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This is a cup-worth of tea that I saved from a Traveling Box C and what I scribbled on my baggie was Black Currant Bergamot Shou Mei… but there is no way in hell I can find that here on Steepster.

I found this, however, and perhaps that’s what this is supposed to be. Especially that I’m not getting any bergamot out of this.

Anyway, it’s a pleasant white tea with an unmistakable black currant flavor. The flavoring is not artificial in any way, and the smooth, slightly sweet white tea base blends well with it. I’m not head over heels in love with it, but it’s a nice companion for this pre-stormy yet peaceful afternoon.

BUTIKI EDUCATIONAL TRAVELING BOX

So here we go! I think I am going to edit this one post as I go with my tastings. It is going to be easier to keep it organized that way.

Bolivia Green – Wow! I am absolutely loving it. The leaves are long and rolled up a bit, they steep into bright yellow color that, to me, usually means it is going to be a delicious green. The aroma is flowery and syrupy, it tastes like a cross between a dragonwell and a maltier gunpowder. It has creamy mouthfeel to it. As it cools, I detect a really shy notes of bitterness. It is really yummy and I wish I knew where to get more of this potion! :D 90/100

Darjeeling 1st Flush #3 – This was very subtle and unassuming, with no bitterness. I love the color of the leaves, it almost looks like a green tea! The liquor was also pretty light for a black tea. I detected some flowery notes as well as some mild citrusy ones. It was good, although lacked character a bit. 78/100

While not quite as delicious as Brioche (can any dessert tea beat that one???), it is very tasty. Very nutty with a hint of preserved fruit flavor as well as very mild spiciness. The black base is bold enough, but it lets the flavoring shine.

It smells heavenly, too! Good yum to start the afternoon with.

Thanks to VariaTEA for sending me a sample of this in a swap :)

I am generally unimpressed with rooibos blends, although once in a while I find something really good. I really wanted to try this one because… my husband is pisces. ;) This one turned out to belong to the delicious rooibos blends group!

It is very caramely and the rooibos base seems to be just perfect. There’s no pencil shavings, no moldy wood, no other odd flavors. Just fresh, slightly sweet, unobtrusive rooibos expertly flavored with caramel bits. I enjoyed this one very much!

Long time, no see. I’ve been away, and when I wasn’t, I was at work. So there. Unfortunately I didn’t have much time to drink tea either. I tried a few new ones though, and I’ll try to write notes about some of them.

This tea completely surprised me because it’s really a ceylon. And I never thought a ceylon could taste like this. Very malty with the best bitterness that I have experienced in tea. It’s a kind of bitterness you would get from honey, where you can almost taste the pollen and this honey’s very early planty origin. I am probably not expressing myself clear but OH WELL. ;D It was bittersweet, like the most beautiful goodbyes – does that make more sense?

Anyway, I really loved this tea and I will be definitely getting more of it. It resteeps fairly well, too, although loses a bit of its beauty in the process. I also think that I have to revise my approach towards ceylons. They are not all boring…

Thank you, Single Origin Teas, for sending me a generous sample to try!

I just absolutely adore the appearance of most green oolongs -individual, jade green leaves curled up into beads. And this one is just like that, too. It is so easy to measure out tea leaves shaped in this way.

Since I am a huge fan of green oolongs, even though I definitely haven’t had all of them, I thought there wouldn’t be too much that could surprise me about this one. Yet, the floral notes of this bright and sunny yellow concoction seemed quite unique! There was something delicate, but not necessarily I’m-striving-to-find-the-notes mild, about it. It is definitely not as fragrant and perfumey as the dong ding from Eco-Cha, it seems in some ways like its shy sister.

It is a delicious oolong and the only reason my rating is a little lower than I initially planned is because most of its sophistication is gone on the second steep. While second steep was strong, it just tasted pretty mundane and generic-kind-of-oolong-like. Perhaps I should try different temperature / time for the resteep next time?

Since I had had a sample sachet of this for a while now, I decided to have it this morning. It wasn’t particularly remarkable even though I was hoping there was some Chinese tea blended in… as it seemed a bit sweet.

Unfortunately, now I read that it is just Ceylon tea, the one kind which instigates zero interest in me (although I must admit that it is pretty awesome iced), which would explain its almost mediocrity to me. Almost mediocrity, because I did detect some pleasant floral notes. I only wish they were a little stronger.

Also, the tea didn’t resteep very well. The second steep was really mild and weak even though I added 1,5 minute to the original steeping time. Not a bad tea, not anything that was a challenge to finish, but nothing particularly flavorful or sophisticated either.

I should definitely revise my approach towards assams, because I’ve been mostly straying for them. I just got this idea in my head that they are awfully bitter. And the weird part is that I love Butiki’s Caramel Vanilla Assam.

This tea made me want to reconsider and start getting into assams more. The dark leaves with specks of beige steeped into clear, mahogany liquor that smelled surprisingly sweet. It was honey/malt sweet aroma with a hint of bitter to it.

I must say that there was something, at least about this particular assam, that tasted a bit like Chinese teas to me. It must be the sweetness and a slight hint of chocolate. There was also some astringency, especially by the end of the cup, but I didn’t mind it. I think I love this kind of “bite” now. Very specific, astringent, slightly drying mouthfeel.

Thank you, Single Origin Teas, for sending me some of your teas to try!

I am a little disappointed with this tea. I picked it as the sample that accompanied my May subscription choices. I thought I could never go wrong with a Chinese black!

Perhaps I didn’t steep it right? 2.5 minutes @ 205? Either way, I got a very dark brew that tastes quite bitter but at the same time does not have much of a body. It feels like it’s weak, and yet it’s bitter. Odd. It is also pretty tasteless. The note I detect is… generic tea note. I know it sounds stupid, but there’s just not much more to it.

I am really curious how this will taste to others. It is not a horrible tea. I can easily finish the cup… I don’t think I will go for a resteep though. It is just so… uneventful.

Perhaps I just got spoiled with teas like Yezi’s Jin Pin or Damn Fine Tea blends from Cavocorax ;)

Thank you, Cavocorax, for a super-generous sample of this!

The first sip of this clear and copper brew made me think of… Calming Manatee Meme ;D I have no idea why! It’s black tea, there shouldn’t be much calming about it. Yet, that’s how it is like. As if somebody patted you on the back and said “Everything will be just fine!”

It smells absolutely amazing. Chocolate, roses, bread are only some of the notes I detect. Each sip is like a different kind of cake – chocolate, banana, pecan. It is still more than just a straight black blend of a sweet character. There’s certain astringency and bitterness to it, pretty mild, and definitely not unpleasant, that gives it character. It could just become one of my favorite black blends, very obvious rival for H&S’ Queen Catherine.