52teas

Thanks to amandastory516 for giving me the chance to try this flavor that I missed! The strongest flavor seems to be the earthy lemon. I would have preferred more bergamot, but it does make an interesting flavor combination. I decided to have it without milk because I wanted to make sure I could taste all the delicate floral flavors. I enjoy the black base that’s used here, and though this isn’t one I’d be in a hurry to have again, it actually is pretty fresh-tasting and good. I wish I could have tasted some of the rum flavor though.

With all the stress of the week, it’s not surprising to me that I ended up gravitating more heavily to dessert teas this week – like this blend. I didn’t have my full attention turned to it while drinking, because I was so wrapped up in what I was working on, but I remember how comforting and cozy each sip was and the sweet lingering vanilla marshmallow notes on my tongue in between sips really stand out in my mind!

Sipdown. Really enjoying this! The strawberry and pancake flavors are both distinct, and work together extremely well. This is one of my favorite of the pancake blends, as it really tastes like a stack of pancakes covered in fresh strawberries. Added a splash of oat milk, and it’s quite a creamy treat.

Nice balance of spices, though I wish the pancake aspect were amped way up. I’d really just call it a gingerbread tea. Good with and without milk. It’s quite nice, but I would have loved some more bready/cakiness in the base. In my large mug of this, I only really tasted a maple/pancake note once. But it is distinctly gingerbread rather than just ginger or chai, so that aspect was done well.

This was the second tea that I had for the #SeptemberSipdown prompt for the day, which was to pair a tea with all of the food I ate throughout the day. I had this with my afternoon snack/lunch which was two granadillas drizzled with some honey right from the honeycomb…

In truth, just because my fingers got so sticky eating the fruit and honey combination, I mostly ended up eating my snack first and then washing it down with the tea after I’d washed my hands. It was the type of pairing where it works because you’re combining two similar things (in this case tropical fruits), thus doubling down on that flavour. The tropical notes in the tea were actually really good – I tasted mango and pineapple and the slightest hint of an underripe banana type of flavour.

I had worried that this might be a bit too “busy” and that it would be hard for all the flavours to come through and, if they did, for it to also be harmonious. I was wrong though; the tropical flavour was bright and sweet but equally matched to a toasty and comforting popped rice note as well as warming cardamom and ginger. I think maybe what really kept it all meshed was actually the cardamom, which can sometimes have a citrus-y flavour that would compliment those tropical notes really well.

Whatever the reason, on paper this seems like it shouldn’t work but it really did and it’s actually one of the better Genmaicha I’ve had from 52Teas in a LONG time – even though they usually are all quite good.

I was really looking forward to trying this tea I got from amandastory516, but unfortunately there’s a weird flavor in here that I can’t get over. The spices are too mild. I don’t really notice a clear pumpkin flavor. The main thing I taste is the weird flavor I can’t place.

Another one I pulled from the 52Teas sample box…

I don’t like the dry leaf smell of this one; it’s too intense and comes off as very harshly perfumed. Like walking into a fog of assorted perfumes when you go through the Perfume section of The Bay, but with just a hint of citrus.

However, the tea steeps out fine! Much more smooth, and a more rounded and coating orange flavour that reminds me of very natural orange oils from the rind. A little bergamot-ish, as well. Which is still citrus; just “hearty citrus” if you will. I get hints of ginger, which add a nice depth to the flavour without detracting from the central thick orange notes. The thickness works well for the idea of a “glaze” IMO, and I appreciate that glaze hasn’t just meant “sweet/sugary”. I don’t really taste date? Nor do I particularly get cake – but I still enjoyed the tea after I’d steeped myself up a mug.

Had this one yesterday morning. I just have all my new 52Teas samples in a box right now, and have been randomly pulling out samples during the work day and if it’s a caffeinated tea I brew it up. If it’s caffeine free, it goes back in the box for now…

This was nice! I always find it just a little weird to drink Candy Cane teas outside of Winter, even though I don’t find it weird to drink mint teas outside of Winter. Weird how commercial marketing messes with your mind like that. Nice medium-ish intensity sweet mint though with hints of chocolate. I wish there was more body to the tea, and a bit of texture to the mouthfeel – not richer/sweeter, because that level is good, but just a burlier black tea base. This is VERY smooth, but almost to a point where it comes off as a touch flat. Still enjoyed it though!

Cold Brew!

Normally I would skip past a green tea offering like this, but I guess I have the maturity of a twelve year old because I saw the name, snickered, and decided that I needed to try it. It’s certainly not bad, but definitely not really the tea for me – just too much grassy green tea and not enough melon to compensate. I do really like the watermelon flavour in this tea a lot though – it reminds me heavily of “A Papaya in the Watermelon Patch” but just a little bit lighter/more thin. It’s possible it’s the same watermelon flavouring…

Would recommend this for green tea and melon fans as a light, refreshing take on melon.

I know I liked this. I don’t know why. I drank it while I did work so I paid just enough attention to know I liked it.

