Butiki Teas

A very nice mellow tea with sweet honey-coated notes. The brew is light and malty cocoa-like, with an pleasant smoothness. The leaves are definitely of good quality and you you see clearly the 2 leaves and bud after the second infusion. Speaking of the second infusion, it turns more creamy and there is no bitterness that is noticed.

Definitely a anytime kinda tea, but seems very fitting for a first or last cup of the day. Another wonderful treat from Butiki Teas.

Tea of the afternoon here – always good to have lots of tea on a rainy day. I did let this steep for a while and it reminds me of pineapple and popcorn flavored Jelly Bellys.

Today I am making a conscious decision to not allow people into my life who are contemptuous and have haughty attitudes or behaviors.

Oh, man this smells amazing in the bag, pineapple and flowery, a touch of Hawaii for sure. I could hardly wait to try it.

I steeped this for around 3 minutes at 180F and got a very light yellowish/green tea liquor. This smells very pineapple-y and tastes lovely, really like pineapple juice especially in the finish. I’m not picking up much on anything buttery but I am getting the orchid notes for sure. I will have to play with my steeping parameters a bit on this one. This will be a great one to experiment with as well, I bet it’s really good with soymilk added or maybe some rum extract. Virgin pina colada tea… yummy! I don’t sweeten too many things but I thought this was better with a touch of sugar. =)

I got a second steep out of this one and it is still flavorful.

As you may know, I am on the quest for the perfect grapefruit tea. There are a lot that I love, but many of them have other flavors added that while they do go well with grapefruit (like Zen’s Orange Grapefruit) prevents them from being the one. You know, the one tea I’ll give my heart to and we’ll run away and live happily ever after in a castle by the sea in France. Uhh I really like grapefruit. And I also love Butiki, so I have been eagerly awaiting this tea for months, as soon as Stacy announced she was working on it! Of course tragedy struck and I shipped my order to the wrong place so I was supposed to get it LAST Tuesday but had to wait until yesterday when I could take a trip up to my parent’s house. Stupid paypal, why do you default to my billing address! Depriving me of tea!

In any case, I was ridiculously excited to open this one up and made everyone around me smell it including… one of my cats. My little girl (well, she’s my mom’s cat, but we handraised a group of kittens from 10 days old so I consider the three of them “mine” haha) LOVES tea leaves and was very fond of this blend. She’s always trying to eat them but I think the citrus prevented her this time, though she did take a big whiff. The smell is delicious, like fresh grapefruit. It’s not as strong as I assumed it would be, very subtle and nice.

I cold brewed this one because, come on, I can’t drink grapefruit warm! It’s like… a travesty against all that is natural. Grapefruit must be ice-cold with just a teeny teeny splash of sugar. I can’t drink sweetened grapefruit juice to be honest, it has to be the regular stuff (which no one else in my family will drink haha), BUT I did put a pinch of sugar in as this was brewing, just to bring out all the flavors.

Oooh man, this is grapefruity heaven. Sweet, tart, citrusy. And nothing else is competing with it, so it’s all grapefruit all the way! Well, of course there’s a lovely dragonwell base which adds some interesting nuttiness and grassy freshness. It’s perfect, sweet grapefruit. Ruby grapefruit! The tartness is right on point, not overpowering but also still there. In my book, grapefruit teas need a little bite. They’re just not right without it! And this is perfection. Oh grapefruit tea, I’ve found you! Never leave me! Thanks so much to Stacy for coming up with this amazing concoction. If you like grapefruit you NEED to try it. But no I won’t put samples of this in a swap, it’s mine, all mine, bwahaha! One of those treasures you guard carefully and savor every last leaf.

Sipdown!

Finishing off the last of this great tea from Butiki, I have enjoyed it. See previous notes for additional information.

Oh my… this tea is so good! I’ve had this type before, I believe it was a sample sent to me by ScottTeaMan. Scott- where are you? Haven’t seen you in ages.

Anyway, this is a great tea to sip on PLAIN, without additions. It does not need anything to make it better. It’s very gentle and has notes of cocoa, caramel and a hint of floral like a darjeeling. Not a trace of bitterness in sight, just a really lovely sipping tea. yummy!

Sorry I have not had the chance to write a lot of longer tasting notes recently!

This tea took me completely by surprise! The sweet creaminess along with the full body makes for a very enjoyable cup. I thought for a moment someone had slipped some sweetener into my cup. It’s shocking how smooth and tasty this tea really is, and the fact that it lingers in the mouth is a very nice bonus!

