257 Tasting Notes

This is a colorful mix. There are whole cardamom pods complete with their little stems, dry orange peel, and red peppercorns in a black tea.
You gotta be ready for spice and orange-cinnamon to drink this. I had opened it yesterday and it was more than I wanted to tackle lol so I planned when to drink it.
It smells spicy and orangey.
I brewed one cup of this and let my water cool down to brew some green tea. I drank all of my green tea then this one had cooled down to where I could really get the flavors.
This is very spicy, orangey, and cinnamony smelling. It smells like those holiday pinecones at Walmart with the cinnamon oil on them. I am scared to drink it lol (I like TeaSource teas though so I know it will be ok).
Flavor is orange and cinnamon with a little bit of cardamom (I had two pods in my teaspoon). It is very much like an herbal tea to me,,,I don’t taste the black tea at all and the liquor is a clear golden color.
This is not too bad, definitely one for holiday time.

From the Steepster Select Box; October, 2014

Flavors: Cardamom, Cinnamon, Clove, Orange

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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OK, last time I tried this style tea, I didn’t care for it but this one looks a little bit less stick and twiggy and it has more of a Bancha look to it with some sticks and twigs thrown in there.
Liquor is hay yellow color and it’s clear. It has that toasted rice scent.
The flavor is toasted rice and well-roasted nuts.
This is waaaaaaaaayyyy better than the last houjicha I tried. It is good for a complete change in flavors and I am thoroughly enjoying this toasty, comforting cup,,,but then I’m back to my more delicate green teas lol.

From the Steepster Select Box; October, 2014

Flavors: Rice, Roast Nuts

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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Good Heavens!!!!
This is why I am in the Steepster Select Club!!!!! This tea is really good and it is not one I would have tried on my own.
Delicious Delicious, well balanced, so good.
Dry leaves smell very smoky like a Lapsang, tangy BBQ smell but stick with it, it’s going to fool you.
Liquor is a deep auburn color with lots of orange to it, perfect for Oktoberfest!!
Smells very sweet and the wet leaves are multicolored just like fall colored leaves.
I poured my tea into a small white tea cup and saucer and the liquor is so orange now in my cup.
I let the tea cool a bit to really get the flavors. This is so good. It is naturally sweet and could take a touch of milk if you wanted but I wouldn’t add sugar. But it doesn’t need either.
This tea is so enjoyable that I really just got the tasting note of delicious bc it had so many enjoyable notes that came together and at one point I added a drop of milk and it was creamy heaven.
They weren’t lying, this is damn fine tea!!!!

From the Steepster Select Box; October, 2014

Flavors: Sweet

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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drank White Darjeeling by The Tea Smith
257 tasting notes

Nice tea. Doesn’t have a year, estate, or varietal so unsure of its origin.
Slight sweet fruit skin flavor but flavors not as complex, just staying consistent.
Did bring about a cleansing heat, so this tea has a stronger prana.

Flavors: Apple Skins, Honey

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 4 min, 0 sec 3 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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drank Black Dragon Pearls by Teavana
257 tasting notes

These mini gum ball-size pearls smell like cherry-chocolate.
Now being from Teavana, I’m not sure if that’s a storage issue or how the tea actually smells bc they have lots of flavored teas with strong essences there. I got this as a gift from Starbucks club so I didn’t care.
Used three pearls in my 4 ounce gaiwan and 200F water.
Did a good rinse on them to loosen them up a bit.
I have some pearls that look just like this from another tea company but they smell nothing like this so I think that these have been sitting next to a cherry-chocolate flavored something at Teavana. Still, I want it to taste like cherry-chocolate now.
Liquor is a light orange color and smells like the cherry-chocolate. The flavor is smoky, chocolatey with a hint of cherry.
With my second steeping, the pearls have really loosened up and revealed large twisty leaves. Liquor is a deeper auburn orange color now and smells more smoky with still that hint of chocolate-cherry but doesn’t quite taste like it. It’s more of just a scent. It tastes more on the smoky tobacco end. Tastes ok.
Did one more steeping and I think that three is all I would do on these in the gaiwan, because the flavor started being very one note in tobacco taste and just flat so I stopped there.

Flavors: Cherry, Chocolate, Tobacco

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 0 min, 30 sec 1 tsp 4 OZ / 118 ML

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I’m drinking the 2004. It is very good, it’s like cognac and honey. Very naturally sweet and rich.
The tea is very tightly compressed and you don’t need too much tea because it really puffs and opens up to be tons of tea leaves. There are ya bao pieces in the mix along with all sorts of colors and types of wild leaves.
The liquor is cloudy pretty much throughout the whole session in my gaiwan. I rinsed the tea a couple of times but it remained cloudy even after many steepings. You definitely need to use your strainer with this tea.
After many steepings, the leaves could have kept going and going but the tea started to taste twiggy to me so I ended the session.