I started steeping this one late last night, and the dry leaf smelled AMAZING!! Very sweet and distinctly like maple – almost a pancake syrup type of maple, with a nuttiness to the undertone like almonds. Then after it was steeped, I got distracted by reorganizing my desk and by the time I remembered I had made a cup of tea it was pretty cooled down. The taste was unoffensive, with really strong almond and cinnamon notes are an overarching sweetness, but I didn’t get the maple so much and I think in general it was just less as enjoyable as it would have been hot…

One of my oldest 52Teas blends, from 2017 and still sealed. This weekend is a bit cooler before the heat will crank back up again (you really have to strong arm summers to quit here, which is a shame, since autumn weather is my favorite!) and somehow a warm, fruity genmaicha just felt right this afternoon.

I have never had a mulberry (that I can recall) but considering what a fiend I am for berries in general, I’m sure I’d love them, and their aroma in the package was very sweet and pleasant. I dumped all the contents out into my tea weighing dish just to make sure I got a good teaspoon mix of leaf and fruit before steeping. The mulberry aroma isn’t nearly as present in the steeped cup as it was in the dry leaf, but I do smell it, competing against the strong, toasty aroma of the genmai. Mmm. I haven’t had a genmaicha in a long time, and it’s one of my favorite comfort teas…

Oh! The berries have just a bit of tang/sharpness to them, which I really love. There is also a more subtle berry sweetness and a touch of creaminess that I assume is from the marshmallow root. The base is warm and grassy with a lot of genmai toastiness; I’d say that the toasted rice fills out in the mouth and then a sharp berry tang flavor settles over the tongue afterwards and continues to linger after the sip.

It’s really tasty! I’m debating if I finish my sipdown over the weekend on these satisfying warm cups, or use the rest of the leaf to do a cold brew to drink once the temperature turns again, since I really like fruity greens iced as well. Decisions, decisions…

Latte Sipdown (281)

Made this as a latte using the same measurements I always do. However, that might have meant this was overleafed since 52 teas usually requires less leaf than other companies in general. With that said, it could be my fault that I didn’t really care for this latte. It wasn’t bad but it was a lot more cocoa and a lot less candy cane or truffle than I would have liked. All in all, this tea was ok but pales in comparison to some of the other 52 Teas blends with this flavor profile.

This reminds me of Peppermint Marshmallow Melting in Hot Chocolate…but its not as good. Now, in fairness, I rated Peppermint Marshmallow at 100 because I love it that much so that’s a tough sell to be better than. With that said, this is still a nice tea.

I think both the candy cane and chocolate come through strongly. They smell of chocolate hits you as the cup reaches your mouth. The sip starts off minty – candy cane mint, of course – and then sort of settles into a mint chocolate vibe. It is more truffle than chocolate bar and not as sweet as I expected/hoped this would be. That could be again because I was thinking Peppermint Marshmallow where the marshmallow adds sweetness.

Ultimately, it delivers on what the name promises. Am I in love? No. Will I have trouble finishing this? Also no. I just think if a tea were to be reblended in the future, Peppermint Marshmallow over this.

Next time, I think I will try this as a latte…

I generally dislike rooibos, but I love bananas and peanut butter so I was conflicted about this blend. Unfortunately, the dominant flavor for me is the rooibos, with some subtle banana peeking through. Not getting any peanut butter sadly.

This blend was much milder than I anticipated. Mild coconut on a mild base. I didn’t get any spices the first time I had this tea, but I noticed them much more the second time. It’s a nice mild chai that doesn’t need milk. I’m saving the rest of the pouch to enjoy over the holidays.

This is a throwback for all the long time Steepster users, but the cup I just steeped of this tea is giving me MAJOR “Flowery Pineapple Oolong” vibes in the best way. Really similar sticky, slightly overripe pineapple notes (the kind with juice that runs down your chin) and floral green oolong flavours – but just a little bit softer. It’s smooth, summery and also relaxing and calm. I don’t really taste the ginger in here, but I’m also not minding its absence while I revel in this pineapple profile.

Ok, here’s hoping this works. I’ve taken to putting my tea reviews in word docs until I can post them. I’m hoping for the best with this steepster migration, but we’ll see.

Anyway, this is another one of the teas I got in Shae’s lovely care package. I will admit, I wasn’t sure if this was herbal or black when I made it, but they both require boiling water and I averaged the time at 4 minutes.

This tea is scrumptious. I’m gonna be honest, I can’t describe the flavor compared to any other real world food. But you very clearly get the spice, the citrus, and the berry here. And, surprise surprise, I’m not using sweetener in this! I usually add at least one splenda to any 52teas blend, but here, I took a sip without and it’s too delicious to add anything. The berry flavor gives just enough sweetness on it’s own to be yummy, while the warmth of the spice (which is offering a little bit of that mouth tingle I love so much) and the citrus on top just make for a wonderfully layered cuppa. Like I said, I can’t think of any actual foods that this resembles, flavor wise, but as it is, it’s delish and I can’t wait to have more.