Adagio Custom Blends

Drinking this is like being refreshed by The Great Fairy…

…or having your heart and magic meter completely filled from drinking a Blue Potion…

…or feeling the joy of the rain after playing Song Of Storms on your ocarina.

This tea gives you the Wisdom, Power and Courage to take on that damn Water Temple.

My grandparents are awesome, they saw my plight with regards to my kettle giving up the ghost and ordered me a replacement as an early birthday gift, so sometime next week things can return to normal. I also had several friends in the tea world offering me their spare kettles, giving a whole new meaning to the #kettlekin hashtaggery that floats around on the interwebs. I keep saying it, the tea community is awesome and takes care of its own.

Today’s tea blog has a bit of a story to it, the other day I groggily checked my email when my ‘get up and take yo’ meds’ alarm went off and saw that my Minecraft Mobs Fandom Collection on Adagio Teas is going to be a featured Fandom on the 11th. I kinda stared at my phone in disbelief, see, I have wanted to be a featured Fandom since I first created the Creeper tea, the first tea I ever reviewed on the blog. I really find the whole create your own blend system rather entertaining, it by no means makes you a blender, but it does let you play around with dozens of teas to create either a really tasty brew or something truly disgusting. The only really artsy thing I put into these teas are the labels, and I suppose I need to try to guess which teas taste good together and capture the monster in question. No matter how you slice it though, goal achieved! So to celebrate tomorrow’s feature, I am reviewing one of the blends, call it a pre-Halloween themed review if you like since it is time for Wither Skeleton!

That inky black, especially tall Skeleton that prowls Nether Fortresses and are kinda terrifying, are they dead Endermen? What exactly are they? Implications are…creepy. What they are is a mystery, what the tea is is a blend of Mambo (which is a mix of their Wuyi Ensamble aka Da Hong Pao and Yunnan Jig which is a fuzzy red from Yunnan) Lapsang Souchong, Almond Oolong, Cocoa Nibs, and Cardamon. Toasty, roasty, smoky, and rich, just the way I like my Endermen…wait…anyway, the aroma is a massive punch of cardamon, that is definitely the first thing I get. Next up is a bonfire that starts gentle and then kinda goes poof, like someone tossed a fresh log into the fire. Under that is a bit of cocoa, malt, and a tiny bit of almonds.

Into the steeping apparatus the leaves go for their steeping, the aroma wafting from the steeping and then from the finished leaves is smoky and strong in the cardamon department. Alongside that is a lovely woody note and cocoa with a touch of malt. It is a very rich tea, not so much sweet but very rich. The liquid blends cardamon, malt, cocoa, wood, tobacco, smoke, and a touch of fruit, there is a lot going on which is not surprising since there is a lot in this tea.

Moment of truth, tasting time! The taste surprisingly after all that richness, starts out sweet, like honey and a touch of fruit. That very quickly changes to the smoky, rich, cocoa notes I was expecting, oh yeah and a ton of cardamon. The finish is woody with a lingering tobacco smoke, and of course, cardamon. When Adagio says accented with cardamon, either they do not understand the potency of the stuff, or their accents are giant scoops, granted I love cardamon and I am totally ok with it, but it does present a powerhouse of cardamon. On a whim I tried this gongfu style one day and it kinda worked, but this tea really shines western style.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2015/10/adagio-teas-minecraft-wither-skeleton.html

I can smell the chocolate in the steam. Overall I find this tea’s taste insipid compared to its scent.

ALL HAIL THE GLOW CLOUD.

HAIL.

The Glow Cloud is much more lemony than I expected the Glow Cloud to be. I like it lots. Would be fabu as an iced tea.

HAIL.

Yesterday I got the news in my email that my TF2 fandom blend is going to be featured all day tomorrow on the site. I can’t believe a collection I made a few years ago for fun is going to get this kind of recognition. I’M SO EXCITED.

//TEA
This came out quite nicely. I basically wanted this tea to taste like gunpowder, or at least what a explosive work table would smell like; but in a good way. Also to be a great boost of explosive energie from the mate’.

I combined the first two steepings into a mug after doing a quick rise and found it to be a really rich, smokey, and bold cup. Although it didn’t have a thick mouth feel like I thought it might due to the Pu’er. It had a surprisingly light and clean mouth-feel. The smokey flavor was the most dominant. There was lots of intense pine spice and even a little bit of menthol flavor as I kept drinking. By the time I got to the 3rd steep onward the smokey flavor had subsided and the smooth, leather pu’er was shining through, with the other teas playing in the background. This tea deffeintly delivered on the energizing boost with the mate I put in it. Going to keep some of this around for winter when I need a kick in the pants.

