flavored blend

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

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 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

Maharaja Chai and Samurai Chai Blend from Teavana. . . . .

January 26, 2017 by Mary

If you’re anything like me, your friends and family know you love your tea– and have been gifting accordingly this Christmas. In a recent office secret santa swap, I hit the total tea jackpot– a brand new gravity (gravi-tea– heee :)) steeper for my desk at work, and a GIGANTIC tin of this chai blend from Teavana. Score!

Now, early on in my tea-drinking years, Teavana was an initial fave, but in the last few years as I’ve discovered amazing small-batch companies and other small businesses that I love to patronize, I don’t really shop at this iconic mall tea shop anymore. That being said, I know they’re a beloved staple for so many tea drinkers, so I was pumped to get to try one of their more popular blends this holiday season through the generosity of a work friend.

First things first: does this dry leaf ever have the SCENT! It is perhaps the strongest spice from dry leaf that I’ve ever had. Super present are the scents of anise and cardamom, which jump right out to me in the brewed cup as well. This is lovely with some cream, no sweetener needed (unless you like your chai syrupy). My only complaint is that this blend is SO heavy on the spice that I can’t taste any of the tea leaf in my cup– which is supposedly a blend of mate, oolong, and green rooibos. I’d love for this to taste more distinctly tea-ified rather than just being so strong on the spices, but if you’re a fan of spiced chai like I am, this one will hit all the notes of a good chai for you. And deliciously warming for the wintertime, to boot!

Nicely done on this blend, Teavana.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Oolong/Mate blend

Where to Buy: Teavana

Description

Robust infusion of rich spice notes from cinnamon, ginger, pepper and cloves

Maharaja Chai Oolong and Samurai Chai Maté intermingle to form a blend that is bold in flavor and rich in heritage. Ginger, cinnamon, black peppercorn, cloves, and nutmeg harmoniously balance with sweet notes of pineapple, papaya, and star anise. Spicy and rich, this sweet Ayurvedic blend combines oolong, maté and green rooibos in a wealth of flavor.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Mary

Hi there! I'm Mary, a 27-year-old mental health professional living with my fiancé and our quirky kitten in the Midwest! I've loved tea for as long as I can remember-- in fact, I have vivid memory of being four or five in a tea shop and being mesmerized by all the tea flavors and proclaiming that I "was going to be kind of adult who drank tea, not coffee." A stint living (and tea-drinking my way through) London and twenty-some years later, I'm still channeling that sassy four-year-old and loving my tea habit. When I'm not sipping a cuppa, you'll find me reading, doing yoga, traveling, exploring my own city, planning our wedding and experimenting with different healthful and healing foods in my kitchen.

This post was posted in Chai, Green Rooibos, Oolong, Rooibos, Teavana