blended

Rose Chateau by The Love Tea Co

December 11, 2017December 11, 2017 by Sensiblyscript

I steeped this tea at 200 degrees in about a cup of water for about four minutes.

This is another selection from the Love Tea Company, who donates a quarter of their proceeds to mental health causes. Their teas also come in cute little reusable canisters!

The dried leaf has rose petals and other flower petals too, it looks like. According to the ingredients list these could be hibiscus, calendula, or sunflower petals, which are all included in the blend! In addition, there’s green tea in here and some curled oolong bits and some pieces of dried fruit (which turn out to be rosehips based on the ingredients list). It smells mainly fruity, with some rose/floral scent.

The steeped liquid looks almost pinkish-peach and smells like strawberry with floral notes and some savory green tea flavor.
I steeped for four minutes because it didn’t seem very strong at three (and I prefer getting stronger flavor out of my tea when I can).

First sip: it tastes a little astringent and strawberryish; the rose flavor isn’t overpowering here (maybe I just didn’t get any rose petals in my scoop of leaf?). It’s delicate and reminds me the most of a strawberry-flavored green tea, which is quite nice and desserty. There’s a bit of seaweedy vegetalness in the back of the throat. A few particles of tea escaped the strainer so I’d recommend a fine mesh if you don’t like that sort of thing (although mostly they’re just sitting on the bottom of the cup not causing a problem).

Overall it’s light, floral/fruity, but with a hint of buttery aftertaste (from the oolong), so I’d say it’s great for afternoon or evening relaxation (unless you’re super-sensitive to caffeine; green tea generally has just a little).

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Green/Black

Where to Buy: The Love Tea Company

Description

This blend was created by a Canadian Master to evoke the character and spirit of France’s best rose vintages. It’s combination of some of the most luxurious green and black teas available today. Like wine, it goes perfectly with cured meats and fine cheeses. Milk and sugar are NOT recommended with this one.

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 Uncategorized

English Breakfast Black Tea by Steeped Tea

November 3, 2017November 1, 2017 by Sensiblyscript

I steeped this tea for two minutes at 212 degrees, with one heaping teaspoon per cup of water.

So this is another tea company I haven’t tried before, how exciting! Let’s get right to the details of this tea. I guess it’s a blend of black teas, since that ‘s how english breakfast teas are generally made. It has a nice, hearty, strong fragrance, which is of course exactly the sort of thing you’d expect from a breakfast tea (after all, it’s meant to help you wake up in the morning, right?).

It smells a smidge bitter while steeping, but mainly you notice that strong, robust tea flavor! After steeping, it doesn’t look super dark; instead, there’s a cedar-like, chestnutty color, and it’s very clear rather than opaque. The smell fortunately is less bitter after steeping has ended, and I can detect some malty notes.

The tea itself isn’t noticeably viscous/thickened. At the first sip I notice plenty of astringency combined with a tad of bitterness, but not a lot. It’s not too bitter (not as bitter as you’d expect from how it smelled while steeping), so I’m sure people who like really strong tea (or coffee) would love it, or it would be perfect for if you’re planning to have it with milk and sugar. Or, to avoid the bitterness, I’d consider steeping it a tad cooler next time.

While sipping this I can detect plenty of tannins–it seems to be a highly oxidized tea, which is just what black tea is supposed to be, but it also has an extremely tangy flavor, which I find quite helpful for waking up in the mornings (or even in the afternoons if I’m having a hard time staying awake after lunch).

There’s not much in the way of floral or cocoa notes, although there may be a touch of maltiness deepening the flavor here and there.

Of course I also had to add milk (to test my it-would-be-great-with-milk theory) and discovered that this tea is indeed lovely with milk, and that the milk takes out the bitterness just as I was hoping. With milk this tea has a strong, creamy, and excellent flavor, and I find it to be exactly the sort of tea I enjoy the most. <3

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy: Steeped Tea

Description

This classic breakfast tea is fresh, full and flavorful. Traditionally served with milk.

Ingredients: Black tea.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sensiblyscript

This post was posted in Black Tea, Steeped Tea

Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea by Harney and Sons

October 18, 2017October 17, 2017 by Sensiblyscript

I steeped this tea in approximately eight ounces of 212-degree water, using one tea bag, for about three and a half minutes.

These are really cute pyramid tea sachets! (I know pyramid sachets have gotten much more popular recently partly because everybody is recognizing how cute they are, but it still strikes me every time!) I don’t usually buy these, but you have to admit they’re super convenient. There’s no measuring, no latching and unlatching a tea-ball or pouring through a strainer after steeping, no wishing the mesh was smaller so the tea particles wouldn’t get out, no wondering why all of my tea steeping baskets are in the dirty dishes and how I’ll ever get the cooked-on milk out of the mesh of the one that I made chai with that one time.

The Harney website says that there are three types of cinnamon in this tea; I wonder which ones they are. Google says there are four main types of cinnamon in the world today that are used commercially: Ceylon, Cassia, Saigon, and Korintje, so I guess this tea has most of those. It certainly smells very strongly of cinnamon, and there are chunks of cinnamon bark visible with the tea leaves in each sachet before brewing. There’s plenty of quality tea leaves in the bag. Much more intact than in most teabags.

The tea liquid, once steeped, is amber-like but a bit darker. The smell is like those red-hot candies that my grandma used to keep in a candy dish at her house–I used to always wish she’d let me have one when I was little (I didn’t get one very often though, in my recollection at least, but in retrospect that might only be “not very often” in comparison to the number of times I asked, which if you know anything about little kids and how many times they can ask for something per minute, means you should probably take that with a grain of salt). The tea is kind of opaque, probably from the cinnamon granules–which tells me that there’s probably powdered cinnamon in the mix as well as the chunks that I saw.. It’s a teeny bit viscous, too.

