Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Fruit/Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Sweet orange peel roasted in honey, real grade-A Madagascar vanilla beans, actual peaches! California Sweet Peach is our signature herbal infusion. We are proud to roast our own orange peel in local honey and use peaches straight from California! Our natural peach flavor is supplied by Silver Cloud Estates and is a blend of different natural extracts and oils, enabling us to boost the taste of peaches. This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends. Note: California Sweet Peach contains no tea, as it is an herbal infusion. We chose to include the term “herbal tea” in the title due to its categorical popularity.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This California Sweet Peach Herbal Tea from M&K’s Tea Company is an interesting tisane. As I sit here, sipping it, I’m trying to determine whether or not I like it. I can’t say that immediately upon taking my first few sips that I was blown away by it. At the same time, I can’t say that immediately upon taking my first few sips that I wasn’t intrigued. I felt the need to keep on sipping. It’s interesting enough to keep me sipping but there’s something about it that hasn’t yet ‘won me over’ – at least not yet.
I like that the hibiscus is not a strong presence in this cup. Normally, when I am about to taste a tea or tisane with hibiscus, my thought is “why?” Why hibiscus? But, after drinking about half a cup now, I can see why the hibiscus is in this blend. It adds a little bit of body to the cup (but I wouldn’t recommend steeping it longer than 6 minutes or so to avoid having a thick or syrupy body) and the little bit of tartness that it brings to the cup adds balance to the warm notes of the licorice and the sweetness of the peach, honey and vanilla notes.
The star of this cup is – obviously – the peach. I like the flavor of the peach here and I think that’s what’s keeping my interest. The peach is a genuine peach-y note. It doesn’t taste chemical or artificial. It tastes true to the fruit. I also like the orange in this. The orange adds a touch of bright flavor to the sweet peach notes.
Now that I’ve finished the cup I can say that I enjoyed this. It had a strong peach flavor but there was enough other stuff going on in this that it didn’t end up being all about the peach. I liked the different flavors going on. And even though this does have hibiscus in it – like so many other fruit/herbal tisanes to – this is not your ordinary tisane.
Just as an aside: it’s something when I finish the tea before I finish the review. Take that for what it’s worth, but it doesn’t happen often. I must have enjoyed what I was drinking!
Yeah. I’d drink this again. I enjoyed it. This one has earned my approval. Even if it does have hibiscus in it!
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.
Sicilian Vanilla Black Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Do vanilla beans grow in Italy? We like to think so. Regardless, this black tea is blended with fine English oils made from Italian citrus fruits and sweet extracts, mixed with grade-A Madagascar vanilla beans (plus fine vanilla extract for an extra boost), and the unique savory scent of helichrysum flowers. Sicilian Vanilla is a great blend for the citrus lover, the vanilla lover, or the black tea lover! This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Hmm … tasty! Not at all what I expected, but then, I think when I saw “Vanilla” in the name of the tea, I immediately think, “OK, this is a vanilla tea.” I didn’t expect the other flavors in this, although had I read the description prior to tasting, I would have!
This tastes more like something rich and dessert-y, like a fancy dessert from a European bakery than it does a straightforward vanilla black tea. And that’s not a bad thing, not at all! It’s a very yummy thing!
The description of this tea on Etsy doesn’t go into detail about what teas are used as the base. It only says a “blend of black teas.” Based on what I’m tasting, I’m going to guess that there is some Assam in this blend. I taste a good bit of malty and I also taste a hint of Assam bitterness. As for other teas, I suspect a Ceylon because I’m getting a Ceylon sort of taste in there too … but I’m less certain of the Ceylon than I am of the Assam.
To flavor this tea, M&K’s used vanilla bean as well as vanilla flavoring, Fiori di Sicilia flavoring and Pannetone flavoring. Fiori di Sicilia is an extract that is used in Italian baking that has a bit of vanilla, orange and floral essence. I can taste each of these flavors. The vanilla is the strongest note of these flavors, with the yummy baked bread taste of the pannetone, and hints of citrus that are especially noticeable at the finish and in the aftertaste.
The floral notes are probably my least favorite aspect of this tea, because it gives the cup an almost ‘artificial’ taste. However, the floral taste from the Fiori di Sicilia is barely noticeable and something that is easy to overlook given the yumminess of the rest of the tea.
Overall, I’m quite pleased with this blend and I’m glad I got to try it.
Organic Premium Keemun Maofeng Black Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Like an ancient Chinese secret, this tea is an ancient Chinese secret. More or less. Different from black teas of India or Sri Lanka, Qimen (or the anglicized Keemun), features a hint of orchid fragrance and lingering fruity notes. Balanced and complex, Chinese Qimen tea is an ancient Chinese secret you should discover.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! This is a really good Keemun!
