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Sipdown! (7 | 46)

This was a lingering tin from the winter subscription box. Red rooibos just isn’t my thing, so I never tend to reach for it, which is why this was still hanging around. It’s fairly unremarkable, mostly just red rooibos and herbaceous peppermint – I don’t really notice much in the way of vanilla. And because the rooibos is quite woody and the peppermint more herbal than crisp, it goes to a very earthy-tasting place that doesn’t really fit the name.

Not awful, just not my thing and didn’t come through on the promised vanilla.

Another one from the spring subscription.

Was dreading this a bit, as I hate Western cherry blossom-flavored teas, and have tried OBTC’s before. But thankfully, the berry fruit infusion mostly overpowers the cherry candy flavoring, and the tanginess helps tame the cloying, medicinal notes that I so despise.

It’s not amazing, but it tastes more like a very mild tangy raspberry fruit tisane, with a dash of cherry and an undertone of green tea. Very easy-drinking, and I might just try it as a cold steep as well.

Spring subscription tea.

Tried this one a few days ago and didn’t write a note. It was nice enough, mild and inoffensive with a softly sweet floral flavor. Didn’t taste like perfume or excessively flavored. The oolong base was green and silky.

However, I’m not a floral person in general, so it’s going into my rehoming box. :)

Sipdown! (5 | 44)

An oldie but a goodie! And one of many full-sized tins from S&V that I need to sip through…

I’m not very into dessert teas these days, as I often find them to be over-the-top. But I still enjoy this one, as it has a lighter buttery-creamy flavor that isn’t cloying. And unlike most almond teas, it tastes nutty and not like marzipan. As usual, S&V’s black base leaves a bit to be desired, but serves well enough as a mellow base for the flavoring.

Not sure whether I’ll reorder this, since, like I said, I don’t reach for dessert flavors often. But I am keeping the tin in case I decide to refill it later.

The last black tea from the March subscription.

As expected, this taste quite similar to a late flush Darjeeling. It’s pleasant enough, just not my favorite type of tea. Very smooth and woody/haylike, with hints of dried fruit and oats. A slight cannabis note, which is something I also often taste in Japanese black teas. Another one for the rehoming box.

Another one from the March subscription.

Not a good match for me, it has too much acidic and metallic Ceylon for my tastes. Will put the rest of the pouch aside to send to someone who will enjoy it.

From the March subscription box. This month, 3 of the 4 selections are unflavored black teas. I do enjoy plain black teas, but just seems like a weird choice to have so many in the same category. Two of them are breakfast-style blends, and one is a plain Nepalese tea.

This one… I’m not sure I buy that there’s no scenting or flavoring happening here. They claim it’s just black teas and blue cornflowers, and in my package the flowers are quite scarce. Yet this has a noticeable floral taste to it, especially in the finish. It’s quite a heady type of floral as well, something close to rose. It’s not rose, but I’m not familiar enough with florals to identify it. I’ve had cornflowers in so many teas, and never noticed a floral note from them, so I’m hesitant to believe that they’re contributing such a strong flavor in this blend. Aside from the floral notes, it tastes a bit Lipton-y, which is usually an indicator of Ceylon for me. Definitely acidic, with a bit of astringency as well. I can’t tell what other teas are here, but I’m not getting a lot of malt.

Definitely not the tea for me, so I’m putting the rest in my rehoming box.

ETA: I finally realized what the floral in this reminds me of, it’s lychee! I think S&V carries a lychee-scented black tea, so I wonder if that’s one of the “black teas” in this blend?

Sipdown! (4 | 43)

This is fine. Very earthy and herb-y tasting, with no flavor in particular jumping out at me. Definitely tasting roots, so that must be the ashwagandha. Maybe a bit of oatstraw and tulsi as well, but mostly it tastes generically “herbal”. I don’t notice the mango flavoring.

Sipdown! (3 | 42)

This was pleasant enough, as breakfast blends go. Not typically my type of tea, but this one had enough Chinese black tea in it to smooth things out. Not something I would order, but far more enjoyable than the plain Ceylon from the same month.

Sadly, this month there are two breakfast-type blends in the box…

Sipdown! (5 | 39)

From the February subscription. I’m not technically sipping this down, but setting the rest aside to send to a friend who is a Ceylon enjoyer (unlike me, lol).

To me, this just tastes like a generic Ceylon. Sharp, tannic, with a high acidity and subtle grass-straw flavor. Not really sure what else to say about it, maybe there’s a hint of dried fruit if I squint? Not the tea for me. XP