MlesnA

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Recent Tasting Notes

Nice Ceylon, made it for breakfast. We had bagels with lox and this tea was perfect for this.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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67

Lovely aroma, great taste..brought back childhood memories :D

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drank Kandy F.B.O.P. by MlesnA
1 tasting notes

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drank Peach Apricot Tea by MlesnA
21 tasting notes

A mere hint of what it says it is. I received this as a sample in a tea order and it was in an open sleeve, so I can’t really judge.

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drank Earl Grey by MlesnA
4 tasting notes

A great flavour, but perhaps a little too subtle. Hard to brew strong enough to enjoy the full flavour without turning it bitter.

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drank Soursap Tea by MlesnA
1 tasting notes

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21
drank Maple Tea by MlesnA
4 tasting notes

Despite the many negative comments warning potential drinkers against this tea, I still ordered a box. It was meh, sad. The only tasting note detected was really the earthiness of the bag itself. Maybe if you put some maple syrup in it, it will justify the label. Don’t worry about this tea, there are other amazing teas by MlesnA.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 5 min, 15 sec

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4
drank Maple Tea by MlesnA
48 tasting notes

I was excited for this tea because it smelled like maple when dry, albeit slightly artificial. Unfortunately, the taste was very medicinal and reminded me of paint thinner. Maybe I just got a bad bag, because I enjoy a lot of Mlesna’s other teas. I may give this another chance in the future just to see.

Autistic Goblin

I hate it when a tea teases you with a fantastic yummy smell and turn out to tastes super gross!!

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61
drank Vanilla by MlesnA
35 tasting notes

In theory, black tea and vanilla should marry and compliment each other beautifully, provided that neither overwhelms the other. Some time ago, I bought a tin of Harney and Sons decaffeinated Vanilla Comorro and was enjoying a mug of this each night before bed. I started looking around for another vanilla tea due to the lack of retailers in Sydney that sell H&S tea – none of which sell the loose leaf refills – and I have always found decaffeinated teas to lack a real depth of flavour. First stop was Mlesna, if only for the little wooden box that it comes in.

Does natural vanilla actually have a scent? I can only detect the merest hint of a ‘vanilla’ smell but then the tea base is very strong. One whiff of the tea, I can immediately determine the tea base to be Ceylon tea from the Uva region. This is confirmed after steeping two teaspoons in about 400mls for four minutes (although I’m going to end up with egg on my face if I’m wrong).

With a splash of soy milk, this brews an enjoyable pale liquor with a nice spicy aftertaste and aroma. It takes several mouthfuls to really grasp the vanilla taste. The spiciness comes from both the vanilla and the tea itself. The flavouring doesn’t have an artificial or surface taste to it, and there is a real depth of flavour, so I’m guessing that the flavouring is wholly or predominantly natural and doesn’t overwhelm the taste of the tea.

Now the bad news. The remaining cups of tea from the teapot are consumed black. Unfortunately, the tea base is very poor quality and bitter and the vanilla taste and aroma are completely lost in the brew. My favourite cup at the moment is a Ceylon Pettiagalla so the issue is solely to do with the quality of the tea base. To enjoy black, it needs a more subtle and better quality tea base and a slightly stronger vanilla flavouring.

Still enjoyable with milk, but the search continues for the perfect vanilla tea.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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84
drank Soursop by MlesnA
35 tasting notes

I’m new to Steepster and writing reviews but I’ve lurked for a while (usually when deciding whether or not to purchase yet another box of some obscure tea for my collection) but thought it was a good time to start and this tea is as good as any for my first review.

I purchased this about a month ago and really enjoyed my first few cups. Soursop is one of those things that has lurked on the periphery of my consciousness for several years without ever trying it. I tended to confuse breadfruit, durian, jack fruit and soursop but I was vaguely aware of a similarity of taste and appearance. Soursop doesn’t have the repugnant aroma that durian does, but there is an immediate sweet – arguably, a sickly sweet – scent and this is present in the tea.

This was steeped with water off the boil, two teaspoons of loose leaf tea in approximately 400 mls of water for just over four minutes and then left for a few minutes to cool and for the flavours to develop. I haven’t yet experimented with different times and ratios, rather I used my default method of brewing tea. The tea is a light amber, and the tea base is medium strength, slightly bitter but with very little astringency. The immediate taste is the black tea with the strong sweetness of the soursop becoming evident after a few moments. It is similar in taste to Juicy Fruit (jackfruit is the alleged “secret ingredient” in the gum) but unlike JF the tea doesn’t loose it’s flavour after 30 seconds . . . There is a slight citrus ‘tang’ to each mouthful as well.