Overall I’m really glad how this one came out. Nice bold and smokey cup with lots of depth and an intense energy boost.

Very bright and invigorating. Smells only like grapefruit in the bag but brews more evenly. Sweet and Citrus are the primary flavors, but there is still depth to it. Definitely a great way to combat tiredness. I personally find it too sweet for a morning tea, so probably best as an afternoon/desert tea.

“The Prince” (by Kristina Moy) is the first Severus Snape-inspired custom tea from Adagio Teas I’ve sampled. I was afraid that the not-quite-a-heaping-teaspoon wasn’t quite enough for my two-cup teapot; I was right. I let it steep longer to help make up the difference. It was still a little weaker than I would have brewed it earlier in the day, but for evening it was fine. It had a good deep green tea flavor (not surprising, since its makeup is hojicha and gunpowder with lemongrass). The lemongrass was nicely balanced, not overpowering or intrusive. I liked it, and will definitely be drinking it again—soon! Kudos to Ms. Moy for an enjoyable blend (Severus in a rare good mood—a little stern with the depth of green tea flavor, but relaxing nonetheless)!

Another one that I got from my discounted sampler while up at school. Out of the pack I got, this one was one of my favorites, having a truly alien flavor. One of my friends even called it out of this world, though Kasumi is one of the more grounded characters in the game-well, with the exception of her exquisite tastes. This tea was designed around her very well, though how can you accurately characterize someone based off of tea notes? Tis an art that I am partially curious of.

To describe this tea properly, I am going to talk about her character a little bit. Kasumi is a master, intergalactic thief and cat burglar, stealing pieces only of the “priceless” kind. She herself does have a Japanese heritage, and like a hooded ninja, she is incredibly skilled in stealth, hacking, and deception. Though adept, she is by no means hardened; more playful, and possibly insightful, really.

For whatever reason, this black and rooibos blend actually suits her well, and better than a green tea. Yes, she’s Japanese, but that cultural angle comes more in with dominant jasmine smell and taste. After the jasmine, the taste transforms into something creamier, and maltier, with a candy like sweetness provided by the cream black tea and the Earl Grey moonlight. The rooibos provides the remaining potent sweetness from it’s own mildly citrus like nature, and the amber color of this tea. Like her, there is a sweetness and decadence to the profile, but a lingering subtlety in how the flavors come together.

Now, this is not a tea for most. It is VERY sweet. It’s more for an amateur who would like the highly flavored nature of this tea. And definitely for a Mass Effect fan that likes this character. The extreme dependence on the extracts for flavor is the only other off putting angle of this tea, relying less on the natural, pure taste and aroma of the tea itself. That can be said for most Adagio tea, though: too much dependence on flavoring extracts. As you can probably infer from reading this, this is blasphemy for a tea purist; yet a new, foreign dessert to a newbie.

Amazing tea! The chai flavours are amazing, it makes me crave the colder months just to have a cup.

Strong, warm, a little spicy – but fragrant from orange and flowers. Full-bodied and good for that little perk of spice when you need it. Needs a little sugar, otherwise it can be bitter.

Steep for 4 mins, no more, cos the orange can get bitter.

How is this tea? My log knows the answer.

It’s a tea as mysterious and quirky as its namesake. Twin Peaks Tea is based in Adagio’s Mambo tea, a combination of Yunnan Jig and Wuyi Ensemble. Yunnan Jig is described as a “forgiving” black tea, “identified by its abundance of soft golden tips, and savory cocoa and black pepper flavors.” It smooths out the rough edges of Wuyi (Da Hong Pao), an oolong given a high fire treatment gives Wuyi a smoky and mineral character.

When you open the package of this tea blend, you’re however hit hard with the cherry flavoring. Initially, it really put me off. Some of Adagio’s flavors smell and taste quite artificial to me, and this was my first impression. I was suspicious.

Steeping it, however, I was heavily introduced to the smoky blend of black teas in the air. The cherry took a firm back seat, a relief on my mind. Cherry is so hit or miss for me.

