T2

This is my answer to Ashmanra’s prompt of Tea From Your Largest Tin.

Got 100g of this one as T2 was closing up it’s US shop. I normally would never get such a large amount of a flavored Chinese sencha, but the flavor struck me right in the nostalgia. Never have I added something to my cart and purchased it so fast lol. Ever since I finished my bag of Lupicia’s Tochitome green, I haven’t been able to find it ever again. I still think of how incredibly delicious the combo of strawberry + sencha were and how much I miss that tea! When I saw that the flavors of this tea are strawberry and cream, I said Sign me TF up!

I tried this hot before making it as a cold brew, which is how I plan on drinking the rest of it down this summer. Hot brew was crisp, creamy, and sweetly strawberry, heavy on the berry. Not very refined, but a decent cup of flavored green. I wouldn’t revisit this tea hot most likely, but I’ve already gone through over 30g in cold brew. I see myself finishing this one fast.

This was too full-bodied for my liking if I’m being honest.

TTB Review #46: I found this one a bit obnoxious. Yes, it’s sweet and has all of those notes of caramel and chocolate, but in a way that felt haphazard. It reminded me of being a kid and smelling my bag of candy right after trick-or-treating – just an overwhelming amount of disjointed sweetness. I’m sure lots of people would like it but I wasn’t a big fan.

Sipdown! (31 | 111)

Sipped through most of this tin with milk, but having this last cuppa plain. This new (to me) Chobani oat creamer I got tastes just like Lucky Charms marshmallows LOL, which is not what I expected from a creamer called “Sweet & Creamy” but it’s very nostalgic and goes well in a plain breakfast blend like this tea.

Anyway! Plain, it’s okay. Definitely tasting some Sri Lankan black tea in there. Actually, it looks like from the ingredients that this is just Sri Lankan black tea and not a blend of teas. It’s perfectly fine, it has that metallic note to it but also some biscuity flavor. Fairly smooth even though the leaf is quite fine, but I did only steep it for two minutes.

Seems decent, but I’m not a breakfast blend person so what would I know ha ha. The only tin I have left from my T2 sampler is French Earl Grey, which is the only T2 tea that I really like and repurchase, so that one will be hanging around for a while yet.

Sipdown! (17 | 97)

Sadly, this little tin got dumped. I could smell rancid coconut as soon as I opened it, even though I just got it a couple of weeks ago and it has a “best by” date in 2024. I even tasted a piece just to be sure, but sadly it had indeed gone bad.

A shame, as I was excited to try this one. I’m sure I’ll be ordering from T2 in the future, so I’ll have to remember to pick some up then.

Sipdown! (19 | 99)

Finished this off as a London Fog. It’s nice enough as a latte, but it would work better if the bergamot was just a bit stronger. Certainly not one I would repurchase, but happy to have the pretty blue tin! :3

Back to my World of Breakfasts sampler!

This one is simply an Earl Grey. It’s funny how the reviews are all over the place, with some saying it’s too weak and others too strong, both for the tea and the bergamot. The world would be such a boring place if we all had the same tastes though, wouldn’t it?

To me, it’s neither weak not strong. The black tea doesn’t have a ton of flavor to it, it’s sort of that generic “black tea” taste that I associate with grocery store breakfast teabags. I do think there’s at least some Sri Lankan tea included, because it has that sort of acidic/metallic combo going on. A little bit astringent, but not overly so. The bergamot is what I would call moderate, it’s very present and definitely makes this an Earl Grey, but it’s not super in-your-face. I’m thankful for that, as I don’t love strong bergamot teas.

It’s a serviceable Earl, but nothing special. I’ll probably enjoy the rest as a few London fogs, since I don’t tend to drink this sort of tea plain.

TTB Review #20: Yum! I LOVE coconut so I already had a good feeling about this tea. I was not disappointed – the tea is sweet but not overly so, the coconut and cocoa go together nicely, and I could definitely see this as a dessert tea. I did find that it left somewhat of a bitter aftertaste which is why I’m not giving it a higher rating.

