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I am very torn on this tea. I liked the taste when I had it hot but it was thick and oily and that was off-putting so I avoided it. Then I thought it would make a great cold brewed teas. The oiliness is not an issue nor the thickness. However, there is a bitterness that emerged in the flavor that is unpleasant. I guess there is no winning with this one :(

Sipdown!! (158)

So, I have not really seen my roommate in the past view days as we are both in exams and therefore cramming in our rooms. I can take some breaks being an arts student but she is in engineering and usually can’t bullshit her way through things she doesn’t know. However, today she finished and when she came in to say hi I asked her if she wanted to try cold brewed tea. She said yes so I gave her Strawberry Kiwi as that was the one I preferred yesterday. Before even telling me she thought it was very good I sorta realized she liked it because she downed the entire bottle. Since she enjoyed the first one so much, I asked if she wanted another and so I let her choose and she ended up picking Passion Berry. She downed that one too. So finally I asked if she wanted to cold brew some. We decided on making her two bottles for the morning but that quickly turned into 4 bottles when she decided she wanted to see how teas other than herbals would fare when prepped using the cold brewing method. Thus, it would seem I am not the only one who can go a little nuts with cold brewing. I suppose it is because of the sheer ease that makes it such an appealing technique so thank you Roswell Strange for inspiring me to try it.

Also, I have now learned that the problem with cold brewing 8 bottles of herbal teas at once without labels is they all turn the same color and it makes it hard to tell them apart. This one I am pretty sure is Banana Cherry Blend though as I can definitely pick up the banana scent. The taste is banana too but with hibiscus tartness. Nothing too different from how it tasted yesterday. And, although it is tasty, I don’t think this will be a restock as I am still not entirely sold on herbals.

I cold brewed this one and to be honest, I think I prefer it hot. It has the slightest hint of orange and there is a sweetness to it however, there is not too much flavor in this bottle and I left it to steep for over 12 hours. Oh well.

I would have never chose this for myself but Roswell Strange was kind enough to send some over so I decided to give it a try. It really is not bad at all. I doubt I would stock up but this cup is enjoyable. I might be a bit crazy but my first few sips were almost buttery. Now as I get more into the cup I am still getting those buttery notes but combined with a bit of vegetal (perhaps spinach) flavor. Definitely an interesting cup. Thank you Roswell Strange!

ETA: Made the rest of this so this is another sipdown!! (159)

Sipdown!! (160)

I am slowly getting through all the teas Dexter3657 sent my way months ago. This is the most recent one I finished up and though it will be missed, it is really hitting the spot today.

Spicy and delicious. A perfect balance of the pumpkin spice spices. No pumpkin really but then again that is an ever so subtle flavor to master. All in all, it is quite tasty. Thank you Dexter3657!

Sipdown!! (161)

Whiskey Buzz sent this to me to try and at first I did not mind it but more and more I am realizing that, for the most part, pu’erh teas are just not for me. I find that for some reason the earthy fermented tea tastes just a little bit too much like dirt. For instance, this is sweet and pineapple-y but it tastes like someone dropped the pineapple first. Well, you live and you learn and what I have learned is I am not a huge pu’erh fan and that is okay. Anyways, thank you Whiskey Buzz for sharing this with me :)

Sipdown!! (162)

So I am a little sad because I just checked my email only to realize Stacy does not have enough left to send me the Carrot Cake tea I ordered on Black Friday. That was one of the ones I was dying to try so that was definitely sad to hear. Stacy is being very accommodating though so I can’t be too upset. Her customer service is really quite great :)

Anyways, on to the tea…

This came to me from Courtney and it is not bad but my roommate mentioned it tastes like potpurri and every time I have it, that is all I can think of. It is actually because of that, that my roommate no longer says what she thinks a tea tastes like unless I outright ask. Nonetheless, it is gone and though I am glad I tried it, I am not too sad to see it go. Thank you Courtney for helping me cross this one off my list.

Sipdown!! (152)

I have now finished off the generous sample Sil sent to me. It is funny because I was not a huge fan of this one at first but it has grown on me for sure. In fact, today I planned on only having one cup but when that tasted so delicious I decided to have another which polished off the sample.

I don’t know what I did today but this tasted just like a butter cookie. You know the ones – they come in the tin that every grandparent keeps and uses to store random things in and then you see it and get excited for cookies only to find a tin full of sewing stuff. They are buttery and sweet and have the perfect hint of vanilla. That is what this cup tasted like and it was delicious. So thank you Sil for sharing!!

On a completely unrelated note, I just caught the Canada Post lady writing a pick up card for my Herbal Infusions package without having even knocked on my door. I heard her come up the stairs outside and then I heard her walk to my door and I waited for the knock to as not seem eager. No knock so I went and opened the door anyways to find her with my package, looking shocked, and writing the card. She had to remove the sticker that she had already put on the package assuming I was not home. There were lights on and everything! Get yo shit together Canada Post!!! Luckily though I caught her and now I have my Herbal Infusions order. Hooray!!

Sipdown!! (153)

Coconut is the prominent flavor in this blend and though I am not tasting what I would call cheesecake, there is another component to this tea that is making for a thicker and more rounded dessert type flavor. I suppose I will just have to keep sipping until I figure it out. Hmm…

HELP! I have developed a serious cold brewing addiction. I mean serious! There may, or may not, be 8 bottles cold brewing in my fridge right now for tomorrow. I swear I don’t like the teas cold brewed THAT much but I just couldn’t stop. I planned on making three different teas but then for 2 of the teas, there was just enough for two bottles so I figured why not get some sipdowns (so that was 4). And then the third tea was out so I thought might as well. Then I thought about Watermelon Mint Chiller and how that would probably be good cold. Then I checked my spreadsheet and saw I had a Teavana herbal I probably won’t drink any other way so might as well try. And then just to make an even 8, I prepped a bottle of Youthberry/Wild Orange Blossom blend.

Hi. My name is Rachel, and I have a cold brewing addiction.

Anyways, on to the tea – THIS tea, not the others in my fridge. This tea always surprises me as to how spot on the banana smell and taste are. I find you hardly ever come across non-artificial banana flavor but this is true-to-the-fruit banana goodness. I was a little distracted by the hibiscus trying to sneak by me but luckily it was not overly prominent like it tends to get in hot teas. Plus there is that little hint of cherry that is sort of sweet but also blends well with the tart of hibiscus. All in all, a nice cup.