Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  A. C. Perch

Tea Description:

Sweet, refreshing tea with delicate cranberry flavour.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This Cranberry Flavored Black Tea from A. C. Perch is one of the best cranberry flavored teas I’ve yet to try.  The cranberry here smells distinct and strong and that aroma got me to thinking that this was going to be a rather tart tasting tea.  However, the flavor is quite smooth and reminiscent of the sweet cranberry compote that I make when I serve turkey.

The flavor is definitely cranberry – there’s no mistaking that this is a cranberry flavored tea!  But, I like that it is a gentle flavor and it doesn’t obscure the flavor of the rich black tea.  It is tart … most of the tartness arrives at the finish and in the aftertaste.  At the start of the sip, though, what I taste is a sweeter cranberry, as I mentioned earlier, a taste that reminds me of a sweet cranberry compote.  Not tart.  Sweet!

As one who typically is shy when it comes to overly tart flavors, I don’t mind this sweeter side of cranberry one bit.  And what I’m enjoying most is that even though this is a sweet that isn’t typical of most things cranberry, it still tastes distinctly of the berry.

The black tea is flavorful and invigorating.  There isn’t a really bracing astringency to this, but I do notice a slight dry sensation toward the tail.  The finish is tart and tingly, and it is here where I notice most of the tart notes of the cranberry.  The aftertaste has a nice berry taste.

A really enjoyable cranberry tea.  I think I will need to order some of this and gift it to my daughter who loves cranberry.  This is likely to become a favorite of hers!  This would make a great iced tea – as the tea cools, the cranberry really pops!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  White

Where to Buy:  Tea People

Tea Description:

Makaibari tea estate is situated in a town called Kurseong in the district of Darjeeling. Kurseong means the land of the ‘white orchid’ in the local language. From the land of the white orchid is produced the exquisite ‘White Magnolia’. This tea is made from the delicate unopened leaves of the plant and undergoes the least processing among all the teas. This is the reason why the infused leaves seem to come alive again yielding the palest liquor yearning to be sipped. When it touches your lips, your palate comes alive with a light chestnut flavour. The sweet aftertaste lingers on forever. 

Makaibari tea estate located in the foothills of the Himalayas is an organically certified tea estate where the tea is grown at an altitude of around 4500ft.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Bai Mu Dan tea is one of those teas that when I drink it … I think to myself:  it’s been a long time since I’ve had a Bai Mu Dan.  It may not actually have been that long, but, it’s one of those teas that I miss when a day or two has passed and I haven’t had it.

I love the sweet, delicate quality of a good Bai Mu Dan.  And what makes this Makaibari Bai Mu Dan White Tea from Tea People different is that it is grown in the Darjeeling district, so I think that technically makes it a “Darjeeling” white tea, even though the leaves resemble a very high quality Bai Mu Dan.  These aren’t those crumbly, brown leaves that some companies pass off as a Bai Mu Dan.  These leaves are a gorgeous pale green, and if you look closely, you can see the soft, fuzzy down on these leaves.  The leaves are large and beautiful.

My first sip of this tea evoked thoughts of the taste of a dewdrop, like what I might taste if I were to drink the dew off a fresh, new spring leaf.  After that initial sip, I started to notice other flavors developing.

As the above description suggests, there is a light nutty flavor to this white tea, reminiscent of that creamy taste of a freshly roasted chestnut.  There are slight notes of earth to this as well as a hay-like note and a background of delicious melon.

The overall taste is light and refreshing.  It is sweet and relaxing to sip.  A really beautiful white tea!  If I were asked to list my all time favorite Bai Mu Dan teas, this one would land at the top of the list.  It’s one I’d recommend to all the white tea fans out there.

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Tulsi, Herbal & Fruit Tisane

Where to Buy:  Verdant Tea

Tisane Description:

The light apple aroma of the chamomile is tempered by herbs and florals and grounded with cacao. This blend does what tea is known to do – bring you to a place of relaxation and reflection. Love & Joy blend tastes sweet and has a soft and round mouthfeel. Sip, relax and enjoy.

Learn more about this blend here.

Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.

Taster’s Review:

What an interesting tisane!  This Love & Joy Tisane from Verdant Tea is the second tea that I’m tasting from February’s Amoda Tea Tasting Box.  Yeah, I’m a little behind.  My March box should be arriving within days, and I’m still getting around to tasting February’s teas!  Better get a move on!

This tisane has an abundance of ingredients:

Marigold (calendula), Goji, Linden Leaf + Flower, Honeysuckle, Chamomile, Tulsi, Elderberry, Cacao, Coriander, Frankincense.

And even though there seems to be a lot going on here, the flavors all meld together in an agreeable way.  The first flavor that I can identify is the chamomile, and it offers a light, crisp, apple-y flavor to the cup.  Then I notice the tulsi, and it tastes of basil and mint.  There is a background of berry notes, and these berry notes come forward in the aftertaste.  I get that tart note, that tingly berry sensation that you might experience after eating a tart berry.