Flavors: Honey

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 30 sec 2 tsp 4 OZ / 118 ML
TeaBrat

I should revisit this one, I have it somewhere!

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drank Tropical White by Heavenly Tea Leaves
257 tasting notes

I got a set of teas from Heavenly Tea Leaves for a gift and I’m glad I did because flavored teas are not something I have been buying for myself ,,,but this tea really changed my mind.
I did lower the temperature down to 195F to brew and I think that in the past when I first started drinking tea, I just unknowingly poured boiling water onto all teas (( and they were usually flavored teas too that you started out with.))
Well this mix had lovely flavor. It was subtle strawberry and cream with notes of coconut and you could still taste the white tea.
It was also very pretty with rose petals in pink and light green colors to the white tea leaves. The fruit pieces had a light peachy orange color so the mix looked so pretty as it steeped.
I got a gift set and all of the teas I received were in tea tins that you could see thru the top and labels on each tea.
I really enjoyed this fruit tea and it makes me want to explore more flavored teas in the future.

Flavors: Coconut, Cream, Strawberry

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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drank Garden of Eden by Silk Road Teas
257 tasting notes

When you first open the package, it is very peppermint and literally gets into your sinuses if you take a big whiff. It really does smell like toothpaste and other products with peppermint.
The dry leaf is very pretty with light pastel green and little pieces of the pinkie mauvy clover flower. Bits of light brown in there as well.
Definitely trying this after I have had lunch and another after-lunch tea because I’m afraid the peppermint is going to be strong and be all over my palate after that.
Liquor is golden clear color and smells very herbal with peppermint. I don’t want to drink it but I will taste it lol.
This is not my thing but it is good herbal. It has a natural sweetness to it and the peppermint sort of gets into your chest if you breathe in. So I could see drinking this when you don’t feel good and are congested.
It really tastes like fresh mint the more I drink it so it’s very good mint tea.
At first I didn’t want to finish but now I seem to be drinking more so it’s pretty good.
I feel a little warm drinking this. The peppermint is warming my body. I am Pitta dosha and I don’t think peppermint is good for Pitta lol. It is definitely removing toxins through heat so that’s cool.

From the Steepster Select Box; September, 2014

Flavors: Herbs, Peppermint, Sweet

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML

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drank Australian Shincha by Ito En
257 tasting notes

This is the first Shincha that I’ve tried that actually smelled like grass. That term gets used a lot in describing tea but this really does smell and of course, look like dried cut grass. As I smell deeper, there are a few notes of cream.
I am a little shocked by the 212F temp too but I’m following directions lol.
After I see the wet leaf, it is more understandable the 212F temp. The wet leaves are very strong and I would describe them as semi-waxy. They are very pretty and hearty.
The liquor is a light spring yellow green color and it smells like grass as well.
The flavor is also a touch of grass but there is a cream note in there as well. There is a touch of bitter but it’s an enjoyable bitter not offensive.
I’m glad I’m having this after lunch because I have a feeling there is high caffeine to this and also I want food in my stomach.
Overall, very interesting tea and it’s cool that it comes from Victoria, Australia.

Cool to find a new tea company to check out too because I was not aware of Ito En.

From the Steepster Select Box; September, 2014

Flavors: Bitter, Cream, Grass

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML
Cameron B.

I’ll definitely have to try this with the recommended parameters and see how different it is. :P

Lee

Yes, you should try a Japanese shincha as well so you can see the difference in the leaves because these are far out. I tried to find which varietal leaf this is on the Ito En site but it doesn’t say. Australia is hot so it is a hearty one for sure.

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Origin: Zhejiang, China
Leaf Appearance: Small little twisted pieces that are light to dried grass green. Smells nutty and a little bit like a sweet vegetable , potato, a sweet walnut.
Method: 4 ounce gaiwan, 1 tsp tea, 185F, short quick infusions
Liquor: Light tint of color, light pearl spring green with scents of sweet veggies
Flavor: Nice nutty, sweet, just a hint of leek and potato.
Wet Leaf: Leaves unfurl to be tiny little pretty spring green color and very young young leaves. Very delicate. This is a very nice green tea and has some leaves that look like Anji Bai Cha they are that light green with the veining. Some very tiny and delicate young little tiny tiny buds too. Pretty tea.

From the Steepster Select Box; September, 2014

Flavors: Leeks, Potato, Walnut

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 0 min, 15 sec 1 tsp 4 OZ / 118 ML

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