Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
When you brew Two Dragons, two arms of jasmine and globe amaranth petals will slowly expand upwards cupping a single marigold flower – and so it is given the name of Two Dragons and a Pearl. Thanks to the jasmine and amaranth, this tea has a wonderful sweet, flowery aroma and taste. The taste is long-lasting and will survive 2 or 3 infusions.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third and final tea from my Steepster Select box from February: Year of the Dragon. It is a very slow-to-open blooming tea from Teavivre. It’s fun to watch it slowly unfurl to reveal the beautiful flowery display tucked inside the handcrafted bulb.
The instructions suggest using boiling water and 2 minutes steep time. However, I couldn’t bear to pour boiling water over these bulbs, I was afraid I’d burn them. Instead, I heated the water to 185°F, and steeped for 2 1/2 minutes. Only a few leaves opened away from the bulb, so, I infused it a second time, adding 1 minute onto the steep time. With the second infusion, the bulb expanded more, revealing hints of the colors of the display, but, still did not open fully. 
It wasn’t until the third and final infusion that the bulb fully opened, revealing a beautiful orange flower at the base of the leaves, and jasmine “arms” that reach up to hold a gorgeous red flower. The photo to the right doesn’t begin to do justice to how lovely this bloom really is.
The tea from the first infusion was a very gentle flavored tea, with notes of jasmine and hints of fresh grass and hay. It was delicious, but I do think it could have improved with a longer steep time. Perhaps a hotter water would have produced more flavor as well, but again, having scorched more than my share of green and white teas in my past, this is something I do not wish to repeat.
The second infusion provided a much more flavorful cup. The flavor is sweet and floral, and the tea tastes fresh and even a little creamy. Very smooth, with no notable astringency or bitterness. The third infusion was a little less flavorful, but still was quite enjoyable … and even though the flavor had waned a little, the splendor of the bulb finally opening fully made it worth the effort to steep it a third time.
Another lovely tea experience from Teavivre. I’ve come to expect greatness from them, and they’ve yet to fail!
Cinnamon Lemon Bai Mu Dan from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
Here’s our premium bai mu dan white tea blended with cinnamon, lemon myrtle, lemon balm, lemon verbena, lemongrass, lemon peel and natural flavors. Pucker up for some deliciousness!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
WOW! The combination of cinnamon and lemon may seem ordinary but the flavor of this tea is anything but ordinary!
The lemon flavors are so complex in this – it’s not like a squeeze of fresh lemon, it’s like a squeeze of fresh lemon, plus some lemon zest, plus some liquefied lemon curd all in one. It isn’t as pucker-y as I expected it to be, instead, the lemon notes are rather smooth, lightly sweet, with only hints of tartness. It tastes more like the flavor of a lemon-head candy than the flavor you’d get if you were to suck on a wedge of lemon: sweet, almost candy-like, and very enjoyable.
The cinnamon is not as pronounced as I expected either. Instead, it is well-balanced with the lemon-y flavors. It doesn’t overwhelm the cup or come off as too spicy. It is a warm cinnamon taste that complements the citrus notes: the cinnamon curbs the sour flavor of the lemon just enough while the lemon softens the spicy blow of the cinnamon. It is a very lovely marriage of flavors.
And I am happy to report that the Bai Mu Dan isn’t lost in all this wonderful flavor. The white tea offers a light, fresh flavor. I taste notes of hay and a sweetness that melds beautifully with the buttery notes of the lemongrass in the blend.
As I write this, I see that there are still 7 pouches of this tea left! So, I wouldn’t be surprised if people were less than excited by the seemingly ordinary offering of a cinnamon and lemon flavored white tea.
Well, it’s time to get excited, because this tea is way better than I expected it to be. Don’t get me wrong, I expected it to be delicious (I can’t really recall any time when 52Teas has left me dissatisfied) but, I didn’t think it’d knock my socks off the way it has. The flavor is sweet and comforting; this is one of those teas that is perfect to cozy up to after a long, hard day!
I love this.