After my first few sips, I start to realize that there is a distinct lime-ish note to this and then I re-read the ingredient list:  linden!  Yep, that would do it.  The linden really brightens the cup.

There are light floral notes, not so much from the calendula (I very rarely taste a strong flavor from the marigold petals), but from the honeysuckle.  It tastes sweet and floral and I like this little bit of sweetness from the honeysuckle.

In this cup, I smell the frankincense more than I taste it, but there is a warm spiciness to this cup which is not just from the coriander (and the tulsi!), but also the frankincense.

I found myself wanting more cacao.  No big surprise there, I guess, since I am a chocoholic.  My first 1/3 of the cup, I didn’t really notice much cacao at all, but by the time I finished that first 1/3 of the cup, I started to pick up on the notes of chocolate, and … YUM!  I like the way the notes of chocolate meld with the other flavors of this cup.  Sure, I’d like more cacao, but, I always do, don’t I?

As it is, this is a really interesting, intriguing cup.  It seems to draw me deeper into the depths of its flavor with every sip.  I discover more flavors each time I take a drink.

I have to admit that I like this a whole lot more than I thought I would.  I’m not usually all that excited to try tisanes, but, this is really tasty!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Georgia Tea Company

Tea Description:

When you open the package, you smell the fruitiness from the currants – perhaps a dark raspberry fragrance. As you take your first sip, you sense a slight tartness which is the contribution of the fruit, but it doesn’t overpower the strength of the black tea. Perhaps add some rock sugar to soften things a bit. By the way, currants are not grapes or raisins. Grapes grow on vines and are sweet. Currants grow on bushes and are tart. Research has discussed the high antioxidant level of currants and several studies indicate currants may delay onset of Alzheimer’s.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Nice!  Georgia Tea Company has nailed the currant flavor in their Black Currant Flavored Black Tea, and they managed to do it without sacrificing the flavor of the black tea base.

The black tea here is rich and smooth.  There is some astringency to this cup – a moderate astringency – and the dry, tangy sensation from the astringency plays to the currant notes.  The tea doesn’t taste bitter, and there is an undertone of sweetness … almost a raisin-y sort of sweetness.  Again, I think that this plays to the currant note in a favorable way.

The currant is a strong flavor, but, it doesn’t taste artificial.  It’s rather tart, and I’m not always a big fan of tartness.  However, I think that there is enough sweetness from the tea that the tartness doesn’t overwhelm my palate.  This tea is definitely more tart than sweet, but, I like the contrast between the sweet notes of the tea and the tart notes of the currant.

The overall taste is reminiscent of wine.  And as it cools, this tea becomes even tastier – it makes an excellent iced tea!  However you choose to serve it, it makes a really nice cup of tea – one of the better currant teas that I’ve tasted over the years.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  White

Where to Buy:  52Teas

Tea Description:

Cantaloupe is one of my all-time favorite fruits and so is watermelon, so when I had the chance, I just couldn’t resist creating this blend of premium white teas, dried cantaloupe, and organic cantaloupe and watermelon flavors. This is a serious glass of refreshment as an iced tea and I’m sure it’s awesome as a hot tea too. I’m already getting a little anxious for spring. I’ve got this week’s tea and next week’s tea already blended up, and they are both on the fruity end of the spectrum. But that’s all I can tell you for now.

Learn more about this blend here.

Taster’s Review:

Mmm!  This Cantaloupe Watermelon Flavored White Tea from 52Teas is YUMMY!  It tastes like summer in tea form!

The overall flavor is sweet and fruity.  I love that the watermelon and cantaloupe come through loud and clear.  There’s no mistaking these two flavors – this definitely taste just as I wanted a tea that promises cantaloupe and watermelon flavors with its name the way this tea does.  It tastes like sweet, luscious cantaloupe and juicy, sweet watermelon.

The white tea is just the right base for these two flavors too, because these are typically two more delicate tasting fruits and I think a stronger tea flavor would have obscured the nuances of the cantaloupe and watermelon flavors (although I think it would be interesting to try these flavors with a buttery Chinese Sencha too).  The white tea has a light, airy kind of taste, and the fruit notes that I often associate with a white tea tend to be melons, so I think that pairing a Shou Mei white tea with watermelon and cantaloupe is ideal.

It tastes great served hot, but it’s even better iced, mostly because these flavors just seem to beg to be served over ice, don’t they?  Cantaloupe and Watermelon sound better cold than hot.  A thin slice of lemon might be nice to serve with this – just a hint of acid to perk up the sweetness a bit!