In all honesty, I really only bought this for the dinky little wooden boxes that the Mlesna teas come in, and also for the novelty of soursop but really liked this tea. I don’t think I would enjoy it with milk and it definitely doesn’t need sugar. It will make a nice iced tea as well so I will have to experiment with that at some point this summer. It is very similar to the Mlesna Blue Lady blend and I’ll post a review when I brew it next. I understand that Mlesna go by the name of Metropolitan Tea Company in the US and Canada but I haven’t seen Soursop tea of any brand outside of Australia and South East Asia.

Overall, I would give it a high score with a few points taken off for the slightly bitter tea base. This is not an every day tea – in the last month I’ve had it on about a four or five occasions – and I can’t imagine it would be a special occasion tea as the tea base is slightly bitter and the flavouring is not exactly “refined” but it’s a nice addition to a well stocked tea cabinet when you want something a little different especially if you have a somewhat jaded palate. I wouldn’t serve it with food as again the flavouring is too strong, except for maybe junk food, etc.

So, that’s my first review. How did I do? ;)

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 30 sec

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

Ohmygoodness, this is the tea that never ends! I swear I measured it out last time and had enough for two full tablespoons, and then today, it was at two again. I had a cup last time, so it should have been one!

Anyhow, a friend of mine gave me some Chai flavoured sugar as a party favour at her baby shower. Also some Lavender and Vanilla flavour. Not sure what I’ll do with the Lavender, I’m scared to try it. They come in heavy glass jars or else I’d send it out to any takers. Well if anyone local wants it, it’s yours!

Soooooo the chai sugar was tasty! a relatively mild chai note, but comforting and well blended. I have a feeling most of the spices are at the bottom so when I manage to empty the jar a bit I’ll give it a good shake.
I’m really glad my friend gave me chai sugar. It was such a thoughtful gift!!

Adora

Lavender is good for night time to relax. Have it with some mint tea. It goes well with peppermint. Also with plain black tea. Try it before you give it away!

Indigobloom

Ah I wish I could try it Adora! but I had a nasty reaction to a lavender drink awhile back, I spent the whole day in bed… so I think I may be allergic.

Indigobloom

(I also really dislike the smell. It reminds me of chemicals, used to clean floors!)

Adora

Ah I thought from your post you just didn’t know what to do with it. Run away then! No getting sick. That sounds like an awful reaction!

Indigobloom

Thanks! The reaction I had was from a simple syrup soda concoction, it was actually quite delicious (much to my surprise). But ever since then and even before that to a lesser extent, the scent of lavender turns my stomach. I’m sure it wouldn’t be as bad if I tried the sugar, being that it’d have a much lower concentration. Still, I’m not willing to take a chance :/

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

I’m on a really odd kick lately. Mixing my Assam (and Ceylon if I must, or for a change) with a bit of Darjeeling!
Since my Darj is old now and needs to be used up, I thought I’d give it a shot and ended up loving it!! Now that was certainly unexpected.
I’ve had breakfast blends that combine the two before… so perhaps it’s just this particular first flush Darj from eons ago that makes it so incredibly tasty!
The way the teas blend together just works better somehow. And it doesn’t seem to matter which black tea I use, so far, out of four, every cup has been great! yum :P

On a side note, my job hunt is ongoing. It sucks having to not be here!! Popping in now and again just isn’t the same. Sighs.

TheTeaFairy

We do miss you Indigo! I too am on a «popping steepster mode» , but I take every opportunity I get to be here :-) Hope your hunting season ends soon!

Indigobloom

Ah sorry I missed this note!! must have got lost in my emails :(

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

Happy Mothers day!!
I had this with pancakes and chocolate milk. A mocha tea chino! (no dashes because of formatting complications)
I prefer the coffee version I made Mum, to be honest, but I would rather not push the allergy factor!
Anyhow… it was a good day overall. Much better than yesterday, for reasons I don’t wanna get into. Let’s just say it was depressing.
Whatevs. Night all :)

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

Backlog! Will this tea never end! I love how robust and satisfying this is, but I also don’t want it to go stale and I’ve had it for ages now…
Ctc goes a long way. Hmph.

