The Republic of Tea

It’s hard to believe but true: I now find myself craving The Republic of Tea Milk Oolong! I went to their website and found that tons of reviewers are completely obsessed with this tea, so maybe it’s not my imagination that it is so good.

It takes like food—so rich and satisfying. This seems like it could be an effective diet aid. As in: a milkshake replacement tea! The entire experience is very positive, from lifting the lid off the tin and being literally hit with the enticing aroma, to admiring the shiny gnarled nuggets, to watching them partially unfurl in the first infusion, producing a golden elixir.

Then there’s the second infusion, almost as good as the first.

I was seriously craving this tea last night, but I was so worn out by the weather that I opted to go to bed early instead—at midnight instead of 3am.

Today’s second TOD (teaof the day) had to be this one. (I nearly always start my tea day with a green.) The dried tea smells so fantastically, incredibly rich and sumptuous that I could probably be content just sitting and sniffing it all day. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration.

Once again, I was very pleased with this golden brew, its sweet floral aroma, and luxurious texture. A very good grocery store find indeed!

Another category about which I am relatively ignorant is oolong. I’ve been reading The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea, in which Michael Harney explains how oolongs range from nearly green to nearly black. I love both green and black teas, so the mystery for me has always been why I have never really connected with oolongs in the past.

The green gnarled nuggets of this Milk Oolong from The Republic of Tea have both dark and lighter (almost yellow) facets, and they smell so incredibly delicious that I decided to throw caution to the wind (I fear that I may have some oolong allergy or disorder) and brew some up. This is not the scent of bancha, but it is definitely moving in that direction.

The liquor is yellowish gold, and to be honest, this does not taste at all like TQY, which has pretty much exhausted my “concept” of oolong to this point. What does this Milk Oolong taste like? Not exactly milky, but it is smooth and succulent, and I am willing accept the “orchid” allusions. It tastes pretty good. Let’s just hope that I do not develop my post-oolong headache from this one.

The unfurled leaves are quite large, beautiful to behold, and very fragrant. I’ll try a second infusion later today…

second infusion: excellent and the leaves are still fragrant, so I’ll give them another go…

third infusion: the leaves have now fully unfurled, and the liquor is still tasty, but the spent leaves are no longer very fragrant, so this will be all for this batch.

The good news is: no ill effects whatsoever! Perhaps I only have issues with oolong powder swept from the floor???? On verra…

This was the first tea I had this morning….I have tried it before. Early last year or so, I believe. Didn’t think it was that great then, and was hoping that since my taste buds have changed I’d like this one better.
I was wrong :(
The lemon flavor was a lot stronger than the creamy flavor, which I didn’t like so much. It didn’t really taste like a pastry or anything. Was more of just a plain lemon tea that isn’t even strong. That’s pretty light. I steeped it for like 6-7 minutes and it wasn’t that strong :( So yeah…disappointed with this one.
Della Terra Teas has been acting rather sketchy and I’m kinda nervous that they won’t re-open again, so trying to find a tea that matches up to their incredible Lemon Chiffon which is everything you’d ever want in a lemony, creamy, pastry-like tea. Ughh just thinking about it makes me smile. Such a good tea. And I’ve yet to find a tea that is good enough.

Got this tea from the awesome, darby! (:
This was one of the few Republic of Tea teas that I really wanted to try. It smells exactly pretty strong like DTT’s Lemon Chiffon does.
But the flavor is much lighter. Not bad at all.
I think Lemon teas are growing on me more and more ^^

I brewed this a little lower than I would normally brew a rooibos, which turned out to be a happy accident: this tastes exactly like a chocolate covered strawberry. It’s a little sweeter than I would have expected, but the chocolate is assertive like few teas of this kind achieve and the fruit still manages to come through. This is definitely one of the better Republic of Tea flavors I’ve tried.

For some reason this reminds me of a banana flavored SwissMiss mix and strangely, I like it.
This is a tea that I’d buy and leave out for guests who aren’t regular tea drinkers. It’s good but not complex and a flavor that I think a lot of people (I know)would like.

My personal preference is to steep two bags per cup – I find that most teas from the Republic of Tea seem to taste better that way.

