I made this again, and divided some to try it with milk (I didn’t want to add milk to ALL of it because I’m not really in the mood for milk in my tea [I hardly am {see: never, sans chai}]). You can still smell the maple, that’s a good sign… And the maple taste is actually a bit more evident. The milk mellowed the tea but not the maple. This’ good. It’s still not strong, but it’s slightly more evident in the aftertaste.
I actually made it with a cooler temperature and longer steeping time today, just to see if I could get any stronger of a taste. There’s a moderate difference (not dramatic, but not weak at least).
Maybe I’ll try sugar. But I’m enjoying my tea as it is right now, so perhaps another time.