Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
Enjoyed for centuries in China, Jasmine tea is an extremely popular scented tea. Special Grade Jasmine is a quality green tea with long, dark twisted leaves and sweet jasmine buds that produces a blonde liquor and delicate jasmine flavor. A delicious tea for any occasion.
Ingredients: Jasmine Special Grade Green Tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
I think that August’s Selection Club box from Simple Loose Leaf is my favorite box yet! Take a look at the selections that came with this box: Lady Earl Grey (I mean … hey, if you’ve read very many of my reviews at all, you know that I’m all about the bergamot, right?), Blueberry White (I absolutely LOVED this and it’s phenomenal served iced!), Milk Oolong (Um … YUM!) and even the honeybush was really nice. And now, I’m drinking Jasmine! Yep, I love August’s box!
And I’m loving this Jasmine Green tea. I steeped it in my gaiwan, starting with a 15 second rinse, and then I steeped the leaves for 45 seconds using 180°F water, and then I strained the liquid into my special Jasmine Yi Xing Mug. I steeped the leaves four more times, adding 15 seconds onto each subsequent infusion, until my mug was full with yummy Jasmine goodness.
The flavor is sweet and delicate. The jasmine notes are not aggressive, they are soft and exotic and sweetly floral. These notes marry beautifully with the lush, lightly vegetative taste of the Chinese green tea.
The tea has a pleasant mouthfeel. It’s smooth throughout the sip and dry toward the finish. The aftertaste is sweet and lightly floral. A really enjoyable Jasmine tea.
To learn how you can join the Selection Club, click here. And don’t forget the coupon code for 25% savings. Just type in SISTERSELECTION25 in the coupon field and save 25%! This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Watermelon Splash Tea Blend from Bluebird Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green & White Teas
Where to Buy: Bluebird Tea Co.
Tisane Description:
A refreshing blend of green and white tea bursting with juicy melon and fruit flavours. A truly spring time tea, fresh and fruity and totally mouth-watering over ice. Watermelon Splash is the perfect tea blend for sipping in the sunshine.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
This Watermelon Splash Tea from Bluebird Tea Co. isn’t just a “spring time” tea but it’s a wonderful summer time tea too!
I admit that I was a little dismayed to see that hibiscus is one of the ingredients, and even more dismayed to see the hibiscus in the blend as I measured it into my tea maker, but, really, the hibiscus adds very little to this blend except for a slight pinkish hue that embraces the whole ‘watermelon-y’ sort of theme of the tea. The texture is light – not at all syrupy the way hibiscus can be in a blend – and the flavor is not overly tart.
There is some tartness to this though, and not just from the hibiscus, but also from the lemon peel. But I think I like these tart notes, because they contrast in a pleasant way with the sweetness and add an uplifting brightness to the cup.
To brew this blend, I used a lower temperature (it’s a blend of both white and green teas, and in blends like this, I generally yield to the lowest temperature, in this case, I’m yielding to the white tea brewing requirements) of 170°F. I know that a lot of people will tell you that 160°F is the way to go with white teas, but, I have found that adjusting that temperature by 10 degrees will provide a much more flavorful cup of white tea without any bitterness or sign of scorched tea leaves.
I steeped this for 3 minutes and the result is a flavorful cup that is lightly pink in color, looking a bit like the liquid at the bottom of a bowl of cut-up watermelon. In other words, it looks like watermelon juice.
The tea smells like a medley of fruits. I can smell watermelon, coconut, pineapple and citrus. The first few sips were more lemon-y than they were watermelon-ish. After about two sips, I could start to pick up on the coconut and pineapple flavors. It wasn’t until I reached mid-cup that I started to note the watermelon flavor.
The base of white and green teas is light and crisp and buttery smooth. I don’t get a strong “grassy” note, but I do taste the fresh “leafy” taste that is distinctly green tea.
The tea notes are best described as background notes. They aren’t very prominent flavors amid the fruit flavors. I can barely taste the white tea, but it lightens the cup in a way that benefits the overall beverage. It adds this refreshing, cool taste that is just as distinctly white as the aforementioned fresh leafy taste is distinctly green, even though the cup does not scream out “white tea” or even “green tea.” While these flavors are not abundantly ~clear~ in the cup, this blend would not be the same without either of these two teas in it. They add something flavorful to the cup, it is just not as distinguished as the fruit notes.