I took a break yesterday from the alphabet challenge to try two teas new to me. Again, I always wanted to try T2’s breakfast teas so I’m very grateful for MiepSteep sending a couple over to try! This one gets quite the high steepster rating! Honestly, I might like the NY breakfast better. This one seems to be plain vanilla and the vanilla seems a little artificial to me. But it at least isn’t a faint tasting vanilla. The black tea is fine. Nothing special. But then the second steep is fairly faint flavored. I might be an outlier here, but I think the NY Breakfast has more nuance. I love vanilla flavored things, but I think I’m learning that I’m picky about vanilla.
Steep #1 // 20 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3 min

Sipdown! (15 | 95)

Not a favorite for me. I found it most enjoyable with a splash of oat milk and a touch of sugar to make the vanilla a bit softer and creamier. I tried it as a latte as well, but for some reason it didn’t work for me.

Glad to have the cute tin anyway! :D

Another one from my T2 World of Breakfast sampler with the cute tins.

This is a vanilla black tea. To be honest, I’m always underwhelmed by plain vanilla-flavored black teas. I don’t know why that is, but they just don’t seem to be my jam.

And this one is much the same. It tastes very natural (although worth noting, it does have artificial flavoring), with a woody sort of vanilla extract note to it. It’s quite smooth and overall has a woody, malty, and slightly earthy flavor, with the added sweetness and lightly creamy notes of the vanilla.

It’s pleasant, but it’s just not blowing my skirt up. I think I’ll try this as a latte next time.

Thanks very much, MiepSteep! I recently posted my love in a tasting note for Lupicia’s Melon White so MiepSteep awesomely offered to send me their stash of it AND a few of T2’s teabags to tag along with it. I definitely wavered many times about ordering some of my T2 favorites and some of the blends that I always wanted to try, and their breakfast teas were at the top of that list. So I’m very grateful to just try them before they were harder to acquire. Making me feel a bit better about not ordering them.
A black tea with a breakfast vibe, I’m liking this more than I thought I would with its Steepster rating of 74. Sometimes I have an issue with vanilla flavoring, but this is tasty enough. My only complaint might be that the black tea doesn’t exactly have the strength I love for a breakfast tea, but that might be because this is a teabag and if I were scooping my usual amount of leaves, I wouldn’t have the Too Light Black Tea problem. I like this though! The flavor really does remind me of what I think of as a traditional French Breakfast tea. It’s sweet, smooth, something like a pastry. The cinnamon doesn’t make an appearance until the second steep, but overall is deeper and has plenty of flavor. When I was considering ordering, I was wavering on a one pound bag. I don’t think I like it’s a top favorite tea, but I wouldn’t have minded stocking up on a bit of it. I like it’s named “Breakfast” because I agree that it is a Breakfast Tea!
Steep #1 // 22 minutes after boiling // 1-2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 4 minutes after boiling // 3-4 min

Tried to get some more flavor out of this tea this weekend. Turns out it’s just a little masochistic :) I found that oversteeping it with freshly boiled water is the way to go. I used one teabag in 8oz of boiling water for 6 minutes did the trick. Feels wrong, but tasted right.

More clearance tea from T2! As someone who lives in NYC, I feel I am obligated to have this tea in my cupboard. And I really like the concept of breakfast flavorings in tea, however, this one is just ehhh. The black tea base is malty and fruity, but somehow doesn’t steep very strong. If have you ever had a third or fourth steep of a (better) tea and realize first thing into the sip that the tea is spent, yet drink the cup of weak tea anyway? That’s how I feel with this on steep number one. I feel like this tea could have some delicious potential if the flavor was punchier.

Not sure why a cinnamon pancake tea would be considered New York, NGL. Maybe for the brunch crowd? Now that’s got me thinking… Honestly, somebody has to make a mimosa green/white tea. That I would wait in an insane line for XD. No really though, pancakes are more of a sit down, Sunday-morning-contemplation-meal than something New Yorkers would have on a regular morning. A better tea to represent our breakfast would be bagel flavored for sure. Although, an everything bagel with cream cheese tea sounds so gross when I say that out loud hahaha…

Honestly, if you really like the sound of a pancake breakfast black tea, go pick some up from 52Teas. It lives up to it’s flavor name and more.

