Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Orange Moon Tea Society
Tea Description:
Butterfly Circus Tea is a very aromatic floral blend of Gulabi tea, rose buds, jasmine blossoms, dried lemon, sarsaparilla, and rose & jasmine extract. Our medium size tin of Butterfly Circus loose tea provides about 8-10 cups or 2-3 teapots worth of brewed tea depending on your preferred tea strength. The tin is also reusable after the tea is gone!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Butterfly Circus Tea from The Orange Moon Tea Society can be described in one word-gorgeous. Simply gorgeous from the first sight to the last sip. With the large floral components to a lush smooth Gulabi tea, Butterfly Circus Tea is one tea that doesn’t disappoint! The packaging alone is simply stunning!
Based off a series of tea tales, The Orange Moon Tea Society has created a line of teas that are as beautiful as the tins/packaging that they are in. Take a second to check out their Etsy site, you’ll see what I mean.
First sip in you are greeted with a smooth lush silky black tea flavor with sweet notes of floral and a slight citrus undertone. The jasmine is noticeable in just about every note but what really steals the show is the Gulabi tea base. Light yet demanding attention in every taste. So incredibly smooth with just a tinge of astringency, even after the liquor cools. What more could one really ask for?
Seems like this tea is as romantic and gentle as it is vibrant and strong. Very well done and one that should be shared with many! This would be a perfect tea to share while reading a good book or enjoying your favorite TV show. So if you are in the market for a soul soothing cozy blend that you can snuggle up to, I highly recommend this one! You won’t be disappointed!
Apple Cider Tea from Harlow Tea Co
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy: Harlow Tea Co
Tea Description:
This loose leaf tea blend is a perfect mix of fruit, spice, and everything nice. The honeybush tea does not contain caffeine, making it perfect to relax with at any time of day.
Ingredients: Honeybush tea, candied cinnamon apples, cinnamon chips, chicory root, hibiscus flower, dried apple, and dried plum. Does not contain caffeine
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Apple Cider Tea from Harlow Tea Co, an Etsy store, may have just made my whole day! This tea is exactly what the doctor ordered. Harlow Tea Co is a gem of a tea shop I recently stumbled upon. They offer quite an array of hand blended teas for their customers to enjoy. I love their attitude when it comes to creating their tea blends.
“Tea should be made in small batches right? Harlow Tea Co. believes so. No machines, or heavy equipment is used to make these tea blends.” I just adore tea companies that use this motto and passion. One reason why I love 52Teas so much.
First impression of this tea, I was very happy with what I was seeing. Large chunks of apple-both candied and dried on a bed of honeybush. When I took a quick whiff of the dry leaf, this definitely had those familiar cinnamon and apple notes that you get from apple cider.
So I brewed this tea up like an herbal-boiling and steeped about 5 minutes. The end result was a lovely pale liquor that I couldn’t wait to try. I allowed the brew to cool for a few minutes and took my first sip.
Fresh juicy slightly tart apple flavor with a sweetness that really does resemble and remind you of an apple cider. The cinnamon isn’t overwhelming and really heightens the flavor nicely. The honeybush is the perfect base for this tea, allowing the other flavors to really shine while also adding a creamy note. Each sip is sweet and smooth, delivering a solid flavor.
To say I was impressed by this tea isn’t doing this tea justice. I have had about 7 infusions out of the same tea leaves today and yesterday (each day adding a minute to my steeping) and tho the blend is probably at the end, I”m still loving that apple cider flavor I’m getting.
This blend is a perfect example of an herbal tea done right!
Sunshine Cottage from Sunshine Cottage
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Sunshine Cottage
Tea Description:
Good Morning Sunshine! Start every morning off with this bright and happy, citrus and tropical fruit blend, and you’ll start every day with a smile. Lovely as is, with a drizzle of honey, even a splash of milk. Great iced when the weather heats up!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Good morning sunshine is right! This tea starts your morning off right!
This lovely tea is from the amazing Sunshine Cottage Etsy store, a store for all those flavored black tea fans out there. Sunshine Cottage tea is a take on a tropical tea and a happy way to wake up in the morning with a bright colored tea to add to your tea spot.
