Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Stone Leaf Teahouse
Tea Description:
Taiwan, Summer 2012
Medium Roast
贵妃茶
A medium bodied, roasted oolong from the famous mountains of San Lin Ci, near the traditional tea producing region of Lugu. This is a unique and hard to find variety of rolled Dong Feng Mei Ren, or Eastern Beauty. Yields a slightly earthy, sweet, and savory rose aroma with a smooth woody-bamboo body and a delightful lingering honey aftertaste. Energizing and strong with a bit of a bite.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Gui Fei Cha from Stone Leaf Teahouse is a more earthy tea but the honey note is one of the first things I tasted and the note that tends to linger along with the rose. I do pick up on the floral aspect of this tea and it is reminiscent of rose but I would not really consider this a floral tea. This may sound strange to some, but the taste of the rose in this tea is more like the way a fresh rose scent lingers in the nostrils. It is clean, crisp, refreshing, but subtle. There is a very green leafy aspect to the rose note, but then rose has always been one of those aromas that is quite clean and refreshing so it comes over very well in the flavor note here. So okay I am one of those people who will try eating their tea leaves, and I am no different when it comes to flowers. I tend to want to taste them. Before you think I am a total freak consider please that I am very much into natural medicine, herbs, and natural perfumery, therefore really being one with the herbs, flowers, and plants I use is essential. Regardless, and aside from all my weirdisms, this tea is quite lovely in its floral nature, however I don’t want anyone to pass this tea up for its floral nature if you are not inclined to enjoy a floral tea – as there is so much more to this tea than its rose accent.
Gui Fei Cha has a wonderful note of bamboo, tropical rain soaked trees and plants, notes of honey and a slight spice note. And as for that bite as mentioned in the description, think of it like an astringency type of bite. Not bitter, but just this kick at the end of the sip.
The mouthfeel is on the heavier side but the finish of this tea on the palate is bright and cherry. It is truly a tea you can’t be in a crabby mood while sipping as it will lift you right up out of your funk and place you on a fluffy cloud and leave you floating gleefully. So if you are in a crabby mood and want to stay there – don’t sip this tea!
With each sip I feel a little smile creeping over my face and by the time I am tasting the lingering notes that are left behind the sip, I am beaming.
Now there is a darker side to this tea interestingly enough … some of these heavier notes of wood, of spice, the savory notes of fresh herbs from the garden, they tend to be very calming and grounding. So the after effect is a tea that brings you up and makes you feel joyful but keeps your core essence firm and secure. This could make it a very nice meditative tea perhaps, or a tea for those days you need a little boost of confidence, say before a presentation, or before a big date night because the tea is a little bit of mystery, a little bit of romance, and a little bit of strength and confidence all rolled into one.
Of course I always try to assign personalities to teas but that is how I feel about this one from Stone Leaf Teahouse and again, as always, they have a winner in this tea!
Pumpkin Spice Tea from Adagio Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to buy: Adagio Teas
Tea Description:
Premium black tea from Sri Lanka flavored with pumpkin and exotic spices. Autumn festivities just wouldn’t be the same without the comforting, smooth sweetness of spiced pumpkin – and neither would your tea time. Warm and rich flavor, with lingering cozy aromatics.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I love handmade soap, and my favorite soap artisan is Rebecca, from Rebecca’s Soap Delicatessen. With my most recent order, she was nice enough to send me a sachet of this tea! Because I had not yet tried this particular flavor from Adagio Teas, I was happy to receive it, and especially thrilled because Rebecca was once one of my best tea customers (back when I sold my own blends), and it’s kind of cool that she’s now sending me tea!
Adagio Teas has a very … weird … black tea base. The first time I tried it, I wrote to them to find out what type of tea they use, and they told me a Ceylon. Well, their Ceylon is quite unlike any Ceylon I can ever remember tasting … except for in Adagio Teas’ flavored teas. It is rather harsh, to put it mildly. However, after having had some experience with Adagio Teas’ black tea base, I’ve learned a thing or two about brewing their flavored black teas so that it does not taste so abrasive.
First, don’t use boiling water. Just under boiling – between 195° and 200° F – will do the trick. Then, do not steep the tea for the five minutes that Adagio suggests. I find that a brewing time of 2 1/2 minutes – 3 minutes produces a much more favorable cup. Finally, allow the tea to cool slightly after it’s brewed. I find that letting it sit for three to four minutes before I take a sip and the cup is far less astringent than if I take a sip immediately. In this case, patience is definitely rewarded.
And this really isn’t such a bad tea after brewing it in the way I just described. The spices are nice and warm, and the black tea is rich tasting and only mildly astringent. My only real complaint about this tea would be with it’s pumpkin flavor – it tastes artificial. I’ve had quite a few pumpkin teas where the pumpkin tastes more natural than this. It just tastes kind of … off. However, it’s not so horrible that I cannot finish the cup and enjoy it!
Certainly not my favorite Adagio offering but I didn’t hate it either … and I loved that my dear friend sent it to me. That she thought of me … it meant a lot! Thank you, Rebecca!
