The Spice & Tea Exchange

I’ve had this a few times now with varying results. Twice it’s been fantastic, with notes of hazelnut, cream, and nutmeg. The other two times it was heavy on the tongue and a tad bitter, and I made sure to not burn the tea. Though I may have gone to three min one of the times.
Either way, I’m determined to get it right. Next time, I’ll actually get out the tea thermometer, as lately I’ve been relying on watching the bubbles and steam.

On another note, I lost count of my cupboard! Been doing so well with sipdowns that I need to do a recount. Woot! I should be down to about 280 or so, down from 292. Victory shall be mine!

I bought this specifically to add to my EG. Works nicely.

I mix this with jasmine in an attempt to recreate a Jasmine Earl Grey I tried at a local shop. Really nice, light EG and pairs well with the T&SE jasmine.

This is my “after nap” tea and another one I received from Indigobloom in a swap. Thanks IB!

In my opinion this is all mint and no chocolate, which is kind of a bummer considering that Chocolate is the very first word in the name of the tea. The mint seems so strong and overpowering that you can barely taste the keemun in here. I get mint with a muddy aftertaste. Better with sugar added but I just don’t think this one is for me somehow. Generally I enjoy minty things but was just hoping for something more and am struggling to finish the cup.

I picked this up from BrewTEAlly Sweet’s stash sale and am so very glad that I did. It’s just a lovely, thick, floral brew. Not generically floral, either. The rose, jasmine, and lavender are distinct without clashing or tasting artificial. The peppermint doesn’t really come through except as a refreshing, mildly tingly aftertaste. This holds up well to a second steep, though it has an ever so slightly thinner mouthfeel.

This is labeled as a white tea. Also a green tea. I’m not sure which it actually is. The floral flavors obscure most of the base. It looks like a green tea, though.

first steep: 180F, 3 mins
second steep: 195F, 5 mins

This is a pleasant fruit green tea. It’s mostly green with just subtle hints of strawberry and rhubarb. Normally I’m not into subtle, but this one works for me. The green base isn’t too grassy or too floral, it’s well balance and then just a hint of fruit. I get more strawberry than rhubarb but there is some tart that hints of rhubarb.
All in all, this was a really nice tea – I’m sure it would be really good iced.
Thank you for sending me this lovely tea Stephanie.

I picked this up because of a recent swap request from Suziqzer. She requested 1.5 ounces of this hard-to-find limited-edition tea and I kept .5 ounces for myself. I’m thinking I should have kept a little more for myself because I like the way this tastes! I brewed it for a few minutes, afraid that it would get too bitter, but I put the tea back in to steep it some more. I also re-steeped this for a second time and it tasted almost as good.

I thought that this would taste artificial when I read the description. I don’t really see or taste peppermint candies in this tea, instead I see/taste actual dried mint leaves. The chocolate note is very subtle and adds a creaminess to the finish of the tea. The smell is clean and minty and it tastes quite refreshing.

This is quite delicious, but I think it should be renamed Carrot Cupcake Chai, as it’s a little spicy. In a good way. That said, it still reminds me very much of carrot cake, only a not so mild one.
The spices are blended nicely, and it goes well with milk. A comforting cup. OH!! I also feel like there is some sort of “icing” component here. Perhaps that’s the coconut/vanilla addition? Either way, I had a heaven moment there when sipping away. Yum!

So. This was supposed to go to someone I know but I had ordered a bunch of stuff for various people when Mum went to Florida last year, and then she forgot them there so had to wait three months to bring them back on the next trip… and then my email got deleted so I’m not sure who… (facebook changed their settings and all of a sudden things were moved around)
Anyhow, if it was you, or if I’m mistaken and it was another tea I owe you from the Spice Exchange, please let me know! Hope ya don’t mind that I sampled it!!
It’s been in my cupboard for over a year now, I asked around before and nobody has claimed it… so speak up or I’ll forever hold your tea ;)
Would be a shame to lose out on this one, whoever you are.

This tea looked and smelled beautiful in the jar! It’s also organic, so I just couldn’t resist getting a small bag. Unfortunately, the tea itself disappoints. I experimented brewing it a couple of times, but there is absolutely no rose in it—delicate or otherwise. I can taste the white tea. Of all the other ingredients, the peppermint is most obvious. It definitely leaves a minty aftertaste. If I want a mint tea, however, I’d get something else.

Whoopee sipdown! (108)

So this was a tea that I bought while I was in Florida. One of my favourite! A nice green with subtle hints of strawberry :)
Definitely don’t have enough for a decend cuppa though. I have like 1.5g left soooo yeah. Probably the smallest cup of tea tonight ahhaha.
Just something nice and calm after having Sherlock’s Experiment!

