Day 2 of the countdown! Have you finished your holiday shopping yet? Have you started? I’ve started, but it always seems that we’re waiting until the last possible minute to finish up.
I can’t help but think that these charming, bright red boxes of tea delights from Teanzo would make a great gift, possibly as a hostess gift for a holiday party. Even as a holiday present, even though the “Advent Calendar” part would no longer be of use, it would still be fun to have a different tea every day for 24 days!
I know I’m enjoying it!
After my review of the tea from Day 1, I received an email from Teanzo and they told me that they used “glue dots” to secure the teas into the boxes for a more attractive presentation. If you’ll recall, I mentioned in that review that the glue used was a very strong glue and maybe a bit too strong. I appreciate this input from Teanzo, and I do agree that the presentation of the packages that have been adhered into place is much more attractive than it would be to receive the sampler pouches shuffling loose in the box. I like the way the package has been positioned! So maybe the glue is but a small annoyance so that I can enjoy a beautifully arranged box of delicious teas!
I certainly do appreciate that Teanzo is so responsive! That they’ve taken the time to respond to this means a lot to me as a consumer. I like it when a tea company makes my concerns – their concerns!
I was very happy to see which tea was going to be featured today, because it’s another favorite of mine! So the tea for Day 2 of the countdown – there are only 23 days left until Christmas! – is:
Jasmine
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teanzo 1856
Tea Description:
Immerse yourself if the intoxicating aroma of jasmine with our organic loose leaf Jasmine green tea. This green tea is not to be missed and is a crowd pleasing green tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Jasmine is one of my favorite tea “flavors” – so long as it’s not a “flavored” jasmine and is instead a properly “scented” jasmine. This tastes to me as though it has been properly scented. What does that mean, exactly? Well, to this taster, it means that the jasmine tastes clear and distinct without tasting overly floral, perfume-ish or soap-y.
And that’s what I’m getting from this Jasmine tea from the Teanzo collection. The jasmine is a well-defined note without tasting of soap or like something you should be “wearing” instead of drinking.
To brew this Jasmine, I grabbed my Kati tumbler and poured the contents of the sampler pouch into the infuser basket of the tumbler. Then I heated water to 175°F and poured 12 ounces of the heated water into the tumbler and allowed it to steep for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, the brewed tea is a golden amber color and the aroma is sweet and floral.
The flavor is a nice balance between the exotic jasmine flower and the sweet, buttery green tea. The green tea is smooth. There is no bitterness and very little astringency.
Typically, when it comes to Jasmine teas, I prefer the base to either be a white tea or a green tea pearl-type of tea. This Jasmine is neither – but I really like it. It’s one of the nicer Jasmine teas I’ve tasted in recent weeks. And do take the time to resteep the leaves! This one offers a couple of additional steeps with no significant loss in flavor.
Jasmine Supreme Green Tea from Red Leaf Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Red Leaf Tea
Tea Description:
Of all the blossoms that are indigenous to Eastern Asia, the jasmine flower is perhaps the most popular and giving Jasmine Supreme tea its flavor. We have developed this unique blend of green tea and jasmine petals to bring the essence of the night-blooming vine to you. Infused with jasmine blossoms for hours at a time during several heating sessions, Jasmine Supreme Green Tea is a perfect floral tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was excited to try this Jasmine tea. I’m generally excited to try Jasmine teas because I love a good Jasmine. Unfortunately, this isn’t as supreme as the name of the tea led me to believe it would be.
The flavors are TOO floral. Oh, sure, I realize that Jasmine teas are supposed to be floral, but the floral notes here seem to taste more like a flavored jasmine rather than a scented one. As in, flavored with jasmine oil rather than scented with jasmine flowers. The description says that the jasmine flowers infused the leaves with their essence so I’m not going to question the validity of that, all I’m saying is that this is a highly floral to the point of tasting perfume-ish Jasmine tea.
To steep this, I used my Breville One Touch and added 2 scoops of the tea to the basket of the tea maker and added 500ml of water to the kettle. I set the parameters for 175°F for 2 minutes. Perhaps less time would make a better cuppa? I don’t know.