As promised in the above description, it does have a really good balance of characteristics. I taste notes of flower and fruit as well as a subtle smoky note in the distance. It’s really quite enjoyable the way the flavors come together in my cup.
The dry leaf is beautiful! I don’t think that the above picture really does these beautiful, long, slender, wiry, glossy black leaves justice. I can see by the appearance of the dry leaf that these are of superior quality.
To brew them, I grabbed my Kati Tumbler, although I argued with myself for some time as to why I wouldn’t use my gaiwan to brew these. Ultimately, it was a decision that came down to the skin on my fingertips: When I steep teas at such a high temperature as is best for a black tea such as this, my gaiwan gets really hot to the touch – even though I have the little “fingertip handles” on my easy gaiwan, those get really hot when I steep with boiling water and I wasn’t in the mood for scorched fingers.
So, I grabbed my Kati Tumbler and by the looks of the sampler, there were just enough leaves in the sampler for my 12 ounce tumbler. I poured the leaves into the basket and added 12 ounces of boiling water and let the tea steep for 3 minutes.
And this is a marvelous cup of tea!
The sip starts out with notes of sweet and savory. The sweetness is fruity and slightly honey-esque. The savory is slightly smoky. By mid-sip, the smokiness emerges a little more. The fruity notes remind me of a combination of plum with a hint of grape.
I find myself trying to determine if it’s grape that I taste, or raisin? It’s almost like it’s somewhere in between. Like eating a grape that’s only been partially dried to the raisin stage. It offers that sweet side of grape, but also a savory, almost black currant, wine-like flavor of grape. It’s really quite enjoyable.
The plum with the smoky note is quite intriguing – a smoked plum! Yum!
Just after mid-sip, I pick up on floral notes: orchid! The orchid becomes more distinct as I continue to sip. Now that I’m more than halfway through my cup, I am really tasting the distinct notes of orchid. There are still hints of smoke that linger into the aftertaste, and I like the way the floral notes mingle with those wisps of smoke.
I keep going back to the “smoky” notes and I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking that this is a strong, smoky tea. This isn’t like a Lapsang. The smoke is subtle throughout. But it’s the way the hints of smoke dance in and out of the sip that I am marveling over. I like this level of smoke – light notes of smoke that seem to charm their way into each sip.
This tea has a really satisfyingly round flavor. Balanced, yes. The fruit balances nicely with the floral notes and the smoky notes mingle throughout the sip, keeping the palate interested. A really nice Keemun, and I love that it’s organic!
Honey Vanilla Chamomile Herbal Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Egyptian chamomile, sweet licorice root roasted in honey, and grade-A Madagascar vanilla beans! This is a great herbal infusion for the late night: perfect for relaxing. Our Honey Vanilla Chamomile is just that: honey (with licorice root), vanilla, chamomile. Nothing else. This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends. Note: Honey Vanilla Chamomile contains no tea, as it is an herbal infusion. We chose to include the term “herbal tea” in the title due to its categorical popularity.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s been a little while (at least a week or so!) since I last had chamomile and tonight I’m in need of relaxation: chamomile style! So, I grabbed this Honey Vanilla Chamomile blend from M&K’s Tea Company.
To brew it, I poured the contents from the sampler pouch into the basket of my Kati tumbler and added 12 ounces of water heated to 195°F. I let it steep for eight minutes.
The aroma is distinctly chamomile, but I can also pick up on the notes of honey and licorice root. The vanilla notes are not as noticeable but there is a very faint vanilla fragrance.
Wow! I’m liking this. The licorice root is the strongest flavor here, but the often sharp flavor of the licorice is softened somewhat by the honey roasting. And I like the honey in this, it complements the natural honey-like flavors of the chamomile.
The chamomile is also prominent. It has that expected honeyed, apple-y flavor. I like the way the zesty, warm flavor of the licorice contrasts with the softer, lighter flavor of the chamomile. It’s a really unique flavor combination, but it’s working for me.
The vanilla is the softest flavor of this blend, but I do taste a subtle sweet and creamy note from the vanilla bean. It may be the softest flavor here but it ties everything together. I don’t think this blend would taste quite the same without that whisper of vanilla.
I drank this while it was hot. I’m not a big fan of chilled chamomile. But, I did find that after the tea cooled slightly – still warm but not piping hot – the flavors seemed to become slightly more seamless. It was like the vanilla came forward a bit more and softened everything just a little more. The licorice seemed smoother, and the other flavors seemed to meld together to create a very unified flavor.
I know not everyone out there is a big fan of licorice root – if you’re one of them, this tisane isn’t for you. But if you like that snappy flavor of licorice, you should give this herbal tea a try. I found it to be quite delightful and it also does what it’s supposed to do: it helped me relax! It’s a very soothing, calming drink that doesn’t taste like every other chamomile blend out there. Bonus points for that!
M&K’s earns another thumbs up from me for this blend.