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Another hot cup tonight while hoping to be better tomorrow. Must try this after 7 minutes next time. Enjoying it.

Passion! How I’ve missed you. I got a Publix giftcard and was all too eager to hit the tea aisle while running errands. (Majorly disappointed that my local one doesn’t carry Republic of Tea.)

This tea is one of my old favorites. It brews up as dark as red wine and stains the bag pink. The flavor is so complex and comforting. It’s tart but not too tart, and rounded well by the hibiscus in it. It’s one of the few herbal teas I like, since the flavor isn’t weak or medicine-like. Or musty. It’s what Celestial Seasonings’ Zingers wish they were. Mmm.

And, if you can believe it, I’m sick again. Yes. This is the third time now. Worst winter ever. But at least I’m done moving.

Anyway, a cup of this to get my day started, and so I can take my Sudafed. I can hardly taste it. Still, parts of the flavor are coming through. I can still taste the bitterness, and the sweetness the sugar added.

I got a big bag of this from my mom. Royal Cup is a food-service brand, common in local restaurants around here. The bag she gave me was meant for one of the huge canisters that hold gallons of sweet tea at a time. Anyway, I decided it might be cool to make a pitcher’s worth in my triniTea. I was wrong.

It’s so finely cut/smashed that it made an enormous mess in the machine. The infuser cup was mostly clogged by the particles. And the resulting tea? Not really good. I used 8 teaspoons to make a 2-quart pitcher. The tea tastes a bit like Thai tea before the condensed milk… that sort of bittery vanilla-esque black tea flavor. I didn’t really care for it, though I can’t really describe why. My brother said it was “bomb-ass” and drank all of it, however, so it didn’t go to waste.

Hmm. This is not as good as I remember it. I think I’ve gotten spoiled, especially after trying a few from Arbor Teas’ black tea selection. Still, I’m enjoying a cup after a nap and before a night of drinking with some friends from out of town. It’s malty and dark tasting, very bold. And as far as the caffeine content goes, the name is accurate! But the description says there’s a hint of cherries and caramel…? What? Where exactly are they getting that?

And next time, I need to reduce the steep time. This has gotten a little sharp. Maybe four and a half minutes next time instead of five.

Edit: Ok, now that it has cooled a bit, I sort of get what they meant by caramel, but I wouldn’t have mentioned it like that. I think that could potentially mislead and disappoint people who were looking for a noticeable caramel flavor.

I love this stuff. It doesn’t resemble tea in any way to me, but I don’t really care. If I see it at a gas station, Barnes and Noble, or whatever, I usually grab a bottle. I was pretty obsessed with it when I discovered it one summer back in high school. The bottle’s style intrigued me, and at that time, I could only find it at Starbucks.

It’s sweet and vaguely cinnamony, but it mostly tastes like a blend of real grape juice and apple juice.

As I’ve said many times before, I don’t like rooibos. I don’t like that aftertaste it always has. But I received this as a gift and couldn’t help my curiosity. I mean, come on. It’s apple, cinnamon, and caramel on Christmas!

The bag smelled heavenly, fresh and spicy and sweet. I let it steep, added sugar, and was not at all disappointed. This tea tastes like my scented candle from IKEA smells. And I mean that in a very loving way, not as an insult. Not in the “this tastes fake” kind of way. It’s delightful, even with the rooibos aftertaste, which is mild. It’s like apple pie, and I am definitely not going to trade this like I originally planned. It’s mine.

Gave this another try last night, I guess to see if my tastes have changed. They haven’t. This just tastes like leather to me… like I steeped leather in my teapot. I do not dig it.

Brewed this quadruple-strong, let it steep for a good long time, and served it with cream and sugar. It’s my perfect coffee alternative this late afternoon.

Half of my tin is gone. D:

Backlogging from last night.

Had this without milk, just a few teaspoons of sugar. It was much stronger this way, but I miss the creaminess the milk added. It was an interesting trade off. Still good, but not amazing.