Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Our Yunnan Breakfast is a wonderful Chinese black tea with rich awakening flavours. Its invigorating fragrance and glossy red liquor offer a robust taste with a peppery finish. Enjoy this bold tea hot.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
Before I get started in the review of this tea, I just want to remind all my readers out there that the time grows short to take advantage of the free teapot offer from Simple Loose Leaf. Learn more about it here.
Nice! I am in total agreement with the above description, this is indeed a bold, robust tea! It’s invigorating! And I’m enjoying it immensely.
The leaves are a beautiful chocolate brown with some golden tips. They brew up a dark, glistening copper colored liquid that tastes exactly how I expect a good Yunnan tea to taste: rich, full-flavored, warm with pepper-like notes. I love the spice notes to this Yunnan Breakfast Tea!
There is a pleasant sweetness to this as well. There is a thin molasses undertone that contrasts nicely with the warm spice notes. The sip begins with a hint of that sweetness, followed by that bold flavor of black tea. It’s earthy, rich, and beneath those stronger, masculine tones of earth and hints of wood is just a touch of stone fruit. Plum? Maybe a hint of black currant too. Then my palate begins to pick up on the notes of pepper. My taste buds tingle long after the sip is over from the zesty spice notes of this tea.
As the sip nears the finish, I notice some dryness. It has a moderate astringency, nothing too overpowering, nothing that disrupts the sip. The aftertaste is lightly sweet, reminding me of molasses, like the sweetness you’d experience if you were to eat a gingersnap cookie.
This Yunnan Breakfast Tea from Simple Loose Leaf is a really enjoyable way to start the day. It would take the addition of milk and sugar well, if you like to add those to your cup of breakfast tea. If you really want a treat, try adding about half a teaspoon of brown sugar instead of the ordinary table sugar to the cup. This really enhances the molasses tones and gives it just a little something extra special.
Then again, it’s quite good without anything added – I like it straight with no additions. It’s got an edge to it that I need when the morning starts before I want it to! Just what I need!
I just love Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club – it’s a wonderful way to get some great teas delivered to your mailbox every month at an affordable price! Save even more when you use this code: SISTERSELECTION25 Get 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.)
Sweet Orange White Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Our delicate Shou Mei white tea is balanced perfectly with a touch of citrus. Dried orange peel results in a sweet and refreshing addition to the citrus flavor dancing amongst the backdrop of the gently floral Shou Mei. Delicious served iced as well as hot, this tea makes an ideal light, summery drink with a twist of citrus.
Learn more about this blend here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
I was greeted with a burst of orange when I opened this pouch – the aroma of the dry leaf of this Sweet Orange White Tea from Simple Loose Leaf is STRONG with orange. It smells bright and juicy and … well, orange-y!
The flavor of the orange is not quite as strong as the fragrance suggests. Instead, I find this to be a really pleasing medley of sweet, earthy Shou Mei white tea and the orange notes, and the orange does not overpower the tea. I like that I’m tasting more tea here than I am orange – and when I first experienced the aroma, I had my doubts! I thought this was going to be all about the orange and the white tea was going to be overwhelmed by the powerful, fragrant citrus.
I really like how the Shou Mei and the orange work together. It’s a very harmonious flavor, as if the two were made for one another. It is seamless.
There is a light, airy quality to the white tea. It’s crisp and refreshing, and reminds me of the air when there’s a cool breeze drifting along on a warm summer day.
The orange is sweet, juicy and flavorful, with just a little bit of tangy punch to keep things lively on the palate. That said, it’s a gentle orange flavor so that it doesn’t compete with the delicate notes of the white tea. I like that the flavor of the orange is so subtle, but at the same time, it’s still a flavorful orange note. This is orange done right!
A really enjoyable cuppa that’s tasty served hot, but even better when iced.
Now through June 20th, get a FREE teapot! I know I’ve mentioned this before, but it’s such a good deal and there’s still a little bit of time to get in on this great offer from Simple Loose Leaf. Don’t miss out!
Formosa Oolong from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
A darker oolong tea from Taiwan, formerly known as Formosa (which means ‘Beautiful’, given by the Portuguese explorers of the island). Deep raisiny and ripe fruit aroma, autumn ‘leafy’ note. Lingering flavor and smooth, refreshingly fruity astringency. A lovely introduction to Taiwanese tea.
Learn more about May’s Selection Club Menu Options here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
I know I’ve mentioned my adoration for Formosa Oolong teas in the past here on this blog, so when Simple Loose Leaf included this Formosa Oolong Tea as part of their May Selection Club Menu, I was a happy sipper!
Ali Shan Oolong is my favorite type of Oolong, but I’ll always have a place in my heart for Formosa Oolong. It was the very first type of Oolong that I ever tried, and for a long time, I didn’t know that there was any other type of Oolong out there. For me, it was Formosa Oolong forever. Since that time, my horizons have expanded and I’ve learned a lot more about Oolong teas, but, I still do love a good cup of Formosa Oolong tea.
And this Formosa Oolong from Simple Loose Leaf is really good. The aroma is sweet and reminiscent of dried fruits with an earthy background. There is a distinct autumn-ish essence to it: the warmth of the toasty color and fragrance of the leaves, and the sweet fruity notes give it a very autumnal feel.
The flavor is also seems to evoke thoughts of autumn. There is a toasty, nutty flavor that makes me think of roasting chestnuts over the roaring fire in the fireplace, and the sweet, raisin-like flavor also has a distinct autumn-like flavor.
