Vanilla Mint

Been sickly and this is the only tea sitting right with my tummy right now.

Finishing up my sample today :( My poor husband is home with some kind of virus (at least I think it’s a virus because he feels so feverish and is queasy and his head is killing him) and I am feeling like I am not too far behind in the queasy department. My new friend mint to the rescue! (the running joke in my house is that next I’m going to start liking sushi! The three things I hated were coconut, mint and sushi, and here I am CRAZY about coconut and now mint!!!). ANYWAY!

This tea is really hitting the spot today. I can’t even think about the idea of milk without my stomach churning, and this combination of green and black teas with a touch of comforting vanilla and tum soothing mint? Absolutely ideal and very, very delicious. I am so sad that I don’t have any more leaves left, but will definitely be making another steep for medicinal purposes. whimper!!

Golden Moon sample No. 10 of 31. Hard to believe I’m a third of the way through. What a fun ride this is. I’m glad I have 2/3 left to look forward to.

This one is making my pulse rate go up and my palms sweat a bit because it’s another green/black blend. My last GM green/black didn’t go so well and I was disappointed because for those who got the steeping right it seemed to be enjoyable. I think I steeped too hot last time, so this time I’m lowering the temperature. However, I’m still sweating a bit because now I fear I may be shortchanging the black part of the blend.

The dry blend is a mix of colors, shapes and textures that gives it a pleasing look. Bright green flecks of mint, dark brown spears of black tea, little dark green gunpowder spheres, and some brown shapes that are likely the vanilla bean pieces, though they are smaller and not as easily identifiable as in other vanilla flavored teas I have tried. The mint fragrance is similar to that of the Moroccan Mint. It’s those Girl Scout thin mints again! But it’s creamy in a way it wasn’t before, with the addition of the vanilla fragrance. I’m thinking mint ice cream now. There’s also a rich, slightly toasty, slightly malty undertone.

I’m going to try to hit 180 (tricky business with the Zo as it is between settings), and steep for 3 minutes. And dang, I missed it on the way down and on the way up as well. Oh well. I’ll use 175.

A clear, light amber infusion. The vanilla and the mint are evident in the aroma and about equally balanced, though the mint predominates slightly. There’s an intermittent cocoa note and a somewhat toasty green one as well.

Ah. This is better than my last green/black attempt. There is no harsh sensation in the back of my throat. I do notice the back of my throat while drinking this which is unusual and which is no doubt resulting from the power of suggestion. I wish I didn’t notice it, but I can’t be sure it’s the tea causing me to. The tea is minty tasting with a softness to it that must be the effect of the vanilla. There is also a sweet, “dark green” flavor from the gunpowder that is most evident in the finish. The black tea may be contributing to the sweetness as well.

Second steep with slightly hotter water, about F183 degrees. This is definitely more in the ballpark of the correct steeping temperature for this. The flavor is richer all around at this temperature, and the black tea is speaking up and contributing some maltiness in a way it wasn’t at 175.

I like this well enough, but I am not sure I’d need both this and the Moroccan Mint in my cabinet at the same time or whether they are similar enough that one would do. I’d really like to try them side by side to see.

Special Thanks to Azzrian for a bit more of this! Hit the spot today…see other notes :)

A one shot sample from Rachel’s sale a while back… in these wasteful one serving giant metallic packaging. Anyway, this is like Zen’s Vanilla Mint pu-erh but I like the pu-erh base with the mint and vanilla rather than the gunpowder and black tea. (And I love the gritty bits of vanilla in the Zen.) Though this is good too! I waited a half hour to brew the first cup because of the gunpowder, thus making the black tea lighter. But I love the vanilla mint combo. Plenty of mint and sweet creamy vanilla, just not as much vanilla as the Zen. The second cup was steeped just after boiling and didn’t seem to bitterize the gunpowder, but the black tea didn’t seem to be stronger either. I wouldn’t mind buying this one if Zen’s blend was no longer available!

I tried this one iced- cold brew method using the Bodum pitcher from Golden Moon. Seriously, refreshing. The vanilla provides a smoothness, sweetness and tempers the mint. I am getting addicted to my Bodum iced tea pitcher. Just throw some leaves in water and voila, the next morning, cold iced tea….

So I totally didn’t look up this tea before I steeped it. Le sigh… I still really like it. Vanilla and mint happen to be two of my favorite flavors so I can’t really go wrong here.

The mint is nice pick me up right off the bat. Once the mint tires, the vanilla pops in, lingering for a bit. I get a hint of what I think is green tea. Towards the very end of my sip I can taste a hint of black tea. I agree with Dylan that it’s probably a mellow fellow tea. It reminds me of the Nonsuch estate that I had the other night.

Overall a great dessert tea, especially for lovers of vanilla and mint.

Mmm. Mint. Creamy mint. I am seriously going to keep the package around just so I can sniff at it. The mint feels so good in my nose. Mint is good. Not sure on the water temp (go brewing at work!) but I’m guessing around 195-ish. I let it cool for a minute or two before putting the leaves in. While I waited, I sniffed the package.

I also studied the dry leaves while I waited and kind of wish I hadn’t. The Gunpowder looks like mouse droppings. I feel like there has been a mouse wandering through my leaves. It’s bringing up bad memories of mouse droppings on my desk and a no-kill trap being chewed open and the forced use of a less-than-no-kill trap. Let’s just brew this up and forget all about mice.

Sadly, all brewed up this tea doesn’t smell as friendly to my sinuses as the leaf did. It’s sort of musty with a tinge of mint. As it cools a bit I get more mint and less musty. Maybe a hint of vanilla.

Sipping it tastes like a milder version of the 50/50 blend I do of Adagio’s spearmint herbal and cream-flavored black teas. I was going to say blander but it’s not. I think it’s got a bit more depth to the flavor. It’s actually nice but not what I was expecting based on the strong smell in the package. I get the vanilla most as I inhale while taking a sip and then there is a bit of mint-with-solidity-which-I’m-assuming-is-tea taste and then the whoosh of mint after I swallow.

This is nice and accomplishes what it sets out to do (be a creamy mint tea) but ultimately, I just don’t find it all that impressive.

I got this tea with the iced tea set. I bought the set for the Coconut Pouchong and the the iced tea pitcher and the Vanilla Mint was an added bonus. I like green and black tea blends, when they are combined with sweet vanilla mint it makes for a fantastic tea in multiple ways.

I first had the tea hot with no sugar. It has a sweet vanilla flavor with the cooling mint aftertaste. The mint can be tasted upfront in the tea, but it is the cooling mouth feel after that is the selling point.

The tea is also good hot with sugar, however the sugar actually makes it too sweet for me to enjoy.

However, my favorite way to enjoy this tea is iced. The flavors are the same, a rich green and black blend with vanilla and mint, but iced it is sweet, cool and refreshing.

This is a really refreshing blend. The tea base is both green and black tea, so the flavor is rich and sweet without being too bold. This allows the flavors of mint and vanilla to really shine through. The flavor is crisp and sweet and very pleasant.