I found myself enjoying this cup. I do wish there was a stronger, more obvious watermelon note to it, but I really do like the combination of flavors. It’s a great way to quench the thirst. Good hot but much better iced!
Organic Cranberry Lemon Black Tea Blend from Boston Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Boston Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Enjoy this tartfully-sweet tea whether it’s morning, noon, or night! The perfect blend of our premium organic Chinese and Indian black teas with organic cranberries and lemon will leave you taste buds dancing with delight!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I wasn’t sure how I would like this blend, because even though I’ve enjoyed many cranberry flavored teas as well as quite a few lemon flavored teas – to have these two tart fruit flavors together in one tea seemed a little too tarty for me.
But this is alright. It’s not my favorite tea that I’ve tasted from Boston Tea Company, but, I’m enjoying it. The flavors of cranberry and lemon go together surprisingly well. I usually see cranberry and orange as a combination but seldom do I see cranberry and lemon. And it’s a nice combination. Yeah, it’s tart, but it’s still tasty.
I think what really saves this tea for me and makes it tasty instead of way too tarty is the black tea base. It’s a smooth, robust black tea. I taste sweet notes of malt and these sweeter notes of the tea as well as it’s strong, bold taste seems to take some of the attention off the fact that we have two sour fruit flavors in this blend.
Not that the tea base overpowers the fruit notes, but, it manages to curb some of the really sour notes so that it tastes just a little less tart than I anticipated it to taste. So I’m able to experience some of the sweeter notes of the berry and the bright, refreshing flavor of the lemon without feeling that urge to pucker when I take a sip.
I steeped one of these silky pyramids in boiling water for 3 minutes. It produced a flavorful, aromatic cup that is not too tart, but it is a bit more tart than it is sweet, so if you’re one who fancies a sweeter cup, you might want to add just a pinch of sweetener to soften the sour just a bit. I enjoyed it as is, and I tend to be a little sensitive to tart flavors. This tea just “toes the line” at being a little too tart. It’s very tart but not quite there.
Overall, a pleasant tea – this makes a really tasty and refreshing iced tea. I think this is even better iced than hot – the tart notes mellow out just a little bit and make for a very smooth and juicy tasting drink.
Blueberry White Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Our delicate Shou Mei White Tea is infused with a playful explosion of blueberries, cornflowers and blueberry flavor. The naturally floral white tea leaves fuse harmoniously with their fruity additions. Enjoy this tea any time you feel like a treat, hot or iced.
Shou Mei White Tea, Blueberries, Cornflowers, Blueberry Flavor
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve tried quite a few blueberry flavored teas during my time as a tea reviewer, and just like any other flavor, some blueberry teas are better than others. This one is definitely one of the better ones that I’ve tried. The blueberry is strong and exceptionally well-defined. Put simply, it tastes like BLUEBERRY!
The dry leaf is deliciously fragrant, smelling of sweet berries. The leaves are dark and brown and they look like most of the Shou Mei teas that I’ve seen. There are flecks of blue among the leaves: cornflowers. I see some blueberries, but there are not a lot of blueberries in this, but that’s OK.
When it comes to flavored teas, its not the fruit additions that make the tea taste like the fruit flavor, it’s the flavoring oil. So it’s important that when selecting the flavoring oil that a very high quality flavoring oil is chosen. A low quality oil can result in a flavor that tastes fake, chemical-y, or have very little taste that resembles the desired flavor.
Fortunately, this Blueberry White Tea from Simple Loose Leaf has been crafted using a high quality oil – as evidenced in the flavor that I’m tasting. I taste blueberry. I don’t taste chemicals. I don’t taste a fake blueberry or even an overly-candied blueberry taste. I taste an authentic, true-to-the-fruit, abundantly fruity blueberry flavor!
The flavor is sweet with that familiar tingly berry tart note toward the finish. Yum! As I said, this is one of the better blueberry flavored teas I’ve come across in some time. I love that the blueberry flavor is unmistakable … I like that I can easily identify that this tastes like blueberry. I like that it’s sweet and juicy and refreshing. It’s very summertime!
Incidentally, this makes a stunning iced tea!
