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__Morgana__ drank Valentine's Blend by Harney & Sons

2037 tasting notes

February in October!

Back from the fun run. I plan to give the PTA a piece of my mind because this year there was NO COFFEE at the finish line. Plus, I wasn’t about to eat the coffee cake, muffins, and other assorted carbs, or drink the juice.

So I must have caffeine and I must have it now. Tea and chocolate. Score!

I think Harney does a really nice chocolate tea, and that’s mostly what I smell in the tin. Amazingly, because the chocolate is so rich, I smell a tiny touch of rose as well.

The tea is a dark, clear copper color, and smells like a rich chocolate tea with a floral overtone. The rose is quite subtle, which is a good thing in this case. Too much rose on top of very rich chocolate could be a stomach churner.

Amazing flavor! Just the right amount of rose to lift up the chocolate and make it interesting.

I feel like I’ve been rating things high lately. Maybe it’s my mood.

Or maybe it’s just that the teas have been really, really good.

Flavors: Chocolate, Rose

Preparation

Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 17 OZ / 500 ML

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1 comments

ashmanra
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I have never had this one. My husband hates the smell of Harney Chocolate and Florence, but I am intrigued by this one. Might put a sample in my next order.

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ashmanra
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I have never had this one. My husband hates the smell of Harney Chocolate and Florence, but I am intrigued by this one. Might put a sample in my next order.

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Bio

I got obsessed with tea in 2010 for a while, then other things intruded, then I cycled back to it. I seem to be continuing that in for a while, out for a while cycle. I have a short attention span, but no shortage of tea.

I’m a mom, writer, gamer, lawyer, reader, runner, traveler, and enjoyer of life, literature, art, music, thought and kindness, in no particular order. I write fantasy and science fiction under the name J. J. Roth.

Personal biases: I drink tea without additives. If a tea needs milk or sugar to improve its flavor, its unlikely I’ll rate it high. The exception is chai, which I drink with milk/sugar or substitute. Rooibos and honeybush were my gateway drugs, but as my tastes developed they became less appealing — I still enjoy nicely done blends. I do not mix well with tulsi or yerba mate, and savory teas are more often a miss than a hit with me. I used to hate hibiscus, but I’ve turned that corner. Licorice, not so much.

Since I find others’ rating legends helpful, I added my own. But I don’t really find myself hating most things I try.

I try to rate teas in relation to others of the same type, for example, Earl Greys against other Earl Greys. But if a tea rates very high with me, it’s a stand out against all other teas I’ve tried.

95-100 A once in a lifetime experience; the best there is

90-94 Excellent; first rate; top notch; really terrific; will definitely buy more

80-89 Very good; will likely buy more

70-79 Good; would enjoy again, might buy again

60-69 Okay; wouldn’t pass up if offered, but likely won’t buy again

Below 60 Meh, so-so, iffy, or ick. The lower the number, the closer to ick.

I don’t swap. It’s nothing personal, it’s just that I have way more tea than any one person needs and am not lacking for new things to try. Also, I have way too much going on already in daily life and the additional commitment to get packages to people adds to my already high stress level. (Maybe it shouldn’t, but it does.)

That said, I enjoy reading folks’ notes, talking about what I drink, and getting to “know” people virtually here on Steepster so I can get ideas of other things I might want to try if I can ever again justify buying more tea. I also like keeping track of what I drink and what I thought about it.

My current process for tea note generation is described in my note on this tea: https://steepster.com/teas/mariage-freres/6990-the-des-impressionnistes