As I write this review, I see that there are six pouches of this tea left.  This is going to be a tea you WANT to have on hand when summer arrives – it’s so deliciously refreshing and fruity!  So, hurry on over to 52Teas and get yourself a pouch!

A really delightful tea.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Steepster Select

Tea Description:

The Burgundy of tea, Keemun is considered by many to be the finest black tea produced in China. Grown in the Huangshan mountain range, this black tea is soft and approachable while incredibly complex: a marriage of floral, fruity, smoky, and mineral flavors.

Taster’s Review:

I received this Imperial Keemun Tea in my Steepster Select box for February and let me tell you it’s a mighty fine Keemun!  I don’t know that it’s the best of it’s kind that I’ve tried, but, I am enjoying the balance of flavor profiles that I’m experiencing with this cup.

Just as the above description suggests, there is a nice “marriage of floral, fruity, smoky and mineral flavors.”  I get each of these notes … perhaps more fruity and smoky than floral and mineral, but I taste each of these qualities.

The first note that I taste is the smoke.  That probably has something to do with the smoky fragrance of the tea, because I deeply inhale the aroma before I take a sip.  Then I notice some of the fruity tones.  Sweet and I taste something that falls somewhere between sweet, juicy berries and luscious plums.  The smoky tones give these fruits an almost “roasted” type of flavor, as if they have been fired over a charcoal pit.

With Keemun tea, I tend to find that there are two different “categories” of Keemun:  one is a strong, rich, smoky Keemun, while the other is slightly less bold and more wine-like and fruity.  This Imperial Keemun from Steepster offers a balance between the two.  It’s strong, rich and smoky, but I can also taste those wine-like fruity notes.

I also definitely taste notes of charred wood as well as the smoke and fruit.  The aforementioned floral tones are more subdued.  The mineral notes I notice mostly toward the finish.  I also taste a lovely undertone of caramel – a sweet and delicious note that tastes like a caramel made from molasses.  The finish is clean but not overly astringent.  The aftertaste is sweet and slightly smoky.

I liked this one.  Not the best Keemun I’ve ever tried, but, I’m glad I got to try it!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Simple Loose Leaf

Tea Description:

This vibrant blend combines a fresh Chinese Young Hyson green tea with peppermint leaves, raspberry and vanilla flavors. This refreshing and versatile green tea boasts fresh, intoxicating flavors that will keep you coming back for more. Perfect any time hot and exceptional iced with a touch of sweetener.

Learn more about this tea here.

Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s NEW Selection Club subscription program here.

Taster’s Review:

Yay!  My latest package from Simple Loose Leaf – which is my FIRST of their all new Selection Club subscription – just arrived!  I’m so excited.  This Raspberry Vanilla Mint Green tea is the first tea that I’m trying from this month’s box.

Let me explain a little how the Selection Club works (at least, this is my understanding of the program, I hope it makes sense when I explain it!):  Every month, an email is sent out to subscribers.  Here’s what my April email says:

Below we have selected 5 teas that we feel you will love.  Please browse these teas and familiarize yourself with what they have to offer.  At the bottom of the page there is a button that will take you to a form that you will enter your selections. 

So, you choose from the five different teas which tea you’d like to receive for April.  Or, if you prefer, you can get a sampling of all five!  Me being a taster … that’s the option I chose.  There is even an option to tell Simple Loose Leaf what your preferences are so that they can design the selection of five teas to the types of teas you drink most often.  I didn’t fill out this preference form because … I want the variety!

So in the mail, I received a cute little box with five sample sized teas inside!  In addition to this Raspberry Vanilla Mint Green tea, I also have Ti Kuan Yin, Winter White Chai, Gunpowder Green and Caravan Black.  I also have a smaller sample from next month’s selections:  Hazelberry Pu’er!

This is one seriously awesome tea of the month club!  Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let me tell you about this Raspberry Vanilla Mint Green Tea:

This tea is so yum!  I love that I can taste all four flavors that are promised in the name of the tea:  I taste the mint, I taste the raspberry, the vanilla and the green tea.  At the start of the sip, I notice the mint immediately as the menthol hits the back of my palate immediately before the liquid hits my tongue.  Then I pick up on the soft, creamy notes of vanilla, and the sweet-tart flavors of berry.

The green tea is not as prominent as I think it should be.  I’m usually of the belief that a tea – even a flavored tea – should first be about the tea, and I’m wanting that to be the case here.  It isn’t.  But that doesn’t mean that the green tea is absent.  I taste the green tea.  It’s sweet, lightly grassy with herbaceous undertones that meld well with the mint, with a buttery note that marries well with the creamy vanilla tones.  And even though the green tea notes are not as strong as I think they should be, this is still a seriously tasty cup!

I found my cup emptied pretty quickly … and if the speed in which the tea disappeared from my cup is any indication, then I’d say that this tea is a winner!