Tried it straight first. Definitely could taste the firey oolong and black pepper from the yunnan. So much darker than I expected, I worried I had over-steeped it. The cherry became more of an aroma than a flavor, like sitting in the Double R Diner enjoying a drink and catching the smell of a cherry pie just pulled out of the oven.

With my preferred dairy additive (half and half), the cherry was cut out even more. The black teas pretty much remain the same. Sugar, on the other hand, brought that cherry right back out, and finally introduces the cream flavoring as well.

It’s a weird tea, which is what it should be. It tastes woody, rich, and curious. I would personally be happy to skip the cherry (as iconic as it is) for something aromatic to give it a sort of alpine essence, and maybe some sort of other jammy berry (currant or blackberry?) This is probably better suited to be Dale Cooper, or the Double R — but honestly, for what it is, it is a damn fine cup of tea.

Robust, warm and a little earthy. Like an Irish breakfast with more depth and flavour, but not overwhelming.

Cinnamon warmth is nice and very comforting. The coconut is subtle and smooth, an undertone that’s more obvious in the aftertaste when it cools down a bit. Hints of cocoa/chocolate, but can’t really taste it too much.

Strong body, which I like. The caffeine kick is pretty rad.

Overall: not bad, but not spectacular. On the fence about whether I’ll buy this again.

I had this one earlier this week.

I think though that I overdid it on the coconut that day as I ended up with the worst upset stomach after having this tea. I don’t know what it was exactly and maybe it wasn’t the coconut, but I had a lot of it and that’s why I’m wondering… anyways, will try again and see how it goes. Hoping it’s better the second time.

This is one of my favorites. Custom designed by the Austin Browncoats (Go Browncoats!), I got a nice sample of this and Captain Hammer at Sherwood Forest Faire.

There’s a hint of caramelly sweetness that comes out amidst the black tea, and along with the nuts, gives it this beautiful complexity. (Fits the character, too!)

I did let the water get to boiling this time (2 min, 40 sec), and probably let it steep too long. It had a very bitter flavor I don’t usually get (I usually only heat the water in the microwave for 2 minutes. I can’t wait until I have something to heat my tea up to a specific temperature rather than jut in the microwave!). I’ve found that I often get better results by heating the water to a lower temperature and allowing it to steep for however long, rather than controlling the steeping time (which is often a bit harder for me to do).

I had recently tried Adagio’s Caramel Apple tea and had been very pleased with it – I had never tried any type of apple-flavored black tea before, so I decided to try this blend as well. It has a lovely apple aroma, which is very slightly stronger than the cinnamon and caramel aroma (both before being brewed, as well as after, although before being brewed the apple aroma is a bit stronger). It was terrific, and very good with sweet cream or vanilla-flavored creamer; very creamy. I could see this being a really good autumn tea.

Yep. . . .I had to do it. I had to review a Star Wars tea today. I couldn’t help myself! I am a huge Star Wars fan and so is my son who is 9.

This tea was pretty good. . even tho it had red rooibos in it. I could barely taste it. Gives me hope that I might find more blends like this. This one was rich and nutty flavored. Pretty tasty. Not sure if I would pick this one up again. . but it was fun to try it.

Here are the rest of my ramblings. .

http://sororiteasisters.com/2015/05/04/chew-brew-adagio-teas-signature-blend/

I made this tea a loooong time ago when I first found Adagio and I was trying out their tea blend page. I never thought it would go anywhere because I wasn’t even trying to sell tea. I had never even tried it. Then two people bought it. I was ecstatic but I also was slightly nervous that it tasted horrible. So when I discovered that I had a gift certificate, I bought the sample tin. Its actually pretty good. The black tea provides some body while the peppermint and the cocomint green provide chocolatey mintu flavor. I probably need to drink some more to provide better tasting notes.

jump62359!! i drank this!
i made a giant cup at work and drank it all before i met oddree for tacos.
i’m not a big green tea drinker so that’s why it took so long for me to get around to brewing it. but the oriental spice definitely pushed the greenieness out of the way, so i really should have brewed this much sooner duh.
i stalled on watching Merlin. not really sure why but it’s still there in the queue when i’m ready to go back to it.
but listen, Colin Morgan is also in The Fall. and you MUST watch The Fall. i think about it every day and i finished watching it over 2 weeks ago.

I mixed up these two teas this morning to go with the gluten free blueberry scones I made. I really like how the cream tea tones down the lavender in the earl grey. Don’t get me wrong I like the EG Lavender just fine, but some days you want to tone it down a little. So good!