39 Tasting Notes
Backlog—
I absolutely love this tea. I haven’t tried many straight black teas, and only a few English breakfasts, but this beats all of them out by far. It’s bold, malty, full-bodied, and gets you going in the morning. The dry leaf aroma is divine. Definitely stands up to milk & sugar, or maybe even cream if that’s what floats your boat. It’s perfect for washing down a big savory breakfast. I order the 3oz package & have never had trouble finishing off the bag.
Preparation
Backlog—
Unlike other reviewers, I really enjoy/prefer this hot. Especially blended with Teavana’s Lemon Youkou. Iced fruit teas aren’t really my thing. I’d rather just have a glass of ice water.
This is super tart & I find it needs a lot of sweetener for me to enjoy it. But it definitely tastes like raspberry & has the tartness of lemon. I don’t really taste the mate because the fruit flavors are so prominent. But this is a really good fruit tea that could probably be blended with a green or white tea to add interesting flavor.
This blend is kind of sticky though! It would cling to the walls of the glass jar I kept it in. Very strange.
Preparation
I love that the orange really comes through in this. Usually spiced citrus black teas can lose that tart, fruity taste. This has more than just an orange essence and aroma, though. As for spice, I really taste cloves in this instead of cinnamon. However, cloves go great with orange and it’s still very warming and spicy. The addition of milk doesn’t mask any flavors, and makes the black tea taste a bit more malty. Overall, a really pleasant cup & definitely something new for me.
Preparation
The dry leaves smell rich and sweet, like toffee, butter, and salt. Steeped, most of the butteriness is lost and I cannot taste the salt at all. Mostly I taste burnt sugar, like the topping on creme brulee, and some creaminess. I don’t think I can take more than a cup of this at a time. I made two to fill my travel mug but the taste was too monotonous and boring after a while.
Preparation
Backlog—
This tea is very minty, sweet, and creamy. More amped up than a plain peppermint black tea. I blended this with vanilla black tea and added milk, and it was heavenly! I’ll definitely reorder this during the holidays. And, I have to admit, I love seeing the cute little candy cane bits in the dry leaves :]
Preparation
Backlog—
I definitely don’t taste, or smell, pumpkin in this. Which makes sense because the ingredients only specify “natural pumpkin spice flavor.” There’s really no hint of spice either, just a bland black tea with some kind of odd flavoring. Bleh.
Preparation
Backlog —
Apple is a pretty mellow flavor, but it definitely comes out in this tea and isn’t buried at all. The spices really complement the juicy apple cider taste but it’s more of a standard cinnamon apple flavor than a chai. Still, it’s a refreshing change from a standard masala chai.
Definitely follow Adagio’s instructions and use 2tsp of tea per 8oz water. As a force of habit I take this with milk, but I’m sure it’s just as delicious straight up. Or maybe steeped in actual apple cider? With brown sugar? Hmm I might have to reorder a sample and try that out.
Preparation
Backlog —
Adagio’s basic masala chai is good, but nothing super special, and nothing I haven’t tried before. I wasn’t sold on this upon first trying it, but brewing it double strength as a latte really improves it. The blend has TONS of cloves. I prefer more ginger and cardamom flavor in my chai though. If I’m going with a chai from Adagio, I’d rather have their spiced apple any day.
Preparation
Backlog —
A very interesting blend of flavors. Has a pretty smoky taste with some strawberry brightness in the background. The milk chocolate flavor definitely comes through as well. The floral smell of rose petals is a bit overwhelming to me, but that’s not a flavor I’ve ever been fond of so YMMV. Sometimes the smell is fine, but other times I find it off-putting. It took a few cups for me to come around to this, but it’s not all bad I guess.
