Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
When you brew Two Dragons, two arms of jasmine and globe amaranth petals will slowly expand upwards cupping a single marigold flower – and so it is given the name of Two Dragons and a Pearl. Thanks to the jasmine and amaranth, this tea has a wonderful sweet, flowery aroma and taste. The taste is long-lasting and will survive 2 or 3 infusions.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third and final tea from my Steepster Select box from February: Year of the Dragon. It is a very slow-to-open blooming tea from Teavivre. It’s fun to watch it slowly unfurl to reveal the beautiful flowery display tucked inside the handcrafted bulb.
The instructions suggest using boiling water and 2 minutes steep time. However, I couldn’t bear to pour boiling water over these bulbs, I was afraid I’d burn them. Instead, I heated the water to 185°F, and steeped for 2 1/2 minutes. Only a few leaves opened away from the bulb, so, I infused it a second time, adding 1 minute onto the steep time. With the second infusion, the bulb expanded more, revealing hints of the colors of the display, but, still did not open fully. 
It wasn’t until the third and final infusion that the bulb fully opened, revealing a beautiful orange flower at the base of the leaves, and jasmine “arms” that reach up to hold a gorgeous red flower. The photo to the right doesn’t begin to do justice to how lovely this bloom really is.
The tea from the first infusion was a very gentle flavored tea, with notes of jasmine and hints of fresh grass and hay. It was delicious, but I do think it could have improved with a longer steep time. Perhaps a hotter water would have produced more flavor as well, but again, having scorched more than my share of green and white teas in my past, this is something I do not wish to repeat.
The second infusion provided a much more flavorful cup. The flavor is sweet and floral, and the tea tastes fresh and even a little creamy. Very smooth, with no notable astringency or bitterness. The third infusion was a little less flavorful, but still was quite enjoyable … and even though the flavor had waned a little, the splendor of the bulb finally opening fully made it worth the effort to steep it a third time.
Another lovely tea experience from Teavivre. I’ve come to expect greatness from them, and they’ve yet to fail!
Elixir of Love from Alice’s Fine Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White (Blooming Tea)
Where to Buy: Alice’s Fine Teas
Tea Description:
Sweeping jasmine arch over a bright lily. This tea is mellow, even buttery, with a hint of sweetness from the jasmine. Absolutely delightful! Ingredients: Lily (said to enhance energy and to have a cooling effect), Jasmine (sweet fragrance, said to moisten the skin, ease anxiety and anti-inflammatory) and Silver Needle Tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
What a beautiful display! The pale green leaves of the tea open up to reveal a red-orange flower and an arch of white blossoms. Really pretty. This is a tea you’ll want to be sure to steep in a tall glass or teapot so that you can fully experience the bloom as it unfurls.
The color of the tea surprised me, it is a bit darker than other blooming teas that I’ve tried. It is still a light color – I’d say it’s light amber – but darker than the pale yellow liquor that I’ve experienced with other blossoming teas.
The flavor is delightful. It is sweet, smooth and floral, but, not in a soapy kind of way. The flavor of the white tea is prominent. It has a fresh, airy kind of flavor with notes of hay and sweet grass.
There is a creamy element to this tea as well – buttery – and a mouthfeel that complements the creaminess. The floral notes are definitely jasmine, with a lighter lily tone than I recall tasting with the Jasmine Fairy Blossoming Tea (also from Alice’s Fine Teas).
What a delightful tea experience – one that would be fun to share with friends.
Halo Blooming Tea from The Persimmon Tree
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tea Description:
A beautifully hand-crafted blooming white tea that displays a ring of jasmine and amaranth flowers, with blueberry and peach essence.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
There are those who avoid blooming teas because they think they’re gimmick-y and that the tea they produce does not taste up to par. I used to be one of them! But, since that time, I have found quite a few blooming teas that are quite delicious. This blooming tea – Halo from Persimmon Tree Tea – is one of my newest favorites!
This tea is slow to unfurl; it did not completely open after the first infusion of five minutes. I infused the partially open bulb again, and after the second infusion of six minutes, I enjoyed a beautiful display. There was a white floral arch that extended to support a pretty bright pink flower.
