ESP Emporium

I placed an order with ESP Emporium about a month or so ago for teas for a swap, but, of course, I had to order something for myself too! This is one I wanted to try.

Mmm… chocolate and coconut! Deee-lish!

The black tea is strong but not bitter … and there is very little astringency to this too. It’s a nice base for the chocolate and coconut … sweet, creamy, and decadent. YUMMMMM!

So many huge chunks of mango and other fruit! I’m guilty of sampling this tea without actually steeping it.. and after steeping picking out all the chunks of fruit and eating it! Very nice fruity mango tea… however the yogurt isn’t very pronounced and did not add any creamyness at all.

I’m not sure what orchid tastes like, but I find this tea to taste like an overpowering cherry – but cherry is the last ingredient! With that said, a bit of a disappointment if you want a orchidy /strawberry/raspberry tea as promised and it smells and tastes like cherry. Other than that, it is pretty nice cherry taste…

A very interesting tea. If you ever tried those asian aloevera drinks, this tea tastes like that, but without the aloe chunks. Very nice and refreshing.

I ordered this tea as I’ve never seen figs in tea and I do have a slight love affair with figs. Ahh the fig jam in this sandwich I had at the Getty Art Museum in Los Angeles..yum. At least I think it was the getty? Whatever.

Smell of dry leaves – tarty fruity. Lots of figs and lumps of berries.
Brews up to a light peachy gold cup of tea

Taste – mmmm lumps of figs! Nice refreshing taste of figs, strawberries, the seedy bits of the blackberries with the sencha taste at the end. A nice twist to those typical fruity blends of sencha. Kind of a sophisticated taste with the fig – and it looks impressive floating in a travel mug that is glass and clear.

If you like sencha tea with fruit – and something a little different, give this one a shot. Out of all the sencha fruit teas from ESP Emporium, this one was unique (next to the Apple Kiwi one I snagged)

Me? I think I won’t buy more of this tea. It’s good – but it’s sencha… getting tired of so many fruity tea blends being all sencha. They all taste similar, but with a different smell or fruit. I could probably mix all my fruity sencha teas up and it wouldn’t matter.

sip down!

Actually a really bad sipdown. I still have a cough and it seemed to pick up today. Maybe the dry weather? I decided to put some fresh grated ginger and honey with this tea. EW. EWW. And I gotta finish it as I’m pooped from jiu jitsu and don’t wanna steep up another tea.

I really need to buy more caffeine free tea. I got maybe a couple left.

Made this iced to sip on while I do some NaNo writing – I need a couple hundred words tonight, but I’d like to get ahead if I’m rolling good. This scoop had a HUGE freaking rose bud, I first thought it was a little artichoke.

Pretty good iced, I got another batch of iced tea left for this tea. I’ve noticed I tend to horde herbals I like and not drink them.

WTH! Okay, I like this tea hot – it has a nice grapefruit citrus zip to it and a lovely fruity sweetness. I gave it a 90/100

Cold Steeped…. dang. Tastes EXACTLY like that cheap citrus bubblegum that you chewed on for too long. I drank 1/3 of it and I couldn’t pour it out fast enough! Heck do I rate this now? ehh, I’ll bump it down to an 80/100.

Mmmmm, this tea smells nice and citrusy sweet!

The grapefruit (with a hint of passionfruit aftertaste) mask the taste of rooibos that I’m not into, but keeps that amber-warmthy-mellow rooibos, with a bit of floral taste from the rose.

First few times I made this tea it was a great citrus (but 0% tart) yet unique as it’s not your typical orange/lemon citrus in most citrus teas. However tonight this batch must of had extra chunks of fruit in it as it really reminded me of citrus bubblegum >__< (very weird how the brain associates things)

With that said, I think this tea is nice and complex, hiding all icky-bits I personally dislike (tarty citrus, weird aftertastes, passion fruit bubble teas I had that taste like soap), with an interesting balance of refreshing yet warmth/mellow and a light sweetness. I’d buy this tea again when I run out <3

Killing off this tea right now – phew 50g is hard to get through! Though happy I finished off an older tea!

I used to think this was a very chocolately tea, but thinking back to Della Terra’s Dubbele Chocolade and The Persimmon Tree’s Coconut Cacao, this isn’t as chocolatey or as well executed.

I like the coconut smooth finish. The chocolate adds also a nice smoothness, but the black tea has stepped into bitter zone adding a funky taste. The funky taste is also the coconut, tasting more of the cheap fake kind of coconut.

Thinking back from being new to teas (when I got this) to now, I’m totally spoiled, lol!

This is the best chocolately tea I’ve experienced so far and my favourite from ESP Emporium. Very chocolately with a hint of coconut. Not really much of a tea taste. I prepared it straight, but wasn’t bad with soy creamer.

This is quite a colorful tea! Bright and merry with all the colors of the rainbow. I let it steep for about five minutes, enjoying the pleasant fruity and herbal aroma. Then I indulged…into one of the best cups of tea I’ve had in a long time! Don’t let the liquor fool you; it brews up hot pink, and I starting thinking, “NO, not the dreaded hibiscus!” But the redness comes from goji berries and dragonfruit. So it’s not tart and won’t have you running for the hills.
The flavor is as soothing as one would hope with a name like Feng Shui. It’s calming and warm plus peaceful. Hints of fruity flavors, plus citrus and lemongrass, and herbal tastes blend together perfectly. Perfect harmony? This tea is aptly named. So glad I went out on a limb and tried this one!

