Three Friends (Orange, Marshmallow, Chocolate)

Continuing on my cold brewing spree, I threw some of this in the fridge for a day or two. As soon as I’d added cold water, I thought that perhaps I should have done a quick hot flush to get the chocolate going, and didn’t expect I’d get as much out of a straight cold brew as a hot flush could have given. Does that even make sense? I’m saying I wasn’t expecting any chocolate flavour at all.

I WAS WRONG

This is actually pretty darn cool as a cold brew. I’m finally getting that marshmallow flavour, and surprisingly a lot of the chocolate has come through. It’s really nicely balanced cold, and I think I prefer it to hot! I’m definitely gonna try with a quick hot flush next time just to compare, and I also wanna try this with a drop of cream too (I don’t thiiiiink I’ve done that yet). And then I reckon I’ll be all out. Probably won’t restock but the experimenting is fun.

Of the tea I made this morning, this is the one that I was really craving and it definitely hit the spot! I enjoyed sipping at it slowly out of my newest mug: a pretty “Canada” themed ceramic stoneware mug with a pretty blue glazed outside and a white/beige inside. And I actually got it at work which is even cooler because it only cost me two dollars!

I added milk to this one which definitely made it creamier; lovely soft orange and chocolate notes that were decadent and smooth with that milky creaminess provided the perfect ease into the day. I’m not sure if I got “marshmallow” notes so much, but that’s ok – I think it was more the chocolate/orange that I was really craving in the first place, and the milk tied everything together really well anyway.

Mmm!

Let me start by saying that I have wanted to try this tea for a very long time. This has been saved for a ‘special’ day as a pick me up and today is the day. On Saturday my cousin Craig will be getting married to a Ms Katy Perry (no not that Katy Perry) and the day is a long affair in a very posh old style mansion. My grandad came down today from Wales and is staying with my parents for a week or so especially for Saturday. Since that leaves Saturday as completely afs (away from Steepster) and I’m working tomorrow and may have to stay late at my parents to spend time with my grandad that leaves today to try this ‘special’ tea.

I open the little tin and am greeted by an unbelievable chocolate orange scent, it is hands down the best chocolate orange tea I have had the pleasure to smell. I used to have a flavoured lip gloss that had the exact same smell…until my best friend ate it! The black tea is very light and curly in a mixture of medium and dark brown colours, it almost looks like a Darjeeling in terms of leaf shape. Mixed amongst the leaves are small pieces of orange rind and small chocolate drops. I can’t get past the smell, it’s soooo good!

The lid says 1.5 tsp in boiling water for 3 minutes. Simple enough, my husband can do that.

A few minutes later and the result is a dark brown tea liquid that is rich with notes of chocolate, malt and mellow orange.

The flavour matches it’s raw scent, it’s chocolate with orange and it’s pure ie not cocoa not synthetic chocolate but actual chocolate and to top that off it’s orange, real orange rind that is fresh and sweet. I don’t think there is a nicer combination than chocolate and orange. It also has a lingering aftertaste of marshmallow and vanilla which keeps the blend light and sweet.
I mentioned earlier that this is the best chocolate orange tea I have sniffed before, well I can add the taste to that too which makes this the best chocolate orange tea I have tried period.

These three friends just became my friend.

Butiki is here!

This one came in an awesome wee tin and this was the first tea to try. I’m really enjoying it. The orange is more subtle in taste than in scent, but it’s unmistakably there. The chocolate tastes like dark chocolate. And the marshmallow seems to provide a subtle creaminess. There is a sweetness here but the darkness of the chocolate keeps it from being sweet. Delightful.

Stacy is there a specific reason this one comes in a tin?

It’s kind of a yucky, overcast day today. I don’t really mind since I get to work from home in my favorite flannel pants. They are hideous. I love them! At my company we have a joke that they are my lucky pants and whenever I wear them, we get new business. And today we did.

