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Well, I am giving this a second go. I am at the parents house again, but this time I grabbed a few tea samples to bring with me. I will point out that in this case I am Microwaving water (BLECH) and using an actual coffee mug for tea. First thing I noticed is when the temperature of the water or quality of the water you use for this tea is off, the flavor will be off. It is really hard to get precisely boiling water without a kettle. as a result, the first cup was too cool and had little flavor. The second cup, while hotter, I think may have been too hot?? Because the flavor is too fishy and overpowering. I also fiddled with the brew time. 35 seconds for brew 1 (Post rinse) and 45 seconds for second brew. I feel these may be far too long. 45 seconds is totally too long I have decided, again, I’m getting fishiness when that previously hadn’t transferred over into the cup. I’m not going to dump this cup, but I poured a glass of wine to drink between sips to help things out a bit. I may try a third infusion at 40 seconds at the most, maybe even less. I just know that brewing this here, without my usual accouterments, has resulted in a far inferior cuppa than my first experience. This is supposed to be a very forgiving tea. Just don’t think I agree with that at all.

Sipdown Number 2!
Welp. We will try this again. I drank this yesterday and intended on reviewing it but the page didn’t work. So here we go today. Although this is my first review it is actually the sipdown. This is the end of a sample package I got from Adagio. Smell in pouch is very overpowering. It’s smells like you are nose first in a berry basket. The color when brewed is a deep purple/pink, reflective of the Hibiscus. The first sip, without sweetener, is unfortunately quite tart, to the point of sour. Too much rosehips and hibiscus I believe. So one splenda goes in. Still a bit too tart. Half of a second splenda goes in. Ahhhh, There’s that berry sweetness. Now it is actually quite nice. The sweetener brings out the flavors of the brew other than hibiscus and rose hips. You can actually taste berry this way. I still taste the hibiscus and rosehips but I can also taste cranberries and a touch of currant. It’s like a bright berry party in my mouth this way. The flavor is very strong, but then I did steep for 7 minutes. I’m going to change things up a bit and recommend this one, even though many people may require sweetener for it to taste right. Mainly because it is just SO GOOD when I add the 1.5 splendas. I wonder what this would be like with honey? All in all, I will likely be getting this one again. The need for sweetener added is unfortunate, as I feel a good tea should stand alone. But, the full body, rich flavor of this when added sweetener is so delicious that I will stand by it regardless.

Ok. So. I’m in a black tea kinda mood today. Black Mood, Black Tea. Anyway, this Gingerbread flavored tea is one of the few black loose leafs I have. I think I already reviewed this once but I’m going to try again. This time, I did try it without sweetener. Blech. Bitter and un yummy. So one splenda later I tried it. It’s actually… decent. The sweetener brings out the gingerbread flavor (I think that is what it is supposed to be anyway). If you let it linger it gets a bit earthy, and slightly bitter even with the sweetener. But it is definitely not as bad as I remember the first cup was. I think I steeped it slightly shorter time as well. It’s drinkable. I will likely finish the sample I got (It was part of the December Better Tea Club Box) but I doubt I will go and order any. I will raise my rating but I am refraining from recommending/not recommending because the need for sweetener to make it drinkable could be a dealbreaker for some, but not others.

Sipdown Number ONE!

So this has become one of my favorite teas. By far. I need this all the time. I’m so sad that this is the last of it. It doesn’t help that it’s pretty pricey and I’m gonna have to shell out more than I ever have for tea for a full sized pack. :( Oh well. Thus is life. I really am glad I saved enough for today. I drank like twelve cups of various teas yesterday to drown the pain. Then at around 9pm we got word that my Grandma had passed. So this is at least the start of a new day with a great cup of tea. It’s comforting. I’m raising the rating a bit because I feel like I will do anything for this stuff. It’s so chocolatey! This will likely be my go to morning brew starting next month. Until I find something else I like more. But for now, this is glorious.

Welp. This will be my eighth? Ninth? Cup of the day. In trying times like these it is helpful to remember the old phrase- Keep Calm and Drink Tea. I think that is old anyway. I may have just made it up. Anyway, Right now we have Green Rooibos Bonita. This is a more mild blend with a boiling water, 5 minute brew combo. I can really taste the orange citrus notes coming through, but it isn’t bitey. It is actually a nice addition. There’s a underlying tone of… something. It’s warm and mellow. I don’t know what that flavor is. I hate that I’m so new to this. There is so many terms I still don’t know. The aftersip is sort of woody slightly. Not really earthy just kinda woody. If I leave it in my mouth long enough, I get vegetal and grassy flavors. There’s a very subtle sweetness to it that lingers if you let it. I do believe I like this one. It doesn’t require any additions (which is essential I feel to good tea), and it has a very complex and pleasing flavor that I will probably seek out again soon.