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

At my friend Tim and Joannes house… I gave them a kettle that I didn’t want/need and this is what we christened it with.
I wanted something plain so that I could tell if it had been rinsed properly, not to mention I’m a tad unwell, but mostly better. Overall… its still a hair plasticky (even though it’s a stainless steel contraption)
There seems to be alot of sadness going around Steepster today, so I’m sending out my best hug vibes. Smile! Even if only because you are drinking a cuppa tea :)

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

Now that I’m out of the Queen, I’ve been drinking this on its own. Not terrible.
Still about 60g left, but somehow the leaves get used up faster than I expected. They aren’t ctc, but cut up into tiny little squares. Does it take up more room that way? I’d have thought less!
Bah….
So for today’s cup I steeped 3min 20sec and added chocolate syrup. Maybe I should have added an extra thirty seconds because the overall tea flavor was a little weak. I prefer stout, hardy teas with alot of malt. I find that factor to be hit and miss with blacks. Am I doing something different or are my buds off? Hmmm.

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73
drank Mlesna black by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

A friend gave me 100g of this and I found that it’s a solid black tea with no frills. Great! for blending muahahahaaaaa.
So I decided to start off with mixing a smidge of this and some Lapsang Souchong, and a pinch of Queen Catherine. Guess what? it tastes just like Queen Catherine! SCORE!! even got a decent second steep outta the leaves.
This tea and I, will have some good times :)

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75
drank Cranberry Tea by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

So after finishing the box that was at my bf’s place, I bought a packet when I was in Ottawa last year to see if it was the same. Packaging was slightly different and all.
Turns out it is indeed the same tea! only more potent. My bf’s version was several years old and the wrapping wasn’t very protective (paper).
The fresh version was even better. Tart and bitter in the way cranberries are. I added nearly a teaspoon of sugar since I accidentally oversteeped. Very nommy!

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75
drank Cranberry Tea by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

At my friend’s place again and having this tea while I babysit the kiddos for an hour. No disasters yet! Maybe they are biding thier time before bringing out the chaos party :P
I am in a very strange mood today. Surrounded by people I adore, and yet distraught over a situation with another friend. I kinda wish I was in bed with my tea and a romantic comedy to distract me. Sighs.

Bah. This cuppa will do. And hey,there is no better distraction than two cheeky monkeys crawling all over me :)

Dustin

How are you typing with them crawling all over you?! I want to know your secret! ;)

Indigobloom

Hehe funny enough they only hang off me when a parent is around. It seems they had a lecture about behaving, or else face a consequence of me not coming over again for awhile (I am their godmother)

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75
drank Cranberry Tea by MlesnA
1759 tasting notes

Not bad not bad at all!
I’m at a friends house and ended up not wanting the tea I brought so defaulted to bagged cranberry ceylon. I’m surprised, based on the reviews, I expected this to be terrible.
The tartness of the cranberry really comes through, along with that slight bitterness but not in an astringent oversteeped way.
I could really get used to this. Super tasty!

cteresa

I had this some years ago and it was ok, I agree! Good even, I think we rated this pretty similarly :). But you made me curious of the other reviews, but nobody seems to have disliked it! was it because there were ratings in the 60s? For me that is good .

Indigobloom

oh lol! to me, 60 is a pretty low rating. Most of mine in the pretty decent range end up in the 70’s or 80’s
I should have read the reviews more carefully haha

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83
drank Earl Grey by MlesnA
1 tasting notes

This is a very interesting take on Earl Grey. It’s clearly the classic flavours, but much more fragrant. I tend to brew it black with only a little leaf for a few minutes as a very refreshing pick-me-up. The other way is to brew it for 5 minutes with a fair amount of leaf, then have it with milk. This gives a good smoky Earl Grey and is excellent in the morning.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 30 sec

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99
drank The Rose Tea by MlesnA
1 tasting notes

I tried this tea in a sampler that the Victorian Trading Company sent me with my tea party kit. I fell in love with this tea instantly…I would have not believed I’d love the taste of rose as much as I love how roses smell. The rose tea accompanied nicely with some brunch dishes that I served at my tea party. I highly recommend this floral black Ceylon tea

Preparation
150 °F / 65 °C 1 min, 45 sec

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8
drank Maple Tea by MlesnA
20 tasting notes

I was really disappointed by this tea. I bought it in a fit of homesickness – I’m very far from my native Vermont, and when I saw it in a Russian mall I thought it was too good to be true! It came in the coolest tin, too (UVM green and gold!) so I figured it would be worth an impulse buy. But I’ve been so disappointed! I’ve really tried to make this tea work – experimenting with steeping times, water temperatures… even cold steeping it! But nothing seems to make it taste good. Like Jillian said, it’s got a really weird, synthetic flavor to it that makes the whole thing taste frankly kind of gross.

This is the first time I’ve had a really bad experience with loose leaf tea… but I suppose it had to happen eventually!

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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85
drank Maple Tea by MlesnA
7 tasting notes

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