Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Description:
Ingredients: Jasmine pearls, tangerine (very small amounts), flavoring
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Again, thanks to Andrew at Liquid Proust Teas for the sample.
I’m a big fan of tangerines (currently there are about seven in my fridge), so I’m definitely excited to try this blend especially given how much juicy tangerine I’m smelling just from the dry leaf. I decided to cold brew my sample because for jasmine teas with a green base I prefer drinking them cold over hot.
I definitely think this comes off as a pretty traditional green jasmine pearl tea; a good balance of both floral and vegetal flavours. It’s definitely one of the better green jasmine blends I’ve had as well given how natural and unobtrusive the floral notes are. However the tangerine, which is the twist here, is pretty light handed. The sweet citrusy tangerine note really only pops up at the end of the sip when the jasmine is dying out, leaving for a tasty finish but slight feeling that this tea is uncompleted. I know that Andrew was aiming to be subtle with the tangerine but it is more gentle than I’d anticipated it being.
However, overall I really appreciate the unconventional take on a traditional tea. I also have to point out that as someone who isn’t a fan of green/jasmine pairings I’m obviously not the target audience and I was probably looking for that additional tangerine flavor more than someone who likes green jasmine teas on their own would have.
French Toast Dianhong Black Flowering Tea from Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black/Flowering
Where to Buy: Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Description:
As my first batch of French Toast Dian Hong, I decided to go lightly on the flavoring because the natural cocoa taste from the tea is pleasant enough to keep the flavoring at a low amount. This tea proves to pull out different taste from different steeps from my experience and I am hoping you find the same to be true.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Some of my favourite tea companies are the ones where you really get a feel for the owners as people; a hand picked sample, signed note added in to my order, and online interactions on sites such as Steepster are all touches that win me over quite a lot as a consumer; and something really cool about Liquid Proust Teas, a retailer which opened quite recently, is that I kind of got a feel for the owner, Andrew, before the company was even hatched since, first and foremost, he was a Steepster member himself and is a consumer as well as a seller too.
Recently, I did a swap with him and he generously included a few of his own blends. Personally, I thought this seemed the most interesting of what he sent me. A few other companies such as 52Teas, both under new and old management, have attempted French Toast teas but I’ve yet to be wowed by one and I think Andrew’s approach here is quite a bit different than the ones they’ve taken so I’m definitely excited!
I brewed this ‘Grandpa Style’ because that’s my typical approach with blooming/flowering teas. I knew that there was a possibility that it would get bitter because that’s a risk you always take when brewing Grandpa Style but this was unwaveringly smooth and silky. The entire time I spent drinking this (a few hours in total) there wasn’t even the slightest hint of bitterness OR astringency. I’m incredibly impressed by that.
The flavour was very fluffy and sweet, but reserved enough to not be cloying or make me feel like I was drinking syrup straight from the bottle. The rich notes of custard, cream, vanilla, cocoa, and, yes, egg hardly waned at all throughout the session. There were also lighter notes of cinnamon that I thought did fade towards the end of my session, and some pretty pronounced malt notes from the tea itself along with more muted floral notes. I likely could have continued to drink this for another hour or possibly longer with very little flavour deterioration. More than that, if it had not have been midnight I would have continued to drink this which is certainly high praise from me given that I dislike resteeping in general (drink as many teas as possible in one day is my philosophy).
My only criticism would be that the “toast” part of “French toast” was lacking; I’d have liked stronger bread notes contributed from the base tea to complete the illusion; but that’s just me getting hyper critical of one of the better flavoured teas I’ve had all month. If Andrew’s other teas are as tasty as this one I’m in for a real treat!
Chamomile Rose Petal Organic Herbal Tea from BeauTea Studio
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: BeauTea Studio
Tea Description:
Chamomile Rose Tea ~ Always Organic ~ Herbal Goodness…Organic Whole Chamomile Flowers hand blended with Organic French Rose Petals to create a fragrant and ultra calming tea. Delicious with just a bit of honey.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Today was one of those days where I needed a bit of a relaxing tea. Catching up from being off on vacation for a week and some change wasn’t too bad, but I still had a few stressful moments here and there.
