Design a Tea

I requested a couple of free samples from Design a Tea since I thought it would be fun to play around with different flavorings. This was one, black tea flavored with cider nutmeg. Perhaps that’s redundant, as cider is often spiced with nutmeg to begin with, but I thought it might be good.

The tea came in little tea filters, and I have to say that the tea looked a little disappointing, since it was made up of tiny pieces and what looks like fannings and not much recognizable leaf. The scent of the dry leaves was definitely of spiced apple cider, but it had another odd aroma as well. Brewed this tea was a dark amber shade, and the aroma was much the same. I’m sorry to say that the flavorings on this tea were not good at all. Kind of appley, yes, not so much nutmeg, overall very chemical. I couldn’t drink more than a few sips. It was an interesting thought, but the execution leaves much to be desired.

The boyfriend chose this as the flavour for a Design a Tea sample. I wasn’t sure about this combination, but it ended up delicious! It was very tropical-tasting, suitably enough. It really felt like I was drinking fruit juice, a luxury I’m rarely able to enjoy. I kept getting apple notes at the end of sips, and it made me recall reading that mango is often used to create apple flavours in tea. Now I see why. The coconut was nice too, and definitely present, but the mango was the star.

Finally got around to trying my second sample from Design A Tea. I wasn’t expecting it to do much for me so kind of forgot about it.

But this was pretty nice! Very coconuty with a touch of chocolate. It was creamy and pretty rich despite my using far too much water for the 2 g sample.

The leaves were quite small and a bit dusty unlike the pretty, large oolong leaves I’m use to.

One of my two free Design a Tea samples. I’m skeptical about my abilities, but here goes.

It smells very interesting. Not really getting peach from it, nor can I discern the vanilla. It smells more like a tropical fruit, I think. Or some sort of candy. Hm.

While steeping, I can smell the rooibos and the fruitiness steps back a little. It steps back even further when I taste it. Interesting! I don’t taste peach-vanilla in this, but I like it. It has a nice rooibos taste with a sweet and fruity finish. I don’t really like the scent (and it really smells like a cany that isn’t coming to mind right now), but it’s quite pleasant and smooth.

I drank some without milk and then added a splash. Both are good.

Yum! I love this combination! As I sip it, I am thinking about Dim Sum (YUM!) and I am wondering how I might make a dipping sauce with this tisane. It would be yummmmm!

Ah well… it’s quite good in my tea cup too. Light, citrus-y, with a lovely coconut taste that lingers in the finish. Lovely!

Delicious! I love Design a Tea!

This tastes sweet and fruity, it doesn’t taste artificial, it is just pleasant and tropically delicious!!!

Oh yum! This is fantastic! I didn’t realize this was Pu-erh until after I tasted it!

This is even better than Numi’s Chocolate Pu-erh, in my opinion. The chocolate and pu-erh meld together to create a lovely, savory tasting chocolate. I love the rose notes.

This is absolutely awesome!

Very nice! I like this one chilled… I think that it somewhat subdues the flavor of the rooibos without completely masking it, and somehow that nutty, woody flavor of the rooibos really works with the spearmint flavor.

It’s cool and crisp. I like it… it is especially nice for nighttime!

Delicious! One of the best plum flavored teas (tisanes) that I’ve encountered. The plum and vanilla make a great combination and reminds me a bit of warm plum sauce (fresh plums that are cooked in a light syrup until all soft and mushy like applesauce) that’s been drizzled with vanilla cream sauce. YUM!

I LOVE this signature blend from Design a Tea. The blueberry flavor is sweet and juicy, the Oolong has that peach-y note – a nice complement to the blueberry. But what is really great about this blend is the NUTMEG. It doesn’t taste really strong at first, but as I continue to sip on the tea, I find the flavor becoming more intense.

YUMMY!

This is not one of their “signature” blends. To get this tea, you have to “design” it. But, this one is a fairly simple design… passion fruit and Koslanda black tea.

It’s very good. The passion fruit is rich and sweet. The black tea is a pleasant, even-toned tea. Not particularly robust, but with the delicious passion fruit flavor it works.

This is REALLY good!

Having tried one or two other Ice Wine teas, I kinda figured what this would taste like… but this truly exceeds those expectations! This is definitely the BEST Ice Wine tea I’ve tasted!

It is sweet and I like the flavor of the ice wine and the pear together. The pear gives it a very pleasing smoothness. I like this very much.

I liked this better than the other sample I received, but still don’t love it. I really like the idea of creating my own combinations, so even without success I think I’ll try a couple more.

A sample I received. This disaster was my fault. Maple, Chocolate and Green Tea flavors just don’t go together. Now I know. I’m amazed I was able to get to the bottom of the cup.

It’s been 2 years since my last confession…I mean…sip of this tisane. LOL :)

Thanks to Azzrian I was able to try it again :) Thanks so much!!!

I taste Rooibos, apple/citrus, Vanilla, and almonds! It’s nice and even from beginning to end! I really want to taste more Black Marzipan’s…like Teavana used to sell…it was my favorite Teavana tea and they discontinued it…figures. This is nicely done for a flavored Rooibos. See previous notes :)

This tastes like an almond rooibos – sweet and juicy. Pretty good!

LiberTEAS told me this was good and I had to try it for myself!!! It smells like Pineapple and chai more pineapple than chai…which I appreciate very much!

This infuses really dark and really fast!

The taste is AWESOME!!!! I can safely say this is my FAVORITE Chai to date!!!! The flavoring is wonderful! The spices underneath…

The ingredients and benefits from everything immense! The complete package if you are on that favors pineapple!

OK… I am totally LOVING this tea.

The black tea, the mate, the masala spice, and the pineapple are all in fantastic harmony with one another, and the vanilla offers a smooth presence but not an overwhelming presence of flavor.

Yum… Yum… YUM!!!

Backlogging COLD Version…I am liking this iced ever better…a few more points for that! I can taste the cranberry more but the apple is wonderfully done with the rooibos and is superb cold!

Backlogging…hot version…yummy!!! Reminds me of a cider of sorts…more apple than cranberry but cranberry is still noticeable. There was a cinnamon likeness to it…maybe like a cinnamon type cranberry…very good partnership with the rooibos!

ICED attempt:

it’s ok…iced…I think I actually like it better HOT…hum…I can taste the coconut more when it’s hot. Still pretty good tho!

I was unable to find this one on their website but I am sampling it now. It’s Lemongrass with coconut powder. It smells wonderful! Almost like a Mike’s Hard Lemonade or something! Sugary-Sweet-Lemony-Coconut-YUM!

This is lovely…the taste is light and seems to be perfect for summer. Altho I am currently drinking it hot I am thinking about putting it in the fridge and drinking the rest cold. So…I will, I think – and report back…

For the hot tho – it’s really good HOT…a nice even lemon flavor with a hint of coconut to assist! Refreshing!