1541 Tasting Notes

63
drank Orange Peach by Tetley
1541 tasting notes

Don’t let the name fool you, it’s an hibiscus tea (a hibiscus tea?).

But it’s pleasant enough. Aroma is mostly tangy hibiscus and citrus, some peach and a cinnamon base note. I think I might get some of that dried apple, too, or it might be an association with the cinnamon aroma. This tea is BRICK RED, hibiscus is the first ingredient after all. Tart and tangy but not overly so, I get orange and floral peach flavorings that taste a bit contrived, very light cinnamon and apple and I think the chicory gives a hint of a roasted bass note. Lingering tart aftertaste. This might be better cold-brewed and I wonder, despite my preference for not sweetening teas, if a little sugar would help that peach pop. Now that I’m typing this review, I’m noticing a surprising cooling sensation coming up from my esophagus. Whoa. Must be one of the “natural flavors.” I like but it’s odd.

So, one neat thing about this tea is the design of the bag. When I first looked at it, I thought, “What is all this string about?” Then I looked at the back of the envelope where there were instruction printed on how to use the teabag. The string is one of those that you’re supposed to pull out of the bag, know what I mean? but there’s a perforated tag at the top joining both the ends of the string. When you’re done steeping, you tear the paper tag and pull both ends outward and that draws more string out of the bag, squeezing the teabag in the process. While it’s not a tight squeeze, it’s pretty handy for those that feel compelled to squeeze the last drops of life from… teabags… but don’t have a spoon or don’t want to use their fingers.

That was a really long and wordy explanation. There’s probably a 3-second Youtube video showing the process more efficiently than reading that novel :P

So yeah, the tea, it’s ok. Too bright to be sipping on near midnight, though.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 8 OZ / 236 ML
Todd

Sounds tasty. I would say “a hibiscus tea” if you pronounce the “h” like an American, “an ’ibuscus tea” if you pronounce it like a Brit. :)

Martin Bednář

Well, I guess it is just okay-ish fruit tea bag.

derk

Martin: that’s about how I feel.

gmathis

Ever yank the string completely out of those confounded teabags?

derk

Half the time they seem to be made for the sipper of delicate touch.

Martin Bednář

I just prepared this one today and I have to agree with everything you wrote. Even with rating, I find it bit bland, slightly acidic, nothing distinctive. For evening okay, for daily drinking not so good.

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47
drank Peach DeTox by Yogi Tea
1541 tasting notes

Kitchen clean-out, unknown age. Why does my housemate have one tea-bag left of a few dozen teas?

Dry bag smells mostly of cinnamon and cardamom with some clove and ginger underneath. The aroma smells really good, like a spicy chai with a sweet note of syrup. First sip is has some bite and is very thin with spicy ginger, cinnamon, cardamom and clove. Finishes only a hint sweet from licorice root and very clean. No lingering spice in throat, warming in the chest.

Peach DeTox. Peach. Where’s the peach? Does anybody know where the peach is?? Peach flavor is listed as the third ingredient in a list of 17, yes 17 ingredients. This might be a record. But where’s the peach?! I think the cinnamon, cardamom and ginger oils listed near the bottom are used to cover up a bunch of stale herbs and spices or something.

If this tea were simply advertised as a spicy herbal chai, I’d be inclined to rate it higher.

Flavors: Cardamom, Cinnamon, Clove, Ginger, Pancake Syrup, Spicy

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more 8 OZ / 236 ML
Kawaii433

“Does anybody know where the peach is?? Peach flavor is listed as the third ingredient in a list of 17, yes 17 ingredients. This might be a record.”

lolol Oh man. :)

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70

Another sample from Kawaii433. Thanks, yo.

This is definitely a high quality jasmine tea. The jasmine is very natural and not overwhelming and the aroma is softly fruity jasmine. The base tea struck me as a white tea rather than a green because of the flavors. The jasmine perfectly integrated, matching well with the fruity tea. No distinct flavors to the base tea but it was a good balance of tones including peach-apricot-cantaloupe, hay-seed-grain and a nectar sweetness. A light aftertaste, mouthwatering mineral qualities and complementary astringency urged me to continue sipping. Very clean light body that could be made thicker by steeping a little longer which I found out by oversteeping.

3.4g, 8oz, 160F, 4 steeps western

Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Cantaloupe, Grain, Grass Seed, Hay, Jasmine, Mineral, Nectar, Peach, Smooth, Sweet

Preparation
160 °F / 71 °C 1 min, 0 sec 3 g 8 OZ / 236 ML
Kawaii433

I ‘m so glad that you & Cameron enjoyed this. I don’t like Jasmine too much :( but it was still yummy to me. I prefer it goes to people who can really appreciate it. <3

Kawaii433

Tea-sipper did too <3 (just under another product name hehe)

tea-sipper

YES I did. I actually sent an e-mail to Jason about combining the actual tea entry and the one I mistakenly created, but Jason said the tea combiner isn’t working for now. So hopefully one day it will be fixed.

