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Thanks to Ian for sending me this one. Sometimes you need put all formality aside and just say DUDE! I have to be honest I’ve been giddy about getting to try this one. I have had pure Hawaiian kona and it is one of my favorite treats to have in the coffee world. I love my coffee just as much as I love my tea. So my expectations are high knowing the quality that comes from the Island state. Not to mention an American tea that can stack up to teas that have been produced for thousands of years in other countries. The dry leaf is intriguing. There is a sweet aroma emanates almost like caramelized sugar. The tea reminds me a lot of of Dawn(Arunachal Pradesh) from The Simple Leaf. This is a fabulous tea. Second steep with dinner of Salmon and Boxty(Irish potato pancakes). Great

There are days where you just need to visit the old friends in your cupboard. I don’t think I need to expand on this one any more than I already have. So relaxing. Great today even though it’s sunny 60 in Clevealand.

Thanks to Lindsay for this one. My first Orchid Oolong. Now I’ve seen Orchid’s, Licorice, Ginseng oolong, and King’s oolongs and they seem to be synonymous with each other. Or so I thought. Check out the package no coating on the dry leaf really like you might see on some licorice oolongs(that candy coated like shell). Brew up the first cup. Eh kinda of a semi roasty nutty flavor to it. I didn’t get that sweetness though till the end of the cup. I didn’t really enjoy the first steep. However, in consecutive steeps afterward this tea really begins to unfold like an orchid. In the second steep is where I’m starting to detect the orchid. It reminds me of jasmine scented teas, but you can definitely tell that it is orchid and not jasmine. Then you have that sweetness at the end of the sip. This I enjoy quite a bit. I might be wrong but there has to be a little bit of ginseng in there or licorice root to produce that sweetness. If I am wrong…fabulous. I am thoroughly enjoying this tea. So with steep 3 and 4 I combined it with a sample of Teavana’s Dokudami Umami. The combination with licorice root in the umami was fantastic. I can’t wait to finish the rest of this, and try more to come!

I’m at the end of my sampling from Amy O and I have realized that I have not written about this one yet. For shame on me. I have said in many of my tasting notes that I love jasmine. It’s comforting, invigorating, and is just one of those aromas and tastes that seems to put me at ease. However I have never had it combined with a black tea. This however is quite delicious. The jasmine has a good presence but not overwhelming and the black tea is quite exceptional. Which is a little disappointing since this is one that Teavana has discontinued….seems to be a trend with me. I find ones that I really like from Teavana and they discontinue them. Bummer. Usually the black blend teas that I have tried from Teavana are okay in quality. This one seems really good though. Alas I will miss this one and miss the opportunity to add it to my cupboard to enjoy.

This one that came to me from oOteaOo. Really a nice smooth dark oolong. A little roasty, nutty exactly what you would expect from a darker oolong. I wouldn’t not call it astoundingly awesome, but still a good afternoon delight.

Thank you to BTVSGal for this one. The dry leaf has a pleasant aroma almost like Russian tea that you make at Christmas. For there being so much in this I’m a little disappointing in the flavor. I can make out a little of the apple and lemongrass. There claims to be cardamom, cloves, black pepper, cinnamon, and ginger, which should provide for a nice chai like taste but I’m not getting that. To be honest it kinda tastes like a cheap Celestial seasonings herbal blend. It’s pleasant but not invigorating and energizing to my senses. This one is just alright.

Hmmmm so I have Florence left from my swap with Amy O and Cocoa Mint black from Teavana. Muhahahaha! It’s almost like that moment in Cast Away when Tom Hanks exclaims “Look I have made fire”. The beauty of this combo is that Florence in my opinion doesn’t have enough flavor and sometimes the Cocoa Mint black has this tongue numbing flavor to it. With their powers combined offers a great mix where you can enjoy the chocolate and the mint. It’s almost like a thin mint in a cup. Outstanding!

Thank you Dinosara for this. The Chrysanthemum seem to rule supreme on this one. It is my first Verdant Tea to boot. The aroma of the dry leaf is like walking into a green house or through a spring field. This is my third tasting before reviewing it. Every time the actual tea has been pretty weak in compared to rest of the brew. I definitely like it. It’s very vegetal. I have tried another tea like this before and like the combination of Pu-Erh and Chrysanthemum, however the other that I tried was a fishy pu-erh. I didn’t notice the orange peel till I made this pot. I will say that the pu-erh is more prevalent in this tea. The flavor almost reminds me of dandelions like when you took one as a kid and rubbed the yellow on your arm. The only bummer about this tea is the pu-erh is very weak. I like a good strong dark pu-erh. Overall though a good tea.

Thanks to Amanda for sending this one to me. I brewed it up at work for my co-worker and I who daily enjoy tea. Then my GM passes me in the hall and gets a whiff, and said whoa that smells awesome. So I shared a cup with him as well. Another one coming to to the dark side (pinky finger to my mouth like Dr. Evil). It’s pretty good. I have to agree with Liberteas. It’s chai. There’s not really an extra bit of “hotness” but it’s a good cinnamon chai. It reminds me a lot of the French Spice Quartet from Teavana, but instead of oolong and Pu-Erh, just black tea. It is a good warm up and a nice little retreat. If you’ve been following the news then you know that being a newscaster in Cleveland right now kinda sucks! So getting towards the end of the cup I have this crazy idea add a little vanilla latte creamer that was in the fridge here at work. Yeah buddy that is a combo.

Again another moment of silence for a company that is missed by the tea loving community. Every tea that I have from SpecialTeas is always fabulous. Thank you Mercuryhime for this one. I have a high liking for dark oolongs they definitely have their own unique characteristics. The dry leaf has a woodsy aroma to it. When I was putting the water in with the dry leaf I noticed a sweet cranberry honey like aroma. That lovely aroma transfers into the cup. Hints of honey, cranberry, bing cherry, maybe even a little bit of grapefruit hits the palette. However I what I find odd about this tea is it’s ninja like camouflage skills. The dry leaf is a dark brown but add hot water and you the green. A great oolong though. Ahhh SpecialTeas if only I had found you sooner(sigh).