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Cameron B. drank Flavored Black Tea: Banana by Creha Tea

4115 tasting notes

Home – 8:00 PM

Yep, more banana. This is the last banana tea that I own, I promise!

For some reason, this tea is super crushed and there’s a lot of dust. I shortened my usual steep to 2 minutes. I probably should have lowered the temperature as well…

It came out a bit bitter, but not horribly so. Japanese black tea is so interesting, it almost reminds me of Darjeeling with its floral and fruit notes. This one is also malty and has a lovely freshly baked bread flavor.

The banana flavoring seems fairly mild, though I don’t remember how long I’ve had this tea, so it could be quite old. All three of my banana black teas seem to have similar-tasting banana flavoring, it’s how it interacts with the base tea that makes them different.

I see that Yunomi has barely any of Creha’s flavored blacks right now. Pity, I wanted to try their blueberry and a couple of others.

The bitterness is bringing this down a couple of points – next time I’ll try a lower water temperature.

Flavors: Banana, Bitter, Bread, Dried Fruit, Floral, Malt, Raisins, Sweet

Preparation

200 °F / 93 °C 2 min, 0 sec 3 tsp 16 OZ / 473 ML

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Bio

Hi, I’m Cameron!

I’m a 30-something software engineer currently living in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two pugs, Gobo and Ume. I tend to cycle between my different hobbies, and they include piano, knitting, video games, board games, miniature painting, planners, bento, Korean skincare, and – of course – TEA! But really, what I’m best at is “collecting” hobby-related things… ;)

~ 2024 SIPDOWN CHALLENGE! ~
- September Sipdowns: 7
- Total 2024 Sipdowns: 126

I prefer my tea lukewarm or at room temperature and without milk or sugar. I steep Western style, and fluctuate between using big mugs or small teapots depending on the season.

I am always up for a swap! Just let me know if you’d like to try something in my cupboard.

Tea Preferences:
I enjoy both flavored and unflavored teas in many forms. These days, I drink mostly flavored teas, and I tend to gravitate most toward black, green, oolong, and herbal varieties. I do have a special fondness for straight Japanese green teas, however.

I do not sweeten my teas, and pre-sweetened teas are usually too sweet for me. I also do not enjoy stevia.

I tend to reach for fruitier flavors rather than desserty ones these days, but I do have favorites from both categories. Willing to try anything once! There are a few ingredients/flavors that aren’t generally my jam, such as coconut, rose, lavender, and chocolate flavoring. But I also have teas that I love with some of those things, too! :)

Favorite Companies:
3 Leaf
Bird & Blend
Dammann Frères
Harney & Sons
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms
Lupicia
Old Barrel Tea Co
Simpson & Vail
Taiwan Tea Crafts
TeaVivre

Tea Rating Scale:
90-100: Outstanding! Permanent cupboard resident
80-89: Great – a possible staple
70-79: Good, but I wouldn’t buy it
60-69: It’s decent
50-59: Meh… I may or may not have finished the cup
40-49: Ick. Couldn’t finish it.
00-39: Repulsive, I spat it out

I will sometimes refrain from rating a tea if I feel I’m too biased due to my personal dislikes, or if I suspect the sample has been compromised by age or scent contamination.

Cupboard Spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZEuKf1-ppR-VXajO4vV39zU1N3zjFJteEPAynqD2yl0/edit?usp=sharing