two leaves and a bud

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a good cup of jasmine tea, and this fits the bill! :D

Had one last cup of this at work before I decided that I simply couldn’t drink any more. I originally though this tea was decent, but I no longer think it’s quality green tea at all. While the aroma is very citrusy and fresh, the tea doesn’t taste like it at all. In fact, it is very sour in a way which the green tea and other flavour elements don’t seem to mix well at all. Each sip leaves quite an unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth – slightly grassy/seaweedy, but mostly sour. Not like citrus-sour either, more like spoiled sour. =/ It’s not even old – only a couple months. I got in in February on my birthday. Disappointing, this could have been a good tea.

I had this at Swich Cafe where my friend works yesterday. This tea vendor had lots of interesting choices, and I went with this one because I wanted something lighter and refreshing to go with my sandwich (which was also delicious).
Unfortunately they put absolutely boiling water on these delicate leaves, so I feel like a lot of the flavour was lost or burnt off, but it still had a nice greeny base with hints of citrusy notes here and there. It was just OK this round, I’d want to try it again properly brewed next time.

Tasty, mildly sweet assam.

Delicious! My favorite black tea. Lightly sweet and floral, hint of jasmine.

this jasmine suits my disposition and position on jasmine as my flavorite favor, mnang taste lovely

Very light in nature, delicate flavors. Nearly no aroma. Grassy. Subtly sweet. I really enjoyed it. For a ‘bagged’ tea I was thoroughly pleased with the appearance of the post-infusion leaves — you just never see that in a tea bag. Amazing colour to the liquor too — bright yellow, almost like a white tea. Gave this a 3/5 for value and flavor (however light) in my teal cupping journal.

I have had this one every morning this week…good mix of malty and sweet, without bitterness. One sachet is strong enough to hold up for 16 ounces of water. I recommend it when you’re looking for a morning Assam and want the convenience of a bagged tea.

An excellent quality jasmine. Not quite as floral as Paromi Jasmine, but for people who don’t love heavy flowers, a great option.

Not bad for a green tea in a bag. Had this one at a breakfast place in Davis this morning. Could use some more taste, it was a bit on the bland side, but what was there was very good. Nice and light, with hints of straw and grass. I could even sense a slight hint of butter. I little too light for my taste, though.

I highly recommend this tea – it is my favorite. I drink probably 4 cups a day with raw sugar

Got this as a sample. Did not like it when I first try it. Try it again and I liked a lot better.

Chamo- millionaire

I’m pretty sure that I rated this tea before, so this must be another case of a multi-profiled tea… Anyway, as I am currently in the midst of a travel-imposed loose tea hiatus, this sachet of Organic Tamayokucha is tasting mighty fine. True, it’s my first Japanese tea in at least two weeks, so my judgment may be skewed by deprivation.

The flavor seems to me half-way between a succulent China green and a Japanese green. Definitely neither a sencha flavor nor a bancha flavor! It’s even reminding me a tad of my limited Indonesian green tea experience. I have a couple more of these sachets, which came in the sampler box from Two Leaves. It’s a somewhat odd concept for a sampler box: three different teas, this Tamayokucha, an Assam, and a bedtime valerian-chamomile blend. I find it odd because Two Leaves has many other varieties of teas to be sampled!

On a tangentially related note: I am no longer a fan of cellophane-wrapped sachets (which is why I am using all of mine up on this trip). The last straw was when the scent of my Mighty Leaf mint tea ended up infusing into all of the other cellophane-wrapped teas with which it was stored!

Had this tea at the spa on the weekend – not that I regularly spend time at the spa, but when there, why not drink tea? I really enjoyed it – a nice, light herbal tea. I’m quite surprised to see the reviews indicating a strong hibiscus flavor; I didn’t even notice hibiscus. Slightly fruity and very relaxing.

The scent of this tea was so scrummy. It was sweet and fruity, and I was excited to get brewing right away. And let me tell you, the taste of Tropical Goji Green was just as delicious as its smell. “Flavoring” can be a little tricky because it can overpower the tea, but in this tea it was a nice balance. The flavoring was fruity and slightly tangy, and this paired nicely with the fresh, grassy, and light sweetness of the green tea. I decided to go back for seconds and steeped the bag for a second time. The aromas mellowed a bit, but it was still good the second time around.

Bottom line, this tea was pretty darn tasty. I need more of this stuff because I’m thinking it would make a delicious iced tea. Think of how great it would be to enjoy this outside on a warm day while reading a good book. Fruity and refreshing, I’m sure!

This tea surprised me. Mostly because I’d never heard of Gen Mai Cha, so I was blown away when I found little, roasted rice nestled amongst green tea leaves. I had to do a little research on Gen Mai Cha because I couldn’t figure out why someone would want to brew roasted rice. According to good ol’ Wikipedia, Gen Mai Cha was drunk by poor Japanese people back in the day. The roasted rice was a filler to cut down on the cost of the tea.

I was skeptical of the tea because the scent reminded me of Honey Smacks cereal (minus most of the sweetness), and I was never too fond of Honey Smacks. This tea grew on me as is cooled down though. When the tea was still hot, all I tasted was the puffed rice, and I couldn’t help but feel like I was drinking watery porridge. This isn’t necessarily bad because I like porridge, but I would have been disappointed if that’s all it was. When the tea cooled down to a luke-warm temperature, the aroma of the green tea finally surfaced, and the flavors seemed to marry. The aroma of the roasted rice mellowed and became nice and nutty, which tasted good with the fresh and light sweetness from the green tea.

Bottom Line, Two Leaves and Bud’s Organic Gen Mai Cha is a win. Even though I’m still trying to wrap my head around puffed rice in tea, the flavors in this tea just worked, and they only got better with each sip I took.

It’s actually the first time I bought this brand of tea, Two Leaves and a Bud (cute name) from Whole Foods. Supposedly it has a new look to it (I don’t know what the packaging looks like before). As I opened the box, I noticed that each tea sachet is individually wrapped and sealed in plastic (not a fan of plastic wrap). When I open the package, I noticed that each tea sachet string with paper handle is sort of glued together and is slightly glued to the sachet itself (didn’t see any glue left on sachet as I peeled it, if there is, shouldn’t be toxic or harmful right?).

From the first taste, I really like it. It tastes so simple and natural. It is not as strong tasting as I would expect but very soft, smooth, and possibly elegant tasting. I myself do not have much tasting experience with tea in general and so this is just based on my opinion. The package did say that it has a “whiff of rich apple scent with soft honey notes and a lemon edge to it”. Unfortunately I myself cannot tell. If anything, give it a try and see if you like it.

Method: 1 tea bag in 8 oz at 205 degrees for 3 min.

Impressions: The color was lovely and the aroma was nice, but the tartness of the hibiscus was overpowering. After adding about a tsp. of rock sugar, this was much better. Even with the sugar to soften things, I didn’t taste anything past the hibiscus.

TTBC Rd2

As far as oolongs go this is a rather tasty one – it’s got all the malty, roasty dark-brown flavours that I enjoy, but there’s also an odd salty note at the beginning of each sip that I’m decidedly less fond of.

Not a favourite, so it goes back in the box.