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Morning tea in my travel mug on the way to work! I love this one for when I’m in a rush. Especially in the mornings. It is so rich and bold for a bagged tea! Really wakes me up and puts a smile on my face. It’s not quite as good as my beloved Mayan Chocolate Chai from 52teas, but still a nice spicy cup.

Yikes! This one is just all around too much. Too much cinnamon, too much hibiscus, too many flavours going on. I’m not really sure what they were going for with this blend, but it really doesn’t work. None of the flavours really meld well together, making it a fairly confusing & unpleasant blend to sip on.

I did a little dance when I opened this one up. It smells SO sweet and sugary and a bit caramelized and just so much like cotton candy! And the scent filled up my kitchen. So I knew this was going to be good. I’m the only one in my house who drinks iced tea on a regular basis, so I didn’t want to make a full pitcher. That, and I wanted to be able to make this goodness last as long as possible! So I cheated and tore open the tea bag, poured the leaf into another container, and will be making this by the cup instead.

I also cheated by trying this hot for the first time, instead of iced! After smelling the dry leaf I knew I wouldn’t be able to wait for it to chill or cold brew. So I added a bit of milk, a touch of cream, and some sugar to my cup. Mmmm, it still smells so strongly of cotton candy after steeping! And it tastes divine. Strong black tea base followed by a smooth hit of cotton candy. It’s definitely pink cotton candy rather than blue (blue’s my favourite!) but I can overlook that due to this tea’s impossible yumminess. In comparison to the 52teas version, I find the flavouring to be a bit stronger in this one, and definitely pink cotton candy, whereas I found the other to have more of a generic cotton candy taste. I would happily drink either of them, and while they are definitely different, it would be hard to choose a favourite! Can’t wait to try it iced, as it’s supposed to be.

Thanks to tattoed_tea for sending me some of this!

I decided to try it iced first, and I think that was a good decision! The dry smell is lovely, I get a hint of chamomile, some rich, dark caramel notes, and a light fresh herbal scent that I’m guessing can be attributed to the lavender. Speaking of which, the lavender was an unexpected surprise! I love it in teas and it really adds something wonderful to this one.

I added just a dash of agave while steeping, and then put it into the fridge to chill. I really love the complex flavours going on in this! The rooibos/chamomile blend is lovely, and there is a sort of caramel sweetness to the blend, but not as strong as I would have liked. The lavender is so subtle and really just adds a little something extra and unexpected. So nice! I don’t really taste any banana though, which is a bit of a disappointment. This is still such a lovely herbal though, and I can’t wait to try it hot in the evening.

This is pretty tasty! I’d have to agree with the Tang/“orange drink” comparisons, because that’s the first flavour I noticed. Followed up with the grassy, earthy taste of the mate. I wish I could taste more of the other fruits, but the orange really seems to overtake the cup. I had it iced, and I can see myself drinking it once in a while in the summer, but it’s not as good as my beloved Honeybee as an iced mate. I think the Tang association just makes it a bit too artificial tasting for me.

I can’t imagine enjoying it hot, as I’m really not a fan of fruity teas hot, unless they’re balanced with something rich like chocolate, vanilla/cream, or nutty flavours. So I doubt this will make it into my cupboard, but the cup I had in store was enjoyable for sure!

Sipping on some hot Blueberry Jam with milk and sugar while watching some Doctor Who. It’s a pretty perfect companion. I’m still loving this blend as much as I did at first sip. It’s so fresh and sweet and fruity! Now it’s time to catch up with some tasting notes. It’s been a busy week and I’ve been a bit neglectful.

I’ve fallen out of love with this, a bit. I think next time I’ll do a 4 min steep, because at 5 min it was pretty bitter. I like my black tea to be strong, so 5 min is my standard, but this one can’t handle it. I added a bit of cream and sugar and it was drinkable.

Aside from the bitterness, I’m starting to find the nutty brittle taste a little fakey and overwhelming. I wish they had have gone for a cream note rather than the brittle to get the feeling of strawberry shortcake.

I’m almost done my packet, and I won’t be overly sad to see it go. It’s tasty, and I enjoyed it for a while, but it’s not something I’d want to drink regularly.

Uh oh. I think I’ve unleashed a new obsession. Why, whyyyy did I have to LOVE everything in my first 52teas order? It’s going to be so so hard to stop myself from going overboard. This always happens when I find an amazing new tea company (or bath product company or etsy seller or recipe collection). I convince myself that I need allthetea by sheer virtue of its deliciousness. Curse you, delicious tea, I’ve already placed a second order!

Anyway, this one. New favourite chai! Seriously. I’m always complaining in my tasting notes about chili or other spicy-based teas where the spicy factor is virtually nonexistent. Especially with chais..I want my mouth to be burning, people! There is a good amount of heat in this blend, but I wouldn’t complain if it were a tiny bit stronger. Even so, this is the spiciest chai I’ve had the pleasure of tasting, which makes me want to give Frank a high five. I like milk and sugar in my chai, which might have muted the heat just a little bit, but it still came through nicely.

The chai spices are spot on, I taste cinnamon (but not overpoweringly so), ginger, the cardamom, and they’re all in perfect balance. The almond and cacao nibs really add a little something too! Really rich and decadent tasting. I don’t taste much chocolate flavour, which is more than fine with me. I’m picky about chocolate teas, they can taste so artificial. The hint of cocoa flavour in this blend is great though, I find it just adds to the overall richness of the cup, rather than screaming chocolate. I also love that even with all this flavour going on, you can still taste the lovely black tea base in the background. Perfect!

I came home from yoga this morning to find my very first 52teas order in my mailbox! I just about squee’d right in the lobby of my building. I was expecting a longer wait to ship to Canada, but I think it was only about a week ago that I ordered. Tea surprises are the best surprises!

Of course this was the first one I wanted to get my hands on. Ever since I first read the Harry Potter series (and every time I’ve read it since then!) I’ve been dyyying to try some butterbeer. Anyone who has read the books knows how incredible the characters all make the drink sound. Found a few recipes online to make my own, but they all called for butterscotch of some sort. Blech!! I hate butterscotch and I don’t think it has any place in butterbeer, thankyouverymuch. So when I saw that Frank had come up with his own flavour concoction to try to imitate the legendary beverage, and had combined it with TEA no less, I knew I had to try some. And from what I’d read in reviews, it didn’t sound like this one would scream butterscotch.

When I first opened the packet my heart sunk a little. It smelled just like root beer. I love root beer, but I wanted it to be a note in the blend, rather than the dominant flavour. I had no reason to worry though, because once it’s steeped up, it is so perfect! I get the root beerish taste, but also the lovely creamy butteriness that everyone has been raving about. It’s so warming and complex and just delicious that I imagine this is the closest I’ll come to butterbeer heaven.

In conclusion, I’m SO glad this lived up to the hype, or else I’m pretty sure I would’ve been heartbroken :P I can’t wait to sip on this in the fall (my favourite season!) with a cozy scarf and a good book. It’s just that kind of tea!

This is probably my favourite rooibos blend. This is the first one I go for when I want a tea later in the evening. I love my caffeine, so I tend to go for black or mate blends throughout the day. But when I want something creamy and soothing at night this is perfect.

I love the combo of the sweet coconut with the herbal lavender, and they’re wonderful atop the rooibos & honeybush base. It’s delicious on its own or with a splash of milk and sugar. I’ve yet to try it iced, but I can see it being pretty decent. I will always have this on hand, better than any supposed relaxing tea I’ve tried.