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Sipdown (261)

J is not for…Grandma’s Caramel Butterscotch

I actually finished all the “J” teas I own so I moved on to non-J teas.

This tea caught my eyes a bunch of times for a latte but it has sneaky rose hips so that never happened. Don’t know why they do that. Also it’s a black rooibos blend and that makes it less appealing as well. That aside, the flavor sounds awesome.

It’s not my favorite. It’s a mediocre artificial caramel flavor to me. And the base teas both come through and take over. The rooibos is at the forefront and the black tea sort of leaves a lingering touch of smoke. It’s not working for me.

Plain, Iced and Cold Brew Sipdown (262)

J is for… Jane Austen’s Tea Party…again

I opened this sample package from Nichole this “morning” (I wake up late so it was my morning but not technically morning hours) and made a hot cup and set up a cold brew. When I filtered the cold brew, I decided to make an iced cup to compare the two at the same time. Then I realized there was one serving left and just decided to go for the Sipdown and make another hot cup.

This tea isn’t exciting to me because of the lavender. It stands out and makes things soapy when it’s in tea so I don’t think I’m the target audience for this one. That said, I’ll work my way through the different prep methods and share my thoughts anyways.

Cold brew: lavender comes through at the end of the sip and leaves a soapiness on the tongue. Until then it’s a subtle mix of berry and lemongrass. That berry acts as a bridge between the lemon and lavender which could be good but also highlights the various flavors, even the ones I enjoy less.

Iced: This is so much lemongrass. I don’t know what happened but I feel like I’m drinking a cold cup of straight lemongrass. I get pops of berry as I keep drinking, and the lingering soap of lavender, though less noticeable here than in the cold brew.

Hot: I think I prefer this tea hot the most. Lavender is least noticeable and I think the berry comes out the most this way.

Thank you for the sample, Nichole!

Sipdown (263)

J is for… Jin Shuan

Thank you Roswell Strange for the share! I am having this while eating Wendy’s and watching Drag Race. It’s an odd combo since I don’t usually have tea with my meals and if I do, it’s usually cold and picked to go with the meal. This just sort of worked out to be the accompaniment to my meal.

It’s smooth and a touch metallic. Some roastiness. It’s also quite buttery. It doesn’t stand out among other oolongs but it’s a solid option. Also works with the meal better than I expected it to.

Sipdown (264)

J is for…Jin Jun Mei

I woke up with motivation to do work today. Too bad my nephew woke up with the motivation to refuse his milk and scream the whole day while his Dad is at the firehall. So while I have been aspiring to blast through a paper so I can submit and move on, I have now spent hours helping my sister calm him down.

This tea and time to do a tea note is my reward so I can calm down. Thank you Sil for sending it my way!

This cup is slightly astringent but also a lot of malt. Some cocoa notes as well – specifically cocoa powder, rather than chocolate. No creaminess and not sweet. It also smelled awesome so it could have been my steeping that messed it up because I smell/taste a lot of potential here.

J is for…Jane Austen’s Tea Party

I made this cup hot but also set up a cold brew for later since I don’t have many “J” teas to explore. This one is alright. I get some berry and traces of the lavender, which I think is stronger in smell than taste – preferable for my tastes but likely not everyone will agree.

Sipdown (266)

Thank you Sil for sharing this one with me. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Despite the name and the many petals, this was a malty vanilla black tea. Smooth and really quite nice. Not overly floral, which is weird since its a rose tea.

Sipdown (266)

I is for…Indigo Sky

…and only Indigo Sky since this is the only “I” tea I own/owned. Thank you Sil for sending it my way – both because its been fun to try and because it helped me get more of my alphabet.

This is meant to be a blueberry tea so I was thrown when the first sip was all vanilla. Is there even vanilla in this?! I don’t think so. Also, it was just the first sip. All subsequent sips have been a blueberry flavor that is pretty true to the fruit. It’s not overly sweet. Just a simple blueberry black tea. Nice but I don’t reach for blueberry often enough to justify wanting more of this – plus if I were to want blueberry, I am with Sil in that I would likely want a 52 Teas blueberry offering.

H is for Hummingbird

Two of my favorite AQ2T blends are “H” teas and I couldn’t let the day pass without enjoying one of them. I had Hot Cross Buns the other day for Easter so Hummingbird it is. Usually I’ve been enjoying this one as an iced latte but since I had a hot latte earlier, I decided just to make a plain tea. I am enjoying it with a skillet cookie my sister baked for us to enjoy.

H is for…Hangover Helper…again

This is mostly flavorless when cold brewed. All those spices are basically absent. The hibiscus isn’t really there either. It’s like water that someone squeezed a tomato near and also dropped a small piece of ginger. Perhaps it didn’t steep long enough…