The Shou Mei base needs to be credited for the flavor as much as the blueberry flavoring, because the crisp flavor of the Shou Mei doesn’t attempt to impede the delivery of bright blueberry flavor to the palate. It is content to let the blueberry do its thing, but at the same time, it doesn’t allow itself to be overpowered by the flavoring. There is a good balance here of earthy, sweet notes of Chinese white tea and juicy blueberry flavor.
A VERY good tea. This is the first that I’ve tried from the August Selection Club box, and we’re off to a really great start! I’m looking forward to the next one!
I know I’ve mentioned it before, but I want to let you know that you can save 25% off when you sign up for the Selection Club from Simple Loose Leaf. Just use the coupon code SISTERSELECTION25 for that savings when you subscribe. This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Smoke Show (Lapsang Souchong Black Tea) from Tease
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Tea Description:
“You smell like a campfire.” Edward says to me as I walk into the office with this smoking hot beauty. Sheena has blessed us with some of the first samples of this smoky wonder. She described it as the scotch of the tea world. Bold and boisterous, it’s a mans tea, able to convert any hard core coffee addict to a gentle tea sipper.
It’s bold scent is definitely softened when steeped. The air will hold on to this campfire scent, reminding us of weekends camping and long weeks at the cottage. It also reminded us how much we like whisky. We brewed up a small pot, iced it and served it as mixer in our weekend Manhattans.
The flavour, while still maintaining a hint of smoke, is very earthy and gentle. Perfect for mornings or an evening of cocktail sipping. Mix 2oz of iced Lapsang Souchong with 2oz of whiskey, a splash of fresh apple juice, and a squeeze of lime for a perfect evening drink.
Learn more about July’s Postal Teas shipment here.
Learn more about subscribing to Postal Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
By now, I’ve mentioned my lack of enthusiasm for Postal Tea’s choices for my first month of trying out this subscription service. They went with the “classics” and the theme “One Classy Lady.” OK, I get it, and I even understand the desire to want to offer subscribers three classic teas that all tea drinkers should at least try. But for those of us who are pretty well acquainted with these “classics,” the teas in this box end up being just a little … less than exciting.
I do LOVE the box though. First of all, it’s packaged beautifully in a slim box. The sample sizes are just the right size for a pot of tea. I liked getting a handwritten note from Postal Teas (it’s a small detail, but it’s one that I really appreciate) and I really liked receiving the tea notebook. These little touches made the box very special, so I am hoping that next month’s shipment from Postal Teas has something just a little less classic for their subscribers.
In the meantime, I have a cup of Lapsang Souchong sitting before me. I can smell the heavy smoky note. The description above is accurate in saying that it smells smokier than it tastes. This is true of just about every Lapsang Souchong tea that I’ve tasted. I don’t know that I’ve ever really thought much about it, because the aroma is so smoky that it’s often difficult to separate the scent from the taste because these two senses are very connected. But this is a tea that definitely benefits – at least for me – to not inhale deeply before taking that sip as I would normally do, because then the sip tastes less smoky.
Another way to help eliminate some of the smoke is to brew it “properly” – again, at least properly for me. I always give Lapsang Souchong leaves a rinse before I infuse the leaves by steeping the leaves for about 15 seconds and then straining off the liquid and discarding it. This gets rid of a lot of the overpowering smoke, but not all of it. There’s still some smoke – but it’s a lot more enjoyable now because it’s not overwhelming me.
212°F for 15 seconds, strain and discard liquid, and then infuse the leaves at 212°F for 2 1/2 minutes – 3 minutes. Strain and enjoy. I don’t usually go over 3 minutes.
This is a pleasant Lapsang Souchong. Smoky, yes, but there is a delightful complexity beyond the smoke. A delectably sweet caramel undertone with notes of stone fruit. I know I’ve probably used this descriptive before in other reviews when describing the flavors in a Lapsang, but it’s applicable and it’s what I’m tasting: imagine charring a ripe plum over a smoky campfire. That’s what I taste. It’s sweet and it’s really quite lovely … and certainly worth the effort of the extra brewing step to be able to enjoy these flavors.
This tea is one of three that I received in my July Postal Teas subscription package, and currently it’s available only to Postal Teas customers and isn’t currently on Tease website, which is why I didn’t include a direct link where you could buy this tea.
I enjoyed the classic teas that Postal Teas sent me this month … but as I said, I’m looking forward to what they will send with the next shipment.