So here I am on a yucky day, snuggled up in my flannel pants and having a tea marathon! Life is good.

I got this one in a box last week and while I have opened the tin and looked at it a few times, hadn’t tried it until today. A person can only take so much awesome in one day.

I really like the way the blend looks, and I don’t really know why. It reminds me a little of chocolate granola? I have no idea, but it appeals to me. Brewed, it is all yummy chocolatey with a hint of orange. I’m not sure about the marshmallow, but it is probably creating a roundness I would miss if it wasn’t there. I thought the flavors came out the most at the bottom of the cup when it was cooled a bit. Really satisfying! I think if it arm wrestled the raspberry truffle, the truffle would win though. I like that one a tiny bit better.

Got a sample of this with my latest Butiki order. I’ve been turned off of black teas lately so this was a nice surprise. Had with a little bit of creamer, no added sugar. The orange is the most prominent note, but there’s a creaminess from the marshmallow and a subtle bit of chocolate in the smell and around the edges of the orange flavor.

I think this blend is growing on me. The flavors are subtle and though I don’t usually like chocolate orange, I really don’t mind it in my cup. Luckily, I have about one cup worth of leaf left to decide if this is something I would want to stock.

The tea tastes weaker than I would expect. I think I should have added more leaf, but I didn’t have that much in the sample. I originally had it steep for 3 1/2 minutes, and then added another minute. It still tastes weak, and if it were stronger, I think it would be really, really good.

Not that I expected any differently, but this is a really nice chocolate orange tea.

The orange flavor is more on the orange rind side of things, but not in a bad way. It’s a bittersweet candied type flavor, and makes the whole cup remind me of our local chocolatier’s version of chocolate covered oranges (candied orange rind, and dark chocolate. Mmmmmmm!)

The chocolate flavor is more of a milk chocolate, and the nuttiness from the Zhen Qu adds a depth to it I wasn’t initally expecting. I didn’t pick up much from the marshmallow on this cup, other than a bit of fluffy sweetness kind of just chilling there and keeping me from even coming close to wanting to sweeten my cup.

I have been sneezing all day and I can’t seem to stop. I’ve probably sneezed over 100 times today. It’s weird because it’s like allergies, watery itchy eyes and all, but there’s nothing different about my house and I haven’t been anywhere today. I just woke up suddenly apparently allergic to myself…

This tea is holding up pretty well, but not as well as I’d hoped given that it’s the only Butiki tea I bought in a tin. The ones in the regular paper bags seem to be holding up better! It’s still really enjoyable, though. Plain, it’s rich and chocolatey with a zesty orange backnote. The chocolate is definitely dark chocolate, and it pairs really well with the base tea. Butiki seem to have done lovely deep, rich chocolate teas that no other brand seems to be able to get right at the moment, hence my usual aversion to chocolate teas. The orange is zesty and compliments the dark chocolate and base without overpowering them, but if you add a little sugar it becomes fresh and juicy, much more prominent in the blend. The marshmallow root rounds out the tea pretty well and adds a really satisfying thick mouthfeel. I’ve never had this base on its own so I’m not entirely sure of its notes, but it’s really lovely and smooth with no astringency whatsoever. I added a touch of milk, not because it needed it but because I wanted it to be more of a dessert tea, and it definitely was! The chocolate turns into a sweeter milk chocolate note and the orange becomes candied, but never fake. The mouthfeel is super thick and rich too, and it’s almost like drinking a liquefied Terry’s Chocolate Orange, which pretty much sounds like a dream I’d have. The only issue with this is that as I said before about the tea ageing, I didn’t notice it at all until I added milk, but it brought out a slight ‘stale’ sort of flavour, which didn’t bother me too much because it was only slight, but I do think I preferred it before the milk. This seems to be my general opinion of black teas lately! At one time I rarely drank a black tea without milk, and now it seems about 50/50. Maybe my tastebuds are maturing…