Kawaii433

:) Tea-sipper

derk

Kawaii433, thanks again :) It’s one of the best jasmine greens I’ve had. I could go for a bit stronger jasmine aroma but what was there worked splendidly with the fruitiness. You might like to try Whispering Pines’ Alice since it’s a Yunnan black tea base. The depth of the black tea, to me, seems to keep the strong jasmine from going too floral.

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2

What in the ever-living duck is this. The bag smells revolting, artificial, medicinal. Dumb and brave — not a winning combination. Here we go.

I’m getting a really strong artificial-medicinal-raspberry/pomegranate acrid smell. Chamomile mixed with hibiscus, which I don’t typically like.

Yeeup, definitely red medicine tasting. Vitamins. Grossly tart, not smooth. There’s no reason to put citric acid in this other than for preserving a poor excuse for tea that you don’t expect to fly off shelves. Where’s the green tea?

This holds my second lowest rating. It would be the lowest but smelling it doesn’t make my stomach turn, it just pisses me off, hehe.

<3

Flavors: Artificial

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 0 sec 8 OZ / 236 ML
tea-sipper

YEAH, I remember this getting one of my lowest ratings too. ick.

LuckyMe

Dang, that’s the lowest ever rating I’ve seen for a tea, Will Be sure to steer clear of this one.

derk

Yeah, tea-sipper, it’s a gnarly one.

LuckyMe, you and i have seem to have some overlapping preferences but different palates; trust the Steepster rating on this one!

Mastress Alita

Oh ya, this is one of my lowest rated teas as well. I hated this one.

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56

Kitchen clean-out teabag. No idea of age but it is the old style of Mighty Leaf packaging.

Not much aroma to the leaf — smells light green, leafy and strangely what I interpret as cherry blossom that can be found in some sencha. Brews up apple juice in color with aroma of nutty hay with some kind of bright note. First thing I notice on the sip is how mineral-salty it is, followed by hay-butter-nut. Mouth-watering comes next then a short butter-chestnut aftertaste. Astringency develops as I sip. Not worth resteeping. Meh.

Flavors: Butter, Chestnut, Drying, Hay, Mineral, Nutty, Plants, Salty

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 0 sec 8 OZ / 236 ML

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55

Damn, valerian is disgusting.

Nothing like drinking stinky feet for a good night’s rest. Fortunately, there’s some good stuff going on in this blend to, um, temper the valerian. The other ingredients provide a well-balanced mix of herbaceous and floral qualities but it’s not enough to completely distract from the fact that I’m chugging the sweat squeezed from a pair of four days worn crusty gym socks. There’s also some herbal spiciness and a cooling spreading through my chest — from what, I’m not sure. This tea wins points for the blend sans valerian.

Here’s to me being blessed with a club-over-the-head sleep after a later than desired oolong session.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more 14 OZ / 414 ML
mrmopar

I remember puerh like this a time or two when I first started.

Olive

I feel for you, valerian is terrible.

derk

Maybe an enterprising scammer pressed some valerian cakes and sold them to you as an unwitting westerner, mrmopar :P If I keep drinking valerian, maybe I’ll develop an affinity and soon an obsession for it? Build a vumidor? Open a valerian den where people drink only the finest goosh and can pass out safely?

mrmopar

LOL!!! I have learned much since those early days young patewan…..And yes you can elaborate your plans for it too. ,P

derk

Olive: Valerian works great for me as a sleep aid. Because of the taste, I drink it sparingly. Do you know of any blends containing valerian that taste decent?

mrmopar: The va qi hits me like a rock.

mrmopar

Too funny!!!!

Olive

Unfortunately I can’t recommend anything, I tend to actively avoid anything even remotely associated to valerian. Sorry :/ I’ll be sure to check your reviews regularly though, in case you find a blend that I might dare to try haha

Mastress Alita

I have a sleep blend with valerian in it that is really heavy in fennel, and all I smell and taste is the fennel, not the valerian. But valerian is the one thing that will knock me out. I also have valerian in capsules that I’ll take sometime, since that works way better for me than melatonin.

derk

What’s that blend of yours Mastress Alita? I’m in the market for more valerian tea. Melatonin didn’t work for me in the distant past; a few hours after taking it and passing out, I was WIDE AWAKE. HELLO. Bunk.

Mastress Alita

Ya, that’s why I switched to valerian capsules from melatonin. The blend is from American Tea Room and called Sleeping Beauty, but they went out of business some time ago. They were one of those places that only sold ridiculous sized bags though, so I still have an inordinate amount, though. I felt like I saw some other valerian/fennel combo somewhere else not long ago, but since I’m on hiatus I didn’t think much of it since I’m not actively buying tea right now and my memory sucks ass from all my migraine meds… if I run into it again I’ll make sure to note it. I have plenty of the Sleeping Beauty I could share though, at least for now. Once it’s gone I’ll have to find a replacement too, heh.

Mastress Alita

Hey, I found it, it was one of those good ol’ Rishi herbal blends: Valerian Dream. That will probably be the one I try as a replacement when I run out of my Sleeping Beauty blend.

derk

Tyty! Going to give it a try.