If you’re interested in joining Simple Loose Leaf’s Monthly Selection Club, I can save you some money!  Use this code:  SISTERSELECTION25 and get a 25% discount when you sign up for the selection club.  This discount is not applicable on the retail selection of teas, and is only good for the selection club subscription.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Adagio Teas

Tea Description:

Dark chocolate chips melt into the infusion of this Ceylon black tea to create the ultimate coupling of two taste bud tantalizers. Dense and soft chocolate flavor – seriously, for a second you think you’re just eating a bag of cookies! Clean, slightly tangy finish brings you back to tea, and the balanced astringency compliments the dark chocolate nicely. 

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I have often said that I’m not a big fan of the flavored black teas from Adagio Teas.  And since this Chocolate Chip Black Tea from Adagio Teas is exactly that – a flavored black tea from Adagio Teas – I took extra care when I brewed it.  I steeped it for just 2 1/2 minutes, hoping that this was what was needed to keep the harshness of the black tea to a minimum.

I still taste a little bit of that harshness that I usually taste with the flavored black teas from Adagio Teas … but it isn’t as harsh as some of the other experiences I’ve had with other flavored black teas from this company.

Just out of curiosity, I made a quick stop at Steepster to find out if others liked this one.  And based upon my quick glance, it would seem that other Steepsterites experience much of what I am:  a sweet, vanilla-y undertone with a luscious chocolate-y high note.  And it would also seem that the key to keeping this from tasting too bitter is to not oversteep.  However, even at 2 1/2 minutes, I am noticing some bitter notes and some of the aforementioned harshness, although, as I said, this isn’t as harsh or off-putting as some of the other flavored blacks.

I really wish that Adagio would rethink their black tea base.  Ceylon teas tend to be – typically – a fairly moderate, mild-mannered tea, but I have to admit that the Ceylon that Adagio uses as their base for their flavored teas is an exception to what I know as Ceylon.  This is an “ill-tempered” Ceylon, and I find that as I continue to sip, the harshness seems to build.

A splash of milk reduces the harshness further, making this a good choice for a latte.  In fact, that’s my favorite way to consume this tea – with an ample bit of milk, it tastes a bit like a hot chocolate!  That said, I find it difficult to recommend this tea, because as a tea drinker, we shouldn’t be trying to drown out the harshness of a tea with additions.

Kind of sad.  This would be a much tastier tea if the base was not so brutally harsh.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  English Tea Shop

Tea Description:

Spicy Anise: Black tea, ginger pieces, cloves and star anise with ginger, mint and anise flavours. 

Taster’s Review:

The ingredient list of this Spicy Anise Black Tea Blend from English Tea Shop shows a variety of spices that are reminiscent of a chai blend, however, the flavor is more like a warm, slightly spicy and minty tea rather than a chai.  The anise is not as prevalent as I would like it to be, especially when considering the name of the tea.  The name suggests to me that I’m going to have a strong anise-y tasting tea, but, the anise is not as dominant as the mint is in this blend.

The other spices – ginger and clove – are very subtle and offer a warm background note.  The black tea base almost seems lost in the presence of the other flavors here.  Oh, I can still taste the black tea, but it is a little too mellow in my opinion.  I think a bold black tea base as well as a stronger presence of anise would make this a tea worthy of a name called “Spicy Anise.”

This is a bit disappointing, really.  I was hoping for more from this blend.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Learn more about Tea of Life and Amazon Teas here.

Tea Description:

“Tea of Life” is proud to add another line of “Ceylon Tea” in flavors of your choice.  These teas are grown and processed on some of the more prestigious plantations in the hill country of Sri Lanka and at “Tea of Life” we take special care in flavoring and packing these teas.  

Ingredients:  Green Tea with natural Blueberry flavor.

Taster’s Review:

I just love these tins from Tea of Life.  It’s one of those teas that I would have probably purchased based on packaging appeal alone, but, I’m happy to say that the tea inside the tin is quite tasty too.

Yeah, it’s a bagged tea, however, I have to admit that the teas that I’ve been trying from Tea of Life have been pretty good bagged teas!  Sure, I prefer loose leaf, but sometimes, convenience is of utmost importance, and in those times, I like to have some good quality bagged teas that taste great on hand.  This Green Tea Blueberry from Tea of Life is one such tea.

There is a nice balance of green tea and blueberry flavors.  The green tea tastes light, refreshing and lightly buttery.  It’s not a strong “grassy” taste, rather, it’s more like a subtle vegetative note, like freshly steamed veggies that have been drizzled with a tiny bit of butter.  It is sweet, and the slight vegetal note gives the cup a savory tone that counters the sweetness just a little.

The blueberry flavor is sweet, but it also has that “berry tart” note that is especially noticeable toward the finish.  It kind of tingles on the tongue, similar to what you might experience if you had just eaten a juicy, ripe blueberry.

A really enjoyable cup.