Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
The earthy smoothness of Pu’er creates a warm foundation for the rich flavor of hazelnut while playful, tangy-sweet strawberries peek through the nutty opulence. A hint of cream adds a soft, dreamy note to the blend.
Pu’er Tea, Strawberries, Cocoa Nibs, Natural Strawberry Flavor, Natural Creme Flavor, Natural Hazelnut Flavor
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
When I opened the pouch of this Hazelberry Pu’er Blend from Simple Loose Leaf, I didn’t smell a strong earthy aroma. Instead, what I smelled was hazelnuts! Hints of fruit in the background, along with a slight earthy tone that mingled with the hazelnuts in way that was agreeable to the olfactory senses. The brewed tea smells strongly of hazelnuts with notes of earth and a berry note.
This is a really tasty Pu-erh blend! The hazelnut flavor is well-defined and stands out. The earthy notes of the Pu-erh meld with the nutty notes to create this really intense nutty flavor that is quite yummy. It has a deep and mellow flavor, something that you just want to curl up with and enjoy.
The strawberry notes are not as strongly pronounced as the hazelnut, but, they are sweet with a tart note toward the finish. I don’t know that I’ve ever had a hazelnut and strawberry blend before, but these two flavors work well together. There is a creamy backdrop to the cup, and this seems to bring out the cacao flavors a little bit (as does the earthy tones of the Pu-erh and the hazelnut). If I were to change anything at all about this blend, I’d want a little more chocolate. But when do I ever want less chocolate? Never. More chocolate is always better.
This is really good. I didn’t brew it the way I traditionally brew a Pu-erh (in my gaiwan) but I did take it for a quick rinse before the first steep, and I do recommend doing this to help wash away some of the stronger earthy qualities of the tea.
I got this tea in my April Selection Club box and I am just thrilled with it! Wonder what it’s like to get a Selection Club sampler box? Click here to see what teas I received this month! Awesome, right? Well, I’ve got even more good news: Simple Loose Leaf has a special April promotion. Get your first month of the Selection Club for just one dollar! Use this code: 1DOLLARMONTH and enjoy up to five samples of different teas next month for just one dollar! You can also opt to receive a larger quantity of one or two teas rather than the sampler box that I usually choose. Interested? Check it out here and enjoy some great teas at a really great price next month.
Caramel Toffee Flavored Oolong Tea from Octavia Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Octavia Tea
Tea Description:
This is sweet and creamy with decadent caramel. It’s certainly rich with flavour, but balanced out enough by the profile of the dark oolong that you can enjoy every last sip without getting overwhelmed. The oolong lends an amazing roasted character that blends perfectly with the hazelnut.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh … yum! This Caramel Toffee Flavored Oolong Tea from Octavia Tea is so good, and as I’m sipping on this tea and writing this review, this song came on my Pandora Radio – a perfect tune for this tea experience!
I had high expectations going in to this tea experience. With a tea called “Caramel Toffee Oolong,” well, it better be good, right? And it is.
The caramel/toffee notes are very well-defined and they meld so beautifully with the dark Oolong. The Oolong has a slightly smoky character that complements the toffee. It’s a sweet, smooth and silky Oolong. I typically find that darker Oolong teas have more of a fruity character than a floral one, and that is true of this tea base.
The caramel and toffee bring a sweet flavor and a hint of bitter burnt sugar taste to the cup. The natural nutty tones of the Oolong are enhanced with the notes of hazelnut flavoring, creating a very delicious, dessert-y sort of flavor that would make a great next-to-no calorie substitution for something fattening. It tastes like it should be naughty but it isn’t.
A truly decadent and delicious tea treat – I’m glad that this one was in my Amoda Tea Tasting Box for this month!
Autumn’s Walk Custom Blend from Adagio Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black Tea & Honeybush
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Tea Description:
A caffeine-free blend, Autumn’s Walk is the perfect companion on brisk fall and winter nights. Brew a cup of this decaf vanilla, honeybush hazelnut and honeybush chocolate tea and relax peacefully.
A Carolynne Keenan Custom Blend.
Learn more about this custom blend here.
Find more of Carolynne Keenan blends here.
Taster’s Review:
I was a little skeptical about this blend when I read the description. I’m not all that crazy about Adagio’s black teas, and while I don’t recall having tried any of their decaffeinated black tea bases, because my opinion is generally less favorable of decaffeinated teas versus the caffeinated, seeing that there was an Adagio decaffeinated black tea in this blend gave me a reason to be skeptical.
But, I’m actually enjoying this Autumn’s Walk Custom Blend from Adagio Teas – a custom creation by Adagio Teas’ customer Carolynne Keenan. It’s really quite tasty.
This blend is a combination of Adagio’s vanilla decaffeinated black tea, hazelnut honeybush and chocolate honeybush, and it’s a really clever blend, indeed! The black tea isn’t a strong flavor here at all, and given my past experiences with Adagio’s black tea they use for their flavored teas, the lack of black tea flavor here is an absolute PLUS. I do taste the vanilla though, and I like the way it melds with the chocolate and hazelnut, as well as the sweet, honey-like tones of the honeybush.
It is sweet, creamy, nutty and flavorful. I don’t taste a “funky decaffeinated tea” taste in this at all, in fact, if I hadn’t been aware that there is a decaffeinated black tea in this blend, I wouldn’t have known it by taste. A really pleasant cuppa!
