Bouquet of Flowers No. 108

I wish my postman would fill out the ‘from’ field when he gives me that little notice about a package to pick up on the post office. There’s one there now, waiting for me to pick it up on saturday. It’s either my Series 3 from Andrews & Dunham or it’s a package from JacquelineM, and I’d quite like to know which. Sorry, JacquelineM, but I’m hoping for the former here, because if it’s yours, then I’ll have to start getting concerned about the A&D.

In the meantime, another Kusmi sample. I’m a little concerned about this one. The leaves… They smell of soap. And lavender. I like lavender. As, you know, a flower. Or as an essential oil to help me sleep if I’m having trouble in that department. I don’t have that good experiences with drinking it. I think I’ve had an Earl Grey with lavender in it once which I sort of liked, but that one didn’t smell of soap!

After steeping, the aroma is less soap-y and more citrus-y, but still very very very grandmother-y. Yes, that it. Grandma perfumes and cleaning agents.

Earl Grey gone girly. There is definitely bergamot-y dusty notes here underneath all the grandma-ness. There is sooooo much perfume-y flower-y badness here. It’s so bad I can’t even come up with another way of describing it. It’s so bad I’ve become like record with a scratch in it. Perfume! Grandma! Perfume! Grandma! Perfume! Grandma! Perfume! Grandma!

Ew. I’m dumping this.

Thank you Dinosara for this sample.

I open the tin wondering what will be on the other side to greet me, lets just say I was happy as to what greeted me. Small black chopped tea leaves that have an amazing sweet, fruity, fresh and floral scent that lingers. Very pleasant.

Brewing with 1.5 teaspoons worth of leaves in an empty tea sac.

Once steeped the tea is dark brown in colour with that same fruity and floral scent. It sort of reminds me of citrus flavoured sherbet.

Sipping…The citrus is sour at first but quickly mellows to become sweet. The bergamot helps to keep the citrus sweet and fresh so the two different sides work well together. There is a little bit of floral taste which is also sweet like peony but the fruit is more dominant. As for the tea as a whole it’s very smooth and of average/fair strength.

It’s an Earl Grey with a twist and for me it works together very well but I also think there is enough character in there to be enjoyed by non Earl Grey lovers.

In one word I find this tea … refreshing.

This is not a popular tea. Nevertheless, I it’s been on my shopping list for years because I love bergamot and I love florals. I recently bought a pack of sample tins from Kusmi (the “Russian” set) and this was included, so I finally get to try it.

I think the dry leaf smells nice, with plenty of bergamot, the balance of some other citrus, and some light florals in the background. The steeped leaf, too, smells pleasantly bergamotty and floral.

Unfortunately I guess sometimes you just have to listen to the people. I don’t find this one as distasteful as some people, especially as it cools, but it isn’t as lovely as I had hoped. The bergamot edges on a pith-like bitterness that I never enjoy, and the florals are a bit perfumy tasting. It is growing on me a bit, but it certainly isn’t a tea I would reach for often. I wonder how it would cold brew?

If this tea was a lipton bagged tea I would have said …nothing…
This is a Kusmi tea and I am almost upset (again) for not loving it.

The dry leaf was already weak and after steeping it is really worst.

It’s a floral tea,ok but it’s supposed to have citrus as well but cannot taste it at all…

Tsar Nicholas II was supposed to drink it every morning …sign of excellence…I won’t have his patience…bye Nicholas I am invited by your daughter to have my favorite Kusmi tea : Anastasia

So, I made the mistake of reading the other reviews before drinking the tea and I was a little worried…. I’m the lucky person to get the rest of Angrboda ’s sample, and almost expected to see an actual grandmother in the tin once I opened it.

And wow – it definitely smelled like soap when I sniffed the leaf. Woo – SOAP. Soapy-soap-soap. But once brewed, I didn’t get that at all. In fact, I only vaguely got a floral taste. (Mind you, I did sweeten immediately – I didn’t even try unsweetened.)

I’m getting a diluted Earl Grey with a general floral undertone. Not bad, but not great.

Not Grandma, maybe Aunt Doris instead?

Skipped out on my morning class to study at home, and have a cup of this. Sebastian was a ridiculous chatterbox the entire time, which was kind of annoying (he’s of course silent right now). This one’s the last from the Kusmi Russian blend sampler that I have to try. The name is pretty but it kind of meant it also didn’t seem like a tea I want to try.

It definitely has a bit of a soap aspect to it, which becomes more obvious as it cools. The mix of flowers, orange, and bergamot is a bit weird. Like you can even make out other citrus notes before it starts to taste reminiscent of an Earl Grey blend.

Definitely my least favorite from the bunch, but I think I might be able to tolerate it enough to finish the little tin.

It has been a long time since I had any of this and when I had it way back when it was in teabag form at the office, so not particularly expertly steeped.

This is apparently one of Angrboda’s favorites. Kidding! Her note about this cracked me up. I have to say that although I don’t remember my grandmother smelling like this, I get what she means. There’s something about the smell in the tin, the musty floral spice scent, that reminds me of antique shops, and I suppose that could be extended to antique people.

The aroma of the steeped tea is very similar to the aroma in the tin—spicy but not savory, floral, and very very vaguely Earl Grey-like. I don’t get any soapiness. The underlying tea is sweet and pleasant.

It’s not my favorite, but not because there’s anything wrong with it. More because it just isn’t very distinctive. Still, I’ll enjoy drinking it more than some others I’ve tried recently. Bumping the rating.

I don’t pick up any florals whatsoever from this one, just tons of citrus. I’m mostly getting lemon, and it’s unpleasantly reminiscent of some sort of cleaning product. The base is slightly smoky, and I’m finding I don’t care for the combination of smoke and citrus – the interplay between those two flavors is reminding me of Handmade Tea’s Blueberry Limón, which was an interesting tea but one that didn’t entirely work for me. Thanks for the sample, Fuzzy_Peachkin! And Teamore, you’re welcome to the rest of this tin if you’d like.

Base is mellow and reminiscent of green beans. The citrus and flowers are VERY sweet and like all the Kusmi teas I’ve tried lately, it reminds me of soda. The bergamot and other fruits are slightly bitter as well, which adds a little depth to the flavor. I can’t distinguish the exact taste of the floral notes, they are a little overwhelmed by the citrus.

Another sample from the lovely High Adventure
I was a little surprised that the bergamot was the first thing I smelled, I was thinking the floral would be the most present.
But, the taste surprised me even more, a soft almost sweet floral taste with a finish that has a bit of spice.
Wow! What a tea!
Very glad that I got the chance to try this.
Thanks again, High Adventure:)