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I found this little sample when I was organizing all my teas and was pretty excited to try it. Once I had all my teas put away I made a cup of this and sat down to relax for literally 2 minutes before the little man wondered down the stairs in a post nap sleep daze. But, for those 2 minutes, I enjoyed this tea! Very natural blueberry flavors and the purple tea was kind of interesting. I need to try that on its own sometime so I can discern the flavor a little more, but it was a pleasant afternoon tea! Thanks for including this in one of my orders Stacy!

I’ve been putting off organizing my tea cupboard and drawers and finally dove into the project today. The bribe for myself was trying the sample of this I got with a verdant order awhile back. I brewed it western style and was surprised that I actually noticed the mushroom notes that other reviewers mentioned. But honestly, I didn’t really love it. Luckily I made it in my itty bitty little test tube steeper that only makes about 8 oz at a time so I didn’t have too much to get through before steeping it again. The second and third steeps were much more to my liking. The fungal (ha ha) flavors had subsided and there was a milk chocolaty honeyish flavor that lingered. I still didn’t fall in love with it and won’t reorder, but I’m glad I finally got around to trying it. And I got all my teas organized! Woot woot!

I finally got around to planting my garden today. It’s a nice and hot day so i wanted a fruity tea to make into an iced tea for sipping while digging. I don’t ever buy fruity teas so I dove into my swap pile and pulled this one out from KallieBoo!. Sounded perfect. I brewed it up extra strong and then poured it over some ice.

It’s really good. I’m terrible at naming fruit flavors. Especially tropical ones. So all i can say is that it tastes like tropical fruits and a really interesting green tea. I read a previous review noting its smokiness and it does have a smokiness to it, but not a ‘smoked’ (i.e. smoky meat) flavor per se. This might sound strange but it kind of tastes like what I can imagine licking an ash tray might taste like, but in a good way. I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s not strong. Just a hint of it in the aftertaste. I can totally see adding this to my cart next time I see another 52teas tea that sounds interesting. Thanks KallieBoo!!

I’ve been drinking tea and reading peoples reviews lately, but haven’t felt much like writing. It all started when the little bean grabbed my steeping tea and got a ridiculously bad burn on her belly that required medical care. Dampered my spirits on tea for a little while. Or at least my total obsession with it. Anyway, as with all things in life, moderation is key. So I’m back at it, but this time, in moderation.

I was super excited to receive my spring harvest of Laoshan Black as many steepsterites seemed to prefer last years spring harvest to the fall harvest (which I loved). Alas, I do believe I’m a fall harvest gal. This didn’t brew up nearly as dark and strong flavored as the previous batch. The chocolatey notes and roasty notes seem much more subdued. There’s a tad more maltiness to it, like whoppers malt, not beer malt. Still good, but I’m not nearly as in love with it. Good thing I have a few cups left of my fall harvest. I’ll save that for a special occasion. Changing my rating accordingly.

On the plus side, I ordered one of those test tube steepers. I absolutely love it and it will help me make smaller cups of tea instead of mugs. But I would buy a 16oz one if it was available! It is so darn cute.

I had an awful experience with the caramel popcorn tea from utopia tea so my hopes weren’t high for this one. Luckily, this is actually pretty tasty. Definitely has a ‘fake-y’ flavor to it, but that doesn’t ruin it. The second steep is actually my favorite as most of the fake flavor has washed away and a subtle cinnamon almond snickerdoodle flavor remains. I think I may reorder this!

I really enjoyed this green tea. It was very full flavored. Buttered vegetables. Yum!

Thanks Shelley_Lorraine!

Backlog from yesterday.

I got this in a mystery swap from Shelley_Lorraine. Thanks! This is a very smooth oolong. nothing too exciting about it. I think when it comes to oolongs I like them either really buttery or roasty, otherwise they’re kind of boring. But it was still a nice cup.

Backlog from yesterday.

I don’t think I know what a macaron. Is it the same as a macaroon? If so, then I don’t understand this tea at all. If its something different then, it may be ok. I’m not sure what I think of this tea. I enjoyed it, but I didn’t love it. I only steeped it for about 2 minutes and still was a tad bitter.

Thanks shmiracles!

I really like this tea. Especially brewed western style. So roasty and chocolatey. I needed a recovery tea after a really bad chai latte I made for a friend earlier. She likes them sweet, me not so much. Too much sweet. Ugh. This is the perfect remedy tea.

This morning I stared at my tea cupboard for like 10 minutes not know what to have. It made me curious about that tea randomizer I saw on the discussion board but as I don’t keep my cupboard up to date it wouldn’t work so well for me. So I scoffed off all responsibilities today and catalogued every single tea I have in a spreadsheet (except for the crappy bagged teas). I included samples and swaps as well. Drumroll… I have 332 teas. Wow. I honestly didn’t think I had that many. Anyway, before my days as a stay at home mom I was an application developer in Excel VBA and could create pretty amazing spreadsheets and programs that draw off of Excel spreadsheets. It was time to dust off some of those skills! I got all my teas added noting tea type, flavor, amount, if it’s eligible for swapping (i.e. do i have enough/willing to share), if it’s something I like, and if it’s a swap, who it’s from. Then I worked up some magic and now I have an application where I choose from a drop down what type (black, green, etc..), if I want a flavored, and if I want a sipdown. It immediately spits out a random tea that matches all the criteria. Which finally brings me to the this tea. My tea chooser chose this one for me tonight. I wanted a flavored green that is sipdown. Out popped Bubbly!

And you know, it’s not as bad as I thought it would be! Kind of good actually. Or maybe I’m just still high on my excel buzz. I mean, it’s not great and I wouldn’t purchase it. I don’t really like floral teas or pineapple and they are both present in this, but it does have a good champagne flavor and aroma. Had it not been for my tea chooser this would have sat in the drawer a lot longer.

I can see geeking out on this thing a lot more. Adding a lot more functionality. Good to know I still have skills! And shmiracles thanks again for the insane amount of tea you sent including this one.