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We’ve been drinking mostly herbals this weekend so I thought I would start the morning off with one of my husband’s favorites. I’m still not sold on this one, at least not by itself, but it’s not bad. It tastes more like pineapple candy than true pineapple, unfortunately. I would love to find a tea that tastes like an actual piece of juicy pineapple. It’s warm though and serves its purpose this bright Sunday morning.

Backlog from January 24th:

What a rough day. I was out most of the afternoon and came home hungry, grumpy, and really wanting some comforting tea. My husband made me a cup of this since it has calming chamomile, and I sipped on it throughout most of the afternoon. It was a bit weak for my taste, but it was something warm – it felt good to wrap my hands around the fragrant, steaming mug.

Backlog from January 24th:

I started my morning with a cup of this tea before heading out to a children’s birthday party. I had written a detailed note as I was drinking my first cup but forgot to save it before I left so when I returned home it was gone. This was not my favorite of the Saint Simons Tea Company teas, I do remember that. It was cloudy with what looked like citrus pulp and tasted both sweet and tart. It was fruity, yes, but not really any better than your average fruit tisane. I’ll write a proper note once I’ve had a chance to try this blend again.

Backlog from January 23rd:

My husband and I decided to drink only herbals over the weekend so I needed to get one last cup of black tea in before bed. I chose this one since it’s become somewhat of a favorite these last couple of weeks. I sipped on this while cooking dinner, and it turned out to be just what I needed. I saved the sachet for a re-steep but never got around to it. I woke up the next morning to find it forgotten on the edge of last night’s saucer, teasing and taunting me with its sweet vanilla fragrance. Such a shame!

I’m having this favorite again today. It never gets old. It’s the perfect milky color, like a coffee heavy on the cream. It’s a forgiving tea, one that’s hard to mess up really.

Second Steep
8 ounces water + 200 degrees + 10 minutes

I’m attempting a re-steep of this one today just to see if it can be done. I’m guessing with a teabag it may not be successful since the pieces are just so small. After steeping for close to ten minutes, the color is very light. It’s nearly as dark and deep as the first cup. It barely even smells like tea really, more like a mug of hot water. I’m kind of tasting the tea the more I drink, but it’s still not worth the re-steep in my opinion.

This is my second time to try this blend. I see cloves and peppercorns in this cup so I’m hoping it’s a little spicy. I can smell the spices, but it’s also smelling a little sweet. I’m always worried about teas with sarsaparilla because I’m afraid it’s going to taste like hot root beer, but that hasn’t been my experience with this tea so far.

The aroma as it’s steeping is almost entirely rooibos. Sweetened with honey, it tastes very slightly spiced – not enough to determine which spice I’m actually tasting. It’s mostly rooibos which is what I experienced the first time around. I used too much water I think so next time I’ll try less and see if that strengthens the flavors. I’m thinking this might be better cold, maybe made like a southern iced tea with sugar.

Second Steep
8 ounces water + 200 degrees + 4 minutes

I’m attempting to re-steep this though I’m nut sure if you are actually supposed to re-steep rooibos. I noticed that the liquid started to color very quickly within the first few seconds, but it didn’t get much darker after that. The liquid does smell spicier this time, like cinnamon. I can taste the cinnamon now too. It still tastes watered down (since I forgot to use less water), but the spices are more prominent this time.

Having a cup of this with cream and honey this morning for breakfast. This is one of my all-time favorites, really the first tea I started buying and drinking on my own. The bergamot is there, both in the taste and in the aroma, but it isn’t overpowering at all. It flavors the tea nicely. I kind of wish I had brought another bag of this to work with me.

I woke up with a headache this morning and, after reading through some of the posts on the discussion board, decided to make myself some mint tea. This cup is fresh and sweet and reminds me of springtime. It’s a good tea for mid-morning, I think. Here’s hoping it does something for this headache.

I gave the first cup of this to a friend at work and am now enjoying the second steep myself. It’s light in body but that is probably to be expected as it’s the second cup. Since I’m so unfamiliar with cistus oil, I did a little reading to find out just what it is. I won’t go into all the details here, but it seems to have quite a few beneficial properties. For anyone who is interested, here is one website that seemed to have some good information about it.

http://www.synergyessentialoils.com/cistus