Again, this one has me stumped. The liquor is a gorgeous deep pink color, which to me screams, “HIBISCUS! I AM HIBISCUS!” It’s slightly tart – as though a fresh raspberry is – not in the least hibiscus-y, even after a steeping of over five minutes. I really enjoy this cuppa. I needed something mellow, but this is going to put me to sleep and I won’t make it to 5:30. I’ll need something to pep me up next!

So far, I’m intrigued…and I haven’t even sampled the tea yet! I am just enjoying the citrusy aroma, which contradicts its rosy liquor. The aroma reminds me of oranges and mint, which is, as a favorite character would say, “curiouser and curiouser.”

I’ve steeped it for a good five minutes now, which is the shorter of the times recommended. But I fear the Revenge of Hibiscus, as many herbal samplings offer.

I need not worry! Even though this liquor is hot pink, it tastes orangy, minty and ginger-y all in one cuppa. Yum! And the orange flavor is natural tasting, not like that artificial-cleaning-product smell.

Second sip, I taste a vegetative quality – slightly grassy, but utterly herbally. There’s a sweet aftertaste, which I think may be the tangerine.

Third sip. This is a calming, mellow tea. I wouldn’t wake up with this blend, but it’s relaxing me after a hard day at work.

Definite cupboard contender.

This chai is…interesting. I’m not quite sure what to make of it. I don’t know if it’s really a chai, that’s my hang-up. It’s spicy, yes, with cinnamon, ginger, anise, and cloves against a backdrop of bold, strong black tea. But I don’t immediately think “chai,” when sipping.

I still like it, don’t get me wrong. It’s bold and spicy. The aroma is spicy too – so you know what you’re getting into when you brew it up.

A decent tea, but I’m not sure I’ll reorder…

NOTE: halfway into the cup I realized why I don’t consider this a chai. There is too much of a rootbeer flavor! Not sure where that comes from, if the medley of flavors just makes it happen or what.

This is terrific in the afternoon, to wind down from a stressful morning, or ease into a calming evening. It’s slightly sweet – a hint, as a result of the licorice. If you don’t like licorice, avoid. I love it, so I enjoy. :)

This is a wonderfully refreshing cuppa! This tastes pretty close to that elusive, expensive Aveda tea…but better! I steeped for over 6 mins, which means I can’t resteep, but that’s OK. This cuppa is delish! I taste hearty flavors of the following: licorice, cinnamon, fennel, ginger, cardamom. For all you anti-licorice fans, don’t worry – the licorice root adds a touch of sweetness in the after taste. The aroma is to-die-for as well. This is truly a relaxing, calming tea. A new cupboard staple…and a must-have for anyone who encounters daily stress. I feel relaxed already.

This is an interesting cup. I taste both sweet strawberry and a slight tartness, which I’m guessing is the lichee. There’s also a floral taste, more in the after taste. There’s a pale liquor, and a light overall taste. It’s not bad but not all that wonderful either. I definitely prefer Enchanted Forest over this one.

OK, folks, if you need some balance in your life, you need to try this tisane! I’m normally not too fond of herbal tisanes, due to the high potential of that yucky bitter hibiscus taste. But I grabbed this one on a whim and love it! The flavor is fruity and herbally – a perfect medley of both. There is a tartness, but not bitterness because the licorice root balances out any tart taste. Brews up a lovely hot pink color too. I had this after a very stressful day of work and Feng Shui did help me wind down, bringing a balance of happiness to my state of mind. (Or maybe that’s because it’s Friday.) If you want to try a sample, PM me – I’d love to share, in the spirit of Wellness! :)

I got this in a swap with Rumpus Parable so thank you for letting me try it.

I figured today was a good day for margarita tea since it’s Friday and all but sadly, for me, this tea does not live up to it’s name. Then again, I don’t drink much and really prefer fruity margaritas (drinks that don’t generally taste like alcohol, actually). I do get a lime taste from it but it just all goes wrong after that for me.

It’s possible I did something to mess it up – I have a corneal abrasion and am stuck wearing glasses during the day for the first time since I got contacts 18 years ago and these glasses are about 5 years old, with a prescription to match so I am a bit out of sorts. But I’m pretty sure I put water in my kettle this morning (else my husband’s coffee will be off too) and set it to 200 (what he needs for his coffee and hot enough for me for my black teas) but I guess I can’t say for sure since I’ve been running into things left and right (damn edges on my vision).

Sorry to waste one of your favorites Rumpus.

Having this again after a long time away.

The scent is complex but not overwhelming… light with berry notes.

Again the taste has so much to it. The burnt flavor of a black tea in the middle of the tongue, a bit of berry to it, a bit astringent, leaves a clean feeling in the back of the throat. Light finish throughout the mouth.

Tried this cold-brewed. In a word: nasty.