The green tea is a soft green tea with buttery notes and a silky texture, and I feel like I’d really like this if the floral notes were not so potent. As it is, though, I don’t drink perfume and I can’t finish the cup. Sad, because I truly like this company – and they do have many wonderful teas. This just isn’t one that I can recommend.
Earl Grey Lavender Black Tea Blend from ArtfulTea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: ArtfulTea orArtfulTea on Etsy
Tea Description:
The classic cup of Earl Grey tea gets a makeover in Provence. The addition of lavender blossoms adds a soothing floral note to the traditional flavor of Earl Grey’s main ingredient – oil of bergamot. Very aromatic!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yay! It’s time for a cup of Earl Grey!
There really are very few teas that I prefer over a cup of delicious Earl Grey. Generally, I do prefer the classic, straightforward Earl Grey: black tea with the essence of bergamot. But I do also appreciate some of those cool “twists” to the traditional Earl Grey, like this Earl Grey Lavender from ArtfulTea.
And this is a REALLY good Earl Grey tea with Lavender! The black tea is a smooth, robust black tea that supports the strong bergamot flavor well. It’s smooth from start to finish with a tangy astringency toward the tail. The bergamot is strong without tasting perfume-ish, and that’s especially important when it comes to a blend like this because the lavender can often come off as too soapy. It’s crucial to keep the right balance of bergamot and lavender flavors so that the tea tastes like tea and not like a cup of body bath liquid.
But this tea has been carefully blended to offer a powerful bergamot note and enough lavender for a sweet, floral presence without creating a tea that tastes like it belongs at the cosmetics counter at the department store.
This tea is sweet, tangy, floral and invigorating to sip. It makes a nice afternoon cuppa. This is the kind of tea that evokes thoughts of sipping tea in a garden on a breezy summer afternoon.
This cuppa represents the last of the samples I received when I ordered the ArtfulTea Sampler, I guess I’m going to have to order more from them soon because my experiences with this company have been nothing but positive! I recommend them highly!
Organic Rose Ginger Oolong Tea from Aftelier Perfumed Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Aftelier Perfumed Teas
Product Description:
Organic Muzha Tieguanyin oolong tea, from Taiwan, is a rare tea that is oxidized and roasted for two days by a traditional tea master. This full-bodied oolong opens with ripe fruit notes and finishes with a smooth aftertaste, blending beautifully with the spicy rose flavor that Mandy creates with our Aftelier Chef’s Essences: Fresh Ginger and Turkish Rose. These tightly rolled leaves unfurl during the first steeping, and may be re-infused up to 4 times, retaining their fragrance.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I reviewed this tea previously – well, no, not exactly. I reviewed a tea that is similar, but since writing that review, Mandy from Aftelier Perfumes changed her recipe for the tea blend slightly to use an organic Muzha Tieguanyin Oolong tea rather than the Tieguanyin she used for the tea that I sampled for that first review.
And I’ve come to learn (and greatly appreciate!) that organic definitely DOES make a difference. It is especially noticeable (by taste) with tea bases (tisane bases) like rooibos, but I have also noticed differences between conventionally grown Oolong teas versus organically grown Oolong teas. Yes, the possibility exists that the differences are only mentally imposed differences – that is to say, I think, “Oh, this is organic and therefore it is better,” but even with that mentally imposed difference, I still taste something better.
Hey, let’s face it, organic IS better. It’s better for the earth and I believe it’s better for the tea drinker as well.
But really, I don’t need to justify revisiting this tea, because it’s a remarkable tea and I love the teas that are crafted by Aftelier.
I steeped this the way I typically steep an Oolong – in my gaiwan – performing a 15 second rinse and then I steeped the first infusion for 1 minute and added 15 seconds to each subsequent infusion. I combine two infusions in each cup, so therefore the first cup was composed of the first two infusions and the second cup was composed of the third and fourth infusion, and so on.
