Tawny Kira Send Message

I have had this tea before, but never posted my review of it…
Here’s my first impression:

In the bag it smelled slightly medicinal, as raspberry sometimes can. Once brewed however the smell sweetened up and was quite enticing. The raspberry flavor is more subtle than I would have liked, and the medicinal quality was a bit off-putting. It was pretty disappointing considering I love raspberries so much.

I just revisited this tea, as my husband bought me a big jar of raspberry jam. I’ve been looking at my tea box longingly, just waiting to try this tea out with a big scoop of raspberry jam in the cup. Since my nose was a bit stuffed up & I didn’t want to try out any of the delicate white tea samples that Stacy so generously sent me with my sense of smell compromised. So raspberry tea it is.

Adding the jam in this tea really made a HUGE difference. It actually tastes like raspberries this time around. It’s just as tasty as it cools down, too. Now I can actually drink this tea and not just stare at it taking up space in my tea box. I wish the tea tasted this good without the need for jam, but I’ll take it :)

This one’s been sitting in my cupboard for a while but I totally forgot about it. So I figured, it’s breakfast time- why not!

This is a very standard breakfast tea. It doesn’t really stand out in any spectacular kind of way. Nothing that makes me want to jump over the moon, but still a good traditional cup to start my day. Not really sure what else to say about it, other than that.

I can finally drink tea again after having my wisdom teeth removed! Well, actually I could have a few days ago, but with one of my ‘teeth’ hurting pretty badly I didn’t want to risk it and waited until the surgeon gave me the go ahead today :)

I wanted to have something warm and soothing to end my night, so when I saw this sample pack in my tea box it jumped out at me.

The aroma as I opened the bag was rich and hazelnutty. It smelled delicious. The aroma stayed just as nutty as it steeped & filled my kitchen with a comforting warmth.

The tea itself required very little sweetening. I added just a touch of milk- it seemed fitting for this tea- and I fell in love. Nutty, rich, silky, warm and soothing. A very relaxing cup of tea. It would be a great way to end the day or to wake up with in the morning.

This tea was quite good- sweet & chocolatey with a hint of strawberry and the earthy undertone of pu-erh. I enjoyed it, but I think I’d have liked if the pu-erh and strawberry flavors had stood out more. Maybe it’s just because I have a love hate relationship with chocolate sometimes, but to me the chocolate was a little bit of a show stealer. I tend to gravitate towards darker, more bitter chocolates though so maybe that was part of it!

For die-hard chocolate lovers however, I think this tea would be a huge hit! I definitely enjoyed it though and it was a nice rich cup to stir me awake this morning :)

After the cloyingly artificial taste to my previous cuppa, I found I felt very weighed down. After a while I decided to go for something lighter which brought me to this tea.

1st steep- light in color, delicate in flavor. The aroma is ever so gently grassy. There is an airy floral quality to this tea that I find very refreshing.

2nd steep- slightly darker in color, more fragrant. The natural sweetness comes out in this tea as well of a more noticeable floral note. I am enjoying this second steep even more than the first!

Clearly it’s not winter considering it’s almost 80°F outside and it’s only 9:00am, but this tea sounded like a good start to my early morning (the baby woke up at 5:30am, ouch).

Opening the sample packet (sent to me by the lovely Bonnie) it smelled of walnuts with a slightly yeasty aroma lingering in the background. Like a good slice of nutty bread. Considering this tea has been likened to banana nut bread, I saw this as a good sign.

The tea once brewed made my kitchen smell like a bakery- nutty, warm, sweet. The tea tasted the same! If banana nut bread were a liquid, it would be this tea.

The tea isn’t bad by any means, but with the strength of the nuts and other flavorings, you lose the tea flavor. And that to me was rather disappointing.

I was rifling around in my teas this morning, unsure of which to choose when this tea just jumped out at me. It was a Creamsicle kind of morning.

Upon opening the sample that the lovely Bonnie sent me, I was faced with the bright inviting smell of orange zest which continued through the steeping and into my cup. This was definitely the tea for me!

The tea on it’s own is alive with citrus flavor! I added just a touch of honey and the smallest bit of milk and this tea just exploded with flavor. The creaminess came out and really brought out the creamsicle in this light and airy tea. A very happy tea to brighten up my morning :)

I drank this lovely tea yesterday, but found I didn’t have time to sit and log it, so I’m doing so now :)

I wasn’t really sure what to expect with this tea since I’ve read that it can have a peppery quality to it and I wasn’t sure how that would translate into a tea. But I was more than pleased when I took my first sip. The honeyed flavor of the tea on it’s own had a subtle spiciness and maltiness that was lyrical on my tongue and with the addition of that little bit of honey into the cup, it just came alive.

Thank you to Bonnie for sending this sample my way! :)

I said previously that I planned on using this tea in steaming some veggies (as suggested by Bonnie!) and I did, so I thought it would be a good idea to post a tasting note about the outcome!

I made up some packets with carrots, squash, zucchini, potatoes, and cut up ears of corn to put on the grill. I added in a little melted butter, sage, salt/pepper, garlic, red pepper & just a touch of LS (in the tea packets Bonnie sent). I steamed the packets on the grill for 30 minutes.

The smell while it was grilling was amazing. But once I opened the foil packets my mouth really started to water! The tea added a smokey flavor to the veggies that wasn’t overpowering at all, but still quite present. It was divine. I didn’t tell my husband that I’d steamed the veggies with tea until he mentioned the smokiness- he was pretty impressed that just a little bit of tea could bring that much flavor!

I would have never thought to use tea in my cooking, but I’m so glad I did!

When I opened the bag of this tea that Bonnie sent me, I was hit with the smell of bonfires. I immediately knew that this was the tea I wanted to drink.

The smokey aroma lingered as it steeped, and remained as I poured it although it was not quite as powerful as when I first opened the bag. It tastes just like I imagined it would. If you could drink a bonfire, this is exactly what it would be like. I really don’t know how else to describe it, the words have left me!

This tea would be great on a summer night as well as an autumn night. It brings a comforting warmth with its smokiness and I feel that it would be a good tea with which to blend your own custom flavors with. I’ve got a couple pairings in mind to try out actually :)

Bonnie mentioned steaming vegetables with a little of this tea & I already know that I’m going to try it out tonight! We’re having company over and grilling out and I think some smokey vegetables would pair perfectly with the meal! I’ll make sure to let you know how it turns out! :)