I brewed this tea up with boiling water and let it steep for about 4 minutes. Allowed it to cool for a moment and then indulged myself in the tropical citrus aroma that was delighting me.
First sip and yes! This tea is a tropical citrus tea for sure. The citrus is almost like a juicy tangerine flavor while the tropical flavors are more subtle in the background. There are hints of this tea becoming astringent but I’m not picking that up right away. It is more of a lingering aftertaste from drinking the tea for a few moments.
On the package of the tea there was also a note about jasmine being in the blend and I’m sad that I’m not picking up those notes. I can’t say what a jasmine tropical citrus tea would taste like and honestly it may not go well together but I kind of want to try it.
As the tea sits now it was a delight and one that I would have no probably making up for the family to enjoy. I bet this would make an incredible iced tea and I have plans to try this as a cold brew to enjoy in the morning.
HoneyBee Tea from Sunshine Cottage
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Sunshine Cottage
Tea Description:
Lightly floral with a lingering honey taste, a sip of this tea conjures up images of honey bees in the warm summer sun visiting flower after flower – This is definitely a happy tea!!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I adore Sunshine Cottage teas. I have reviewed several of their teas and have found very few that I don’t just fall in love with instantly!
As the description indicates, this tea is a happy tea. The warm honey notes and the irresistible black tea base mix well together giving you a smooth and sweet cuppa that makes you smile. I haven’t tried this iced but I will. As good as this is as a hot cuppa, iced I can only imagine how incredible this tea would be. I am planning on ordering more soon to try this as a cold brew or even try mixing this up in a cake mix to liven up a treat.
My only issue with this tea is how bitter it gets quick if you oversteep which I did on my second infusion. But my first infusion was pure honey heaven! The honey was sweet and natural tasting without any strong astringency notes. I can see this being a great tea to be served at tea time with some little biscuits or treats. Matter of fact, I think I might just plan my own tea party and serve this.
If you haven’t tried Sunshine Cottage teas, you are missing out. These are some of the best flavored black teas I’ve had in a while! The are fresh and so much fun!
Marrakech Mint from Blackbird Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Blackbird Tea Co website or Blackbird Tea Co Etsy Store
Tea Description:
If you’ve ever been to Morocco, you know the pleasure of drinking green tea with mint and ample amounts of sugar after dinner, or really, just about anytime. Our blend of loose leaf gunpowder green tea, peppermint and spearmint will help your meal settle – and the bonus? Fresh breath.
Brewing Instructions – Using water that hasn’t quite yet boiled (about 180 degrees Fahrenheit), steep 1 teaspoon of tea per 8 oz. of water for 2-3 minutes. Enjoy.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I am exhausted right now so I wanted a tea that was both refreshing and invigorating. I thought maybe a mint tea would do the job so I grabbed for a tea from a company I didn’t know about until recently.
Blackbird Tea Co has a presence both on Etsy and with their own website. They have a gorgeous website. Simple but beautiful. I love how the pictures of the tea are not over done and they let their sleep package do the talking. I was sold from the moment I saw their slick canisters.
Since this is a green tea, I just used the water for our coffee machine here at work and popped the tea into the water. As I sat waiting for the tea to steep, I enjoyed the delicious mint aroma I could smell. I felt that bit of pep that I was looking for.
Let this steep for about 3 minutes and took my first sip. This tea delivered on the taste I was looking for. Brisk green tea with a soothing refreshing mint that really invigorates your senses. Green tea with mint is a pretty simple tea but it has to be done right. Sometimes the mint can really overwhelm the tea or go the opposite way and be hardly noticeable. That is not the case with this blend. The peppermint and spearmint play nicely together in my cuppa and the green tea provides that smooth delicate feel with hints of a roasted flavor in every other sip or so. Very nicely done.
This tea gave me exactly what I need today. Just a bit of pep with a gorgeous mint background. I’m excited to try this as a mint iced tea. I’m thinking this would be a marvelous prepared that way. I do have a favorite Marrakech Mint from Tealated that I adore but this one is right there along with that blend. All the different aspects are just so fantastically present and not one flavor controls the flavor. I hope all the Blackbird Tea Co teas are this fantastic!