807 Tasting Notes
This was nice. Not as good (in my opinion) as Cantaloupe & Cream from Butiki Teas but definitely one I will enjoy until the last pot! I would re-order this as well. I did not try with sugar and or milk but I will before it is all gone. I am glad I did order it and the others I have tired have also been excellent. I like Butiki Teas as a vendor as well. As another reviewer stated Stacy of Butiki is amazing with the customer service and free samples!
She sent more than I asked for and I thought I had asked for too many!
I can’t wait to try more of her teas and I must say if you have not heard of her Cantaloupe & Cream be sure to add that to your order (its on sale right now) when you get this one!
This is creamy, nutty, and yummy!
I feel bad for those with nut allergies as it does have actual nuts in it.
It is however organic (made with organic green tea) and vegan!
Preparation
I have tried to make matcha I want to be able to make matcha – I watched videos, I read steepster reviews, I am seeing conflicting information and so I went for it and did 1/4 c water 2 scoops matcha powder that didnt work was too dark and murky and tasted odd. ( I have had matcha a few times so have a little bit of an idea what it should taste like ). Then I tried less matcha more water … no go. I just don’t know what I am doing wrong and which video or review to believe on how to make it. No rating – not the matcha’s fault. I also tried two different brands this and one from enjoyingtea.com
Maybe this one can give you some ideas :)
http://www.matchasource.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=53#link1
Hmm, I guess I’ve only made (and tried) matcha lattes, but I use about 1 tsp per cup. Perhaps you should try making it into a latte? I can’t say I’ve tried it straight (and perhaps won’t).
And I’m wondering if the two scoops + 1/4c water was to initially get it dissolved without being chunky, and then you add quite a bit more water, as that sounds ridiculously strong to me!
What tools do you use to make the Matcha?
I have the scoop (don’t know the formal name for it) and the wisk (again I fail to know such words yet) its a small travel CHASEN that’s it :) (proud of myself here) …
I even have a proper bowl – not that I think this matters any.
OK. Do you sift the matcha? Here is what I do, I’ll try to take you step by step, but, bear in mind that I’ve been doing it so long that I eyeball it and know what’s going to work … and it usually does.
I use the Chashaku (bamboo scoop. Long handle, looks a bit like a hockey stick made out of bamboo) to scoop out the matcha. I usually use 3 – 4 scoops of this, and I scoop it directly into my sieve. I use a simple sieve that I purchased at the grocery store in the utensil aisle (for about 2 bucks), it’s basically a tiny hand strainer. I use the back of my scoop to push the Matcha through the mesh of the strainer, and sift the matcha through the strainer directly into the chawan (matcha bowl, although any bowl will do)
Then I carefully pour the hot water (I usually use 160 degree F water) over the matcha… just a small amount, and use the chasen (bamboo whisk) to whisk the matcha into a paste. Then I gradually add more water as I’m whisking until I’ve achieved the right consistency. Then I give it a really good whisking until its well incorporated and frothy.
Please feel free to PM me if you still have problems or questions, I’m happy to help you if I can. :)
Thank you – I did use the sifter – mesh strainer thing but I did not add the water little by little – maybe that is my issue! Thank you I will try this as I did everything else in your suggestions well I also didn’t use as much matcha how much water do you use with the four scoops? I will pm you this as well in case you don’t see this and thank you!
Tommy and Krystaleyn thank you – I will watch that vid Tommy. I agree Krystaleyn I thought it was too much to but LiberTeas is saying more matcha – but I PMd her to ask about how much water per 4 scoops.
Try about 3/4 cup of water for four scoops. Start with a smaller portion of that, about 1/8 of a cup to make your paste, and then gradually add the rest to make a total of 3/4 cup. After you’ve whisked vigorously and its all incorporated, taste it and see what you think… you can always add a little more water if it is too thick.
