Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green, Black
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Tea Description:
In the lair, a dragon dreams sweet, sweet dreams of glittering treasure, ponies, and those who lurk. And destruction. This warm and spicy brew is full of musical depth and fire.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The other day I walked in my living room to see my boyfriend had the second Hobbit on TV. . .again. . for the 10th time. . and I of course had to watch right along with him. My 9 year old son came in a little after and he was also drawn in to the movie. He had never seen it before so it was fun to enlighten him on all things Hobbit related. His eyes lit up when Smaug came on the screen and was rooting for the dragon to destroy the merry band of traveling warriors. Yep. . he is totally my kid.
While we were watching the movie, I remembered that I had this blend and hadn’t tried it yet. This one was created as a Fandom blend for the Hobbit. Honestly, I am not a fan of the Adagio teas on their own, but I do really enjoy them when they are in the Signature Blends.
This one is a interesting and different blend. Green Chai, Assam Melody, and Cinnamon (black favored tea). Not flavors I would have paired together. It smells very much like a cinnamon cake. When brewed up, it tastes like a buttered up sweet potato with cinnamon on it and a tart like finish. Maybe even some sort of sweet potato pie.
It is a unique flavor. That is for sure. I did overleaf it after I checked out some other reviews about this blend on Steepster. A lot of the other reviews said it was bland and “meh”. If I hadn’t dumped in about 1 1/2 tsps more I can see that being the case. I did brew this up at work with my coffee pot water spout and then dumped the tea into ice for a iced green chai. Maybe if I messed with the steeping parameters more I could bring more flavors out. As it is, the cinnamon and spices don’t over take the tea like some chai blends I have had before. It is a very subtle and enjoyable chai blend with a rich buttery sweet potato finish.
Tangerine Dream Oolong Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Chinese tangerine peel and California orange peel surround Phoenix Dan Cong (Mi Lan Xiang & Yu Lan Xiang) loose leaf oolong teas lightly coated with orange blossom flower extract and tangerine oil. This tea is part of M&K’s Original 20 Blends.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Nice! This Tangerine Dream Oolong Tea from M&K’s Tea Company has a really lovely tangerine flavor to it. I like how the tangerine complements the Phoenix Dan Cong Oolong tea.
To brew this, I decided to go ahead and use my Kati Tumbler instead of my gaiwan, mostly because after examining the sampler package, it appeared to be just the right amount of leaf for my tumbler. So I poured the sampler pouch into the basket of my Kati and added 12 ounces of 180°F water. I let it steep for 3 minutes (following a 15 second rinse).
I really like this. The tangerine flavor is not overwhelming. I like that I taste the lovely Oolong tea above the tangerine, but the tangerine is an obvious flavor. It definitely tastes like tangerine. The background suggests flavors of sweet potato and honey. The texture is silky.
And of course, it IS an Oolong so you know I’ve got to resteep it, right? When I resteeped the leaves, I added 30 seconds brew time to it.
The second cup is flavorful, although some of the tangerine notes have waned. I’m still picking up on faint tangerine flavors but this cup is much more about the Oolong than the tangerine. Which is alright because this is a mighty fine Oolong tea!
The tangerine notes are most noticeable in the aftertaste now, where I’m picking up on a lightly sweet, citrus note. This cup is offering a stronger honey taste, although it’s a little less ‘silky’ in texture. The first cup was definitely smoother as I detected no astringency with the first cup, and now I’m getting just a wee bit. Still not a lot of astringency, but I’m noticing a little bit of dryness to this cup.
The flavors are a lot more mellow with this infusion. The sweet potato notes are not as apparent as they were in the previous cup. I’m tasting distant woodsy notes now. This is a different tea than the first cup, but it’s still really enjoyable and definitely worth the effort of the resteep.
Insomniac’s Dream Herbal Blend from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
This dreamy tisane blends five calming herbs into one delicious tea. Catnip and Chamomile Flowers lure the drinker into a mellow, relaxed mood, while the bright flavors of Peppermint, Lemon Balm and Lemongrass dance around their palate, resulting in a tea that is at once effective and unforgettable. But drinker beware- you may hit the pillow before finishing your cup!
Chamomile Flowers, Lemon Balm, Catnip, Lemongrass, Peppermint
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
This is not necessarily a tisane I was overly excited to try as I don’t generally get all that excited about chamomile blends, but as far as chamomile blends go, this Insomniac’s Dream is enjoyable.