((and I don’t even know why, but I’m going through a One Direction craze. Their song came up on Pandora one day and I was like huh. Maybe I have this song? AND I LOOKED IN ITUNES AND I FREAKIN HAVE EVERY ALBUM, THE FREAKIN DELUXE EDITION AND I’M ALL WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN??!?!?! But yeah One Direction. I’m not a fan, but I do appreciate and enjoy their music :) I especially love the ones that Mcfly wrote for them because… reasons))

Current status: Dance parties every night to this song (http://youtu.be/NiHWwKC8WjU) on repeat because I’m tired of studying for all my midterms. Dance parties with a cup of hot hot tea is quite possibly the worst idea ever but I DON’T CARE. PROCRASTINATION TO THE MAX :))

But this tea! I got it in Downtown Disney while I was still in Florida and the sent stood out the most. It’s fairly fruity. I love the strawberry in it! It’s very aromatic, which I love, and the strawberry scent is there from dry to steeping. It sorta leaves a weird texture in my mouth though..

I love all things chocolate. I was really browsing for some spices when I noticed Black Chocolate. The aroma of the raw tea in the jar is simply scrumptious—rich, dark, and seductive. The brewed tea retains some of the chocolate aroma and flavor, but it is not nearly as rich as the raw tea suggests. It is a very pleasant, nicely smooth black tea with a subtle chocolate flavor. If it were a perfume, I’d say that it contains a woody note; it might be strange, but that’s how it feels. Bottom line, it is certainly for those who prefer their tea only mildly flavored. (I also tried it with coconut milk, which adds a touch of creamy sweetness to it.)

This sample came from Indigobloom but I am not sure about this one… the last tisane I just drank was so tart and fruity, it’s difficult to get that flavor out of my mouth and I also noticed the water coming out of my tea kettle looks pink? Do I need filtered water? I’ll have to try this one again soon.

I bought this when I was away on vacation for a friend who loves peach anything… Preserves, juices, etc. Thinking I would hold it until her birthday, it has been sitting in my tea cabinet amid my teas so I know where it is when her birthday comes around.

Today, on a whim, I decided to try a sample of this tea. Hubby and I can’t stand anything with artificial peach flavoring, but how could I give her something untested?!?!

To my surprise we both found this tea to be much nicer than we expected. The dry leaf is light in fragrance, but peach is present. Steeped, the flavor comes out a little stronger, but it’s not overwhelming and more realistic than most peach flavored candies, etc. Hubby actually liked this one a bit more than I did and he usually won’t go near anything peach flavored.

This would be a nice one to get and keep around for evenings when we want tea without the caffeine. My girlfriend will love it!! But might not like my introducing her to something she will want to buy more of ;)

This is one of the samples that my sister gave me for Christmas.
Now, coconut is not my favorite flavor, not by a long shot, but in the name of tea, I will adventure on!
Hmm, this smells most certainly of coconut when I steep it, and provides to have a light and not unpleasant coconut flavor when brewed up.
Hmm. I will not be buying any more of this, but I’ve enjoyed what I did have, more than I expected to.

Thanks to Indigobloom for sharing this one!

I love a good assam, especially in the morning. This is really good, has flavors of malt and honey with some fruitiness present too. I get a slight tobacco in the finish but nothing on the bitter side. This was heavenly with a bit of soymilk, did not need sugar IMO. I may need to pay the Spice & Tea Exchange a visit. This is tasty stuff. Thanks for sharing… :)

Backlog:
This is a nice chai, I really enjoyed the experience of purchasing it at the Port Townsend location in Washington while visiting family.

This chai is good for those who like to have less spice and more tea. The spices have a slight saltiness to them that is different from most of the chai I have had, it’s very pleasant.

The flavors of tea are nice, although I like more spice and less tea flavor in my chai. The cardamom is very strongly expressed and the other spices have a sweet, warm, cinnamon expression. This was lovely to drink on a cold hazy morning overlooking the water with my dad.

I actually just ran out of this tea, after getting it for Christmas along with a 1 oz. bag of Green Tropical. Like Suziqzer I was too late to find it from the store online, which is too bad because this is a tea I really enjoyed. I’ve never had a chocolate tea before, so I’m not completely sure how it should taste, but this tea seemed just right, with the perfect amount of peppermint. Right out of the bag I was immediately impressed by its fragrant smell. The tea took on a slightly different tone after the first brewing, but it was one I still completely enjoyed. A great peppermint tea, and if you add sugar, a great candy cane tea. If you’re a fan of strong black tea’s like an Assam, this might not be for you, unless you also enjoy blends. In my opinion the tea taste is there but it’s certainly not strong, or at the forefront; it’s melded into a great blend of the peppermint and other flavors. It’s called Candy Cane tea, but I could certainly enjoy this all year, I can’t imagine what it would taste like iced in the summer!
I played around with a few different brewing times, 3 minutes seemed to work pretty well for the first and second steepings, and I usually had the water a bit under 100 Celsius.

Wanted something to go with Saint Patrick’s Day and for some reason I thought “mint”… Probably because I enjoy it so much and haven’t had any for a few days. Why did I even need an excuse anyway?

Saving the Irish Cream Cheesecake tea for later when Hubby and I can enjoy it together. :) & who knows.. Maybe I can get my little guy to try is since it goes with the day!

This one good as always.. mostly minty black with a bit of chocolate to round out the cup.