Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Whispering Pines Tea Co.
Tea Description:
This Yunnan black tea was harvested in early spring (2014) and carries a robust and delicious flavor profile! The first thing you taste is a thick honey flavor giving way to creamy cocoa with a touch of malt. A heavy molasses-like sweetness lingers on your tongue while juicy morel plays with a hint of gardenia in the aftertaste. This tea is delicious hot as well as iced and holds up very well to three or more infusions!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Black tea will always be my absolute favourite, and as I discover more Chinese black teas, they rise higher in my estimation. I bought this one from Whispering Pines in an effort to try more teas from Yunnan, which (of all black teas) seem to possess the majority of characteristics I really enjoy. High praise indeed! This one impresses from the moment the bag is opened. The scent drifting up is pure chocolate – so much so that I almost had to check I’d actually picked up a bag of tea. The dry leaf itself is beautiful – little golden black curls that really do look like miniature snail shells. I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 3 minutes in boiling water. The resulting liquor is a medium golden brown. Since this is to be my first cup of the day, I added a splash of milk.
The initial flavour is a beautiful, creamy milk chocolate. It’s pretty hard to believe that this isn’t a cup of cocoa, but I definitely made it with tea leaves! I’m reassured when a sweet maltiness emerges in the mid-sip, along with the wonderfully comforting flavour of baked break. Tea it is, and a wonderfully sweet, smooth, chocolatey thing at that! The maltiness deepens towards the end of the sip, becoming an almost treacle-like molasses flavour. It’s rich and flavourful; a real treat for the tastebuds.
Chocolate and baked bread are my two favourite flavours in black tea, except perhaps for sweet potato and honey. To find a tea that features these so clearly is a real delight! This is a great example of a Yunnan black tea, and would make a good starting point for anyone looking to explore this particular variety. Whsipering Pines did well with this one – I’m left in no doubt as to the quality of their offerings, and it’s certainly a tea I’d be happy to repurchase in future. Well worth a try.
Coconut Ice Tisane from DAVIDsTEA
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal/Tisane, Honeybush
Where to Buy: DAVIDsTEA
Tea Description:
We all know the feeling. Sometimes, you just need a little something sweet. And creamy.And fresh. You know, the perfect rich and frosty summer treat. Lucky for us, we’ve got this tea – a refreshingly decadent blend of honeybush, coconut and cocoa shells. Rich, smooth and totally addictive, it tastes just like a scoop of coconut ice cream. Want to take it to the next level? Try it as an iced latte. It’s the answer to any summer craving. (MK Kosher).
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is part three of a five part review of the DAVIDsTEA Summer Collection.
Ah DAVIDsTEA, your love of coconut is so predictable. I’m pretty sure no one was surprised by the inclusion of an obviously coconut focused blend this season. What did surprise me, however, was the classification of this tea. It’s got honeybush listed as the first ingredient which to me says that it’s the ingredient in the largest quantity and yet this is still listed as a herbal/tisane and not classed as a rooibos/honeybush blend? That confuses me a lot. I’d really like a break down of the thought process that took place here.
Also surprisingly, I had the perfect excuse to do a cold brew for this one and instead I found myself brewing it up as a hot tea! It was alright; the most dominant flavor was the honeybush which again begs the question ‘why did you class this as a herbal!?” but it was pretty equally matched by the strong flavour of both fresh coconut and toasted coconut. I actually did expect a little more coconut flavor because DT had the biggest excuse to go all out here, but I’m happy with the level that’s present. Yummy! It definitely reminds me of coconut ice, minus the ice part. But the crisp, fresh flavor is really well conveyed.
Also, COCOA SHELLS! I’m really happy that DT hopped on board with the love of cocoa shells here because they do such a better job at conveying a smooth chocolate flavour than chocolate chips would have done; plus no oily chocolate goop! Their use here was definitely a smart decision, though I did find the flavour mild in comparison to everything else going on and I don’t know if the blend would have been lacking had chocolate not been included at all. I think they contribute more to the aroma than the taste itself.