The light apple notes of the chamomile meld nicely with the bright lemon-y notes of the lemon balm and lemongrass and the crisp, cooling notes of peppermint to create a very palatable taste. The catnip adds a little bit of sweetness to the cup and enhances the mint notes.
I like that the overall taste of this tisane is mellow. Since it’s to be a blend that helps lull the drinker into a sense of peacefulness so that they can rest, the mellow flavors assist in that endeavor. The minty notes are not too invigorating and the citrus-y notes are not overly zesty. This cup is all about calm.
And it DOES help instill a sense of relaxation. I feel myself starting to “chill out” from the inside out, like my muscles are starting to relax and I feel myself start to feel a little bit drowsy. This may very well be an Insomniac’s Dream!
I like this best served hot. I find that as it cools, the flavors seem to mute a little bit and because it’s a mellow tasting herbal tisane to begin with, you don’t want the flavors to get any more mild than they are.
This is another blend that I got with my June Sampler Box as part of the Selection Club subscription – I highly recommend subscribing to this service. It’s a great way to get a lot of tea for a small price! And if you want to save even more, use this code: SISTERSELECTION25 and you’ll save 25% off when you sign up for the Selection Club.
This discount is not applicable on the retail selection of teas, and is only good for the selection club subscription.
Angels Dream Tea Blend from English Tea Store
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black & Green Teas
Where to Buy: English Tea Store
Tea Description:
The Angels Dream Tea blend from English Tea Store is a heavenly tea with maple sweetness, blackberry pungency, full flavored Assam and a mystery green tea. We have sought the heavens to try to find the flavor befitting all the virtues of this tea’s namesake. The natural flavours of Maple and Wild Blackberry enhance the excellent teas we have selected from the tea world’s finest regions – Sri Lanka, Formosa and Assam (India).
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Angels Dream Tea Blend from English Tea Store is one that I wish I had read the website description before I brewed the tea. Had I realized that there was green tea in this as well as black tea, I would have utilized a lower brewing temperature.
However, even with the boiling water and a full three minute steep time, this turned out really good. I can taste the sweet maple notes, the juicy blackberry, and I can taste the rich, malty Assam tea in the background. The green tea notes are a little more difficult to discern, but I will say that one place where I do notice the presence of the green tea is that this tea is lighter than a typical Assam tea.
There is some bitterness to this which is probably due to the Assam’s presence in the tea just as much a it is owing to the green tea being brewed at too hot a temperature. And while the bitterness is noticeable, it isn’t bothersome or off-putting. It’s there, but, I’m able to overlook it in favor of the other tasty flavors that are going on in this cup.
The maple is a prominent taste. It tastes the way I’d expect maple to taste: sweet and rich. The blackberry is sweet but there is some berry tartness to it too. The black tea base is rich, full-flavored and astringent. The astringency leaves the palate feeling slightly dry and clean at the finish.
It’s a good tea that would probably be even better had I brewed it properly, but it is a very forgiving tea! This is one that I think those who like a good flavored tea would find enjoyable!
Toffee Dream from Zen Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Zen Tea
Tea Description:
Gives mild white sweet accent with toffee. Must try teas for white tea lovers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yum! Toffee!
This is really a lovely blend. I don’t think I’ve had a white tea flavored with toffee before, and these two elements go together surprisingly well.
The white tea is gentle and sweet, with a mild, fresh taste that is reminiscent of the taste that is in the air after the hay and alfalfa fields have been cut. (Yes, I lived on a ranch in my youth) The tea tastes light and airy, with a note of vegetation and a hint of hay. The warm notes of the hay together with the sweet notes of the toffee is a very interesting flavor. It’s almost smoky, but it’s a very mellow smoked note. Perhaps toasty is a better way to describe this flavor, with subtle wisps of smoke, like the flavor you might get if you were to roast nuts over an open campfire.
Which leads me to the nutty flavor that I taste. It is a deep, delicious nutty tone, which makes me think of the center of a toffee candy bar, you know how there are bits of nuts in that toffee? Yes, that’s what I taste: delicious, cruncy roast nuts! It goes perfectly with the sweet, caramelized toffee flavor.
This is a very cozy tasting tea, something you’d want to curl up and sip on a cold autumn afternoon (like today!) I like that it offers a pleasing sweetness – no additions needed – and I like the mellow attitude of this tea. A sweet, gentle indulgence!