This was a really nice, unexpected treat! You definitely get the brownie and the gooey, buttery caramel. It also wasn’t too sweet. Other than a select few, I wasn’t too pleased with T2 in the past but I think it was just their tea bags I didn’t like. All the looseleaf ones I have had have been delightful.

drinking this tea, thinking that it’s a better fit for the “Flavored black tea” prompt of this month. So simple, yet good :)

Snagged this on T2’s half off “We’re getting the hell out of the US market” sale (T2 wasn’t that explicit, but they are closing their retail locations and the US site). Maybe I am biased from other vanilla black teas, but this tea is missing some extra element to marry the vanilla to it’s base. I really like the slightly smoky Keemun and Assam base, and the vanilla flavoring is giving vanilla bean and no chemical tang. I have grown accustomed to a black tea base with a flaky biscuit, milk chocolate desserty delight to accompany a chopped vanilla bean. Perhaps you could say I’m spoiled by the lovely handcrafted blends from small biz tea merchants. That would be correct. For a breakfast tea on the go though, this is still a delicious choice. I mean, a vanilla black tea would REALLY have to work hard to suck XD

Broke into the T2 sampler my friend brought back from Australia. I know I have tried some of the greens before but I don’t think I have tried this one. It’s VERY floral scented. I do like the balance of the Jasmine with the green tea. I was cautious to not over steep as I’ve ruined many teas that way. I steeped for just over 2 minutes. The mug was perfect on its own. I definitely would get this again.

Craving something simple but bracing while I wrap up some schoolwork this bright and brilliant Saturday morning, and Melbourne Breakfast fits the bill. I’m glad I picked up these teabags during the T2 sale, because sometimes you just need something straightforward and convenient that doesn’t require much attention.

The vanilla definitely tends toward the artificial, but in a pleasant way. It’s kinda creamy and marshmallowy. I do find myself wishing the base tea were a bit bolder and maltier, because the vanilla can be a bit overwhelming.

I’ve never been to Australia but it’s on my list… maybe I’ll have to indulge in some travel daydreaming after I finish my schoolwork! And on that note, back to reading I go.

A friend brought me a most generous T2 package from her trip to Australia this winter. I’ve tried some of the teas in the sampler she gave me but definitely not all. Super excited to try them.
I had the Melbourne Breakfast this morning pre-breakfast. I’m generally haven’t cared much for the English Breakfast teas, so I went into this mug with some hesitancy. Steeped the pyramid in boiled water for 2-3 minutes. I really like this one. The vanilla adds a sweetness but not overly so. I’m reminded of a sugar ice cream cone or waffle cone. I could see this one being a favorite for me.

Oookay, this one is SOCLOSE to being SOGOOD. It’s got a surprisingly rich and heavy mouthfeel, with loads of spicy-sweet-bready-cakey goodness. I definitely understand the carrot cake inspiration in the sense that carrot cake is often kind of dense and nutty and sweet, and those are the vibes I’m getting here. It’s definitely a dessert tea — there’s sugar in the pineapple bits and the hazelnut brittle, but I think the sweetness works to balance out the strong notes of cinnamon and clove (?) and to evoke sweet icing. I rarely purchase or drink tea with added sugar, but it makes sense here, I think.

Unfortunately, the whole effect is diminished by a burst of surprising tartness, probably from the orange slices and/or orange essence (and maaaybe the pineapple bits, but I doubt it because they’re sweetened). Don’t get me wrong; orange zest/juice in carrot cake is lovely and really complements the earthiness of carrots, but here it’s just far too strong! “Tart” should not be a main descriptor of carrot cake, IMHO.

On the plus side, the second steep is far less tart, so that’s something. And I think you could pick the orange slices out of the blend pretty easily. But still, it’s unfortunate.

Cold Brew!

So, I actually had a bunch of different cold brews going all at once in my hotel mini fridge. I think, at one point, I had four various vessels shoved in there with things steeping. I wanted to have a constant flow of chilled drinks for the mornings and evenings or, like in this case, the short windows of time I found myself back at the hotel dropping off stuff after the expo before heading back out for the night.

I doubled up on the sachets of this one in a 24oz water bottle which made for a fairly strong brew. Very heavy on the “cream” flavouring, which I found a bit artificial and chalky, however the floral peach notes were very fresh and the whole thing had a nice level of sweetness. I chugged the cold brew very quickly as I only had a 15 minute window after the second day of the expo, but it was exactly what I needed.

Very grateful I kept the cold brews constantly going!