Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
I don’t know about you, but that just makes my mouth water just reading the name of this tea. This tea has premium black teas, freeze-dried apples and bananas, marigold petals and organic flavors. I think this one is going to be a big hit, so don’t miss out.
Learn more about this blend here.
Learn more about 52Teas’ subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
So this is the second or third tea that I’ve had since 52Teas changed the size of their tea. They used to offer their unique blends in 2 ounce sizes unless it was a white tea or a specialty tea base, and in those cases, it was closer to 1 to 1 1/2 ounce. Now the teas are sold in 1/2 ounce pouches, and I’ve got to tell you that I like it a lot better this way.
As I’ve said on more than one occasion, I’m a “taster.” I like to taste new-to-me teas. (She who tastes the most tea wins!) And I fall in love with a lot of teas, but if I’m going to limit myself to just those teas, then I don’t taste as many new-to-me teas and to be honest, I enjoy falling in love more than I enjoy staying in love. I’m a romantic like that. So, smaller sizes for teas enables me to fall in love with more teas with less commitment. That’s my kind of tea relationship. It’s kind of like having a harem, only with tea. Does that make me a tea slut? A tea-izer?
Anyway, that was probably more than you wanted to know about my relationships with tea. Let’s get on with this review, shall we?
Pumpkin Apple Banana Bread flavored Black Tea. Not your average tea blend. Then again, that’s what I’ve come to love about 52Teas – they often color outside the lines and create blends that are intriguingly different. Something that piques my interest because it’s just so wacky and unusual.
So my interest was definitely piqued with this blend. My first sip or two, though, was a little less than spectacular. To be honest, it tasted like plain black tea. I worried that maybe I was coming down with something and my taste buds are out of whack. So I waited for a few minutes to give the tea time to cool, hoping that the flavors would pop.
Yep! This is a tea that benefits greatly with some cooling time so that the flavors have time to develop. Those first few sips, when this tea was still piping hot, I found the flavors to be somewhat muddied. But after about five minutes cool time, the flavors started to come into focus! Bam!
And Yay! My taste buds appear to be in working order.
There is a lot going on in this cup: there’s a lot of different flavors to experience. The sip starts out with a hint of apple-y sweetness. A moment later, I taste notes of banana. By mid-sip, I pick up on notes of pumpkin. This is a true medley of these three flavors.
I don’t taste a lot of “bread” or the cake-y quick bread flavor that I’d taste if I were biting into a piece of banana bread. This is more about the fruits and pumpkin than it is about the “bread.” But I do taste hints of a cinnamon-y type note that accents the pumpkin (and the apple and banana, for that matter!) quite nicely. And as I continue to sip, I start to taste flavors that might be “bread-like” or at least “buttery” that make my palate believe that maybe, just maybe the cake-y/bread-y flavors are actually there.
And I’m also enjoying the black tea base. The description doesn’t tell me what types of black teas 52Teas is using now (I know that they were thinking of changing their base at one point), but I like the smoothness of this base. It’s a flavorful tea and I’m not getting any astringency or bitterness from it. Nice!
To brew this tea, I used my Breville One-Touch. I measured out 2 bamboo scoops of tea into the basket and added 500ml of water to the jug and set the parameters as follows: 205°F for 2 1/2 minutes. Allow the tea to cool at least 5 minutes before you start sipping – your taste buds will thank you for it!
Overall, a tasty blend. I’d like a little more of that cakey-bready-buttery flavor that I’ve enjoyed with other “bread/cake” type of blends from 52Teas, but I do like that I’m tasting the pumpkin, apple and banana flavors clearly.
Apple Harvest Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
If this doesn’t put you in the mood for fall, I can’t help you. This awesome iced tea is a blend of organic southern Indian black teas and organic red delicious and granny smith apple flavors. It’s a bit sweet, a bit tart and all refreshing.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve been drinking this periodically throughout the day, and when I was pouring past the half-way point of the pitcher of tea, I realized that I better sit down and write about it before I have an empty pitcher of tea and no tea left to write about!
That is to say, it’s tasty. I like that it’s sweet but not cloying. When I focus on what I taste, I can recognize the apple notes. When I’m casually sipping, I don’t immediately notice that “hey, I’m drinking an apple tea.” I just notice that “hey, this tastes really good.” But then when I reach the bottom of the glass of tea, my last gulp is very obviously apple.
The apple notes and the black tea notes work together extremely well. The black tea tastes smoother. It’s a medium-bodied black tea base that’s very pleasant to drink. It has a certain “invigorating” quality to it without being even the slightest bit aggressive, bitter or astringent. It is smooth and silky and very refreshing.
The apple tastes sweet and there’s just enough tartness to the apple to add a balancing contrast to the flavor. It’s not an overly flavored tea – this is a tea first and an apple-y tasting tea second.
I have to admit that when this tea was announced on the week of October 13, I wasn’t all that excited about it. I mean, it sounded good and if I wasn’t already a subscriber, I probably would have ordered the tea to try it. But, was I dancing the happy dance over the idea of Apple Harvest Iced Tea? No, no I wasn’t. But now, I’m dancing that happy dance. Because this tea is really good! I ended up liking this much more than I thought I would. Yum!
Chocolate Toffee Black Tea from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Here’s our premium black teas blended with cacao nibs, marigold petals and organic chocolate and toffee flavors. This is a rich, decadent treat.