In the first infusion, I found the floral tones to be sweet and soft, and they meld quite nicely with blueberry and peach flavors. The flavor of the white tea lends a delicate creamy note to the cup. With the second infusion, the floral notes were a bit stronger, but it was still a very delicious cup.
This is a really lovely blooming tea. I think it would be a perfect tea to serve at a tea party, it would surely make a great conversation starter!
Halo Tea from The Persimmon Tree
Tea Type:
Flowering Tea/Blooming Tea (White Tea)
Where To Buy:
Direct link to this tea in their store: http://www.persimmontreetea.com/halo-tea.html
Product Description:
A beautifully hand-crafted blooming white tea that displays a ring of jasmine and amaranth flowers, with blueberry and peach essence.
* Characteristics Mild * Flavors Fruity * Steep Temperature 180˚ * Steep Time 3-5 mins
Tasters Review:
Halo from The Persimmon Tree Tea Company is just outstanding and AMAZING!!!
It perfectly opened/bloomed the first time around without any imperfections whatso-ever and smelled of blueberry and peaches and that’s on top of the floral aroma…how awesome is that for a blooming tea!!??
I could taste the blueberry, peach, and flowers and it’s very yummy!
I tried a 2nd infusion on this and it was still very tasty! The only notable difference was the 2nd infusion was more floral. It was still an overall wonderful flavor tho!
This is probably one of my favorite blooming teas or flowering teas I have tried to date! This is VERY special!
Bird of Paradise from Alice’s Fine Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Blooming/White
Where to Buy: Alice’s Fine Teas
Product Description:
This bloom unfolds into beautiful birds perched in a golden nest surround by green. Not only is it visually surprising, but the taste is surprisingly spicy and reminds one of autumn, like pumpkin pie!. One of the favorites at Alice’s Fine Teas, a delicious, warm, soothing tea. Ingredients: Marigold (believed to help circulation and ease stomach ache), Lily (said to enhance energy and to have a cooling effect) and Silver Needle Tea.
Taster’s Review:
I enjoy blooming teas, but I don’t really brew them very often. I blame the gadgetry – I am a self-professed anti-gadgetite (I just made that up) – and when I brew a blooming tea, I have to watch it brew, right? I guess I am just going to have to promote my glass teacup to the status of essential tool rather than its current status of “gadget” so that I can enjoy the beautiful art of blooming teas!
I steeped this bulb for four minutes in 165° F water and after the four minutes, the bulb had not completely opened. Only a hint of the orange-y blossoms that would display was showing at the very top of the bulb. But this is a good thing! It means additional infusions… which means MORE tea! Yay!
This really DOES taste like pumpkin! There are very gentle spice notes in the background, which contributes to the “pumpkin pie” like taste that is mentioned in the above product description from Alice’s Fine Teas. I wouldn’t say it tastes just like pumpkin pie – but it does have similar characteristics. The squash flavor is distinct … and quite yummy.
The tea has a very pleasant sweetness to it (I don’t recommend adding sweetener to this tea, it would overwhelm the delicate flavors!) and a light yet smooth mouthfeel. Very little (almost no) astringency to this cup. A very pleasant, mild cup of tea that makes for an excellent topic of conversation as well as a refreshing beverage.
For the second infusion, I steeped for five minutes and achieved another delicious cup of tea. The bulb had not yet fully opened until I infused for the third time (for six minutes), and the tea was still quite lovely, although the pumpkin flavor had subdued a bit by this time. There were still faint notes of squash and spice, but mostly what I tasted by this time was the soft, fresh notes of silver needle with a delicious buttery finish.
When the bulb finally did completely open, I enjoyed the sight – it looked like two swans dancing (ever go to Disneyland and watch the swans in the pond outside of Sleeping Beauty’s castle? Every hour when the sounds of a singing Sleeping Beauty can be heard, the swans dance together).
This was an incredibly fun tea to steep and to drink. The flavor was delicious and surprising, and the colorful display from the bulb made tea time all the more entertaining.