I love the way the rose and ginger play together on the palate. It is sweet, floral and just a little zesty from the peppery notes of the ginger. The ginger does not bring a strong, heavily spiced presence to the sip, just a gentle, peppery warmth. However, after sip is gone, the ginger lingers in the aftertaste and I can taste (and feel!) the ginger on my palate. It’s still a fairly mild heat. I really like it because I generally think of rose to be a summery type of tea essence, it seems to bring a sense of summer to the cup, but the ginger gives this a cozy sort of flavor that is distinctly autumnal.
As does the Tieguanyin, which has a delicate earthiness and wisps of smoke in the background. The Tieguanyin has a light creaminess to it and a slight buttery taste that with the roasted notes offers more of a sweet, browned butter flavor rather than a fresh cream buttery type of taste. I also like how the roasted notes seem to diminish the presence of a strong floral and vegetal tone to the Tieguanyin, because it allows the rose to really shine through without competing with other strong floral notes. This roasting process also allows the natural fruit tones of the tea to develop and intermingle with the essences of Turkish Rose and Fresh Ginger!
The slightly smoky, roasty-toasty notes emerged a little more prominently in the second cup (infusions 3 and 4), and I was very pleased to find that the rose and ginger notes remained for these infusions. The rose notes are softening somewhat in this cup and is more reminiscent of the taste of the air that surrounds while strolling through a garden of roses. The smell and flavor of the rose is distinct and definitely there. 
The ginger is warming on the palate, especially in the aftertaste. The Tieguanyin is sweet, not quite as creamy as the first cup, but still quite toasty tasting with wonderful notes of stone fruit. Warm and sweet and beautifully fragrant, just like summer, but also cozy and comforting like autumn. A really beautiful cup.
I was surprised to find that those wonderful rose and ginger notes were still present in the third cup (infusions 5 and 6)! With many flavored Oolong teas, the flavoring tends to be indistinguishable by the time I’ve reached the fifth and sixth infusion. The tea is still delicious, of course, because the Oolong is still flavorful on its own, but usually the flavors have softened to the point of barely noticeable. That is definitely NOT the case with this tea, though.
The rose is still lovely and the ginger still warm and peppery. Sure, these flavors are softer now than they were with the first cup, but, that’s alright, because I am getting plenty of flavor from the Tieguanyin – sweet, fruity, toasty, nutty flavors – but I can also still taste sweet floral notes from the rose and zesty notes of ginger.
This is a really lovely and unique flavored Oolong – you’re not going to find another one like this anywhere!
Jasmine Green Tea from Green Terrace Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Green Terrace Teas
Tea Description:
This tea gets its sweet, jasmine aroma through a scenting process in which freshly picked jasmine blossoms are repeatedly mixed with green tea. Known to have even greater health benefits than traditional green tea, this artisan tea is very fresh and soothing in character with a light and sweet floral aftertaste. Due to the intense flavor of the leaves, we recommend using fewer leaves and steeping with multiple short infusions of only 30 to 40 seconds. This tea makes an invigorating after-meal beverage.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve had quite a few Chinese jasmine teas, but I don’t recall having a Taiwanese jasmine tea until now. I might have had one or two, but none come to mind at the moment. And I think that if I had tried a Taiwanese Jasmine Green Tea like this one from Green Terrace Teas, I would have remembered! This is absolutely lovely!
I brewed this the way I would normally steep a jasmine green, but also taking into consideration the recommendations in the description above. I used a little less leaf than I normally would place in my gaiwan (normally I use a bamboo scoop, this time, I measured that out, and then I poured a little off the scoop), and I started with a rinse of 15 seconds and then started steeping for 45 seconds, and added 15 seconds onto each subsequent infusion. I combined the first six infusions into my Yi Xing mug, and that’s what I’m sipping now.
And as I said … it’s LOVELY! The jasmine is strong but not overpowering. I am getting a beautiful floral note that is sweet and exotic tasting but it doesn’t taste soapy or perfume-ish.
It’s very similar to a Chinese jasmine, except that the green tea here is distinctly different. This tastes less grassy and more sweet. It has a slightly creamy texture to it that I don’t often experience with Jasmine green teas, and I’m enjoying how this creaminess melds with the sweet flowery notes.
This is incredibly smooth and creamy and delightful! Another amazing tea from Green Terrace Teas!