This smells wonderful and tastes…not so wonderful. I’m not sure what it is about this but I’m really not liking it. It’s too herbal. The blackberry isn’t assertive enough at all despite being very present in the scent, and oddly the sage isn’t taking over either. What I’m left with is a sort of watery, fake-grape flavor that I have no intention of drinking again.

So I’ve decided this past week that this is my new work tea. Ever since I finished Teavana’s Jasmine Oolong I’ve been craving a jasmine tea in the morning. After I finished those two ounces I switched to putting a fruit tea in my tumbler. At first the flavor lasted, but the second time it didn’t do so well, and it didn’t make me feel awake and with it like the Jasmine Oolong made me feel.
Soo I figured this one would do-and so far it has! :D
Also learned on accident that I have to steep it for like 10 minutes for it to keep the flavor for the whole morning. xD Really did not mean to do that, but shockingly, it wasn’t bitter! So yeah, this is my new work tea! Plus it’s cheap so I don’t feel bad not using the tea bag again since I don’t have time!

I’ve been putting Lupicia teas in my tumbler to take to work over the last week…But I hate doing that since I don’t resteep the leaves at work or anything. Kinda a waste since those teas are expensive!
And it’s like, I want something light, that’s not gonna make me get sick, but at the same time will make me awake.
So I have been trying to find an alternative.
Yesterday I took Glitter & Gold, and that was okay, but not really something I wanted to drink in the morning.
And this morning I took this tea.
I figured that it was a lighter jasmine, and I wouldn’t feel bad to just use the bag for a one time use.
And you know what? I think I found my morning tea. Or at least one of them!
I forget how refreshing jasmine tea is. It makes me feel so awake and alive. Not in an antsy way, but in a more relaxed/refreshed way, if that makes sense.
And it wasn’t too strong, So I didn’t get sick! When I finished it I was craving more, right away. Maybe I should bring an extra tea bag to work with me.
I’m just kinda not on board with using microwaved water for my tea….:S
But may be worth it for this tea.
Anyway-this was a great morning tea! Happy to have this one!

I originally got a sample of this one from Darby, and wasn’t too impressed. But as I finished the few tea bags she gave me, it totally grew on me! So in my last Republic of Tea order I got this one!
So finally opened the tin tonight and brewed it up!
The smell through me off at first though…it smells like licorice to me…Which is just very odd…since it doesn’t taste like that at all.
It’s perfume-y, floral-y, flowery, and jasmine-y! XD
A lot of made up words right there, I know. xD
Anyway!
Great tea!
Some bagged tea doesn’t get enough credit…and this is one of them!
So bumping my rating!

Jasmine is always a good way to start the day. ^^ I didn’t expect this to be anything amazing, but I was a bit surprised of how light the jasmine was in this tea. It tasted kinda perfume-y, maybe kinda flowery even. But barely smelled.
It was just a nice, delicate tea to start my Saturday. (:
Thanks, darby, for the samples!

Blackberry Sage has long been my favorite “every day” tea. Huge hunks of blackberry, a bright but not-to-bitter black tea base, and just a hint of sage to keep it from being too sweet make this an exceptionally pleasing cup of tea.

My cat, Tao, is usually a bit on the aloof side. She tends to snuggle either when you are asleep (she curls up on your stomach or pressed against your back or chest) or when you are lounging. Very different from Espeon who is essentially a lap-cat. The only time Tao goes into hyper cuddle mode is when she detects something is wrong, if I am upset about something or sick, Tao becomes super snuggle happy. Well I went to bed this afternoon feeling pretty awful and woke up a few hours later with a very large, very fluffy, loudly purring, weight on my face. I might have been mildly asphyxiated, but it made me happy and I had to share my happy moment.

Today’s tea review is The Republic of Tea’s Get Lost, an herbal blend of Organic Rooibos, Orange Peel, Carob Pod, Gymnema Leaf, Cinnamon, Banaba Leaf, and Orange Flavor, supposedly selected to aid in weight loss. I do not need to lose weight, I weigh a whopping 94lbs and am constantly trying to gain it, but I will never turn down a tea to try. In theory (I really have no idea how factual this is) these herbs are supposed to help with sugar cravings and satisfy one’s sweet tooth, I can certainly see no fault in that, even when you are trying to gain weight, avoiding crazy sugar cravings is good since it can feed yeast and other unpleasant things in one’s guts. Enough health stuff, how does this little round teabag smell? Well, this is certainly a rooibos tea because that distinct sharp woodiness of rooibos is the predominant aroma. There are also notes of herbaceous leaves and a touch of chocolate. This teabag also smells dry and a little dusty, but I find most teabags do, so your mileage my vary.

