Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Liquid Proust Teas
Tea Description:
As someone who didn’t like black teas for awhile, this is one of those black teas that make me wonder why I was like that for so long.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’m pretty sure Andrew’s spelling of “Fuijan” is a typo and it’s meant to be “Fujian” but since it’s a typo he seems to have made across the board, I’m leaving it as it’s displayed on his Etsy page.
Dry, the leaf looks a little broken up and doesn’t really give off much of a scent. Perhaps a little bit of a cocoa aroma, but I could also be grasping at straws with that observation. I steeped this up hot and plain and using Andrew’s recommended steeping directions as a guide.
I’m enjoying this cup of tea. I don’t love it as much as I do a good Assam, but it’s a nice change of pace. Mostly it tastes like a good baker’s chocolate with a little bit of bitterness – which is a welcomed flavour when it comes to baker’s chocolate or dark chocolate. I also has some smokier top notes which wasn’t what I was expecting to taste, and a sweeter, fruity and honey like finish. There’s not really much more to go on about though; this is a simple enough tea with some basic flavours that I’m finding enjoyable to sip on.
In my opinion, it’s not the best offering from Liquid Proust Teas – and to be fair it’s the only straight/pure tea I’ve tried from the store but I’m probably not making a grand leap to assume that Andrew’s strong suit is probably his blended/flavoured teas which display a greater level of creativity than this tea does.
Oriental Beauty Oolong from Tea Ave.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Tea Ave
Tea Description:
Go ahead, search the world—you won’t find another tea quite like Oriental Beauty, the luxurious, highly prized oolong tea so exquisite that it made its way from Taiwan to Queen Elizabeth II, who gave it its name. Processed entirely by hand, Oriental Beauty is produced only once a year, during summer. Our Oriental Beauty grows in the Ping Ling area of Northern Taiwan, known for its breathtaking scenery. The perpetual mild climate and rolling fog makes the growing environment truly unique.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Tea Ave. is a fairly new company that I was fortunate enough to get to sampler prior to their official opening; while I really enjoyed each tea I got to sample there was only one I personally wanted to restock and so I waited for a good opportunity to place that order. Well, they recently announced a Summer Sale where you don’t pay for shipping, which was the perfect chance to place that small order! In addition to the tea I wanted to stock (Ginger Lily), I received a few samples of their other teas as well as a little bit of “swag” in the form of a reusable branded tote bag.
Obviously this is one of the extra samples I had received; while Tea Ave. does let you specify what you’d like to sample I left that field of the order form blank and so they chose for me. Two of three samples were new to me, and one a repeat – though as I’ve been pretty impressed with all of their teas I’ve tried (including this double) I’m far from disappointed about that. This sample came in sachet form, though not all three did. It’s the first time I’ve tried one of their blends in a sachet; I always have mixed feelings about teabags/sachets because I LOVE the convenience but think that most sachets don’t generally offer enough room for leaf expansion – which is definitely a bigger issue with oolong. Though in this case the sachet is very large, and that turned out to not be an issue at all.
I did two infusions of this tea, both turned out to taste very similar so I wont do a flavour summary for each like I tend to do when I steep the same tea several times. I thought the liquor was very light and gentle with an incredibly smooth and silky mouthfeel that made for really easy, calm sipping. The dominant note – though in this case dominant just means “most present” because nothing about this blend was harsh, was honey and it was the right level of sweet but natural and not cloying. Supporting notes were fresh picked Spring flowers, hay, and a soft, roasty note that reminded me of just barely toasted bread. I’d describe the overall combination as ‘ambrosia’.
I do think this was a little watery, and had it not tasted quite as diluted I’d be all over this blend – but it was incredibly pleasant for what it is as well, and a really nice balance between a greener, more vegetal oolong and a heavily roasted, mineral tasting more oxidized one.
Going back to the company itself, it’s definitely always very cool when companies go that extra mile by including samples and other goodies – just like when I received my sample package from Tea Ave. months ago, I continue to be impressed by this company’s branding, their teas, their customer service and now on top of that their quick shipping time! If you like oolong even a little I absolutely recommend giving them a chance and taking advantage of the current sale which is running throughout July.
Yerba Mate from Chi Whole Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yerba Mate
Where to Buy: Chi Whole Leaf
Tea Description:
A perfect addition to your morning routine, Yerba Mate is beginning to catch on as a extremely healthy substitute to coffee. This tea has a sweet, earthy taste that will keep you coming back for more!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The last of five samples from Chi Whole Leaf!
I’ve been on a bit of a Yerba Mate kick these last few weeks, so I’m both very excited to try this blend but also kind of feeling like I’ve overdosed on yerba mate and need to take a break from it for a few weeks. What’s better than a powdered caffeine buzz though? Hell that’s half of why I love matcha so much – so I’m ignoring those feelings of being all yerba-d out, and excitedly trying this!
The dry leaf doesn’t smell anywhere near as fragrant as the other four samples have been; just subtly grassy. My observation thus far is that the blends from Chi Whole Leaf fall on one side of a spectrum, either “very intense” or “surprisingly muted”. I’ve yet to really find a blend offered by them that rides the middle, and if I had to guess I’d wager this is going to be a bit more muted.