The overall flavor is sweet. It isn’t an overly floral Oolong. I find this to be true with most darker Oolong teas, it would seem that the darker the leaves, the floral notes diminish while the fruity notes emerge. I like that while this does have a sweet, raisin-y flavor to it, it doesn’t have that sugar-y sweetness of the dry fruit. There are some woody notes that seem to even those sweeter flavors out enough so that the cup doesn’t become cloying.
A really wonderful, rewarding cup of Oolong. Formosa Oolong teas also offer many infusions, and I find that the later infusions (especially the third and fourth infusions) tend to be my favorite. This is true of this tea as well. The astringency has tapered somewhat, and the flavors are not quite as sharp as in the first couple infusions, allowing for some of the sweeter notes to emerge fully.
Simple Loose Leaf offers a great program to those who are looking to enjoy some really good teas at excellent prices! Check out their Selection Club and use this code: SISTERSELECTION25 to get 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.)
And through June 20th, all new subscribers will also receive a new teapot! What a great gift idea! Here are the details of this nifty offer.
Citrus Hibiscus Herbal Tisane from Simple Loose Leaf
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Fruit/Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
This lovely and colorful blend of hibiscus, rose hips, lemon grass, orange peel and organic rooibos infuses a ruby red herbal with a refreshing citrus and tart flavor containing light spice tones. Excellent over ice for a zingy citrus treat, and enjoy hot to help punch out a cold or flu.
Hibiscus Flowers, Rose Hips, Rooibos, Lemongrass, Orange Peel, Juicy Lemon and Orange Flavors
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! This smells AMAZING! I love the bright citrus-y scent of this tisane.
Now, as you can imagine, the name of this tisane scared me just a little bit. Citrus Hibiscus Herbal. Hibiscus just isn’t my thing. But, I’ve had some really positive experiences with hibiscus lately, and the last hibiscus based tisane that I tasted from Simple Loose Leaf turned out to be alright. And this smells really good … so with those things in mind, I kept my fingers crossed and I brewed myself a cup of it.
OK … there is a bit more hibiscus in this than I would like there to be. That said, there are some other flavors in this that appeal to me. I like the citrus-y notes to this, and I do like how the rooibos lightens up the thick body that would normally accompany such a hibiscus-heavy tisane, making it much more palatable.
While this isn’t my favorite tisane , I found it tastes better served iced. Some of the hibiscus zing seems to chill with the cold, making this much more enjoyable, and just like the Cranberry Breeze from last month, my youngest daughter found these two drinks to be especially enjoyable, and hey, I’d rather her be drinking this than something sugary.
Another tasty way to enjoy this: add a couple of cloves and some cinnamon to the teapot before you pour in the hot water to start steeping. Let the spices steep with the tisane … it doesn’t end up too spicy, but the warmth of the cinnamon and cloves add some delightful contrast to the tart citrus and hibiscus.
It’s not a bad tisane, but it isn’t my favorite tisane, either. Then again, I didn’t expect it to be. But that’s the beauty of the Selection Club from Simple Loose Leaf. I get to try out five different teas every month and if there’s one in that five that doesn’t make me do the happy dance, that’s OK. It’s a sample size, and I still have four other teas that I can enjoy.
It’s all about the power of choice!
At the beginning of every month, I receive an email from Simple Loose Leaf that details the teas that will be featured in the next month’s box. I can choose to receive two large packages of two teas that appeal to me. I can choose which two teas I want from their menu of five teas. What if I want to try all five? Well, then I can choose to receive the sampler package, which offers five samples, one of each tea of the five on the menu.
That’s what I usually choose, because I’m a taster. That’s what I do. I taste a tea … try it out, and then I tell you about it. Most of the teas and tisanes from Simple Loose Leaf, I’ve really enjoyed! Occasionally, I’m going to encounter one or two that just doesn’t excite me, like this one. And that’s OK because I do have the power of choice with this program!
And whatever you choose to do – that’s OK too. This program gives you the power of choice!
Use this code: SISTERSELECTION25 to get a 25% discount 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.
Want even more incentive to join the Selection club? Then, check THIS OUT! Now through June 20th, all new subscribers will receive a FREE teapot with their first shipment. WOW! What an awesome deal!
Sweet Peach White Tea Blend from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
White tea, with its sweet, soft floral flavors is an ideal choice to blend with delicate fruit notes. Sweet peach flavor brings out the best in white tea and creates a delightful twist on our wonderful Shou Mei. Delicious served iced as well as hot, this tea makes an ideal light, summery drink.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
When I opened the sampler packet of this Sweet Peach White Tea Blend from Simple Loose Leaf – which was part of this month’s Selection Club box! – I was blown away by the aroma! Wow! This tea packs one powerful peach punch. The fragrance is like I had just cut into a fresh, tree-ripened peach. Mmm!
After being greeted by such a delicious scent, I could hardly wait to taste the tea. And the flavor of this tea is outstanding. It tastes strongly of peach, but, the sweet, juicy peach notes do not overwhelm the delicate Shou Mei white tea.
The peach has an authentic taste. I’m not tasting an “artificial” peach note or a chemical-y taste that I can sometimes get with a flavored tea. This tastes like PEACHES. Drinking this hot, it reminds me of the warm filling of a peach cobbler. Allow it to cool, and you’re treated to a wonderful iced tea that tastes so good, you can almost feel the juice of the peach running down your arm.
As I mentioned before, the white tea is not overpowered in this cup. It is a light, sweet taste that offers whispers of earthy notes and hints of hay-like flavors, as well as a sweet, dewy flavor. The combination of peach and white tea is a real winner here … and this tea from Simple Loose Leaf is a definite WIN!