I liked this one; probably would have liked it better cold but I wanted to switch things up a bit and be less predictable with my preparation. I’m sure I’ll happily finish off the rest of my trial sample though I do doubt I’ll pick more up afterwards because while this was tasty I just don’t think it was different enough to warrant a need for me. Coconut lover will be all over this one, though. I’m sure it’s gonna do really well.
Chocolate Chamomile Curiosity Brew Black Oolong from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black/Oolong
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
This blend is inspired by the connection we see between fine chocolate and fine tea. Our Laoshan Black and Wuyi Big Red Robe have strong natural notes of cacao that we wanted to bring out and play with. The end result is a rich, sweet and sparkling brew that brings out the best in both the tea, supported by the cacao nibs. Marigold provides a richness that complements the sweet flavors of chamomile, cinnamon and fennel, while the mint gives just enough of a clean sparkle to counterbalance the flavor of raw cacao. Enjoy this curious brew hot or cold and add a touch of buckwheat honey for a real treat.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Thanks to my SororiTea Sister TheLastDodo for the sample! I’ve actually been quite curious about this one for a while (pun not intended), but Verdant isn’t a company I’ve had much chance to explore and I’m wary of blends with chamomile so getting the chance to try a small quantity of this one was just perfect!
The dry leaf smells faintly of milk chocolate, and has even fainter fennel and mint notes as well. I know from the ingredients list that the mint in this blend is Spearmint; but based on scent I wouldn’t be able to differentiate.
Steeped this one up hot; it’s a lot softer than I expected and very, very smooth. The chocolate is the focus here and it’s accented quite nicely by the cinnamon and the fennel which are subtle but add a delicate, sweet spicyness. The natural malt from the Laoshan Black is delicious; and the spearmint creeps in right at the finish to add a lovely, refreshing coolness. Also, thankfully, I can’t taste the chamomile!
All in all, this was a great tea! It had a rich flavour, but not an in your face one and with the chocolate and mint pairing it made me think of a really fancy, well executed tea version of an After Eight chocolate. Mmm!
Vampire’s Kiss Tea from Herbal Alchemy Teahouse
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Herbal Alchemy Teahouse
Tea Description:
This black tea has everything in which to woo an unsuspecting pallet – roses, chocolate, damiana and rich spices, but like every vampire’s kiss this tea is blood red and has a tiny bite…of cayenne red pepper.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about the MidWest Tea Fest here.
Taster’s Review:
This Vampire’s Kiss Tea from Herbal Alchemy Teahouse is the third of the teas that were sent to me by the organizers of the MidWest Tea Fest: Herbal Alchemy Teahouse is one of the featured vendors at the festival! After a quick glance at the list of scheduled vendors at the festival, it makes me wish that I was able to attend! It looks like it’s going to be an awesome tea fest!!!
This blend is a combination of black tea, rose, chocolate and spices. The tea brews up to be a dark, burgundy red – like a blood red color which makes me wonder if there’s hibiscus in this? I didn’t see a full ingredient list, so I’m not sure, but if I were to wager a guess, I’d say that there’s either hibiscus or something ‘beet’ in this blend because of the color.
It doesn’t taste strongly of hibiscus, but I do get a slightly thick texture that I would normally experience from hibiscus. That could also be from beet. And because of the spicy notes, I’m not detecting anything that’s obviously tart from hibiscus or obviously sweet from the beet, so I’m not really sure what’s supplying the strong color, but I’m suspecting hibiscus because the flavor tastes more like hibiscus to me than it does beet.
So what do I taste? I taste chocolate. But it doesn’t taste like a creamy, rich kind of chocolate flavor, it tastes more like cocoa powder that’s been added to a spiced herbal tisane. Or like cacao nibs/shells that have been added to a spiced herbal tisane.
I taste the spice! The spices build gradually, staring out rather delicate, but after a few sips, I’m getting a warm burning sensation toward the back of my palate.
