139 Tasting Notes

23
drank Mango Fruit Punch by DAVIDsTEA
139 tasting notes

As soon as the DT sales associate opened their tea tin for me to smell this, I exclaimed “WOW, now THAT is a heavy tea!” There is literally entire slices of orange in this. I did, however, grab 20g because it smells heavenly citrusy.

My boyfriend actually liked this one more than I did. Probably because it tastes almost exactly like orange soda (I’m talkin’ ’bout you, Orange Crush) and was quite sweet. I actually considered sweetening it while it was brewing to counter the strong citrusy punch I was expecting. Then I remembered DT dumps sweetener into all their teas. It did not need extra sweetening whatsoever.

I will probably just try the rest of this iced. It doesn’t sit right with me as a hot tea (imagine drinking hot Orange Crush…) so giving it a second chance as iced might redeem itself a bit.

Still smells amazing though!

Kristal

To quote my comment on a different person’s tasting note on this same tea
It’s a nice iced tea, albeit sooo heavy & expensive :(. And yes, no sweetener needed!

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80
drank Ruby Oolong by Rishi Tea
139 tasting notes

(Sept 2016: The Steepster Thief has eaten my first review of this wonderful tea.)

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95
drank Tropical Coconut by Rishi Tea
139 tasting notes

Tea Sparrow tasting #2!

This one brewed very very light in colour, I’m hoping the flavours will still be there. Aroma is of sweet coconut and is very delicate and nice. First sip reminds me of a slightly vegetal green tea, with hints of coconut. Need to let it cool more to taste better.

Getting more of the coconut as the tea cools, still strongly paired with the oolong base. Pineapple is lost between these two, as far as I can tell. Still, quite a tasty tea. Not overpowering with the sweetness or coconut, but has enough flavour to make it enjoyable.

I think I can taste the pineapple as the tea gets cooler and I can take bigger sips, but still is quite subtle between the two dominant flavours. It is a nice addition nonetheless and helps to fill out the flavour profile to completion. The tea is overall quite creamy and full-bodied, yet light and refreshing at the same time. Delightful.

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12
drank Baked Apple Rooibos by Tea Desire
139 tasting notes

Tea Sparrow tasting #1!

I’m not too experienced with Rooibos teas, but what I’ve had so far has been quite pleasant so I’m excited to give this one a go. I think tea sparrow sent out a similar one from a different vendor a few months ago, also to do with “apple pie in a cup”.

This one smells quite delicious; sweet apple cinnamon. First sip is a little underwhelming because I don’t get the same intensity of flavours as the aroma provides. Also, I can really taste the marzipan in there; unfortunately, I’m not a huge fan of marzipan… The tea is also not really sweet in itself, and falls a little flat in body.

Rather disappointed with this one. I’ll try brewing it for longer and sweeting it next time, maybe it will help bring out the flavours.

Edit: As the tea cooled I could taste more of the apple, but still no sweetness came through. I actually still found it rather sour.

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77
drank Earl Grey by Twinings
139 tasting notes

Having this tea at my parents place, since I have to stay over a couple nights to babysit my brother while they party in Vegas (not really, just get drunk and eat a lot of Bubba Gump shrimp. And while we’re on the topic, why don’t they have that in Canada, namely in Vancouver? If they had a location here, I’m 100% sure it would be insanely popular. Plus then it would mean I wouldn’t have to go on vacation to eat Bubba Gump ;_; )

I noticed this in the cupboard and decided I wanted to try it first, since we have the decaf version at home. Since my boyfriend and I found the decaf to be surprisingly heavy on the lemon/citrus, I wanted to compare with the regular version. Immediately after opening the packet I knew it was not the same. I mean, the lemon is still in there, but way more in the background, while the bergamot and the base black tea mix in more strongly. Quite nice tea, reminds me of a less citrusy Lady Grey. It’s smooth with bright flavours, and easy to drink.

I suppose the decaf versions might be really lemon flavoured because perhaps the decaffeination process causes the tea to lose a lot of flavour, and they add in more lemon it make up for it? Not sure why they wouldn’t opt for more bergamot too, considering it’s supposed to be an earl grey tea. I don’t know, but it’s quite interesting to note the large taste difference between the two versions of the same tea.

Actually, as I drink this one, it reminds me more and more of Lady Grey, albeit stronger In flavour but very similar. My lady grey obsession had recently died down somewhat, so I’m not going crazy over the similarities, but it still it an enjoyable, light and citrusy earl grey.

In other news, I got another Tea Sparrow box today! I’ve been on hold while I finish some of my stash so that it doesn’t get too out of hand, but yesterday I got it in the mail! I don’t know what it is about receiving mail, especially tea in the mail, but there is something profoundly exciting about it. I was delighted to see that I once again received Strawberry Mint from Herbal Republic, one I’ve been wanting to order but couldn’t justify the shipping price for one tea. I brought them all with to my parents’ place so that I can try them while I am here.

