Arbor Teas

This is quite nice! Very sweet, lightly vegetative, and I agree with TeaEqualsBliss (for whom I have to thank for sending me some of this tea, THANKS!!!) there is a zucchini-like flavor going on here. It’s very light, not a heavy vegetable flavor, and there are hints of hay in the background. It almost reminds me of a yellow tea, only this is more “green” with the vegetative notes. It has a lovely creamy note to it too.

A really nice tea, thanks again to my SororiTea Sister for sending it to me!

I made this tea a few days back using 1 tsp of tea and slightly cooler water with pretty poor (gross) results.

I decided to try it again today and made it using about twice as much tea and near-boiling water, and the tea it made was better (drinkable), but not especially good.

Dry Leaves: The leaves twisted and deep brown in color. They have very nice, bold aroma of clove and charcoal.

Brewing: I first did a quick rinse steep, which released a powerful smell of clove and tobacco. I let the leaves sit for about a minute, but not much expansion occurred. In fact, they didn’t really open up until the second steep. The wet leaves vary from black to a deep military green and have a nice fruity scent. The tea brews a mellow orange color.

1st steep: The first steep has STRONG, musty tobacco and charcoal flavors with fall spice and a slight pluminess in the background.

2nd steep: The second steep was noticeably grassier and considerably more pleasant than the first steep. The charcoal and tobacco flavors had died down, and there were slight cantaloupe and cocoa notes.

3rd+4th: The third and fourth steeps were mellower and by far the most enjoyable. The predominant flavors were of clove and grass, and were slightly chocolaty with a lemon sweetness. I tried making a fifth steep, but it came out weak and tasteless.

Overall this was meh. I feel like my tasting note makes it sound a little better than it actually was.

Reminds me of: Clove cigarettes, dirty cars, my uncle Mike

Enjoying a nice cup of this tea right now – plum and woodsy notes are primary.
Very juicy – I almost choked on my first sip due to the bursting effect it has.
Very delightful and not too drying.
Roasty and calming on a cool evening.

Nice. Very light flavor so I like it with a bit of honey. Great for blends.

I think I just dislike oolongs… :(

Too vegetal for me.

The toasted rice tastes a bit metallic to me and I don’t care for vegetal greens.

A favorite! An everyday tea! No matter at times distracted brewing methods, its characteristic heady bouquet takes me back to Warwick Castle before the mold won. This tea is fragrant, earthy, a flower with roots. Wait. Is that a hint of chocolate? Blueberry scone? Really, what can one palate say to another?

When I drink this tea I become a character in an E.M. Forster novel—Howards End—sitting at a Davenport on the porch after a hard day mowing hay. Or cycling a Raleigh down blustery lanes.

All the usual disclaimers. This tea may not incarnate Forster in other tea lovers. Though if you keep the temp a tad on the low, other greats may appear.

Thanks to Liberteas I was able to try this one…thanks girl! This was VERY tasty! I had two infusions. It was slightly fruity, sweet, ‘green-tasting’ with out being bitter or grassy, and a bit vegetal. Very pleasant green! I LIKE it!

this is a delicious smoky tea. it reminds me of the black tea i got addicted to in Russia. this particular lapsang suchong is different than i’m used to tho in that it has a delightful wet mouth feel. light hint of cherry and corn. the smokiness isn’t as overwhelming as others. all in all it’s a good well balanced cup

Raising my rating. I’ve come to LOVE it iced. It’s just woodsy enough and the cinnamon pairs nicely with a bit of sugar. Perfect when it is chilly outside. This is going to get a permanent tin in my cupboard.

The rooibos is woody and smokey. The cinnamon is subtle but it’s there. The longer it steeps the better. I like it with a little sweetness.

The green tea in this blend is definitely in the background. However, the spearmint is reined in by the tea. In the end, you have a mild spearmint flavor. It won’t smack you in the face like a peppermint candy but it is nice and refreshing. A little honey really goes nicely with it.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me a bit of this Oolong. It’s really nice.

Yesterday’s Oolong was also a Shui Xian and that was purely by coincidence. I did not even realize that this was a Shui Xian until I started to put it in my gaiwan. Sure, the label said Shui Xian but what I was really focusing on was the “Oolong” part.

