Steven Smith Teamaker

If this breakfast blend is this good (which it is—dark tea fans, it’s worth seeking out), the Steven Smith straight-up Assam must be outstanding.

Smooth, bready. About 1/4 teaspoon left, which’ll do me a thimble-sized cup or add some class to the Junkyard Tea Mason jar. Decisions, decisions…

Random adjectives: suede, burgundy, fruit, mahogany wood, smooth, rich.
Watched the sun rise as I sipped, that just took extra words away.

(thanks to Terri HarpLady)

Sample package label:
“Blend No. 18
Steven Smith Teamaker
Brahmin
Full Leaf Black Tea”

Per: http://www.smithtea.com/shop/black/brahmin
“A sophisticated blend of full bodied, rich and malty Indian Assam teas, paired with succulent Ceylon dimbulla, intense and floral Ceylon Uva and a touch of smokey Keemun from Anhui. The taste is dense, robust and delicious, with or without milk, anytime you need a bit of extra inspiration. “

“Ingredients: Second flush Indian Assam, Ceylon Dimbulla, Ceylon Uva and China Keemun full leaf teas”

“Bring filtered water to a rolling boil. Steep 5 minutes.
Technically a breakfast tea, it is equally good for dessert.”

Per: Alex Pieroni: “I would say 1 sachet for every 12 oz of water.”

Technique:
12-oz filtered water with total dissolved solids (TDS) of 27 ppm, heated to 212*F.

1 sachet – 3.4 g (My Weigh Durascale D2 660), without sweeteners, milk or cream.

Dry leaf: long, uniform sized, blackish brown

Fragrance: Subtle hint of pipe tobacco

Liquor: Clear amber brown

Aroma: Malty Assam aroma without an obvious smokiness that sometimes is associated with Keemun.

5-min Infusion: A robust full-bodied flavor black tea without bitterness. There was moderate sense of astringency that persists on the tongue. I suspect is due the high-altitude grown Ceylon Uva. There was also a very subtle caramel-like sweetness in the finish that’s probably due to the Keemun in this blended tea

Re-steep: 6-min Infusion Nearly as full-bodied and without any astringency.

Impression: A full-bodied blended black breakfast tea for those who don’t mind astringency. For those who do, one could try brewing this tea at a lower temperature such as 195*F.

Suggestion: To consider using less Ceylon Uva and perhaps more Keemun in this blend.

Thanks to Alex Pieroni of Steven Smith Teamaker for providing this free sample.

The rooibus and honeybush are all up in their mulch-y-ness, but this dry-smelling tea seems to be more of a savannah than an oasis. In this savannah, you have to scrape at the ground for any additional sweetness. There’s a hint of coconut. Maybe. Some of the dust settles when it’s steeped, but you better pack a canteen of water with this drink.

Luckily, the missing fruit emerges when you give it a taste. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of rosehip tea, this one may be a satisfactory stand-in, but only if you really like rooibus… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/23/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-3/

Peppermint Leaves needs no introduction. It is exactly what they say it is: peppermint leaves. In a bag. For tea.

It just so happens that these leaves are magical things, housing a Wonderland of scent and taste where peppermint is the ruling Queen. Her King Consort? Mr. Freeze. The minty-ness makes no secret of itself, and before it’s even steeped, your senses are awash in its powerful cry. Ditch your Tic Tacs and your Listerine.

You aren’t sipping peppermint leaves. These are truly Peppermint Leaves… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/23/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-3/

Meadow is magic.

There, I said it.

Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/23/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-3/

Big Hibiscus comes to you with a very odd smell in the bag. Initially you get the lush, rich hibiscus to be sure, hung with the accents of elderflower and rose like a particularly favored courtesan. Yet there’s this strange mustiness that you just can’t shake off. It’s the fault of the Indian sarsaparilla, most likely. In the cup–which yields a very seductive wine-y liquor–this off smell dies down and you can discern more of the ginger. (Mm, ginger. Smith has definitely caught on to how ginger goes well with everything.)

