A recent tea swap introduced me to a new company, Pinky Up. Pinky Up has a great selection of unique sounding loose leaf teas such as Confetti Cake, Matcha Ice Cream, Green Gummy, Rosewater Basil, etc. In addition to their loose leaf variety, Pinky Up also has a bunch of different blooming teas to try including Honeydew Gelato, Pina Colada, Peaches and Cream, Creme Brulee and this tea, Candied Apple.
I find blooming teas are never amazing tastewise but they are always fun to watch bloom. They are the teas you want when you want a tea experience instead of just a quick cup to go. This Candied Apple blooming tea by Pinky Up is no exception. It’s really a fun tea to watch bloom.
One thing I will note is that a fair amount of the leaves were still bound up in the string after I steeped the tea for just under 4 minutes. I think my error was using water that was too cool. I used 175F water, my usual temperature for green teas, and I think it was not hot enough to force the leaves out of their binding which meant I don’t think this tea fully bloomed.
I was worried that the longer than usual steep might have made the tea bitter and once I realized the still bound leaves, I was worried the tea wouldn’t be that flavorful. I am happy to report both these concerns were not warranted as the tea is quite nice.
This tea has a bright red apple flavor. It is actually interesting because apple teas tend to have a generic sort of apple flavor but this is distinctively red apple. Actually more than just red apple, it has a pretty strong apple juice vibe to it. Sweeter than a typical apple but I don’t know if it is quite candied-level sweetness. I think that is where I am getting the idea of juice from since apple juice is always sweeter than the fruit itself. However, unlike juice, this still has the lightness of a green tea.
This tea actually tasted better than expected, even if it didn’t actually taste like a candied apple as the name would suggest. Despite my concerns about brewing mentioned above, my experience has been blooming teas have been more aesthetically oriented than taste focused. This is a nice combination of both looks and flavor and has me browsing the Pinky Up site looking for more!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Blooming Tea/Green
Where to Buy: Pinky Up
Description
This tea is no longer on the website but click below for blends that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Peri Flower Blooming Tea – California Tea House
Hello readers! I am happy to bring you a tea that I have been dying to try, a blooming tea. I have not been able to for I also found them too expensive to buy. I mean I know that this is a tea that is not your normal loose leaf or bag but I always saw the “best selling” flowering teas to be about $10 a bulb. So I am glad that I finally got a chance to try this beautiful tea!
Now, first off this tea was beautiful! And don’t worry I posted a video of it blooming on my Instagram, official_karatics. Now on to the important part, the flavor. Now I can’t tell you what I was expecting it to taste like for I wanted to go into this blind. I would say that the flavor was interesting for it tasted like a combination of Oolong and green tea for I was getting a slightly fermented flavor. It is a very light flavor and has a slightly herbal finish. But I think this mainly has to with the company’s white tea, which is their version of Silver Needle. With all that considered I don’t know whether to put this tea into the relaxing tea category or the everyday tea, so I will just say it is both!
Now I have already touched on the price of flowering tea in the beginning of this review and I will say it is indeed cheaper than most of the brands that I have come across. As of right now, the price is $3 per bulb and $15 for 10, that is 50% of off a pack that should cost $30. I would say that these prices are pretty inexpensive compared to what is on the market nowadays. Not to mention that this or any of the other flowering teas that they have on their site will be perfect for gifts or perfect for use at formal celebrations.
I probably will purchase from this company in the future but probably not the Peri Flower tea or any of the other blooming teas for I don’t really care for the taste of Silver Needle. I will say that they do have one tea in their flowering tea range that has a black tea or Golden Monkey Paw. That tea is called Black Gold and maybe more up my alley, so if you are looking into a flowering tea but are more of a black tea drinker like myself it may be worth a shot.
See you for the next cuppa!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Blooming Flower Tea
Where to Buy: California Tea House
Description
Peri Flower is a beautiful artisan bouquet of Silver Needle a white tea with a multi-level, soft canary Chrysanthemum bloom. Blooming tea, flowering tea, make a perfect tea wedding favor and party gift. Email us for information about private labeling for a personal touch on wedding gift tea blooms.
