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Tea #23 from HHTTB2

I’m seriously warming up to chai/spiced blends, but only so long as I add milk and sugar.

I used 1 tsp/2 oz water and served over 6 oz of heated milk and a tsp of sugar.

So, as that’s how I normally brew chai, I seemed to manage to skirt around the serious spice that others have mentioned. There’s definitely a kick in the back of my throat though. The pepper builds over time and there’s definitely a burning feeling chilling in my throat while after my cup is gone. It’s a hurt so good kind of hurt, though.

The spices here are really well-balanced, and there’s a definite cocoa/chocolate note. The assam base let’s the tea flavor come through, and adds a very slight malty note.

This is seriously one of the best chai’s I’ve had. Nom.

Tea #22 from HHTTB2

Very pleasantly rose flavored without being perfume-y or liquor-y. There’s more body to this one than the other rose tea I really enjoy (La Vie en Rose from American Tea Room), but in a good way. The actual tea flavor seeps into the aftertaste and mingles with the rose. The cup has the transporting, luxurious quality I’ve come to expect from rose teas.

I like the mouthfeel on this one, but I prefer the better balance of tea and base in La Vie.

Tea #21 from HHTTB2

This is a quite dark leaf for a white tea; it’s a gradient of light to dark greens.

The flavor is dominantly jasmine, but it’s not an overpowering perfume, more of a delicate refreshing floral. There’s also a very subtle salty/sweet note. The base is slightly creamy and doesn’t have any dissonant hay or straw notes. A shorter steep definitely helps keep the jasmine under control.

I’m glad I had a chance to try this, as I hadn’t heard of the company previously. The price point is fair and there is a definite resteepability to the leaves. This would be a pretty fair day-to-day jasmine.

Tea #20 from HHTTB2

I am just not making good time on this box! But I did get to spend some much needed time with my little sister and then watched a comedy show with some friends, so I can’t really complain.

This is very blueberry fruity, with a spun sugar sweetness to it. And it’s definitely sweet without being sweetened. The green tea flavor is still present, which I found quite refreshing in such a strongly flavored blend.

I wish I had thought to ice this, but there’s only really enough for one more cup, and someone else it welcome to it.

Tea #19 from HHTTB2

The name of this tea totally made me think of of chocolate truffles filled with buttercream. Or something praline-esque.

Obviously I was not alone.

Obviously I was wrong.

So, as I was sitting here reading the ingredients while my tea was steeping, I was very much having second thoughts, and reviewing my life decisions that brought me to this point. (I jest.)

Once brewed up, this smelled mildly spicy. I definitely got cumin, coriander, and pepper from the aroma. It smells a bit like my kitchen when I’m making Aloo Gobi. There should be some cinnamon all up in here!

While the truffle mark is all sorts of confused in here. This is a really nice savory tea, with a very gentle amount of spice with notes of nuttiness. All packaged nicely with a smooth butteriness.

On second thought, this would make amazing tea-infused dark chocolate truffle coated in pistachio nuts. Oh man oh man oh man.

Tea #18 from HHTTB2

Delicately hay flavored, with toasted nut notes, and a splash of ginger. A slightly creamy mouthfeel (reminds of teas using really vanilla bean). A mellow cup, with a clean finish.

Tea # 16 from HHTTTB2

Elements of grape and rose on a dry white base. Sweetener amplifies the icewine notes, but I was expecting it to be sweeter from the gate.

Tea #15 from HHTTB2

This was more floral and less fruity than I was expecting. I’m glad I didn’t cold steep a cup, because it toes the overwhelming line now.

I don’t honestly get much for raspberry (or tea base), but there a light blueberry-ish note that I can bring back to the acai. It also, unfortunately, shares the baby powder taste/feeling that River of Heaven and Bouddha Bleu also have on me.

Tea #14 from HHTTTB2

This is a really nice chocolate tea. And it’s very clear that it’s blended quite masterfully. I’m letting this one go, only because I know Short Sorceress is looking for the perfect chocolate tea!

There is definitely a pretty potent element of roastiness/smoke from the Keemum as well as a solid dark, unsweetened cocoa note. There’s a very slight element of almond present, but everything takes a back seat to the chocolate/tea flavors. Everything is smooth — no bitterness, no astringency — and it’s very mellow. I really like the kind of bakery/pastry note that seems present at the end. Yum.

Picture:

http://bit.ly/18eVN0w

Tea #13 from HHTTB2

Once this is brewed up, it smells just like dark cocoa with a hint of orange!

The flavor is dark and cocoa-y, though the base itself isn’t terribly strong. The orange flavor comes through as very much candied orange rind flavor. And while the hibiscus doesn’t come through on the sip, the musty tartness is pervasive in the aftertaste. I’d be afraid to brew this longer in fear of popping the hibiscus into the sip.

Good, but not great.