I also taste an odd, herb-y sort of flavor that I can’t really describe except to say it tastes sort of medicinal, but not in an unpleasant way. It tastes like an herbal tea and as I continue to sip, I’m tasting more hibiscus-like flavors too.
But, I’m not complaining because the cocoa and the spice play with these hibiscus-like notes in such a way that it tastes more ‘berry like’ than it does the tart, syrupy flavor that I usually dislike from hibiscus. It’s odd, it’s different, but somehow, it works!
My biggest complaint about this tea? I don’t taste much black tea flavor. I’m getting a strong presence of the other flavors here, but the black tea seems almost non-existent. I like that the chocolate is strong, I like that I taste notes of rose and even that hint of spicy cayenne pepper that builds on the palate. I like that warmth from the spices. I’m just wishing I had more black tea flavor here.
This seems a lot more like an herbal tisane to me than a black tea. It’s good, though. If you’re one who enjoys spicy drinks, this is something worth exploring!
And don’t forget about the Midwest Tea Fest! If you’re going to be in the Kansas City, Missouri area on June 6th – you should definitely visit! And if you can make the trip, GO! It’s a great opportunity for tea lovers to get more information about the beverage they adore and an excellent way for those who are new to tea to learn more!
Choco Shou Pu-erh Tea from Camellia Sinensis
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
This tea is available from Amoda Tea.
Tea Description:
f you’re new to pu-erh, this is a great introductory tea. If you’re not new, you’ll still enjoy its vanilla chocolate goodness. This is slightly earthy and woody, as you might expect from an aged tea. The taste is smooth, rich (there’s mini chocolate chips in this afterall) with a lingering sweetness. Go ahead and try this hot with milk or even as an iced latte.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
As I’ve said on several occasions, I’m usually hesitant when it comes to sampling pu-erh. I actually have enjoyed most of the pu-erh that I’ve tasted over the years but if I had to choose between pu-erh and most other tea types, I’d probably go with something else. I’m not a big fan of the earthiness that seems to go along with most pu-erh and especially with shou pu-erh. And as the name of the tea indicates, shou pu-erh is the base tea used for this Choco Shou Pu-erh Tea from Camellia Sinensis which is the last of the four teas that I’m sampling from this month’s Amoda Box.
And while I don’t usually like that earthy flavor of pu-erh, it works with this particular blend. The earthiness actually enhances the flavor of the chocolate and gives it a deeper, richer flavor. So while I may not be all excited about a shou pu-erh, I do get excited about a tea that complements the flavor of chocolate.
Yay chocolate!
So, yes, this is earthy. But not so much that it knocks me upside the head with a flavor that makes me think that I steeped soil instead of tea. This tastes much better than I would assume the steeped soil would taste – I’m going to go with that assumption because I’m not going to steep soil and drink it. Just not gonna do it.
The chocolate flavor here tastes dark and decadent, like an expensive chocolate bar that says 70% cacao on it. If you prefer your expensive chocolate bar to say “milk chocolate” on it, add a splash of milk to make a latte because this tea tastes amazing as a latte!
To steep: I used my Kati Tumbler rather than my gaiwan to steep this tea because of the little chocolate chips in the blend. I felt like the Kati was the better way to go. I did rinse the tea for 15 seconds before infusing though – you’ll want to do this with any shou to help wash away some of those stronger earthy notes. After the rinse, I infused the first cup for 2 1/2 minutes in 190°F. I added 30 seconds onto each subsequent infusion.
I resteeped twice – creating three very flavorful cups of tea – with the first two much more chocolate-y than the third. The third was still quite nice, just not as much chocolate flavor.
So smooth! No bitterness (not even from the chocolate!) and no astringency. Just a deep, mellow, luxuriously chocolate flavor that I would happily drink on a regular basis. As I said before: the chocolate flavor lasts through a couple of steeps – I got two very chocolate-y steeps out of the tea before the chocolate notes began to wane.
This tea gets a thumbs up from me. Quite good!