Twinings

Another Important Lesson: A Keurig is only for coffee. NOT TEA.
Had a cup of this tonight, brewed in water from my boyfriend’s Kuerig. I usually really love this tea, it’s a nice simple Rooibos. But tonight? It tasted like coffee. way bitter, and wrong.

Not a favourite, though it’s alright. Just didn’t seem very flavoursome. I will have to try others to see how they compare.

Steep Information:
Amount: 1 teabag
Water: 160°F hot spigot water
Steep Time: a little over 3 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: sweet, cinnamon, vanilla, clove, and something else I can not quite figure out
Steeped Tea Smell: vanilla, cinnamon, sweet, cardamom
Flavor: mild black tea, vanilla, cinnamon
Body: Medium
Aftertaste:
Liquor: Translucent green-brown

Gift from a co-worker who loves strong black teas.

I am shocked by the mild nature of the black tea in this blend. It relaly takes a back seat to the cinnamon and vanilla.

Post-Steep Additives: one honey stick. Now the flavor is a nice mellow sweet cinnamon, with hints of vanila.

Just too mild for me. It was a nice sipping tea, but I want my spiced black teas to have a kick.

Images: http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/11/twinings-of-london-teabag-black-tea.html

Delicious!! I love this tea, it’s fruity without being overbearingly so.

I decided that this has been lingering in the tea cabinet long enough, so I brought a few bags to work. It seems that lower steeping temperature (hot water spigot) and shorter steeping times help this tea.

I gave this another try, and I guess I’m just not a fan. The pumpkin flavor is just too odd on the first steep. I’m not sure how to describe it except lemony. I only steeped 3 minutes this time. Oh well. I definitely prefer Bigelow’s pumpkin spice.

I forgot to add the other day that I did try a 2nd steep of this – plenty of pumpkin flavor left, and very tasty with soymilk and sugar. I didn’t get that “lemony” flavor from before. Maybe it was just my tastebuds being a bit out of sorts? I’ll reserve judgment for my next 1st steeping. :)

The aroma is awesome – perfectly pumpkin pie, and the first few sips were delicious! As the cup went on, though, the pumpkin flavor became a little too much. It almost tasted lemony, strangely. But, I only added a tiny bit of soy milk and no sugar, and I might have steeped it a bit too long – probably more than 5 minutes. I’ll give this another try, for sure. I think it would be best with a good splash of milk and a spoonful (or more) of sugar, but we shall see!

Delicious!

So delicious.

Nearly done with my box here.
A nice caffeine boost before my first classes of the semester! I’m excited.

I’ve been taking this into the studio with me in a glass, mixed with a touch of stevia and almond milk.
Definately what I wanted to drink when I was finishing up my painting today. :) My final canvas is DONE and looking okay!

Just recently finished up with James Joyce’s Ulysses, and of course I simply needed to drink half the box of this.
Nice, with a little almond milk and sugar. Just what I need in the mornings.

In a moment of desperation, I swiped a bag of my roommates tea. To be fair he’d offered, but I generally try not to get into my roommates food or beverage. I didn’t expect to enjoy this, I’d had limited experience with Twinings, but the name and description sounded promising. I was actually pretty blown away. I’m kind of a freak for most things Earl Grey, and the subtlety of this was a surprise but entirely pleasant. Smooth, mild, kinda rocks me.

My son brewed a cup for me. He didn’t really prepare this correctly. He used the microwave, which I am opposed to using for tea. The water was not boiling. I added a splash of milk and some artificial sweetner. I am certain this would be better under more controlled preparation. Even so, this was quite tasty. The spices were balanced and pleasant. I only want a pumpkin tea a couple times a year. I am glad my son sprung this one on me.

Probably the worst alleged Darjeeling I’ve ever tasted. Very disappointing. No muscatel. Just stale, weak tea.

Lovely aroma, but it gets bitter quicky.

An old favourite. Intriguing blend. Not one bit malty. Loose is better than bagged.

Today’s the Christmas party at work (yes, technically, to be PC it should be “holiday” or “winter”, but sometimes we’re not very PC). So, to start getting in the celebratory mood, I’m sipping on this (I’ve got a bag of RoT’s Comfort and Joy steeping to have next).

I can already smell the food cooking in the kitchen, and my coworker left her homemade pecan pie on her desk and then left the building. I love pecan pie. It looks really good sitting over there all lonely…

Tea! Back to the tea: this blend is softly spiced, and not very strong if you think in terms of chai blends. I wish there was more citrus and cinnamon here. but it’s not too bad. Probably wouldn’t invest in it again; Christmas Nutcracker by Praise Tea is a much better Christmas blend to me!

5 minute steep this time. It’s a bit stronger this time, but still tastes a bit weak to me. Perhaps I’ve gotten used to chais?

Well, anyway, it’s an okay Christmas tea. Comfort & Joy and Tea of Good Tidings by Republic of Tea are much better…and it’s looking like I’m going to need to invest in those two again this season.

Another tea from my recent World Market trip. Couldn’t figure out what to have this morning, so I chose this one. Normally I would have set Chloe up with something last night, but I was very tired and went to bed at an unholy early hour. Expected to be up insanely early as a result, but no: I rolled out of bed a good 2 hours later than my normal time. Thus, I’m running a smidge later than I wanted (and being sore from moving furniture isn’t helping me in the speed category).

Brewed this for 3 minutes, and I think I’ll try it at 5 next time. It seems a bit watered down, but I can detect some spice and a hint of citrus. The tea is there, but still rather weak. Will wait and rate after I’ve tried the 5 min steep.