What a punch! In every sense of the word. This courtesan has some wild proclivi-teas, and she’s more than ready to show you how it’s done… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/23/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-3/

With one whiff of Jasmine Silver Tip, you’ve got the full floral parade. Dare I even call it… soapy? Seems to be all about the jasmine and none about the tea. Oh dear. This doesn’t disappear when steeped, but at least the odor fades a bit–just a bit, mind you, ’cause this flower damsel really doesn’t want to budge–hopefully to make way for some solid green flavor. (Though seeing as it’s called Silver Tip, it’s possible that you’ll have more of a white-y cup after all.) As with many jasmine teas, this one leaves you rubbing your fingers on the nearest napkin, trying to get rid of the oily feeling from the perfume.

Sip up, floral lovers, because this will be your happy hour. Floral haters to the back; you’ll get more out of Fez or one of Smith’s nice, twisty blacks…. Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/20/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-2/

The dry bag yields a wonderful fragrance of warm flowers. We’re not talking about floral in the usual sense, where the aroma hits you the way it would when you’re in the company of actual perfumes. Here, you get the feeling of meadow-y buds with their faces bright and open towards the day. The osmanthus masquerades as a whiff of peach. In the cup, these scents deepen and round out, like they’ve been slowly baked into the tea. Ozzy gets fruit-tastic here.

Oh no this is not something to drink in the morning. As soon as you start sipping, the chamomile takes over. You’d never think that a calming herb could taste so powerful, but something about this blend really takes it to a new level… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/20/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-2/

In the bag, Fez‘s dry smell is what your Starbucks Tazo mint tea wishes it could be. You get nothing but spearmint, with a hint of lemon that could pass as verbena, though in this case–pun intended–it’s Australian lemon myrtle. When was the last time you saw that one in a tea? Turns out it’s the perfect addition, as those sharp little acidic notes come out to play when the hot water hits the bag. No green smell at all, but that’s no surprise given the understated presence of their Mao Feng Shui.

Smith recommends drinking this tea while wearing a fez, but you’ll want to take your hats off to it–Fez, you sly fox!… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/20/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-2/

Mao Feng Shui‘s bag aroma is highly understated–or should I say, understa-tea-d? Maybe it’s because of the tightly-woven silk sachet, but this tea does not want to give up its secrets so easily. Still, it’s possible to discern the sweetness of the green held up by the more vegetal notes, like an assortment of fruit supported by a summer squash platter. Interestingly enough, it still won’t talk much once steeped in the cup. Huh. There’s a teaser of botanical fragrance, but it’s more of a, “Yeah, I could be a floral. But maybe I’m not. Could go either way. Wouldn’t you like to know?”… Full review: http://snooteablog.com/2013/07/20/snooty-tea-review-steven-smith-tea-round-2/

Sipdown!
Tea. Good.

Roommate wanted to use her coupon for a free drink at Starbucks so I just ordered hot water and this was the only caffeine-free tea I had with me haha.
Beating the system aww yiss :)

((Look at previous notes for the actual tasting note bit of this. Grande sized hot water, drank it all the way back home. Decided to roll out my yoga mat and sleep on the living room floor as my roommates watched tv. Oh it was great.))

Tea that I had while finishing up the last 100 pages of Insurgent!
Literally just finished that book like 5 minutes ago and I’m already starting Allegiant :) It’s a good series. Definitely liked the first book more though.

Yeah. Guns and war and blood and death. Needed a bit of chamomile to calm myself a bit. Good tea to end the night with :)

(lazy lazy laaaazzyyy. Read previous tasting notes to like.. actually read the tasting notes part of it haha)

This tea smells like butt from the chamomile (I kinda don’t like chamomile all that much oops) but it smells sooo much beter steeping!
The lemon comes out more, but I definitely don’t taste the rose petals.
Definitely a nice, well-rounded herbal tea.