Organic Silver Needle White Tea (Bai Hao Yin Zhen) from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
We at TeaVivre have carefully selected our organic Silver Needle White Tea to make sure it is absolute premium quality. When brewed, it has a pale golden color and subtle flowery fragrance. The taste of TeaVivre’s Silver Needle is delicate, without any bitterness or strong flavour.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a lovely Silver Needle. The leaves are tender and vary in color ranging from a yellowish green to a pale green, with hints of tan and silver, and they are covered with soft silvery fuzz. The aroma of the dry leaf is a combination of hay, flowers and air. After brewing, the infusion maintains that fragrance, although it is a bit softer than that of the dry leaf.
The flavor is so wonderful! It is delicate and sweet, with hints of flower, grass, and fruit. It has a lovely complexity to it, but because the flavors are so soft, I find myself mesmerized by the tea … focusing on the beautiful layers of flavor … getting lost in the beauty of it.
There is some astringency to this tea, but absolutely no bitterness. The aftertaste is sweet and floral.
This tea is wonderfully calming and inspires a sense of relaxation and deep contemplation. It is an absolute joy to sip! This is why I love tea!
Eight Oasis Blend from Praise Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green, White & Pu-erh Teas
Where to Buy: Praise Tea
Tea Description:
Our combination of Sencha, Gunpowder, Mini Tuo, Chun Mee, Pai Mu Tan, Lung Ching, Snow Bud, Pi Lo Chun, candied pineapple and strawberry takes you to an oasis of delight. Delectable both hot and cold. Try some with white crystal sugar. Indulge your taste buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
After a quick glance at this tea’s ingredient list, I thought that this tea may just have a little too much going on. It smelled intriguing, though, with its delicious notes of strawberry and pineapple, so I decided to give it a try.
And somehow, this massive list of ingredients works together very well! While it is next to impossible to pick out each individual tea’s characteristics, I can taste the fresh, vegetative flavor of green tea, a light earthy quality from the tuocha, and I can even taste notes that are very much like white tea – notes of hay and that crisp, airy quality that is often noted in white tea.
The strawberry and pineapple notes are less distinctive than the flavors of the tea, but, that’s alright. In fact, I find it to be quite refreshing to have the tea as the center focus in this cup, and have the fruit flavors to serve as accent notes to enliven the overall flavor. The place where the fruit really stands out is in the aftertaste, where I can taste the flavors of both the pineapple and the strawberry.
This tea does have a natural sweetness to it, so I would recommend tasting before you sweeten. I did end up adding just a pinch of sugar which helped to enhance the fruit notes more than sweeten the cup. Without the sugar, the fruit notes fall a little flat … they’re still present, but, just not as lively as with a pinch of sugar.
This one makes a nice iced tea too. I recommend steeping it at least twice, as it is even tastier with the second infusion.
White Chocolate Strawberry from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
Ingredients: Premium black teas, freeze-dried strawberries, natural flavors.
Taster’s Review:
This is one of the new teas that came in the Box of Chocolate Teas from 52Teas, and at the time of this writing, that is the only way this tea is available.
I didn’t actually choose this tea to drink first, it … sort of chose me! You see, I was happily, but rather haphazardly, removing the tins of tea out of the box, and they were very snugly tucked inside. In my haste, the lid of this tin opened and a small amount (just a few leaves) scattered out of the tin. So, I decided that this meant that I was to brew this tea right away!
And, I’m really glad I did! The flavor is delightful. The strawberry flavor is dominate, it tastes sweet and just a little tart. That tartness sort of lingers on the tip of the tongue well after the sip.
The white chocolate flavor is a more subtle flavor, and I find that it reveals itself more after the tea has had a short time to cool. Not cold or even lukewarm, but not piping hot, either. Just allow it a few minutes to cool after it’s been poured into the cup, and the white chocolate flavor emerges. It is creamy and sweet, and compliments the strawberry flavor very well, and even softens the aforementioned tart notes just a little as it starts to come out a little more.
The black tea base is strong, smooth and deliciously suited for these flavors. It supports the bright flavor of the strawberry and the soft, silky flavor of the white chocolate without overwhelming them.
I quite enjoyed this cup … I’m so glad this tea chose to have me brew it first!