First of all, I love pecans and there are plenty of large pieces found in the darker colored tea leaves. The first impression I got was something entirely different than I anticipate – deep tones of dried berries or fruit, in the range of dates or raisins. The taste in the mouth is one of a good quality granola bar that has plenty of raisins. This slowly changes to the milkier, almost ice cream-like. In fact, for all of you that dairy doesn’t bother the conscience, it takes almost exactly like Butter Pecan ice cream! Of course it’s only a tea, but you’ll have a tough time convincing your taste buds otherwise!

It’s plain and simple – this is a delicious tea! This is saying a lot coming form someone that typically stays with straight or traditional teas. There is no question, this tea can easily replace a desert. It is very satisfying. Thanks, Stacy from Butiki, for this great quality and palate pleasing tea! Job well done!

Thank you Stacy for sending me this sample!

This has some interesting little “pellets” in it, I’m not sure what those are… strawberry seeds? flower seeds?

Anyhoo this was steeped for around 3 minutes at 180F. First I tried it plain and it really has the traditional flavors of a Taiwan high mountain oolong. lightly floral, buttery and very delicate. The strawberry is mild and delicate, which I quite like. I then decided to add about 1 tsp. of turbinado sugar to see if I could make this more dessert-like. I felt like this small addition really helped bring out the strawberry flavor. Really good for an afternoon treat. ;)

Thank you Stacy for including this sample. What a treat!

Great looking long black whole leaves. There is so much flavor coming from this tea. This may be the mellowest bold tea, with its green fruity character. I know, seems contradicting. How can it be this full in the mouth, yet mildly cleansing of the palate?

This tea is refreshing and clean. Reminds me of the mist after an early spring shower. Invigorating and engaging. It’s as if you can smell the beginning of new life from the fresh blades of grass, springing up from its underground death during the winter.

There is plenty of the sweet peachy notes with a touch of creaminess. I like the way this tea smells and taste. It has a lingering good astringency. What a true treat and delight, found in this tea. Completely in a class of its own, amongst the other black teas. Glad I had the opportunity to enjoy this tea as my last cup of the day.

I brewed this one for my husband. He said he really liked it. :)

I followed the steeping instructions explicitly this time. I still find it rather bland, but the husband is enjoying it. I told him what it was supposed to taste like (pistachio and ice cream and green tea). He said, “I can’t really taste any of that, but it’s still good.” Then upon further reflection he added, “It does taste creamy I guess.” So this one is a success!

I’m giving this tea another shot! Pistachio is an interesting thing to add to a tea…I don’t think I’d have come up with that on my own. Very creative, Stacy!

Well, here goes nothing! The green tea base is very grassy, which I was afraid of at first. That’s not my favorite flavor. But you know what? Pistachio and grassy green tea go well together! Of course, Stacy already knew this, but I’m a recent convert. ;)

This is a wonderful flavored sencha, just not my favorite. The flavoring is subtle and light and not very complex. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still delicious! This is a much better experience than the first time I tried it. Freshness makes all the difference with this tea.

Still though, I’m getting nothing in the way of ice cream here. There’s no milkiness, creaminess, or sweetness to speak of. It’s pretty much a nutty, grassy tea. So it’s not bad, it’s just false advertising. Raising the rating from 50 to 72. I used 2.5 teaspoons in 8 ounces of water and drank it straight with no additions. Second steep for 4 minutes is virtually flavorless. This tea seems to have only one good infusion in it.

Hmm, this tea is pretty bland. Not sure what all the hubbub is about. I received this sample from the lovely Kittenna who also sent along a giant assortment of teas (thank you!!!). The entire package smells like a hodge podge of tea aromas. So every time I open a baggie and have a whiff before brewing, there’s no way to tell it apart from the rest. It just smells like hodge podge.

But usually once I steep the tea, the brewed tea aroma is clean and whatever the tea is supposed to smell like. But this one? The brewed tea aroma still smells like hodge podge! Which leads me to believe that maybe this little sample overwhelmed all the other aromas in the package…but then it should be quite flavorful, no? Hmm, I’m perplexed. It’s not a bad flavor per say. Just light and kind of neutral and a tad hodge podge-y like the aroma.

I’ll go for a second steep before calling the verdict though. This time I used less water and let it steep for a full 6 minutes. Hmm, there’s really no nutty pistachio flavor to speak of still. Perhaps I let the sample sit too long in my cupboard…Suffice it to say that this tea is not a winner with me. Sad. It had so much potential.

Tea of the afternoon…
this stuff is so YUMMY! I think I need to order some more now.

that is all. :)

2nd tea of the afternoon here. I ordered a package from Butiki and my greedy little hands were sad I did not get it today! I want to try the eggnog tea.. and the plum pudding… and …

This is a really good oolong and has some tasty flavors going for it. I am partial to drinking this with soymilk, which perhaps makes me a look. :)

I also need to watch my caffeine intake in the afternoon, so this might be my last cup for a while.