Pumpkin Spice Autumn Spiced Tea from Bigelow
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bigelow
Also available at Goodies Company
Tea Description:
Fall in love with Bigelow® Pumpkin Spice Tea. The harvest moon brings bountiful blessings for us to enjoy, not the least of which is Bigelow Pumpkin Spice Tea. Smooth and satisfying, its rich, round flavor is a masterful blend of the finest, mountain-grown teas. Pumpkin Spice Tea has no calories – just sweeten to taste for an Autumn treat that is sure to warm the hearts of family, friends and all who gather ’round.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I received this individually wrapped bagged tea in my November Goodies Box, and while I review most of the items that I receive in my tasting boxes on my foodie blog, since this is tea, I felt that I should review this right here.
While I’m not thrilled about bagged tea in general, I was happy to find tea in my Goodies box. (But hey, Goodies Co., how about some LOOSE LEAF tea?) I mean, whenever these kinds of boxes showcase tea, it feels like a win for tea lovers. Even if it is a bagged tea.
And for a bagged tea, this isn’t all that bad. The black tea base tastes strong and pleasant, with a slight astringency but no bitterness. It is smooth and has a nice earthy quality to it that offers a good background for the warm spices in this blend.
I can taste the pumpkin, which is always a plus when it comes to pumpkin flavored teas as I’ve come across a few where the pumpkin flavor was lacking. That is not the case here, it has a sweet, pumpkin-y flavor that is complemented very nicely with the cinnamon, clove and ginger. I also taste a hint of licorice in this, and at first I thought maybe my taste buds were playing tricks on me, but I checked the list of ingredients, and sure enough – there’s licorice in this! Nice!
Overall, this is a satisfying tea. I do wish it wasn’t bagged because perhaps I’m becoming even more snobbish these days, but I have gotten to the point where the taste of paper often accompanies these bagged teas, and I don’t like to drink paper flavored teas. Call me crazy. Fortunately, the intended flavors of spice, pumpkin and tea are strong enough here that the paper is not a dominating component in this cup, but I do taste faint paper-y notes and I’d really rather they not be there.
So, I’ll summarize by saying as a bagged tea this is alright. If it were a loose leaf tea, I think I would categorize it as better than alright … it would be very good!
Chocolate Orange White Tea from sTEAp Shoppe
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: sTEAp Shoppe
Tea Description:
Chocolate Orange Loose Leaf White Tea is a Delightfully mild citrus spice with a creamy touch on the tongue. The mild loose leaf white tea is the perfect vessel for this spectacular combination of creamy, tangy with a delicate touch of spice.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was a little skeptical about this blend, to be honest, because it’s a white tea … and I generally prefer chocolate-y teas to have a black tea base. I was also skeptical because I felt that with the chocolate and orange notes to be strong enough that the white tea would end up being overwhelmed.
Well, the white tea is not overwhelmed. It has a light, fresh taste to it … somewhat vegetative, with a creamy note that is accented by the vanilla. I find that this creaminess highlights the chocolate and adds some much needed emphasis to the orange flavor.
The chocolate comes through nicely, as does the vanilla. I wish the same could be said for the orange. I taste the orange, certainly, but it isn’t as bright or vivid a taste as I think it should be for a tea called Chocolate Orange.
My favorite part of this tea is the touch of cinnamon, which adds a very pleasing, autumnal taste and a sense of warmth to the cup. I like that the cinnamon is a gentle, sweet cinnamon, just enough to spice up the tea without adding an overpowering amount of flavor (something that cinnamon often does in a blend – I’m glad that’s not happening here).
Overall, this is a very enjoyable blend. A little weak on the orange, but, the other flavors are very pleasing – I like that the chocolate comes through, and I love the little touches: a touch of vanilla, a touch of cinnamon. It makes for a very delicious cuppa.
Orange Spice Cake from sTEAp Shoppe
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black – Darjeeling and Yunnan
Where to Buy: sTEAp Shoppe
Tea Description:
Organic Yunnan Black TeaThis is a wonderful citrus tea with subtle spice notes playing through it. This Organic Yunnan Black Tea with it’s rich orange liquor in both color and flavor make the perfect vessel for creating a warm inviting orange spice cake tea. With notes of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg to give this tea depth and warmth inviting you in to take another slice of cake.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a really nice tea. Maybe it is the cold weather and the holiday season but it makes me feel festive. I am sure this tea would also be amazing in the summer, cold brewed.
On first sip it reminded me a little bit of Constant Comment but trust me there is no comparison! This is by far and above better and has far more layers to it than a simple orange spiced tea.
The spice is balanced so perfectly and does not take over the wonderful citrus.
Often a tea will be named with “cake” in the title, or something indicating it should taste like cake, but this one really does and you won’t be disappointed in the bake-y goodness of this cup.
On the other hand, the sweetness is not over done and the cocoa nibs offer a perfect amount of chocolate goodness. I really love the way that sTEAp Shoppe handles the chocolate flavor in their teas, it tastes like good chocolate.
The aroma is intoxicating and the color of the cup is delightful to look at.
A tea that could be served at parties to please everyone.
All of the ingredients in this tea blend perfectly to make a well balanced delicious dessert or any time tea.