Learn more about this blend here.
Learn more about 52Teas’ subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh yum! Yum, yum, yum!
Well, I had no doubt whatsoever that I’d enjoy this blend. Chocolate and Toffee in a tea? Oh, yes, please! And I’m happy to say that the chocoholic in me is even satisfied with the level of chocolate-y-ness in this blend. Oh, sure, more chocolate WOULD be better but I’m quite happy with what I’m tasting.
I brewed this in my Breville One-Touch, measuring 2 bamboo scoops into the basket and adding 500ml of water to the jug. Then I set the temperature for 205°F and the time for 2 1/2 minutes. This produced a very delicious cup – well, actually, I fill my favorite mug twice with the 500ml of brewed tea – and bonus! The Breville keeps the tea warm for me. No tea cozy needed.
The black tea base is prominent and that just may be why I find this tea so enjoyable. I like it when I taste the tea base of a blend (especially when it’s actually TEA and not rooibos or honeybush.) The black tea here is a solid, full-flavored tea. It tastes rich and there is a hint of malt to it and this complements the toffee notes. This is a bold enough tea that this would make a really nice first cup of the day. (A little treat for breakfast?) There is some astringency to this, but I’m not finding it to be a strong astringency. It falls somewhere between very mild and moderate.
The chocolate notes are really nice here. As I said, I’d love to have more chocolate, but I find that the level of chocolate to be good here. I think that’s because there is a really good proportion of flavors. The black tea is the most prominent flavor, with the chocolate and toffee notes standing at about equal levels – maybe just a little more chocolate than toffee.
The toffee is sweet and buttery. The combination of the chocolate and the toffee here is incredibly decadent. This may just be one of Frank’s best “confectionery” type of teas yet. This is really yum. It reminds me a lot of a gourmet chocolate toffee candy like these from Valerie Confections, all that’s missing is that crunch. And these might even be a little bit BETTER because there’s also tea. And tea always makes things better.
Strawberry Pina Colada Flavored Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Premium Organic black tea with organic flavors.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
As one who doesn’t drink a lot of alcohol, I can’t say that I’ve ever tasted a Strawberry Pina Colada. But this flavor combination – in a black tea! – is tasty.
The aroma of the dry tea smells strongly of strawberry and coconut. The pineapple is noticeable as well. I could even detect just a hint of rum. The brewed tea doesn’t have as strong a scent as the dry tea, but I can still smell coconut notes and hints of strawberry.
The strawberry really comes through in the flavor. I can taste the strawberry right from the beginning of the sip, and that flavor remains throughout the sip and into the aftertaste. I get that familiar berry tingle on the tongue in the aftertaste.
The coconut is the next flavor I really notice. It adds a delicious creamy flavor to the tea. The pineapple is probably the least noticeable of the fruit flavors in this, but, I taste it at mid-sip and I pick up more pineapple-y notes toward the finish.
As for the rum notes, I can taste them but I find them to be rather faint. I find them to be most noticeable when I focus on the flavors.
Overall, a really tasty iced tea. It’s sweet, but there are some interesting contrasts to keep it from being cloying. I am enjoying this.
Black Currant Flavored Iced White Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Southern Boy Teas
Tea Description:
Now THIS is the good stuff. Don’t let the uncomplicated, single flavor of this tea give you the impression that is is some humdrum tea. This is a BEAUTIFUL blend of premium shou mei fannings with organic black currant flavors. This is a crowd-pleaser and a thirst-quencher. You’re going to want a few of these, trust me.
Learn more about this iced tea here.
Learn how to subscribe to SBT’s tea of the week here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! I was so excited to try the first White Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas. And it looks like SBT chose one of my favorite white tea creations from 52Teas to work with, the Black Currant Bai Mu Dan! The 52Teas blend tasted amazing iced and this does too!
Of course, this Black Currant White Iced Tea was made with a Shou Mei base rather than a Bai Mu Dan so it’s a little different right from the off. But this is still every bit as refreshing as I remember that tea tasting. Tart black currant flavor that contrasts with the sweet white tea base. These two components were made for one another!
The Shou Mei is also a stronger tasting tea than a typical Bai Mu Dan. It’s sweet and hay-like. I like the crisp, airy flavor that reminds me of the way the air tastes after a hay cutting. You have to be out where they cut hay to experience that, of course. I grew up in such a place. Or, if you don’t want to take a drive out to the country, you can just brew a pitcher of this iced tea and get some of that same flavor in a glass.
Actually, I think that the iced tea is better than the air in the country. The air in the country can sometimes also smell a bit like the cows and horses that eat the hay. And that’s not my favorite smell.
To brew this tea, I went with the hot brew method. I heated 1 quart of water in the kettle of my tea maker to 160°F and then dropped the sachet into the water and let it steep for 2 1/2 minutes. The parameters on the package suggest “not more than 90 seconds” but 90 seconds just didn’t seem long enough for me at such a low temperature. So I made the decision to go with a little more time and I’m glad I did. I’m really happy with the resulting flavor! For the second quart, I resteeped the sachet for 3 minutes. I combined both quarts in my iced tea pitcher and stashed it in the ice box.
After several hours of cool time, I am left with a pitcher full of yummy black currant iced tea. I love the white tea base. It’s crisp and refreshing. I look forward to the other white tea creations that SBT comes up with!