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77

Had this at work this afternoon. It was part of a gift set that I received from my co-worker for Christmas.

Smells nice and vegetal/grassy. Has quite a strong tangy aftertaste, but I probably overleafed/oversteeped slightly. Colour was interesting: almost neon lime green. Pretty good overall, a quality sencha. Aroma reminds me a bit of matcha.

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73

Edit: I realized I had the wrong tea company. This was a Stash tea, not Twinings!

Decided to have this tea when my throat started hurting at work yesterday. I was actually pleasantly surprised at the great flavour balance. There was enough ginger in there to feel the spicy kick, but not too much so that it overwhelms the whole tea. The lemon was a tasty counterbalance, and there was even a hint of sweetness to round the tea off nicely. I was initially just drinking it to help my throat, but ended up enjoying it quite a lot. I let it steep for about 5 minutes so that the flavour would get nice and strong, and it was exactly the strength I wanted it to be. I would not be averse to having this tea again!

MadHatterTeaDrunk

Stash is pretty good stuff.

Mookit

Yeah, I was pretty impressed by this one. I might have to give a few more a try.

ashmanra

Have you tried the new 1893 Ginger Cola by Pepsi? So much ginger! It was pretty good.

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80

I’ve forgotten how nice this tea tastes. Pure chamomile is really delicious. Drinking a warm cup of this is one of the most relaxing things one can do, in my opinion.

Aroma is pleasantly grassy and floral at the same time. I like to let it steep for a while, about 5-7 minutes, for a really sturdy tea body and flavour. I’ve also forgotten how sweet chamomile tea tastes. I get a creamy/buttery smoothness from it, with a honey-like aftertaste. Almost like a desert, but calming at the same time.

Edit: WoH… Also forgot about the tea “high” this one gives… Quite a potent calming effect.

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100
drank Paris by Harney & Sons
139 tasting notes

Came home from work completely exhausted today. Went directly to my tea cupboard and pulled out my newest friend.

Getting a lot of caramel in this brew. Flavour gets stronger as it cools. Very relaxing and satisfying.

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75

Got this one for my boyfriend, who likes earl grey tea (only) but likes to drink it at night, when the caffeine is not helpful. I figured that since Twinings is a decent grocery tea, I would give the decaf earl grey a try. I had a cup with my boyfriend while we were watching out nightly tv show. I have to say, it’s nice to finally share a tea with him. He won’t drink it otherwise!

Even as I opened the box, I was surprised at how lemony the tea smells. I was expecting the bergamot aroma to be strong, since it’s just regular earl grey. But actually the lemon is very strong both in the aroma and the flavour. It’s not necessarily bad, but both me and my boyfriend were a little surprised. Thankfully, he still likes the taste of it, and likes it better than the generic brand I started him on. I enjoyed my cup as well, I guess it just wasn’t what I was expecting.

That being said, this would make a great iced tea.

Shae

Twinings Earl Grey and Decaf Earl Grey were the first teas I started with when I began drinking tea regularly, and I still keep at least one of them on hand. I’ve never noticed a difference between the two, but I don’t think I was ever paying that close attention. I just thought they were both equally wonderful. :)

Mookit

I don’t remember ever trying the regular Twinings Earl Grey (just other earl grey blends), so I am not sure if that one is quite lemony as well. The comparison was just between my past experience with earl grey and this one. I agree though, Twinings is a great brand to start off a tea journey with! I just doubt my boyfriend will ever really branch out, haha.

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Bio

I joined Steepster Nov. 2/’15. I am an aspiring law student, currently studying for the LSAT. Meanwhile, I drink a lot of tea, work as a legal assistant and watch Netflix in my down time.

Ever since joining Steepster, I have tried a whole bunch new tea, met awesome people, and learned quite a lot! I am still expanding my tea horizons, currently working on exploring the oolong and puerh territories. Oolong has been a pleasant journey so far, while puerh is more rocky and uncertain. I shall keep trekking on!

My favourite teas are blacks and greens, both flavoured and unflavoured, and I have a few staples that I drink all the time.

I love to try teas that I would otherwise not have access to, and therefore I am always looking for people to trade samples with. Send me a message if you are interested!

My Wishlist is teas that I would like to restock (as a note to myself). My ratings are mostly arbitrary. Generally, anything above 90 I will likely restock. 70-80 I enjoyed, but will not go out of my way to get again. Anything below 70 was not that great, and the lower the mark the less I enjoyed it.

Location

Vancouver, Canada

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