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I’ve had a few boxes of this tea since Tazo brought out the blue-purple boxed dessert line, and I like it. I think it was actually the first of the line I tried, and it was amazing — until I tried the Lemon Loaf (which is my current favorite tea). If I see this in my pantry, I’m happy, but I’ve been reaching for it less in the last few months. I think it might just be that it isn’t as much a hot summer tea? It’s starting to get cold where I live, so the thought of this tea is feeling much better now~

I’ve been trying to brew this tea — every time I get it, I give it to my sister (who likes spicy dessert teas way more than I do). ….Finally opened a box before I had the chance to be nice. I like this tea. It’s good. I don’t have problems with it. I just had a cup today at work without milk and it’s good either way. One thing I like: it’s not sweetened in any way, but the flavors are strong enough that sweetness isn’t needed.

So I have a cold (seriously, summer colds are my shtick, it seems), and this tea is suddenly amazing. I got it on a two-for-one sale and was severely disappointed with the other tea (Yogi’s Muscle Recovery, which tasted like shampoo and was immediately composted, all 20 bags at once). I was happy with this one, but it didn’t do much for me…. until now. Now, this is better than NyQuil! The fennel and ginger are doing wonders for my sore throat and faucet nose. The taste is bright and cheerful (and rather mango-ey), and it feels like clarity with every sip. Tea is my medicine now, I guess~

I believe I reviewed this one before — it’s one of the best teas for a bacterial infection when prepared hot, after all (since there’s added citric acid). However, I plopped a bag into my water bottle today and it was amazing after about half an hour of infusing. Like a citrus soda, just no sugar or carbonation. If you’re after something slightly sour and bright, this is the right tea for you.

I also got this tea from the bulk section in WinCo. I was perplexed by the chunkiness of the dried fruit — there’s a lot of apple here. It almost looked like a trail mix… Either way, this tea smells like an apple fritter. It tastes like an apple fritter. It’s pretty amazing. I’m used to black teas, so I would think a black base would make it perfect…. Either way, apple fritter pink tea is beautiful.

It’s been a really long time, but I’ve come back to Steepster! Yay! I more or less ran out of time for tea notes, but I’ve continued trying different teas.

I just got this guy from WinCo in the bulk section. Bulk tea is always a difficult thing for me — it’s so easy to get too much! Fortunately, this is a good tea — strong flavors, but everything blends well. Very Earl Grey with a bit more oomph.

For my birthday this year, I got a lot of tea (and that made me happy). Since this was on sale, it was part of my tea haul. I somehow didn’t see the green tea in the ingredient list, so I thought it was herbal… and honestly, I didn’t notice the green tea in there, so I’m still thinking it’s herbal. Honestly, it’s like an unbalanced spice chai without the black tea. Since I’m more or less used to Yogi Tea’s chai blends, the spearmint and licorice weren’t surprising and I actually enjoyed the mild sweetness that developed toward the end of the cup. I’ll probably use this as a medicinal tea or for after work, but I probably won’t be buying another box.

I took my sister to the largest city in the area, and while waiting I checked out the World Market there and got this tea and some Meiji Chocorooms. …There was quite a selection of tea at WM, but my masala brain was already fried from all the CSR questions that were already flying around by the time I opened the door to the place, so I went with whatever had the most lucid of packaging.

Honestly, I’m glad I did. This is a strong, robust tea with a good flavor. I appreciate the single source (Kenya, and my masala brain would also have a problem with the plantation CSR, but Williamson is affiliated with Rainforest Alliance, so something good’s happening) and the 7p charity donation.

This really is the kind of tea that’s good for cold mornings — I have had better breakfast assams, but the balance here is perfect for autumn and winter. I think it would go great to steep with a stick of cinnamon, even. Of course, I drink it with milk, which only makes it better.

…And it was really nice to drink while eating those chocorooms…

My desi neighbor went to India early this month and came back with a box of Newby Masala Chai (and some very Indian-style tomato pickle) for our family. …I guess we always give them tea as gifts (specifically Tazo Organic Chai), so he’s reciprocating.

The 50g box has individual foil-wrapped tea bags. Really, they’re lovely — gold and shiny with a really cute elephant/shield motif. The tea, however, is pretty weak for a desi spice tea. Even leaving the bag in for the duration of drinking doesn’t make it strong enough — neither the assam base nor the spices (cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, clove, ginger, anise) have much taste.

So perhaps I’d suggest this for folks who aren’t used to spices, but it will be way too light for desi palates. It’s ok, just not satisfying.

Summer tends to be my least favorite season because I have a tendency to sporadically get migraines starting in late May and lasting through the early part of September. I suspect a few reasons (pesticides, heat, staring at computer screens for too long, Idahoans, etc.), but it usually hits the hardest early in June and in the middle of August.

…That is, right now. This year has been really weird, too. I’ve had the normal full-on migraines, but I’ve also had random difficulty speaking, partial loss of sight (?!) that gradually went away, loss of sensation, and all sorts of symptoms that haven’t happened on their own before, including a lingering nausea.

I’m just going to blame the university students coming back to town until I can find a decent clinic (that usually requires a 2+ hour drive), but I’m drinking this tea for now. It’s pretty good for my nausea, especially at night and at work, but it’s also great as an add-in for green tea since it’s 100% peppermint. If I can survive the annual undergrad migration and make it to Walmart, I’ll probably pick up another box of this simply because it’s so easy to make on bad days.