, and the mint is quite soothing too :)

Bamboo tastes like peas! PEA TEA! So weird. It’s really lovely and fresh. Steep forever and re-brew up to three times.

In an attempt to work through a bunch of my teas to clean up the cupboard a bit, I tried this one as my breakfast tea. I added half a teaspoon of sugar automatically and on first sip really wish I hadn’t. This is a naturally sweet tea, extremely so, and now it is too sweet. There are definite vanilla notes here, and I can sense something possibly fruit like as well. Overall a nice cup, but not a black for first thing in the morning, and definitely not one that I’ll be sweetening again.

Soooooo close to a sipdown! One cup to go.

I’m almost out of my big box of this blend! Ready to have a bit of a break from it, despite it still being a favourite.