My new teas from Butiki arrived today and I wanted to try this first. It smells so incredible in the bag. After I put my tea in the water I could see these dark twisted leaves and a few pecan pieces.

I steeped it for four minutes at around 180F. The flavoring here is mild and not overwhelming at all. I am picking up on both the maple and pecan flavors and the dark oolong is a nice base for these. Sometimes dessert teas can be a bit sickening or cloying, but I am not finding that here. I like that this is not “fakey”. Definitely nutty, with a bit of fruit in the finish.

I decided to add a bit of turbinado sugar and that brought the maple forth a lot more. This was a pleasant surprise and really enjoyable. I will have no problem finishing off the bag.

I’m FINALLY trying this one…special thanks to Liberteas for some of her stash! Woot!

My Grandfather’s FAVE two ice cream flavors were Almond Pistachio as well as Maple Walnut! This one reminds me of him. It is VERY much like Pistachio Ice Cream. It’s creamy and nutty and really quite FAB!

Darn Brilliant Flavoring here! Thanks for this blast from the past!

This is a sample from Stacy and it’s tasty. I’ve never had Assam (that I’m aware of) so it was neat trying something new :D

Smells strongly of rose and violet upon opening the package. Steeped liquid is light yellow and delicate. Very floral taste yet not overpowering. This is totally a garden tea party tea. I am not a huge floral person except for jasmine, but I like this a lot. I think I taste violet more than rose but the rose is still present for sure. I will keep this on the list for next time I order from Butiki. Another win for Stacy. Perfectly balanced and lovely. I’m glad I requested this sample and thanks to Butiki for offering samples!

Sadly, this marks the end of samples and new teas. I’m trying to drink down my cupboard and actually figure out what I want to keep around all the time. So… this may be the last review for awhile. :) I shall have to live vicariously through the rest of you!

Mad props and shout-outs to Stacy and Butiki Teas for the most amazing customer service ever. I’m going to dive into this new bag of Strawberry Oolong right now!

Has anyone ordered this tea recently?

I received 1 oz of this tea a couple weeks ago, and there seems to be an issue. First of all, there’s lavender in here. I love lavender, but the last time I had Strawberry Oolong there was no lavender. And this tastes like lavender. Secondly, the lavender or something literally makes this taste like soap. My mug and steeper are clean and not soapy. There is zero strawberry flavour or aroma, not even subtly once it cools. I’m seriously worried. This was hands-down my favorite tea of all time, but now I’m wondering if I got an off-batch or if I am completely insane.

UPDATE: OK, I think I’m onto something. This may not be a bad batch (it’s nowhere near bad), it may just be much lighter on the flavoring than I remember. The first cup was way off, but I’m trying this again tonight and it’s substantially better. The oolong base is increadible on its own, and NOW i’m getting a hint of the strawberry flavor I remember. There also does not seem to be any more lavender in the bag, since I went through it meticulously. We might be OK afterall, folks!

I got a massive order from Butiki yesterday and the first thing I did was open up the bags to take a look and smell at the leaves of each tea. Many of the teas were absolutely gorgeous in their appearance, particularly this one and the Royal Golden Safari. I was also happy to find some generous bonus goodies with my order (thank you, Stacy).

The brewed tea is quite delicious. To me it tastes like a mixture of light chocolate and honey notes mixed with a bit of nuttiness as the description mentions, as well as a little smoke that finishes with a pleasant astringency. This is one of those teas that would be great on a stormy night.

Delicious. Didn’t get much creme brulee; can’t remember if I ever did, but this is a nice, lightly pumpkin spiced tea. I believe Pumpkin Milkshake v2.0 was one of the teas lost to the work mice** (I kind of wish I’d actually noted it down, but I needed gloves and time for that, neither of which I had), so this is my fave remaining Butiki pumpkin tea. I believe.

**I thought I’d explained the work mice before, but maybe it was elsewhere. Basically, I stored a ton of tea at work, and mice got in the building, and apparently the rolling filing cabinet where a good portion of tea was stored had a mouse-sized opening in the bottom. The stupid mice chewed through about half the packets of tea stored in there, destroying hundreds of dollars worth of tea, most of which they didn’t even eat. Butiki was hit the hardest as the packets don’t contain smells well, but the dratted things chewed through bags from every company. I have a small bag of rescued tea from the cabinet (kept in a bag away from everything else), but anything where the mice chewed into the bag was tossed. It was heartbreaking. Thankfully, they didn’t get into the other places I had tea stored. Moral of the story – store tea in an animal-proof container at work.

Creme Brulee? I don’t know. Wonderfully holiday-themed? Yes. I probably drank this shortly after Christmas, and it was marvellous.