513 Tasting Notes
Five scoops of this tea, almost 24 hours of brew time, and we have a drinkable tea. I really got the lemon in this one, followed up by a touch of raspberry, and just a hint of mate maybe in the grassy end note. Overall, I was pretty impressed with it. This is definitely an iced tea, not one I think would be very good at all served hot. However, as an iced tea is a nice alternative to lemon-aid, with enough similarity that I don’t miss the juice.
This is a strong tea, however, apparently three scoops are not enough to flavour a two litre iced tea pitcher. Any thoughts about how many scoops I reasonably need to cold steep a two litre pitcher overnight in the fridge?
I’d do at least six for 2l, but I love love strong tea.
Thank you! I upped it to a good for for the mate I threw in tonight. I too like my tea strong, I am going to lengthen my steep time too. Given enough time I am sure I can hit upon the perfect matrix of tea and steep time, I just wonder how many trial batches it will take to find it!
*I mean five scoops
This was another really pretty tea. I think, if nothing else, Teavana really did well in terms of the visual appeal of these spring teas. They are full of gorgeous, vibrant colours and different components.
In terms of the tea, it definitely has the citrus and the grapefruit component to it. It is a really tart tea, but still pleasant. I gave it a short steep at a lower temperature and that was sufficient to pull some nice flavours from it. I didn’t get as much strawberry as I might have hoped, but that may be a flavour note I need to look for with a bit of time and an earlier evening cup of tea.
Either way, this one tasted very much as I was expected it to and, overall, I was pretty impressed with it.
Preparation
This was interesting, and I mean that in the best of ways. Once I had convinced myself to refrain from eating any more of the mini marshmallows, I brewed a kettle hot for me and the boys. (Their choice, which surprised me.) This is really apple heaving, though the tropical fruit does definitely make it’s presence known. The final note is the orange, which is a surprising twist. Overall, I enjoy it, but I find the flavour a little less than cohesive. I feel like there is a lot going on here, and it is kind of one show after another. I don’t dislike the flavours, but the overall tea is very busy. I think I need to try this iced and try it a few more times to form an overall opinion.
It does bear mention, though, that this is a beautiful blend visually. The rosebuds add beautiful touches of pink which contrast with the splashes of colour from the orange and the tropical fruit.
As a side not, my iced tea pitcher came in the mail with this order. Now I shall be able to brew vast quantities of iced tea to my heart’s content!!
Cold steeped this today, this officially counts as the best idea I have had in a long time!! Cold brewed, the ginger is absent, the cinnamon tones down, and this becomes all about the tart and the hibiscus. Super refreshing and a gorgeous red brew. I think I may love this even more iced than I did hot, and that is saying something!
Preparation
I am enjoying this tea more and more each time I drink it. I find that, when the tea is warm, the sweetness from the cinnamon is the dominant flavour. However, as the tea cools, the tartness from the hibiscus starts to pop more. I have some cold steeping in the fridge to see what effect that has on it.
Last tasting note and second teapot experiment yesterday. I brewed a friend and I a pot of this, sweetened it, and just let it sit and steep as we played board games for the evening. As I had hoped, it just got better and better. The strawberry notes were initially the dominant flavour but, as it steeped, the chocolate really started to shine through. I can never decide if I like this or the original better, but I enjoy them both!
