Chocolate Cherry Latte Oolong by A Quarter to Tea

by Sensiblyscript
Steeping at 190 degrees for 4.5 minutes as recommended, I prepared this tea with one tablespoon of leaves and around 10 ounces of water.

The high-quality oolong leaves swell and uncurl while steeping–something I always find fascinating (in addition to comforting because I know it means I’m about to drink some excellent tea!)

Once the steeping gets going it smells strongly of chocolate and cherry, which I take as a good sign! Actually it smells almost overwhelmingly of cherry while steeping, but after steeping that abates somewhat. The cherry flavor still hits your nose first but as you keep inhaling you can dig down and find the grounding, comforting chocolate smell too. It’s rounder and creamier. and the oolong lends butteriness and a floral note to the scent.

First sip: The butteriness from the oolong and the sharper floral, also from the oolong, and the fruity cherry notes hit all at once. The chocolate flavor seems to have melded with (and mostly been superseded by) the oolong butteriness. The chocolate itself is more of an aftertaste now. And yet sometimes you can detect it mingled with one of the other flavors.
Color: the tea is dark, but brown-tinted. Mahogany, perhaps; not really chocolate-colored though.

 

With milk: the cherry and the creamy oolong flavor come to the front along with a green-tea flavor (possibly from the houjicha?), the combination of which really reminds me of a matcha latte (not a bad thing at all). It’s not too astringent this way and not at all bitter.
A Quarter to Tea has come up with a great flavored blend here, and the company has great values too; not only do they use vegan ingredients but they also avoid using gluten, and try to avoid using potential allergens as well. While this blend is fun and satisfying, chocolate is not necessarily the dominant flavor here, so it’s important to be aware of that and enjoy this tea for itself rather than feeling like you’ve been tricked into drinking a not-chocolatey-enough tea. <3

 

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Oolong
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

Roasty enough to appease the coffee lover in you! The blend of hojicha and oolong makes a robust, coffee like base without the jitters. Mellowed out with chicory, chocolate, and cherries.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sensiblyscript

Hi! My name is Tabitha and I'm an uprooted PNW native living in the South with my husband and my cocker spaniel. My favorite teas are usually dark and strong and go well with milk and sugar. I like to combine tea-drinking with all of my favorite activities, such as listening to music, reading YA fiction, knitting, and writing blog and website content for businesses. Because I'm a well-rounded person, I also have other interests, such as wearing mismatched socks and pretending to be ambidextrous.

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Oolong

On Wisconsin from A Quarter To Tea. . .

by Sophia

This tea caught my eye due to the description of cheesecake and honey. Doesn’t that sound heavenly? This is an Oolong blend and it contains REAL pieces of graham crackers. The Oolong itself is actually a little bit more floral than I would have thought. However, the floral aspect works well with the honey. The taste of cheesecake is not something I would have picked out initially, but thinking about it now I do taste it lingering once the sip is gone

Opposed to what you would think when hearing the description of this yummy blend, i’m not quite sure if I would classify it as a dessert blend. It isn’t overly sweet or anything. This is still one that could be drunk in the morning before work or for a quick pick-me-up during that mid-afternoon slump. My favorite part was definitely seeing the pieces of graham crackers in the blend, I think that that is the first time I’ve seen it! I also enjoyed how no one ingredient took over the entire cup, they all blended nicely and were subtle. I would definitely recommend to give this blend, and a plethora of other blends from A Quarter to Tea a try. I think all of their tea blends are well done and very creative! I haven’t met one that I truly dislike.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Oolong
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

A sweet and creamy jade oolong with sweet honey and cheesecake flavors and cow sprinkles straight from the dairy state.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sophia

Hi, my name is Sophia. I am a first time mother to a beautiful little girl who will be 1 in July 2017. I spend my days at home with her and when I get a minute to myself, I usually spend that time making, drinking, or researching tea! My love for loose leaf tea is relatively new. When I was pregnant with my daughter, my mother (a tea addict herself) brought me to DAVIDsTEA. I enjoyed a cup of their Coconut Cream Pie Oolong and was instantly hooked! Since then, my addiction has grown to fill entire cabinets, and shows no sign of stopping. I am the creator of the Facebook group CommuniTEA where we have one big tea discussion. It is a great group for those new to the tea-world. I feel strongly about spreading the joy of loose leaf tea. I like making instructional videos and helping those that are new to the art of tea-making so that they, too, can share in the happiness that tea brings. I am excited to see where this hobby takes me and I will continue to spread the joy!