First sip: sweet and spicy. The spice isn’t as up-front as expected-more “hovering,” which is nice because it means that the tea flavor even comes through a little. It’s a tad astringent, but not bitter at all.

With milk–a good flavor but less fulfilling, because in this case the milk dulls more than enhances the other flavors. I’m not sure why–usually milk just makes things creamier and better. It’s still yummy with milk, but I’d tend to recommend it without just so that you can get the full force of the cinnamon! You could even add a bit of sugar–I didn’t try it here, but I expect it would bring the cinnamon out better in this tea than the milk does.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy: Harney & Sons

Description

Our most popular flavored tea worldwide, Hot Cinnamon Spice is an assertive blend of black teas, three types of cinnamon, orange peel, and sweet cloves. There’s no sugar added. Try our great value, a bag of 50 tea sachets. Each tea sachet brews a 12 oz cup.

Ingredients:
Black tea, orange peel, three types of cinnamon, cloves.
Contains Natural & Artificial flavors.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sensiblyscript

This post was posted in Black Tea, Harney & Sons

Spiced Mulled Wine by Simpson and Vail. . . .

October 1, 2017October 1, 2017 by Sensiblyscript

I steeped this tea for 3 minutes at approximately boiling temperature, with one teaspoon per cup of water.

Looking at the tea leaves I see bits of orange peel among them, as well as blue flower petals. This is a nicely scented blend, although it doesn’t really smell like what I imagined mulled wine would be like (I’ve never actually tried mulled wine though so maybe that’s why). My first sniffs did detect a sort of depth that hinted at pu-erh, though, although it doesn’t actually have pu-erh in it.

It doesn’t look like pu-erh once steeped, either. It’s quite reddish, like a blueberry or citrus/rosehip tea, but doesn’t smell acidic or berry-ish. (Reading through the ingredients I discovered that this is likely due to the beet root in the blend.)

First sip: Pleasant flavor, not super strong, and definitely not acidic. It doesn’t taste alcoholic either, but does have a sort of sweetness at the back of the throat. I can’t really taste the orange peel, although it may be lending a slight freshness to the blend (not really a detectable citrusness, though). The black tea base is obviously one that plays well with others; it’s not shoving floral or malty flavors to the front, but instead providing a comfortingly well-rounded sip that warms nicely.

From the way the back-of-mouth sweetness is behaving, I wondered if this tea has chamomile or mallow in it, so I checked the ingredients and there are malva blossoms! Yeah, I wondered what that meant too, but apparently they’re a type of mallow, so maybe that’s where the flavor came from (don’t quote me on that though).

The tea base is also a light one since the tea itself ended up clear but red, not brownish or dark. (So clear that I could easily see the bottom of the mug.)

I added milk next, which didn’t curdle thankfully but did turn the whole thing raspberries-and-cream pink. I like a lot this way too, despite the fact that it probably tastes nothing like mulled wine now. <3

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy: Simpson and Vail

Description

Looking for a winter concoction without the alcohol? Then, this brew is for you! The blend produces a reddish cup with a sweet fragrant aroma and taste. The tannic taste is reminiscent of red wine and it is perfectly complemented by the light spice taste and the earthy undertones.

Ingredients: black teas, orange peel, beet root, spiced mulled wine flavoring and malva blossoms.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sensiblyscript

This post was posted in Black Tea, Simpson & Vail

Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea by New Mexico Tea Company

May 4, 2017May 2, 2017 by Sensiblyscript

I steeped 1 tsp of this tea for 5 minutes in one cup of 212 degree water.

First of all, this tea isn’t kidding when it says “hot.” (Currently I’m able to smell the cinnamon flavor through the bag even though I double-bagged it, which means it has about the same strength as lapsang souchong). You can clearly see, when measuring it out, that there’s tons of cinnamon in the tea leaves. The ingredients list says it has natural and artificial flavorings too in addition to the three types of cinnamon–I didn’t know three types of cinnamon existed, did you? But apparently they do.

I don’t expect the black tea flavor to come through much at all at this point (it’s probably mainly there for caffeination purposes.)

It smells very spicy and strong as it steeps, too. After steeping I note that it has a very dark brown, fittingly cinnamon-ish color. It’s nearly opaque and has bits of dissolved cinnamon in it. Kind of like spiced cider. It also has a faintly sweet cider-ish smell, but of coursewithout the apple factor. (It does have clove and orange peel though, so that’s probably why it’s reminding me of cider.)

First sip: yes, it’s quite sweet and quite spicy. And no, I don’t really taste the black tea at all. There is a slight bit of astringency, but I’m not sure if it’s from the black tea or from the cinnamon. There’s a depth to the cinnamon flavor, which is probably caused by the blending of several types of cinnamon and cinnamon flavorings to create a more complex cinnamon blend rather than one that hits you all in a wave. It’s very effective, too. It’s like a tour of cinnamon.

With milk (no sugar needed as it’s already sweet): it’s creamier, of course, but the milk doesn’t really bring out the tea flavor the way it usually does with spicy teas (though maybe there’s a hint). The excellently warming, invigorating cinnamon flavor isn’t quelled by the milk either, though perhaps a bit tamed.

Overall I like this tea very much both with milk and without. I’d recommend trying it both ways to see which strikes your fancy the most.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black Tea

Where to Buy: New Mexico Tea Company

Description

.This blend brews very sweet even though no sugar is added. A cinnamon lover’s dream come true. A combination of hearty Chinese and Indian black tea and invigorating cinnamon.
Many cinnamon teas have a watery aftertaste due to the use of low grade teas. The black tea here has the stamina to last through the whole tasting process

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sensiblyscript

This post was posted in Black Tea, New Mexico Tea Company