Now I wonder how much a scoop is! That sounds incredibly strong to me :)
Thank you LiberTEAS I do appreciate all the help and will give it another go this evening. Krystaleyn – they are not expensive – Den’s tea still has the mini travel chasen with scoop for 5 bucks if you plan to order from them anytime soon.
You may not notice there is a small scoop there in the picture but there is – its hidden inside the scoop and it has a prong in the middle so you can expand its size sorry can’t explain at all but it is a normal sized scoop.
Oh wait or do you mean how MUCH matcha to scoop up? Yeah that is a good question as well – I just watch the videos and eye ball it according to how they do it but every one is eyeballing it lol
A scoop is about the size of an average almond.
Ah indeed I did read that somewhere – thanks for the reminder!
Hmmm, that would make a scoop closer to half a teaspoon?
LOL I am going to say yes … just because it sounds good :) I have no idea though I will try making the scoop the size of an almond then put it in a half teaspoon and let you know :)
I used a little over 1 tsp because I use 8 ounces of water and I never know if steeping recommendations are for 6 or 8 ounces so I just added a little more tea. I also steeped for an extra minute so even if that was wrong it is a forgiving tea!
This tea is JUICY! It makes your mouth water and the flavors are really quite wonderful! I could not detect any artificial flavors even if they are used and I am pretty sensitive to artificial flavorings.
I am also not typical a fan of apricot flavored teas but this one is soooo good!
I think the sweet raspberry – not tart which really helps to mellow the usually more pungent earthy apricot and while I do like earthy teas, apricot and I do not normally get along.
The aroma of this tea is super sweet super yummy with this almost vanilla aroma to it.
No sugar is needed to add to this tea its really quite perfectly sweet and balanced all on its own and I can only imagine adding sugar would make it all the more decedent or dipping some sugar cookies into it but I have had my allotment of cookies for today lol.
I am impressed – I purchased some 52 teas that had been revived from iHeartTeas.com and this was included as a free sample! This lovely lady blends her own teas and I give her two huge thumbs up – if only I had more thumbs!
Try her teas people they are dang good! :)
Preparation
Thank you so much for your kind words. Seeing as this is my first official review for a tea I blended personally I will be celebrating tonight with a nice cuppa tea. Thanks for making my day. :)
Enjoy a good cuppa I know it will be good if it is your own! :) Loved it!! And thank you for a generous sample! I hate it when I only get one try with a new tea lol I was able to get three brews and a couple steeps out of each!
Oh, this does sound good. Wish I could have justified ordering the 52teas I had eyed up, but the credit card gave me the evil eye :(
I know it was so good I now want to order this and another she crafted but I am thinking I will go poor if I do.
Oh and this is HER blend by the way!
This sounds like a really great flavor combination.
Something about it is great becuase I have tried a lot of apricot teas lately and have only found 1 I like and 1 (this one) that I love!
Do you find apricots earthy overall-or just in most of the apricot teas that you have had?
Again thanks so much. I couldn’t be happier that someone is enjoying something I put so much love and care into. If anyone is interested my website is here… www.iHeartTeas.com and you specifically are looking for this blend… http://iheartteas.teatra.de/store/products/raspberry-apricot-green-tea-delight-2oz/
Good question Scott, you know, mostly in preserved and prepared foods, like dried fruits, cereals, etc. and teas but come to think of it I can’t recall the last time I had a fresh apricot!
This is nice. Its not as sweet as I had anticipated but I think I kind of like that. I get the custard flavor for sure, the maple is understated but again, I like that. Its a brighter tea than I had expected. I guess I was expecting something heavy, syrupy, but this is really quite a surprise and well balanced.
I have not tried adding sugar to it but I am drinking it while eating sugar cookies to which I highly recommend :)
Its yummy!
Preparation
I am SO so happy I did not pass this on to a trade partner (sorry trade buddies) but this is all mine! This has made it to my perm stash. I have to have this always on hand.