Like anticipated, this is pretty mild as far as Yerba Mate tastes; it’s grassy and earthy with a touch of natural sweetness. However, the licorice root and ginseng are definitely stronger – actually, they do a great job of finding a happy medium between tasting mild or robust. The combined sweetness of both begin to creep in at the end of the sip in a typical licorice root fashion. It almost has a honeycomb taste to it. However, if someone dislikes licorice root, ginseng or both they’re really going to be turned off by that taste.
Interestingly, I found that of all five samples I had the biggest issue with the dry powder for this one. It was really, really clumping together but it wasn’t as sludgy at the bottom of the cup as I was drinking it.
Again, I have to really thank Will from Chi Whole Leaf for the samples! I had a really fun time exploring them, and while I definitely didn’t love them all I was surprised by a few which I thought I’d dislike but where really, really good. Namely Floral Herb!
Oh, and just an FYI; right now you can check out the Chi Whole Leaf website and click the “free samples” button there, fill in your address and you can receive a free sampler to try out as well! Since you’re not even paying for shipping it’s definitely worth checking out!
Enlighten Mint Yerba Mate from Guayaki
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yerba Mate
Where to Buy: Guayaki
Tea Description:
Enlighten Mint has a minty flavor with a touch of honey flavor, and an earthy note from the yerba mate. It’s easy drinking and clean tasting, and not too sweet.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Continuing with the exploration of Guayaki drinks, this is the one I was most skeptical about of the three I picked up. I’ve tried a few yerba mate and spearmint blends, and actually have one stocked right now so I know that it’s not a terrible pairing; in fact it’s a pretty popular pairing. It’s actually the honey aspect of this that scares me; when it comes to more commercial tea beverages, ‘honey’ usually means very sweet.
However, because Revel Berry maintained a respectable level of sweetness I was open to this one; hopefully it would do the same. I was poorly mistaken in my assumptions, however. This was assaulting; the spearmint was ridiculously strong and sweet in and of itself; like those Spearmint leaf five cent gummy candies that come in giant bulk bags. I’ve never been a fan of those. They taste so fake. On top of that the sweetness of the honey was equally as intense. The yerba mate, while pretty drowned up, did come through a little bit but it felt kind of grimy, and yet at the same time all three notes together conjured up the image of neon green slime.
To me, it tasted like one of those five cent candies dipped into a bottle of raw honey and then sprinkled with a little dirt. Why would you willingly put that in your mouth? I struggled through a third of the can and then finally called it quits and tossed it. It makes me more skeptical to try the third, and last, one I bought now knowing just how big the range between ‘hit’ and ‘miss’ from this company can be. Personally, I’ll be avoiding (and internally wincing) this flavor every time I pass it in the aisles at work – but if you’re feeling bold enough, and you like super sweet mint flavored things, I guess giving it a try couldn’t hurt.
Carolina Honey® Bottled Black Tea from Argo Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Ready to Drink)
Where to Buy: Argo Tea
Tea Description:
Argo Tea’s Carolina Honey® is an energizing Nilgiri black tea from the highlands of Southern India, which is blended with sweet grade A wildflower honey and a splash of tart lemons. Each ready-to-drink Carolina Honey® comes in a 13.5 oz signature Argo Tea glass bottle. One case contains 12 bottles.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Earlier this year I decided to quit drinking diet soda. I can’t say I’ve been perfect at it, but I am drinking much less than I used to. One way I’ve said “no” to the carbonated stuff is to say “yes” to bottled teas when I’m out running errands and want something cool to drink. On a recent trip to the drug store I picked up this tea. I have tried loose leaf teas from Argo, but I’ve never had the opportunity to try one of their bottled offerings. I was excited to see a good quality tea product in the case next to all the sodas and juices.
The first thing that impressed me was the container. It’s made of a fairly heavy glass with a thick plastic twist-off lid, and I knew it would be perfect to keep and reuse for other drinks. The lid fits securely on the bottle, so I don’t have to worry about the tea splashing out or leaking. As I’ve said before, I’m a sucker for good packaging, and this one is a winner for being both pretty and functional.
As for the tea inside the bottle, it was good. The base tea was a Nilgiri black tea which was smooth and well suited to iced tea. Any subtle notes that might have been present in the tea were lost to the honey and lemon flavors, but the clean, fresh taste of the tea did act as a good foundation for the other flavors. The honey had a wildflower taste to it, and while I enjoyed it I found myself wishing I had continued to shake or stir my tea as I drank it because the last few sips were overly sweet due to the honey settling to the bottom of the bottle. The lemon was my least favorite flavor in this tea. It had a slightly artificial taste to it, and at times I felt that it clashed with the flavor of the honey. I’d definitely prefer this tea without the lemon.
Overall I found this tea to be nice. It definitely peaked my curiosity about Argo’s other bottled tea flavors, and I’m looking forward to giving them a try. The next time I’m out and about it’ll be easy to pass on the diet soda and reach for a bottle of tea instead.
If you’re interested in trying Argo’s bottled teas you can buy it by the case on their website (there’s a link to their site at the top of this post) or you can check out your local Walgreens to purchase individual bottles.