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Oolong

Campfire Strawberry from A Quarter To Tea. . . .

by VariaTEA

 

Basically all of the A Quarter to Tea offerings sound awesome and I have yet to come across a Monthly Subscription Box that didn’t have at least one tea that got my mouth watering. However, June’s Box is a true winner. Each tea is like a dream mixture of my favorite flavors. There is Blueberry Vanilla Peach, Raspberry Coconut Cheesecake, and Hummingbird which is a black tea with banana, vanilla and pecan praline. In addition to those and the sample of Watermelon Agua Fresca, there is also this tea, Campfire Strawberry, a genmaicha and lapsang blend with strawberries, graham crackers and marshmallow. Take that in for a second. STRAWBERRIES…MARSHMALLOWS…GENMAICHA…CAMPFIRE.

Okay, now that we got that out of our system….on to the tea! The smell is a whole lotta smoke and though that definitely comes through in the flavor, the strawberry provides the perfect fruity/jammy contrast. The green tea base of the genmaicha also counters the smoke with a more vegetal note to keep things natural while contributing a roastiness that bridges the gap between the two bases. I will say, despite a slight sweetness, the marshmallow component is not as prevalent as I would hope, though with so much else going on, I suppose something’s gotta give. Also, my filter had a giant piece of graham cracker in it but I am not getting much from that either.

If you like smoke, this is a nice take on a lapsang. It has a lot going on so it is interesting and yet the flavors all compliment each other beautifully. I would never have thought to pair strawberries, lapsang and genmaicha but it works. This is a unique flavor and though it is not one I will be drinking daily, it is certainly one I am happy to have around.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Green
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

Toasty genmaicha and lapsang make the base for this tasty treat that conjures up images of campfires and s’mores.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Black Tea

Honey Gingerbread Pancake Yunnan Tea from A Quarter To Tea. . . .

by ashmanra

Even the name of this tea is downright exciting! It is beautiful to look at, with pearly Yunnan snail black tea as the base. And with pancake in the name, I had to have it for Sunday breakfast with the family!

The dominant aroma is ginger. I also found it to be the dominant flavor. (It really reminds me of fall and Christmas because that is the only time we use much ginger. Note to self – get more near the holidays!) The black tea base is strong enough to come through and not be masked by the added flavors, though. They didn’t skimp there.

I took mine sans additions and found it to be awesome as a breakfast tea, but it would also be very good with afternoon sweets.

My husband sniffed it and said, “It is okay, but you know I don’t care for ginger much and I don’t prefer flavored teas.” He then proceeded to empty the pot by drinking three cups in a row. So I guess that is a thumbs up for this flavored tea. He always adds milk and sugar to black tea and this tea can handle it.

I resteeped and I must say the Yunnan snail base performed beautifully. Of course the added flavors are diminished, but this still has nice, rich color and as much flavor as many teas have on their first steep, making it a wonderful follow-up to sip on through the morning.

Looking at their website to learn more about this tea, I saw and just had to order some Badger Breakfast Tea, too! I can’t wait to get that one and review it! German hops in tea? Yes, please!

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

A malty, high quality yunnan tea offers a platform for this sweet breakfast treat of cinnamon, ginger, spices, and honey.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

ashmanra

I am a music teacher, tutor, and former homeschool mom (25 years!) who started drinking loose leaf tea about seven years ago! My daughters and I have tea every day, and we are frequently joined by my students or friends for “tea time.” Now my hubby joins us, too. His tastes have evolved from Tetley with milk and sugar to mostly unadorned greens and oolongs. We have learned so much history, geography, and culture in this journey. My avatar is a mole in a teacup! Long story…

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Black Tea

Honeyed Apricots and Almonds Chun Mee from A Quarter To Tea. . ..

by VariaTEA

Honeyed Apricots and Almonds Chun Mee, this green tea came as a sample in the March teabox. It is part of A Quarter to Tea’s Spring Teas and I don’t know why it has taken me this long to try it out.

The dry leaf is quite lovely with the sliced almonds and variety of flowers. The honeysuckle actually seems to bloom when the hot water hits it. Once steeped, the leaf leaves behind an apricot-scented brew.

That apricot scent carries over to the taste. Sweet and clearly reflective of the stone-fruit. However, this tea is so much more than that. As promised by the name, there is a distinct honey flavor drizzled throughout whereas the almond sits on the tip of your tongue. I personally am not picking up any of the jasmine though I prefer it that way.

This tea is an accurately named delight. It’s bright and fresh, sweet and juicy. A daytime snack or nighttime dessert all in one.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Green
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

This blend is fruity and sweet with almond, honey, apricot and a touch of jasmine.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Green Tea