I was looking thru my tea stash and stumbled upon this delightful little tea. A simple Chamomile Rose Tea. Sometimes I feel like some teas have too many inclusions and sometimes you want something simple. This fit the bill perfectly. Chamomile and Rose Petals. The dry leaf had that old familiar loving smell of relaxing chamomile and the rose petals added a hint of floral aroma.
I decided I wanted to cold brew this beauty instead of enjoying it as a hot brew. I threw the sample into my cold brew bottle that was filled with cold water and let it steep on my desk while I continued to plug along.
A few hours later, I took my first sip. On yeah. . .that was exactly what I needed. The sweetness of the rose and the mix of the chamomile baked flavor just hit my taste buds right. I’m sure this tea is nice when brewed hot, but brewed cold I feel like the flavors come out even more. The rose petals really sang and the chamomile was fresh and bright. You couldn’t ask more for this herbal.
Simple and done right.
Honey Vanilla Chai from theBeesTeas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black Tea & Honeybush
Where to Buy: theBeesTeas
Tea Description:
Black tea blended with the spiciness of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, and the sweetness of honeybush vanilla. This tea is great hot and iced. Add a dab of honey and a splash of milk for a really tasty treat.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Chai and I really have a love hate relationship because I’m not the biggest ginger fan or a fan of overly spiced teas. I’m always looking at other peoples reviews in envy when they talk about the amazing chai blends that they are having, wishing I liked them. Kind of like red rooibos. I still haven’t found a blend I like that has red rooibos in it. I don’t get the rich dessert like quality out of those teas that everybody else gets. I always seem to get a medicinal weird flavor.
This tea though may change my out look on chai. This tea has a black tea base but also has a generous helping of honeybush vanilla to smooth out the flavor and bring a creamy factor to it. The ginger is there but isn’t the smack you in the face kind of ginger. The rest of the chai spices really mingle nicely together with the blend creating this beauty of a cuppa.
I did throw in some milk that I had froth and created myself a delicious latte out of this. I wasn’t adventourous enough to drink it without just yet. I plan to maybe later in the week. For me, I can’t see this being an everyday sort of drink but I can see this being the tea I grab for when I do want a chai blend.
Another home run from this company.
Raspberry Lemon Tart Bliss from theBeesTeas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: theBeesTeas
Tea Description:
Black tea perfectly blended with raspberry, candied lemons, chocolate, and vanilla (although raspberry & lemon flavors are more prominent). This blend also contains sumac, which adds a tart lemon-like flavor while also adding great health benefits (antioxidants) . This is a sweet and tangy blend that can be enjoyed hot or iced, but is better served hot. Black tea is caffeinated more than white tea or green tea, but considerably less than coffee.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I love playing around on Etsy. Its one of my favorite things to do when I have a few minutes to unwind. The teas that I have ordered from the different shops haven’t all been that great. Some of them just didn’t have a whole lot going for them. But that is not the case with this tea.
When you open the bag and smell the dry leaves, you are greeted with a delightful raspberry lemon smell. Very bakery like. There are huge chunks of raspberry and candied lemon pieces. The tea looks exactly like the picture on the site. That doesn’t always happen.
Once brewed up, you have yourself a delightful cuppa of a tea that tastes exactly like its name. This tea tastes like a raspberry lemon tart!!! Fresh, creamy, tart, berry, lemon goodness. Yum!! This is a beautiful dessert tea. The vanilla adds sweetness to the tea and there is a very tart like flavor that lends itself to a fresh bakery taste. The black tea base gives the tea a rich background for the rest of the flavors to play off of. I don’t pick up the chocolate flavor but in the description of the tea, it said that the raspberry and lemon were the most noticeable flavors.
I’m extremely impressed and pleased with this tea. This tea isn’t going to last long around me.
Well done theBeesTeas. Well done.