I actually missed my midterm tonight oops. But my professor was all yeah, take it tomorrow, it’s totally fine! So that is what I’m doing :) I’ve got me some nice herbals to last me the night of studying :)

Oh my gosh I feel like the steepster app/email notification thing kinda stopped working for a bit because DANG MY PHONE WAS VIBRATING LIKE CRAZY JUST NOW.

Okay. Last tea of the night and then it’s off to bed. Concentrating on herbals this late because I need sleep but tea is good and yes class tomorrow morning and it’s not going to be fun if I sleep at 3am.

This is tasting note #199, I’m celebrating #200 tomorrow! Hmm but which tea should I make #200…

Definitely laughing at the state of my kitchen right now.
All my roommates have left for the weekend and I’ve just taken over the kitchen and dining area with my textbooks and teas because heck, why be cooped up in my room when the kitchen is nice and open?
I like washing dishes, I do I do, so right now the only things in the dish rack are the plates used over the past two days and… my tea pot and about 6 mugs because of all the tea that I’ve been drinking. A different mug for breakfast, lunch and dinner hehe :)

Still studying. Finishing up 302, and hopefully going to move to 374 at around 8 tonight. I’ve got my Meadow in my disappearing Tardis mug and I’m going to get through this weekend! So much studying but I’ve got time! Gotta pass all these midterms with flying colours, and I’ve got my teas to keep me company :)

I went through 2 liters of tea tonight oh my gosh there is nothing wrong with me. There is absolutely nothing wrong with just sitting at the kitchen table with the kettle within arms reach and your entire tea collection just sitting there waiting to be drank.
Definitely been working on philosophy and studying for the THREE midterms I have next week. Ahh well. Lots of tea will be consumed this weekend. Looks like I’ve got my own one-person tea parties!

Laughing so hard because the top layer of the trash bin is all the tea I drank tonight ahaha

Chamomile alone is okay. I’ve had other chamomile blends where the chamomile was overpowering the other flavours. This blend, however, oh the chamomile was there, but I was able to taste the other flavours as well! The rose kinda got lost a bit after the second steeping, but overall a very wonderful flowery blend :)

Another sample, care of TastyBrew. Thanks! :)
A mild green tea with Spearmint & Lemon Myrtle. I’m not always a huge mint fan, & I much prefer peppermint over spearmint, but this tea is a pleasant after-breakfast cup. This isn’t bitter at all, & is even mildly sweet. The sip starts out a little creamy, followed by a refreshing sensation, but ends somewhat astringent, & that’s the only thing I don’t care for about it.

I decided to have a cup of this chai with my breakfast with a little stevia. It’s a nice spicy one, & the only thing that would have made it better would have been some canned coconut milk, or actually the cream off the top of a can of coconut milk, or maybe some french vanilla coconut creamer. Thanks to Tasty Brew for this sample!

Day 3 in Florida, 1st sip down of the day. Thanks for including this in the BBBB, TastyBrew. It is, in my opinion, a manly tea: Leather, wood, a little musty. Not as sweet as some of the Yunnan’s Ive enjoyed, but still a decent tea to drink.

No new notes. This is from the BBBB, courtesy of TastyBrew
A decent yunnan: earth, leather, little spice.

A tasty tea from TastyBrew!
I love the description of this tea: sweet, spice, & leather with a hint of smoke. I’ll add that it has that resinous tongue-thickening sensation as well. Thanks Tasty!

Another sample from TastyBrew. Thanks!
I’m not a big fan of Ceylon teas. They tend to taste like the ice tea of my youth, & like green tea, they tend to make me sick on an empty stomach, probably due to astringency. Their flavor profile also doesn’t appeal to me nearly as much as some other teas. They lack a low end.

Having said all that, this is a decent cup. Nothing memorable about it, very ‘even’, slightly floral, slightly oaky, a hint of citrus, slightly astringent. Not bad, not exciting.

NEXT!