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Backlog

I had acquired a sample stick of this recently from Ohio Tea Co. when I stopped over to their new location a few months ago. I needed a kick on Monday for the new work schedule. I noted that this was “too thin; perhaps with smaller samples, less water is necessary.” There wasn’t much flavor, either.

Backlog/Sip Down

It took me ages to figure out if I liked this one or not. I hadn’t disliked it, but I felt that the rooibos was taking too much away from the Rhubarb and Custard experience. However, I realized that I never tried to make it sweet or iced, so with the last batch, I added 3 tsp of monk fruit sugar for 32 oz of water + 7 tsp of tea (what was leftover). That is the way to do it! This tea hits another level within your cup. Adding sweetener elevates the sweetness/tartness of the rhubarb and brings out a creaminess in the aftertaste. It was much more pleasant than all the other cups before it.

Backlog/Sip Down

Last Sunday, we hosted a surprise retirement party for a friend that we met through my wife’s place of employment. She thought she was coming over for a bit of cake, but we had a whole bunch of teas and food prepared. We brewed her some of the Chestnut tea since she typically will request a cup of this or chamomile when she’s over playing cards. We had a lovely time and she seemed quite pleased with everything!

Tea notes: Chestnuts, caramel, and vanilla bean.

Sip Down

We had the neighbors over on Friday for an evening fire. We finally had the chance to meet them after 9 months of living at the house. I’ve been too shy to try to make any contact since I’ve not seen anyone outside their house, so I didn’t want to knock on any doors. Ha-ha. Thankfully, they saw us bringing groceries into the house and made first contact three weeks back. I finally asked if they wanted to stop by and drink tea. Lo and behold, they are coffee drinkers, but we still offered tea. ; )

The neighbor’s eldest child thought we were giving them “really good Kool-Aid,” but I reassured that this was a tisane (I went into the whole tea vs tisane, which seemed to bore the poor kid. Teenagers don’t usually seem fascinated by these things. That’s ok, it was nice to surprise them with good tea and get a positive reaction). All in all, I do agree it has a wonderfully sweet Raspberry flavor, especially since the wife made it in her traditional Southern sweet manner. She advised it wasn’t as heavily sweetened per her usual way, but anything with more than 1 tsp of sugar is sweet to me. Ha-ha.

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I topped this off yesterday before heading to the Canton, Ohio “Italian Festival” for much of the afternoon/early evening. TGY was the first tea that brought me out of my soda daze. I realized that tea could taste of something more than the occasional bland Lipton or overly sweetened Arizona’s Arnold Palmer (which I admit, there are cravings for it once or twice each year).

This session was packed with florals and soothing, gentle tasting notes that I didn’t get too deep into. I wanted a moment to drink tea while I spent time reading Rumi’s Essential Poetry and journaling. I noted that it was a “refreshingly sweet and floral” tea, perfect for the warm day ahead. If I had more, I’d probably make it iced for future sessions. This is the perfect tea to cold brew or grandpa style in a thermos. It was refreshing and still reminds me that tea can be far better than non-tea drinkers give credit to the beverage.

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Sip down/ Backlog from Advent
This reminds me of Frosted Flakes/ wheat cereal. Maybe I imagine it, though. Anyway, I thought I enjoyed this tea before, since it’s a sweeter version of Forever Nuts, but the last cup of this was mildly disappointing due to a lack of flavor. I could taste the light tartness from the almond, but the rest of the tea blend was missing. I blame the fact that this is older and there were only “bits” leftover for the last cup. If DavidsTea brings it back to their collection for the holidays, I’d buy it again and try the fresher version.

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I’ve been drinking this tea on and off for the past few days. I acquired this in the “Surprise Me Bro” bag that Intergalactic Tea offers. I wish that they carried this on their website because I’m usually not too keen on white teas, unless it’s the White2Tea selections (e.g. Night Life or Censers). This found itself on the top of that list, which is an absolute bummer since I can’t get anymore. The tea is viscous, sweet (peachy?), and endless. The session with this tea has lasted since 11:30 (now 13:37) and nearing the end at 14th infusion. One thing I’ll note is that it has made me considerably nappy, but that could be the Sunday vibe on account I spent 6 hours outside in the sun, without taking a break to sit until I arrived home yesterday evening. I think I’ll boil this on the stove for a while and cool it off in the fridge for an iced tea this evening.

What compelled me to brew this at 23:30 tonight, I’ve no idea. I thought it was an herbal blend and I was wrong. I tossed in the entire sample in my Ingenuitea and assumed it was less than there was…anyway, it’s a very strong cinnamon tea. Imagine tossing in 4-6 Big Red sticks of gum and adding more as you go…Hot Cinnamon is essentially the same concept.

Sip Down & Backlog

This was a thirst quencher! I made this last Friday and it was gone in moments. The sample packet from the monthly club gave enough for one iced tea…and I’m in need of more! After I sip down a few more teas, I’ve a massive tea order in place…between 3 vendors. And this tea is on the list amongst them. I shall make this the official tea of summer in our household!

Notes: Fruity & refreshing

Sip Down & Backlog

I brewed this last Tuesday at the office, which is a rare event to make tea there. I have to be in a happy place for tea. The office isn’t there. lol. Anyway, I only added on the back of the packet, " Holy sh*t, it’s Zingiber Ginger Coconut from Teavana!" Which, fun fact, was a great tea! I’d brew it hot while working at Teavana, until they dropped it from their menu…as they did with the whole company…

I feel like coconut often fails in tea blends. It’s too fake or too little. Rarely does it feel like a company adds enough to bring out the sweetness of coconut. Bravo, S&V. You’ve done it. You’ve also transported me back in time to the best job during college and gave me the chance to taste something I’ve not had in 10+ years.