82 Tasting Notes
Rediscovered this tea a friend gave me for a birthday a few years ago. I’d run out of masala chai tea so this is my current cinnamonny tea… until I run out, at least!
Possibly brewed this a little too long as the colour’s gone quite dark, but tastewise it’s fine. Somehow remember this being a lot more spicy rather than just a wonderful aroma of cinnamon and no corresponding flavour, but then again, I did leave it for a few years… It’s very smooth in taste, though. I like it! It just doesn’t promise a powerful flavour.
Preparation
Giving this a shot as a good friend listed it as the best Earl Grey they had ever tried. I already tried Pain Quotidien’s Masala Chai and had good results, so I’m expecting something great here too!
Has a wonderful warming scent to it, not overly floral/bergamot-y as some tend to be, like the black tea base is dominant here. The bergamot seems to be more of an edge than a main scent. As I brewed this until it’s dark brown I expect simply brewing it for that amount of time may have let the black tea steep fully…
It’s an interesting tea when black! I think I might brew this less strong if I’m going to drink it without milk as the mouthfeel is rather dry afterwards and the bergamot seems to bite at the end of the sip. Having added milk, however, the bergamot’s come out all floral and sweet and bold but not too assertive, and it’s become a hearty, delicious cup! There’s just the right balance of flavours and neither the tea nor the bergamot are getting lost (as I might expect from Twinings). High rating on this one, shame I only have 14 more teabags of this!!
Preparation
Got this as a free sample from Rosie Lee’s Tearoom in Canterbury (thanks, guys!)… it’s not helping the overcrowding of my tea cupboard but then again, it’s only a small packet, so I can’t complain :)
It’s got a mysterious aroma, I can smell the rich green tea much better than I can any other flavours, apart from possibly the lime? I’ve rarely had teas with lime in them so perhaps I just can’t recognise it? By the smell the green tea could maybe be a chun mee or something similar, and the colour is a nice rich gold.
Tastewise, this is wonderfully mellow! There seems to be a hint of mint flavour and the apple and lime are equally balanced (nothing artificial or too strong in the apple, either), especially sweet at the start of a sip and becoming a little astringent and fruitier towards the end. Nicely robust and sweet; I like it! Might use it for my morning pick-up once I run out of plain green tea! :D
Preparation
Hi, glad you enjoyed this tea. i was suprised to find a review of our great tea on Steepster, but pleased. It is one of our best sellers over the last year. We have over 65 teas including two which won awards in the 2013 Great Taste Awards in the UK. Check out our website at www.rosieleatea.co.uk to see these and the rest of our range.
Hi everybody! I haven’t been on Steepster lately for two reasons: 1, I’m now incredibly busy at university; and 2, I simply haven’t gotten round to trying new teas! I have such a vast quantity in my cupboard that it would be silly to open even more boxes when I haven’t used up what I already have. Slowly but surely, I’m making space, and will soon have some lovely new teas to try :)
Starting up this habit again, I happen to be making this breakfast tea of which I took a few teabags from the hotel breakfast buffet last time I went to Paris (shhh, don’t tell anyone). The water I’ve used is unfiltered since I’m just making it in my room while I write my essay- not sure if this will affect the taste significantly.
In colour… like any good English Breakfast tea, this has gone straight to a deep brown in no time at all, the smell is rich and oaky, I feel like I might be heading for a classic breakfast tea here. And it really is “sturdy” like in the description! Very slightly dry (which I suspect is the Ceylon), strong and with a slightly roasted, wood aftertaste that gets more intense with every sip- but somehow, I wouldn’t call the flavour “rich”. It might be because of the water; but it’s so delicious I might drink this without milk! Thank you, Dammann!
Preparation
Found the very last teabag of this in my cupboard (I’m at home, meaning the majority of my tea collection is at uni: I’m scavenging a little through my old blends here!) so I’m giving it a shot as I’m craving white tea.
Last time I had this I’m not sure my white tea brewing methods were too great, so I took extra care not to use water that was too hot here. It’s smelling a lot more fragrant than I ever remember; the rose and bergamot are certainly distinguishable, the rose more so. But it’s beginning to smell like a bath soap.
Taking care with the water temperature and brewing time here has definitely helped- it’s now soft, rather than harsh, although it still tastes like a Lush product! The white tea is hardly present at all except maybe in a slightly toasty background but the rose tastes all-consuming here! Even the bergamot seems to have tossed in a vaguely citrusy edge and run from the perfume-y flavour of it all. Ah well – it wasn’t such a bad experience this time. It was good while it lasted but I don’t think I’ll be making an effort to buy more of this. Cheers, Will and Kate!
Preparation
Very tasty and refreshing, wow! I thought I wouldn’t like this because I’m not fond of Assam or mint at (why try it then, me??) but the mint really is sweet! It’s nicely balanced out with other flavours too and is much sweeter than regular peppermint tea- I can see myself actually having this as a snack. Delicious!
Preparation
Merry Christmas, everybody! I acquired some of this from a little market stall along the Champs Elysées on an art history trip- could it be any more romantic? :) It was between this oolong and the salted caramel flavour, and as it was coming up to Christmas, I picked this one!
I haven’t managed to do a proper gradual sit-down tasting but for this one: the first time I brewed it and drank it piping-hot, the first taste was definitely roast chestnuts. But not just a nutty taste… the soft mellowness and rich flavour of the chestnuts, working with a subtle and very tasty oolong. The dry leaves smell delicious too and look gorgeous with the sunflower petals.
Just a quick note while I’m finishing my Christmas lunch :)
Preparation
Another tea from cteresa after my bad luck with another Melissa (lemon balm) tea. I have a cold right now so I hope hot lemon-y tea with honey helps and I think the website recommends some honey with this too :) Unlike the tea I’d previously tried, this one is more lemony, and certainly more delicate. The taste is grassy and a little smoky, and with a spoonful of meli (honey)… perfect. Definitely a herbal tea for me :D
Preparation
I am glad you liked it! This is nothing special just the supermarket´s own lemon balm tea and what I had at hand at home. But you had mentioned the other lemon balm tea has being sort of musty, and noooo lemon balm is not musty at all, it is very nice herb indeed! Glad I could send you a better one, even if it was a very ordinary take on it!
Haha, wouldn’t think I’d find this tea here considering I got it from a local little tearoom in Canterbury! Actually discovered this during our Tea Society’s Christmas social where we had a “mystery tea tasting” competition: usually we are all served a little of a tea without knowing what kind it is or what’s in it and have to guess, but this time round, we were given a scorecard… And my team won ;) all because I guessed “peony” for this one, prominent as it is in Coquelicot Gourmand, I’ve come to recognise it in other places too.
And wow, did the flavours surprise me at first! Plenty of people said the aroma was like cherries, maybe cherry bakewell tart (with wild cherries it almost smells like… cough syrup? still delicious!); I found it tasted very much like frangipane, or almonds, or maybe amaretto, as well as rose and peony, but I couldn’t guess chilli at all.
This time round, brewing it at home, I was so fascinated by the miniscule chillies and rosebuds in the loose-leaf tea that I decided to use one of the tiny chillies in my brew. Big mistake. I’m terrible with spiciness. This absolutely burns on the way down, but only while I’m actually drinking it. All the other beautiful flavours are still there though! Cherry, still some marzipan there, peony, with a very smooth, fruity sip as though the chilli had never been there in the first place.
I definitely, definitely recommend giving this try if you can, it’s a really unique experience. I might just toss out all the chillies in my bag of this so I don’t burn my mouth off though!