And as I’m tasting this, I do note similarities between this and the tea that I had last evening. They possess similar honey-esque tones and fruit notes, as well as roasty, charcoal-ish, nutty flavors. I notice a little less creaminess with this cup than I remember from last night, but that would be the only real notable difference. Then again, I’m not drinking them side-by-side so I can’t do a very accurate comparison … this is all based on my memory of the tea that I had last night (although I will say that it WAS a memorable tea) versus what I’m sipping right now.

Overall, I’ve enjoyed both teas.

Arbor Tea is one of my favorite companies if for no other reason than the fact that they are very dedicated to preserving the environment and that is important to me. But on top of that, they also provide excellent quality, fair-trade, organic teas.

Before steeping, the leaves smell perfectly tropical with a hint of green tea mustiness. The aroma is sweet. The flavor is actually milder than I expected but in a very nice way. Every once in a while, a sip would leave a streak of fruity yumminess that would linger on my tongue for a while. I’m not sure if that came from the pineapple or the blue malva flowers but whatever it came from, it was extremely pleasant.

This is a really nice chai. It’s odd but I like it simply sweetened, no creaminess needed. The vanilla is the dominant flavor but the spices hold their own. I’m actually tempted to try it hot.

Organic. Decent aroma, but fairly disappointing taste. It does have the same overall effect but is much more subtle.

So yummy! The dry mix smells like sweet flowers. It’s fun to watch steeping since the leaves open up quite a bit. I was a little worried about the rosehips since that flavor seems to overwhelm me in most teas but not here thankfully. The tea is a light syrup, a little astringent. Floral, but not overwhelmingly so. The last and lingering taste is pomegranate. The sample is only enough for a few cups so I think this will pop up on my shopping list once I whittle down my current stash.

this is one of the more complex greens i have come across and the description from the purveyor definitely does it justice, however i would like to add that this tea has some similar levels of complexity that i would compare to an oolong. definitely not your typical green tea.

I finally found the perfect way to make this cup. I use my 14 oz mug. For about 11 oz of tea, I used 2 tsp. of leaves for 2.5 minutes. A tsp of honey and a little half and half, and I am golden.

I got a wonderful whiff of bergamot the moment I opened the box. The tangy smell was only enhanced when I opened the pouch itself. Thankfully, the bergamot flavor is mellow and balanced once steeped. The tea itself is smooth and aromatic. A tiny bit of sugar really enhances the flavor for me. I can even get a couple of steepings out of it, so the value really streches.

A little early for me to be going decaff, but I am expecting to have two or three cups of high caffeine tea later, so I need to save up for it.

This tea doesn’t have nearly the amount of berries in the photo-and none of the bright ones. The few I have look like raisins and are hard to find in the tea. Maybe I just got unlucky. The most prominent ingredient is the yellowish calendula petals.

I’m not sure if the base is a Nilgiri or an Assam as the berries and flavoring are all I can smell. The tea leaves appear to be full-leaf (or large broken pieces). The liquor is a coppery orange.

The flavor tastes very natural, but in addition to the berry taste is a bit of a floral taste. Maybe it’s the calendula petals, maybe it’s the flavoring. It’s not bad, but I didn’t really want anything other than berry and tea. I can taste the tea base a little, but not enough. The berry flavor is brought out a little better with some sugar.

If I had to go all decaff with my tea, I’d probably buy this for some variety. But, absent that, I probably wouldn’t buy it again.

Yes…yes…I AM eating Lentil Chips at 9:30 in the morning…sue me! LOL

Special thanks to LiberTEAs for this one!

This is mellower than I thought it would be but still a nice straight-up black tea. It’s very clean tasting and I would side with those saying it’s more like a Ceylon (instead of an Assam) – not that THAT is good, bad, or indifferent…just a personal observation.

This one is alright. I kinda of wish it had a little more oooomph tho. Still tasty, regardless!

Thanks LiberTEAs for this one! This is a great tasting Ti Kuan Yin! Clean and smooth – sweet and juicy – lightweight and relaxing! Lovely!