Bring a pot of mineral water to a boil and pour into a clear pot, vase or large glass. Drop a single handmade blooming tea ball into the hot water and let steep for 4 to 6 minutes until the flower blooms. Once the tea has fully bloomed the tea is ready to drink. These are tasty, floral health bulbs!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
My Morning with Blooming Teas from Flower Pot Tea Company. . . . . . .
Lately I’ve noticed that my tea loving heart has been craving more lush green and vibrant white teas than anything else. With having a more stressful job right now, I’ve found that these particular teas have a way of calming me in the afternoon, letting me know everything will be okay.
Recently, The SororiTea Sisters received a gracious sample box from Flower Pot Teas, a company that mainly focuses on floral teas and blooming teas. I have to say, blooming teas and I haven’t always gotten along. I love the flavor but can never get them to bloom correctly. I know the problem has to be how I brew the tea, even though I brew the tea exactly the way the steeping parameters are provided. But I thought a pretty pot full of blooming tea goodness was exactly what I needed to perk up my morning. So I was determined to get my teapot to look like one of their gorgeous pictures to put me in a better mood. . .
I didn’t quite achieve that look, but I also wasn’t using a fluted glass. I think for once, my blooming tea actually bloomed! Now the tea pot I used was more wide where this blooming tea probably needed more of sleek tall brewing vessel, but I’m good with what I was able to yield. This particular attempt to create those gorgeous blooming teas turned out to be incredibly pleasing. The first blooming tea I tried was their Brilliant Berry.
Full of gorgeous rich vegetal tones (probably because I oversteeped for a few minutes, but the flavor worked!), this blooming tea gave me all the tea feels. The berry flavor is light while the floral notes are also subtle. For the most part, blooming teas that I’ve had in the past have either been just overly floral or overly flavored. Not this tea. The actual tea is the centerpiece. I was able to get a few different infusions out of the tea with the flavor just slightly diminishing with each session.
The second blooming tea I tried from Flower Pot Tea Company was their Lush Lavender. I was a bit worried because I’m not a huge lavender fan but loved how this tea was described on their site:
Our Lush Lavender Tea relieves tension and anxiety with soothing aromas to cleanse the mind and the well-rounded earthiness of refreshing white tea.
Exactly what my adulting soul needed.
Brewed this tea up per the parameters provided (boiling water-steep for 5 minutes) and found myself just as enamored with this offering as the Brilliant Berry. Again, a brilliant balanced tea where the tea is the spotlight and not so much the flavoring. Earthy bright notes create such a satisfying sip without any floral or flavored overtones. Just marvelous spot on tea. I was again able to use the same blooming tea for a few times before the tea leaves gave out. I was actually sad when the flavor started to give because I was greedily devouring cuppa after cuppa.
For blooming teas, I will say, these two offerings definitely are some of the better ones I’ve had. Plus the fact that they actually bloomed. . .that just makes me giddy. Gotta love a tea that tastes amazing, soothes the soul, and looks gorgeous in your tea pot!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Flower Pot Tea Company
Description
Flowers blossom in your cup, unfurling elegant color and flavor before your very eyes.
A cup of this juicy tea is sure to add a little pop of color to your day. Keep them for up to 5 days as a striking centerpiece for your table or desk!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Ceylon Idulgashinna Blooming Mushroom White from What-Cha
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White/Bloom
Where to Buy: What-Cha
Tea Description:
A hand tied ball of silver tip white tea, possessing delicate fruity tones which become stronger with subsequent infusions. Tangy apricot notes become apparent with some subtle malt tones in latter steeps.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I have to admit, the only reason I bought this tea was because it has ‘mushroom’ in the title and it intrigued me since I’m very allergic to mushrooms. Though the tea itself has little to nothing to do with mushrooms, it still felt kind of cool to get to say I was ‘having them’. #TeaOnTheEdge #ButNot2Edgy
I only bought a sample amount; two blooms. When I opened up the package I was pretty taken aback because the smell was very pungent and defined. It certainly smelled strongly of apricots but also something sort of akin to sweet and sour sauce? I wasn’t expecting that level of smell at all, though it was intriguing to say the least.