The steeped tea has a very herbal and woody aroma with a potent chocolate sweetness and a finish of yeast. It reminds me of boxed chocolate cake sitting next to a big cup of rooibos tea. From the aroma alone I can see this being helpful for people with cravings of cake, time to see if it holds up on taste.

First up, I notice that oh so familiar woody and sweet rooibos with its signature dry mouth feel. It is not dry mouth like you get from something with too many tannins, not that puckering all moisture has been sucked out…but more of a gentle dry mouth, it almost has a dusty quality. Oddly drinking rooibos reminds me of breathing through my mouth on a typical hot, dry, windy, Kansas City day. There are also notes of chocolate, they are vaguely chocolate, much like one expects from carob. The aftertaste is herbaceous and slightly green tasting. This tea is pleasant, not outstanding but also not bad, it could be good for someone craving a sweet tea and looking for an ‘everyday’ kinda tea.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-republic-of-tea-get-lost-tea-review.html

I’m really enjoying a nice cup of this even on a hot day. Funny how that is somedays. I read several notes saying they thought it was weak. So I used 4 bags with 3 cups of water for 6 minutes. Perfect. I always use a bit a vanilla stevia with chocolate teas and this was no exception. The beet root gives it a nice reddish color like red velvet cake. No creamy frosting :( But I’m not going to count off for that. Very enjoyable.

Thank you Ost! I am enjoying this tea as I sit inside watching a classic Doctor Who (Pyramid of Mars) on a rainy afternoon. What a lovely cuppa! The cup of tea is a lovely red full of promise and fun. It has a nice red velvet flavor but I’m not getting the frosting which is one of my favorite parts. Altogether, a nice tea which I will pick up and keep in my cupboard!

The dry smell has more of a potpourri scent to it then a tea scent. Which made me kinda skeptical of how this tea would taste. However, I am quite enjoying this tea. For a tea that has spice I find it to be on the lighter side. Which is fine because sometimes they really get strong. This would be a great tea to mix into a pie!

Thank you Ost for the inclusion of this tea in our recent swap! Made a nice iced tea. I can taste the vanilla and the caramel but I am not tasting the cupcake aspect. Still a very nice ice tea, quite refreshing.

A filter bag sample of Republic of Tea Caramel Vanilla arrived along with a catalog in the mail. I brewed it up today out of curiosity, though I wasn’t very optimistic.

The filter bag is extremely heavily scented—to the point of being cloying, I’d say. But of course that is the point of these flavored blends, it appears: to serve as a dessert surrogate.

The tea brewed up golden brown and tastes rather sweet. I added cream because caramel and cream are natural partners!

Overall, I was not impressed with “Cuppa Cake” Caramel Vanilla, and ended up not finishing my glass. It’s too sweet, and despite the all-natural ingredients list, it tastes somewhat artificial to me. The tea itself seems something like an afterthought—could be just about anything swept off the floor.

(Blazing New Rating #33)

This tea is really unique. It definitely intrigued me from the moment I found it in the package from TeaTiff today. Hot hot hot it definitely tasted like carrot, sweet and earthy and fresh, with just a touch of the mineral beet sweetness to it. As it cooled off, I got more of the orange notes. I like it. I like it quite a bit. Very different, very unique.

Flavored teas are generally not my favorite—RoT’s mango Ceylon is good iced, and I like a good Earl Grey every now and again, but I generally prefer the taste of plain tea. This is not something I would buy, but it was given as a gift. It’s not bad for a flavored tea—the ginger is rather strong, but doesn’t entirely overpower the tea (just mostly). With milk and sugar it’s nice, especially on an upset stomach, but I wouldn’t drink this regularly—in fact, I think it may be hanging around the cupboard for quite a while. Also, it doesn’t strike me as a real breakfast tea, but rather an afternoon tea.

I had high expectations for this tea. I mean really, almonds + coconuts should equal really good. Well, it’s OK but not as yummy as I was hoping for. I taste some coconut and almond cookie but doesn’t satisfy me like some other dessert teas.