218 Tasting Notes
Well, umm, I don’t know about these herbal blends from Verdant. Let me make this clear – I only know two of them – the ones that were in the February Amoda box. The other was Love & Joy blend and I didn’t care for it much. This one also didn’t do much for me. I mean, I know it’s not purely an herbal, since there is some green tea in it, but its flavor and aroma just screamed HERBAL, so that’s how I feel I should think of it (does that make any sense?).
So, anyway, there’s sure a lot going on if you look at the impressive list of ingredients but they all merge into this herbally herbaliness that makes me feel like I should be sick in bed. I know it’s not a very constructive criticism, but I just have a weird relationship with herbals. I don’t like when they taste like herbals. And this one absolutely did. I could not find anything unusual about it, no flavor note that deserved a better scrutiny… I guess the right word would be boring. This blend was boring to me.
Oh well, I know that Verdant has absolutely awesome teas and I will definitely reach for them. It’s just that I will be more cautious about ever getting their herbal blends.
Preparation
I have had a fairly generous amount of it for a while now and I believe it I obtained it at Shadowfall’s stash sale. I think I had it at least once before, but it is only a few days ago that I actually got around to focusing on its nature.
I must say that I really liked it! I remember that the aroma was absolutely gorgeous and sweet. The flavors I got from it were a cross between a lightly roasted oolong (perhaps dong ding?) and a delicious, not-too-strong darjeeling. I think this is a very unique tea and I wouldn’t mind getting some more in the future, whether from the Single Origin Teas or other place.
Oh, and the dry leaf is SOOOO beautiful. It’s silver-lined light green, wiry and thick leaves.
Preparation
I finally got to try the sample of it a few days ago. Perhaps I overleafed it, as it came out really strong and with not much detectable flavor to it other than the stroooong base tea. I mean, I could definitely notice some hint of fruitiness but it was mostly “unidentified tropical flavors” with no complexity to them.
I think I should have been more careful steeping this one because I feel like it was mainly my fault this tea didn’t come out right. And that’s why I am not rating it.
Preparation
I think part of the problem with this is the add-ins are REALLY big. I had a few big chunks of cinnamon stick in mine which meant some cups had OMG!Cinnamon and others had none at all. Hopefully they get better at decreasing the add-in sizes as they go as that is the only complaint I have with Rivertea.
Yeah, I see what you mean. I think there’s a preconception that the bigger the chunks the better the tea. And it sure looks cute. But that doesn’t necessarily translate well to the overall steep. Bigger is not always better :D
I got 50g of it in my freebie RiverTea pack and I agree about the large chunks – but after parceling samples out to the people who wanted to try it, I just went through and broke all the chunks into smaller pieces so they could be better dispersed. This really holds its own a cold brew though; perhaps because using more leaf lets you get more chunk variety in there.
Roswell Strange, that definitely makes sense about the cold brew! Hopefully one day I will get to try this again because the description sounds like this has the potential of being delicious.
I remember this being a very decent earl grey, slightly on the creamy side, but still with a fair dose of citrusy bergamot (blergophobics beware!). The base tea was top-quality and very, very tasty.
While this would not win the earl-grey-on-hand spot in my cupboard, I am really glad I tried it. It was certainly a good cup and it resteeped very nicely too. Anyone who is on a hunt to try as many EGs as possible should check this one out!
Preparation
I have WAY too many teas on my backlog list now, so I might start reviewing them first thing since opening my laptop, right?
This oolong was a little odd. Green pearl-shaped dry leaf gave a light, straw-colored infusion that tasted pretty vegetal and a little astringent (which was that odd part – I didn’t expect it to have such a bite). I also got some milder roasty notes there. I remembered it smelled slightly funky. I am pretty sure I resteeped it at least once but the resteep didn’t yield any new notes.
It was enjoyable but nothing that could enter my Oolong Hall of Fame. But then perhaps I was too distracted when I had it. I still have more of this, so I will definitely try it again.
Preparation
Ever since this blend came out and people started writing about it, I have wanted to try it. The sample from the awesome VariaTea made it possible! Yay!
First, I was very pleasantly surprised at how refreshing it was. It tasted more like a melon to me than a cucumber… And perhaps that’s good? I also knew there would be mint here that I am not fond of, but it wasn’t up in my face, it was just there to highlight the “melon” freshness.
Then, however, I began having problems with the base that was WAY too weak. Of course it could have been my fault, as I might have not added enough leaf. Either way, the combination of a weak black base and the melon taste combined into something I can only call “sweaty notes”, especially as it cooled down. Which makes me wonder if this would be better or worse as a cold brew?
Overall, I liked it, but it is not something I definitely need to have in my cupboard. Thank you, VariaTEA, for letting me try it and make up my own mind about it. I still have a serving left to decide how I feel about it!
Preparation
I got a sample of this from VariaTEA. Thank you!
This tea surprised me with pretty unusual spicy notes. Very unlike the ones one usually finds in a chai. The spiciness was somewhat perfumey, and I liked that. I didn’t detect much chocolate here, however, but it’s weird to think of my expectations of chocolate flavoring in tea – because they are rarely satisfied :D
The base tea was neither weak nor strong, I didn’t notice it much when sipping, but I think my body has received a nice boost, so this cup was perfect to start the day with!
Preparation
TTBC2 #19
Backlog from last night.
This tea is Spicy Cherry by Herbal Infusions. Somehow I cannot find it on Steepster and I guess I am far too lazy to add it. Even more so because it’s not on Herbal Infusions’ website anymore.
It’s a flavored rooibos blend. The cherry flavor was mostly medicinal and not particularly tasty, while the spicy element was hardly there. Very boring cup. I have noticed it is so difficult to flavor rooibos just right.
Well, now that I look at the picture on this page and at my actual tea… I am not sure if they are the same. Because I sure don’t have any of these fancy fruit pieces! The Mon Secret that I got is largely just tea leaves… There’s bits and pieces of something in it, I guess. Hmmm…
The steep has a beautiful dark ruby color but it looks and tastes just like keemun tea with not much else to it. It’s a little disappointing, but I am not sure who to blame for it. I seriously believe that there’s something not right with the blend I got. Perhaps getting their teas from Amazon is not an entirely good idea?
Days off are magical.
They sure are… Although I should clean up at some point, LOL!
Sounds like an excellent day! :)