Toffee Chocolate Hazelnut Black Tea Blend from Inspired Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Inspired Leaf
Tea Description:
A buttery, decadent treat with yummy nutty notes.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
Yummy! How could I resist a tea called Toffee Chocolate Hazelnut? I mean, seriously? Toffee? Chocolate??? Hazelnut? YES PLEASE! This black tea blend from Inspired Leaf is as tasty as the name promises it to be!
The black tea base is a robust yet smooth-tasting black tea. It is rich enough to hold its own with the flavors in this cup, but, it isn’t an overly aggressive tea that seeks to gain a lot of the spotlight. It is content to let the flavors do most of the talking here, but it still manages to get itself noticed.
The first flavor I notice is a lovely buttery tone … very butter toffee-ish! It has a sweet, creamy taste to it and the creaminess here is satisfying enough to where you don’t need to add dairy to have a latte-ish taste to the cup … although a splash of milk certainly doesn’t hurt … and does enhance the overall creaminess! I really like the buttery tone to this tea, it may just be my favorite aspect of the drink.
And that’s coming from a chocoholic! The chocolate notes are a bit subdued here in comparison to the buttery tones. But the buttery tones are so delicious, it’s difficult to complain about a little less chocolate. That said, more chocolate is always better … and this tea would definitely be improved with more chocolate. The ingredient list has carob chips as one of the ingredients, and personally, I think I’d rather see the carob chips omitted and maybe some extra cacao nibs added or how about some cacao shells! I still think that cacao shells are the absolute BEST way to flavor a chocolate tea!
I find that the chocolate notes do intensify as I continue to sip, and they do eventually become almost as strong as the buttery toffee notes. Nice!
The Hazelnut notes are lovely here. In my first couple of sips, there was a delicious toasty note that was strong … reminiscent of the flavor of freshly toasted hazelnuts. It was really yummy. After those first few sips, that strong toasty note sort of melded into the background as the butter notes began to emerge, but, the toasty notes were very memorable and really captured the essence of hazelnut. The hazelnut is still a present flavor, it’s just not as prominent as those first few sips.
By mid-cup, the flavors seem to unite and become a collective “Toffee Chocolate Hazelnut” flavor … rather than tasting the individual notes, this is more like a creamy, nutty, buttery, chocolate-y taste that is almost sinful!
This one might just be my favorite that I’ve tried thus far from Inspired Leaf. And I do like the inspiration from this tea:
Inspiration No. 31: A little chocolate can improve your state of mind.
Agreed! This tea is a definite must-try for those who enjoy dessert teas!
Shui Jin Gui Wuyi from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
NOTES: Caramel, Hazelnut, Elderberry, Custard, Honeydew, Orchid
Commandingly rich and creamy Wuyi oolong with lingering honey, orchid, and citrus caramel flavors. . . .
In opening the first bag of this tea, sealed in Wuyi, we were struck by the rich honey orchid smell of the dry leaves. Commanding and rich even before steeping, we knew we were in for a treat. As we poured boiling water over a pot of the long twisted Shui Jin Gui leaves, the steam carried the nostalgic aroma of tangy simmering orange caramel in a copper pot.
The first sip filled the whole palate in the same satisfying way as a bit of creme brulee complete with creamy custard and burnt caramel qualities. The burnt caramel depth transformed in the aftertaste to a lingering dark elderberry and earthy hazelnut profile.
Later steepings revealed the rocky mineral taste that tea cultivated on the rocky cliffs of Wuyi is known for. The mineral notes gave way to sweet cinnamon and the warmth of ginger without the spiciness. Towards the very end, the aftertaste transformed into an almost vegetal creamy green bean flavor with a lingering honeydew melon sweet orchid finish.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
What more can I say about Shui Jin Gui Wuyi from Verdant Tea that isn’t already in the description? Except perhaps that I personally want to order a huge supply of this so that I am never out of it! To me this tea is Legen…. wait for it….dary! Yes a How I Met Your Mother reference there. I apologize.
The first word that comes to mind while I sniff the dry leaf is sweet honey sugar succulent dripping with lust omgoodness! Okay that was more than one word, but seriously, I do love oolong, but some oolong are far superior to others and this is like the king of dessert-y oolong!
The caramel is perfection, the elderberry brightens the cup and makes it just a tiny bit “zippy” the honey note gives the tea its depth of character adding to the caramel aspect its like something sinful. There is even a spicy note within this tea. Then there is a wondrous floral note that just gracefully lingers all over the tongue, roof of mouth, back of mouth, its dancing around everywhere with sugar berries, caramelized honey, earthy elderberry, and the nuttiness of almond that also adds a slightly, but never bitter astringency, yet this tea remains so smooth all at the same time.
Oh yes the ever important and expected rock mineral is all over my palate as well as expected from a Wuyi Oolong. It blends completely with the floral aspect of this tea making me think of wildflowers blossoming along a creek bed. Wherever this creek bed is, I want to be right there!
This review is probably up at the top of Azzrian’s reviews that make no sense, but I stand by it, in all its confusing weirdness (the review not the tea). Shui Jin Gui Wuyi Oolong from Verdant Tea is stunning, there is no cohesive way to put it. Yet this tea, is very cohesive, all elements of this tea make perfect sense.