Huh. This was the very last holdout of my previous two adagio sample orders. I had been holding back on it because I needed a reason to try it. I didn’t want it to just be an ordinary day tea. I have heard lots of different things about Pu-erh and I wanted to make it memorable.

Well, Fast Forward to today. My grandma is at deaths door. The project it will be a few hours, a day at most. I refuse to go see her in this state as 1. she is completely unresponsive so it’s not like she would know I was there, and 2. I can’t stand to see her like this. I don’t want to be there when the end arrives.
So here I am. Brewing a very special cuppa, in honor of my grandma.

I couldn’t remember the recommended instructions I had read on here for this one. So I winged it a bit. First, a 30 second rinse. Then, a 30 second steep. I gotta say, once I was able to get a proper mouthful of this, it was like a flavor explosion in my mouth. The fishy notes I smelled on the leaf didn’t translate into taste. Instead, I get a bold, rich, earthy flavored tea with faint notes of honey and woodiness. I can definitely taste the tea itself, and it surprisingly isn’t bitter. I really like this. I was so scared I wouldn’t but I actually thoroughly enjoy this tea. I guess to sum it up, this tea is definitely a keeper. It’s literally my first cup of Pu-erh, and if this is any indication, I’m going to enjoy trying others. Can’t wait for that resteep!

Another step back into the world of teabags. This tea explodes with color the moment the bag hits the water – there is that much hibiscus in it. The end result after 4 minutes brewing is a deeply purple tea. I would recommend not getting this one on clothes, it may be hard to remove the stain. Anyway, I tried to drink this without sweetener, but the tartness was just too much for me. It was borderline SOUR. So 1.5 splendas later and it is actually quite tasty. You still get that bitey tartness but without the overwhelming sour note. I can definitely taste the hibiscus and the raspberry. The background citrus notes are refreshing and give a fresh feel to the mouth when sipping. I am happy to say I really do NOT taste the licorice at all. If it is there, the sweetener took care of it. All in all, a very tasty fruity tea. Just be sure to add sweetener or you will probably scrunch up your nose at the sourness of it.

Well, it’s Christmas at the parents house, which means I am cut off from my usual stash of brew. Instead, I find myself stuck drinking the only tea they keep in stock – Bigelow Plantation Mint. I brewed it according to their directions. I can’t say exactly what temp the water is because it was a stovetop kettle. I did follow the directions on the package and only steeped for 2 minutes. It was definitely long enough, the flavor is strong. The Mint of it is for sure present, and it sort of makes my mouth tingle drinking it. The mint flavor also lingers so it gives for a surprisingly fresh mouth feel after sipping. The tea itself is sort of an afterfhought here, and I really don’t know if there is any actual tea in this as it is hard to taste through the mint. Now, my mom has sworn by this stuff. According to her, a steaming cup of this with a shot of Paddys works wonders for a cold. I think I will let her have it. Back when I only drank grocery store tea, this was good enough. But now that I’ve been drinking higher quality loose leaf, this stuff is kinda bad. Nowhere near as bad as the cup I had today at the nursing home (That was something labeled as tea but I’m pretty sure was just sawdust they waved past a tea plant). But Plantation Mint gets a bye from me. Once I’m done with what I have I probably won’t buy any more. I can get better quality mint tea elsewhere.

Wow! So this is my first taste of decent jasmine tea. Gotta say, I’m surprised. It’s actually quite pleasant. Definitely floral, but not too over the top. It’s not at all bitter, and I was really hoping I could drink this without sweetener, and luckily it is wonderful enough without. Beneath the Jasmine Floral flavor, there is a hint of green tea. But mostly it’s just jasmine. Not too complex I don’t think. If you like drinking flowers then go for it. Otherwise, if you don’t like a really flowery jasmine tea, I would avoid this as the Jasmine seems to drown out all other flavors.

So this is one of my first forays into QUALITY TEA! And boy was I shocked. I’m usually one to put a bunch of sweetener in tea, be it honey or splenda (I have to alternate, I’m diabetic.) But to my surprise, this tea is delish without anything. Its warm chocolatey notes shine through and it just has a wonderful finish with no real bitterness or aftertaste. And the smell of the tea alone is heavenly. Would definitely recommend this tea to those looking to try good unflavored tea for the first time. It was my first and I am not disappointing.