MadHatterTeaReview Send Message

Backlog

I wanted to like this blend. Smelling the dry leaf made me hopeful, but it didn’t live up to my expectations.

Notes: It’s too much white chocolate and not enough peppermint. Sweet & creamy; I wish there was more balance with the blend. Perhaps if there was more peppermint, I’d rate this more highly.

PS. I don’t really care for white chocolate, so it’s likely that affects my rating.

Backlog

I over brewed the 6th infusion, but to my surprise, it was packed with flavor. It was a little bitter, but it reminded me of cooked spinach, cauliflower, and herbs. Overall, this was a pleasant session.

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I’ve been sipping this tisane iced for the past two days, and I’m absolutely amazed by the blend. It has been sunny lately, which inspires iced tea. Since I wanted to find the tea to replace for the weekly office travels, I recently obtained this blend from the local market. I figured it’d ice well enough since I like cold lemongrass and ginger.

Notes: I steeped this for 8 minutes, as suggested on the website. That ginger really pops, but so does the lemongrass and lemon verbena. I added honey to today’s brew – also suggested – and it really adds to the lemon zest – so refreshing! Thankfully I grabbed a full 2 oz bag of this, so that I can have plenty for a few more sessions.

Red Root sent me a bag of this, after I submitted and lost a contest (YouTube video to appear within the next few days). They wanted me to share my thoughts via YT and IG, but Steepster gets an early preview. :)

This is very, very sweet. It’s also very spicy. The intensity of the ginger is welcoming, but it’s like drinking (if memory serves me well) a non-carbonated ginger ale. Although I like that this candy looking brick can make something so gingery and tasty – it’s still too sweet.

Sipdown

I had about 5 tsb leftover, so I tossed the remainder into a 64oz pitcher. It’s still cold in Ohio, but the sun is out, so I needed to brew something cold to encourage these feelings of gratitude. This happened to be the next one in the sipdown pile…It’s a great iced tea….I needed to caffeinate for work. Win-win-win.

I realized today that this is VERY sweet. I had to water it down a lot, on top of the ice, to really tame the sweetness. I get very strong cherry notes (which is grand since I’m all about cherry flavoring, whenever it’s done properly). The black tea base gives it an extra something (body/texture?) which reminds me of cherry stems, I guess. shrugs

On the last note, my wife noted it’s like cherry cola; which makes sense. I’ve not had soda in 12+ years, but I can see what she means.

Sipdown

I found this in the sipdown bin and decided to top it off. I’m not really sure if this was the cup for me. I like the idea of a chocolate orange tea, but this was one of those cups that really depended on the day. This last cup was inviting by the smell, but the flavor seemed muted. There was a touch of orange chocolate, and maybe the risk of adding milk may have been worthwhile, however, I never took the chance to try it out.

Backlog

I made brief notes on this one last night, as I was handling various work matters during the time in which I was sipping.

Notes: “Spices & yams. I’d prefer a Wuyi Oolong to this tea. Not the most intriguing red tea I’ve purchased.”

Rating: 6.5/10

Sipdown

I cannot find this one on Herbs & Kettles website. I really dislike liking a tea one can’t get anymore of. This is a calming, smooth, and nutty tea. Unlike an Assam black tea, it’s not extremely bold and in your face. I barely had enough for the 8oz cup today, which is unfortunate, since I’m pretty sure my past-self meant to hold onto the little bit, only to forget that there wasn’t enough to make a bigger cup.

Advent Sipdown

A well balanced spiced chai. I could really taste the cardamom, cinnamon, and ginger; the rooibos was hardly present, which was surprising on the account that rooibos is a fairly strong taste.

Sipdown

I had purchased 3 – 7g balls of these ($8.50 per set of 3) mostly out of curiosity. I wanted to understand the difference with smoked black tea (Lapsang) and puerh. The first time I smelled this, it reminded me of wood smoke. After allowing the last 7g ball to rest in my puerh storage for nearly a year, I pulled it out to finish the tea. I cannot remember earlier notes from the previous sessions, so based on this last session, I’m making my notes.

Dry: wood smoke

Flavor: Less smoky than you’d think. The element of smoke is there, but it’s not the main role within the flavor profile. You get a mild cigar/tobacco smoke, camphor, & spice (peppery) flavor. The mouthfeel is thin and oily. The qi is strong with this brew and allows your mind to ease into the necessary euphoria one may get with a good cuppa.