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After complaining to you about the daytime tea stash, I did something about it and brought a few loose leaf packets to finish up…among them, this very nice “just green” tea from Oliver Pluff. It meets my standards by tolerating abuse and absentminded steeping and is more toasty than it is vegetal. OP calls it buttery and plummy—that may be a little ambitious, or that may be because I’ve let my supply sit too long, but it is a very nice change of pace.

My work tea stash is kind of pathetic…refugee boxes and bags from home that I intend to drink up quickly and never do. This was in the stash, but still has a tiny bit of life left in it. Still smells nice and the cinnamon presence compensates for the decay of the black tea base.

Too bad Trader Joe’s discontinued this variety—was (formerly) a really nice wintertime pantry staple.

Happy, happy, joy, joy … there were two tins of this in my Mother’s Day bonanza, and loose leaf to boot! It’s the same blend as the gift-box tea bags I have enjoyed in the past: black tea, tangerine zest, and a little vanilla, but the black tea base is stronger and the zest a little zestier—no doubt due to better quality leaves. Pastry and citrus.

I opened the tin at “tea party” time at work and blethered in ecstasy because I had expected tea bags rather than leaves, then my work friend (derk, she’s my Kiki) brought me back to earth by whiffing it and chortling, “It smells like men’s cologne.” Hmph. All the more for me.

Hope you loved on your mom a little today. Moms leak if you don’t fill their buckets once in a while.

My bucket is brimming—between husband, son, and (ahem) cats (or so the gift tag says), I have a basketful of treats to paw through, including this dignified tin of black tea with the Royal Warrant. We’re huge “Keeping Up Appearances” fans, so Royal Warrant Tea holds a special place in my heart.

Other than the little niblet on Partridge’s website (East African, mountain grown), Partridge’s is a little sparse on information. I’ll take scent and flavor over information any day, and this is replete with both. It’s loose leaf rather than CTC, and smells like a bucket of buckwheat. The flavor is equally sweet and wheaty, smooth like velvet with a color like the dark cherry wood finish on my tea chest. Fine stuff.

Every time I drink and review a chocolate tea, I bellyache that it isn’t chocolate enough. Well, the Hershey bar stops here. Wow. Thick, rich carob and chicory—this definitely hits the “unsweet chocolate bar” mark. I’m drinking this unsweetened, and there’s enough coffee-like bitterness to open my eyes a little, even though it’s purely herbal. With a little milk or as a latte, this is going to be just flat delicious.

I couldn’t attend a bridal shower in TN thrown by a dear friend, so she sent a little bit of the shower to me in the form of a sample Hug In A Cup (she did a tea service featuring CuppaGeek blends with place cards including their descriptions).

I’ve read many reviews, including my own, that don’t get too excited about herbal chamomile blends. After all, it’s chamomile. But Nichole has added a very pleasant fruity-berry twist. The hibiscus and rose hips in my sample added color without a lot of tartness. A really nice nightcap if you’re tired of the usual chamomile-lemony-minty routine.

We’ve got Steepster listings for Unknown Oolong, Unknown Green, Unknown China, probably Unknown and Discovered In the Back of My Closet; I was tempted to add one more classification for what I’m drinking this evening: Unknown But Delicious.

Work friend went to Hawaii and brought me a little packet of pearls simply labeled “Lady M,” which is apparently a high-end cake-and-goodie shop, whose merchandise is sold at Waikiki Tea Room. All this is strictly Googling and conjecture, because we’ve crossed paths and I haven’t actually been able to chat with her.

Whatever these are, and wherever these are from, they are exquisite little jasmine pearls about the size of capers that relax in a warm bath just like your neck muscles do in a tub full of bubbles. The jasmine is milder and less floral than other versions I’ve tried over the years—it has a buttery, fruity personality. Pineapple? That may just be the power of geographic suggestion.

At any rate, it’s a perfect cup after a high-intensity work week and I’m looking forward to hearing more about this tea’s provenance.

I adopted this off the pay-it-forward table at work because…well…a perfectly viable unopened tin of tea. Do I need more justification?

Actually, with iced tea season almost upon us, I thought it would be pleasant this summer. But before chilling it, I made a conventional cup this afternoon. For a grocery store selection, it isn’t bad. The jasmine didn’t taste like guest soap. I was a little heavy handed on the water temp so it was a little bitter this time around, but next time, with a little more care, I think it will be acceptably leafy and vegetal.

A good cheap date, especially with your eyes closed, listening to the maple tree “helicopters” plinking on the roof.

Labor-intensive curriculum writing project done. Microwave, stand, and everything on it swabbed down. Living room vacuumed. Fresh sheets on the bed. A celebration is in order.

And, boys-a-dear, this is the tea to celebrate with! Upon opening and contemplating the bonanza of dried strawberries, chocolate chips, and rose petals in this CuppaGeek blend (dare I say masterpiece?), I couldn’t decide whether to steep some or use it for potpourri. The scent of real chocolate and real fruit (not syrupy candy flavoring) made me giddy.

The actual cup did not disappoint. I expected it to be a little oily due to the chocolate, but there’s just a little opacity. The strawberry is real, the chocolate (to me, anyway) leans a little to the dark side, and the rose petals just add a lovely element of fancy-pants.

I anticipate it to make a perfectly acceptable second steep, which is going to be needed very soon. This cup’s gone!

While this was a gentle and desserty afternooner, neither the peach nor the vanilla was a standout. I didn’t concentrate on it much (I was zoned in on a “25 Words or Less” episode) so inattention may have contributed. I’ve got one more little pyramid to try; we’ll see if conditions improve.