I made three 12 oz. infusions of this one over the course of a work day, making sure to take note of the differences. I certainly freaked out a few coworkers at my new job; they saw this unfurled tea bloom from a distance/in passing in my mug in the breakroom and assumed something fungal was growing in my mug and that’s because the bloom certainly wasn’t the most attractive one I’ve come across – there’s no “flower” tied into it just an arrangement of white tea leaves tethered together. Which is fine: I wasn’t drinking this tea for the aesthetics however I’ll admit I did expect the “mushroom” to tie in with the overall shape of the bloom but it certainly didn’t look like any mushroom I’ve seen.
The first infusion was a mix of sharp, lively, tangy notes of apricot and peach. Again, the intensity of the ‘tang’ reminded me a little of sweet and sour sauce. Actually, in particular I couldn’t help but think of a very particular flavour from highschool cooking class I’ve only experienced once: we made vegetarian meatballs with a “sweet and sour sauce” that used apricot jam and ketchup in the sauce and this was quite similar to my memory of that sauce. There was also a very slightly malty taste to the finish of this infusion.
The second infusion was about 50/50 malt and apricot/peach with less of the piercing tang. It was probably the smoothest infusion overall and I’d say my favourite. Finally, the third infusion was more malt than anything else with light notes of apricot and a bit of a peppery finish. I swear there were also very light cocoa notes on the top of the sip as well.
Overall, I thought this was surprisingly delightful – more so than I actually expected it would be if I’m being completely honest/transparent. What started off as a bit of a ‘gag’ purchase actually resulted in a wonderful tea session and intriguing learning experience. Also, credit where credit is due: What-Cha has done a marvelous job describing the overall flavour of this tea on their page for it. While I was taken back by the intensity of the apricot notes there’s no doubt in my mind that their flavour description was super accurate. I absolutely recommend trying this tea!
French Toast Dianhong Black Flowering Tea from Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black/Flowering
Where to Buy: Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Description:
As my first batch of French Toast Dian Hong, I decided to go lightly on the flavoring because the natural cocoa taste from the tea is pleasant enough to keep the flavoring at a low amount. This tea proves to pull out different taste from different steeps from my experience and I am hoping you find the same to be true.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Some of my favourite tea companies are the ones where you really get a feel for the owners as people; a hand picked sample, signed note added in to my order, and online interactions on sites such as Steepster are all touches that win me over quite a lot as a consumer; and something really cool about Liquid Proust Teas, a retailer which opened quite recently, is that I kind of got a feel for the owner, Andrew, before the company was even hatched since, first and foremost, he was a Steepster member himself and is a consumer as well as a seller too.
Recently, I did a swap with him and he generously included a few of his own blends. Personally, I thought this seemed the most interesting of what he sent me. A few other companies such as 52Teas, both under new and old management, have attempted French Toast teas but I’ve yet to be wowed by one and I think Andrew’s approach here is quite a bit different than the ones they’ve taken so I’m definitely excited!
I brewed this ‘Grandpa Style’ because that’s my typical approach with blooming/flowering teas. I knew that there was a possibility that it would get bitter because that’s a risk you always take when brewing Grandpa Style but this was unwaveringly smooth and silky. The entire time I spent drinking this (a few hours in total) there wasn’t even the slightest hint of bitterness OR astringency. I’m incredibly impressed by that.
The flavour was very fluffy and sweet, but reserved enough to not be cloying or make me feel like I was drinking syrup straight from the bottle. The rich notes of custard, cream, vanilla, cocoa, and, yes, egg hardly waned at all throughout the session. There were also lighter notes of cinnamon that I thought did fade towards the end of my session, and some pretty pronounced malt notes from the tea itself along with more muted floral notes. I likely could have continued to drink this for another hour or possibly longer with very little flavour deterioration. More than that, if it had not have been midnight I would have continued to drink this which is certainly high praise from me given that I dislike resteeping in general (drink as many teas as possible in one day is my philosophy).
My only criticism would be that the “toast” part of “French toast” was lacking; I’d have liked stronger bread notes contributed from the base tea to complete the illusion; but that’s just me getting hyper critical of one of the better flavoured teas I’ve had all month. If Andrew’s other teas are as tasty as this one I’m in for a real treat!