Creamy, citrus, sweet berry, floral but not in my face floral.
And at under 14 bucks A POUND! HA this CAN be in my stash at all times!
WOOT WOOT!
Love it!
Preparation
Ahahahaha! Fair enough! Is this kind of an earl grey? And $14/pound is crazy cheap, my brain tells me. Lucky you love it :)
Nope no bergamot at all! Just a lovely fruity floral tea that is AMAZING! :)
I made a cup of this a while back, but spilled it all before I got to try it at all. You’ve made me want to go try it now!
Emille it is so wonderful truly you should get more – I mean for the price its astounding! So sad about the spillage :(
Not for trade buddies………I won’t say anything then. ;-)
LOL I was kidding girl – I have a good sized bag of this if you want some I will put some in your next box. Double check that I didn’t already send some though I usually include it in trades if I remember to do so because I love it so much and want others to try it :)
Oh and I made that note before I bought a big bag of it :)
Ooh, after the above discussion I have now tacked this tea onto the list of ‘teas I want to try from Azzrian’! :D
It is good stuff! Start a list woman!
Let me assure you the list was already in existence :D
lol
I have had some REALLY yummy teas from The Persimmon Tree but this is not one of them unfortunately. For some reason my tea taste old and stale. I just received the sample a week or two ago so it should be fresh but I don’t know its just “off”. I can tell if it were not for this off flavor it would be very good as it is blended well with peach, orange, and strawberry flavors that are noticeable and not chemically or fake tasting but again there is something just not right with this tea. Sorry.
I steeped at 180 for 4 minutes and that worked for me! This is lust! This is satin sheets and champagne! Frank better put this in his perm stock PLEASE Frank I beg of thee or you will ruin something magical, beautiful! I want more of this!
Preparation
Haha, I looked at that tea with interest, saw the price, and immediately navigated off the product page. Can’t justify spending that sort of money on a single tea right now. I’m glad you’re loving it though, Azzrian :) I’m expecting a more detailed review later so I can live vicariously through you!
This one might be a bit expensive for us to keep on hand as a permanent blend. Our COST is about eight times the cost of any of our other base teas. (I really thought I was giving you guys a GREAT deal on this one). It is a VERY high grade silver needle tea.
Yeah the price was scary for me too but I had to pull the trigger!
Yeah I can vouch for it being a high quality silver needle but Frank I PROMISE if you keep it around it WILL sell! Once word gets out! I wrote an excellent review for teareviewblog.com – it will be posted whenever she posts it of course.
Its really THAT good!
Speaking of the teareviewblog – I was trying to figure that out earlier tonight. I assume you get something for writing long, detailed reviews there? I’m not interested in signing up myself; Steepster is time-consuming enough, I’m just curious since you’re mentioning it a lot now!
Well the lady who runs it sends you a sample pack of teas for every 20 reviews you do. Although I have not received one yet so I can’t say how amazing it is but I assume its pretty good since she probably gets a lot of teas from a lot of companies. They really needed some reviewers and I belong to their tea swap on facebook which you should check out by the way! https://www.facebook.com/groups/teaswap/
So I offered. : )
Ahhh, gotcha :) If I had more time it would probably be fun to do!
This is why I own no clocks – besides they are on everything anyway – cell phones, microwaves, televisions, damn clocks! I am totally against the concept of time! LOL
NOM NOM NOM OMG NOM! Wow. Okay Cream Cantaloupe what more do you need to know? Its made EXCELLENT – light delicious DIVINE! What an elegant tea!
Preparation
Now you have this one too? Argh! No fair all you people in the US :(
Start a list of things you want and I will send you a package!
I am so going to order more of this I only got a half ounce and I KNEW when I did it it was a mistake lol
Omggggg I would love that so much. I will message you. I have acquired a bunch of new things too if you are interested (52teas, DavidsTeas, Fusion Tea Room samples, Verdant Teas, the list goes on)!