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It’s been a while since I’ve had this, so a quick note for tracking its development.

Dry: soft, fruity, powdered sugar
Warm: stonefruit – apricot-plum, yeasty-pastry
Rinse: apricot, plum, cherry, yogurt, floral, vegetal

Liquor color: GOLD
Aroma: powdered sugar and faint tropical fruit – papaya?
Mouthfeel: viscous, mouth-watering, juicy after swallow, rough texture and nice tongue swelling midway through
Tastes: stonefruit/papaya?, hay, sneaky bitterness grows stronger, darker honey, deep vegetal undertone comes forward later, floral, strong returning sweetness midway
Feels: calm, alert, seems like a good morning tea

Overall impression: I like where it’s heading. It’s pretty sweet but the bitterness is on the stronger end which I like and keeps the sweetness in check. Bright tropical fruit zing has diminished, developing more stonefruit notes and darker more syrupy ripe papaya note. Can’t wait to see what happens when that vegetal undertone changes. Seems like a Yiwu with attitude.

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 3 OZ / 100 ML

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85
drank Ginseng Oolong by Mandala Tea
1541 tasting notes

Thanks to Kawaii433, I was able to try my first ginseng oolong :)

I was amused by the dry goods because they looked like aquarium pebbles that smelled like ginseng and syrup. With the Mandala-recommended rinse, the pebbles hadn’t yet cracked open but they smelled of ginseng and cooked vegetables and greens.

After the rinse, I did 7 steeps western style at 30/30/30/40/50/60/? seconds. It started off really pleasant, with a nectar sweetness and light ginseng-herbs. The nuggets finally cracked open in the second steep and were fully unfurled by the fourth. The brew stayed pleasant with its nectar and ginseng-herbal qualities. It had some light oolong grassiness, hay impressions and butteriness came forward in the mouth and the aftertaste. The tea made me really warm!

I was hesitant about approaching this tea since I’ve read some reviews about ginseng oolong being very vegetal and obnoxiously sweet from licorice root mixed into the ginseng coating. That was definitely not the case with this tea. It was very clean with no grit from the coating (what made it through my strainer settled in a very thin layer at the bottom), lightly sweet and grassy, a bit mineral. To repeat myself: light and pleasant. Very easy sipping. Thanks again, Kawaii433.

Flavors: Butter, Grass, Hay, Herbs, Mineral, Nectar

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 30 sec 5 g 8 OZ / 236 ML

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75

Picked up from the Bellagio in Las Vegas. The sachet was nearly overflowing with fluffy chamomile. Very strong floral-apple aroma that was also present in the sweet liquor. Nice pollen brightness. Not at all drying or woody. As far as the rose and lavender oils, I didn’t pick up on either but I did get hints of airiness?

Best chamomile I’ve had! 2 steeps.

Flavors: Apple, Flowers, Hot Hay

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 8 OZ / 236 ML

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The liquor kind of smells like no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies but made with sour dark chocolate. They were accidentally baked and even burnt a little. The taste is surprisingly light and much less bitter than expected. I only notice a slight bitterness in the back of the mouth after I swallow. It’s also a little sweet-tart and a hint ashy. Very mineral and clean with a nice roasty flavor. I think I like it!

Flavors: Ash, Burnt, Dark Bittersweet, Dark Chocolate, Mineral, Oats, Roasted, Tart

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more 8 OZ / 236 ML

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Bio

This place, like the rest of the internet, is dead and overrun with bots. And thus I step away.

Eventual tea farmer. If you are a tea grower, want to grow your own plants or are simply curious, please follow me so we can chat.

I most enjoy loose-leaf, unflavored teas and tisanes. Teabags have their place. Some of my favorite teas have a profound effect on mind and body rather than having a specific flavor profile. Terpene fiend.

Favorite teas generally come from China (all provinces), Taiwan, India (Nilgiri and Manipur). Frequently enjoyed though less sipped are teas from Georgia, Japan, Nepal and Darjeeling. While I’m not actively on the hunt, a goal of mine is to try tea from every country that makes it available to the North American market. This is to gain a vague understanding of how Camellia sinensis performs in different climates. I realize that borders are arbitrary and some countries are huge with many climates and tea-growing regions.

I’m convinced European countries make the best herbal teas.

Personal Rating Scale:

100-90: A tea I can lose myself into. Something about it makes me slow down and appreciate not only the tea but all of life or a moment in time. If it’s a bagged or herbal tea, it’s of standout quality in comparison to similar items.

89-80: Fits my profile well enough to buy again.

79-70: Not a preferred tea. I might buy more or try a different harvest. Would gladly have a cup if offered.

69-60: Not necessarily a bad tea but one that I won’t buy again. Would have a cup if offered.

59-1: Lacking several elements, strangely clunky, possess off flavors/aroma/texture or something about it makes me not want to finish.

Unrated: Haven’t made up my mind or some other reason. If it’s pu’er, I likely think it needs more age.

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California, USA

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