Cory O'Brien Send Message

To me (and this may just be me) the leaves of this tea smell EXACTLY like Froot Loops. In fact, I was having childhood flashbacks just sticking my nose in the tin.

After the recommended steeping, the tea has a sweet, flowery aroma that’s both pleasant and powerful. Again, it’s very reminiscent of Froot Loops, and brings to mind the idea of smelling sugary. (Not sure if that’s even possible, but hopefully you know what I mean. It smells like the sugar coating on a bowl of Froot Loops.)

In terms of taste, this tea has a definite sweetness to it, as well as a bite on the edges of your tongue where the tart/tangy nature of the tea comes through.

There’s also a lingering, sugary sweetness to the flavor that rounds out the Froot Loop experience. It sounds crazy, but the association was so strong, it was hard to ignore.

Overall, I enjoyed this tea, and would recommend it to anyone that enjoys sweeter, flowery flavors.

Great blend, though I think I over-steeped it in too hot water, so the coconut flavor didn’t come through as strongly as it could have. The lemongrass was a fantastic addition to the spicy chai flavor though, and adds to the aroma as well, so that was nice. Definitely a tea with a lot of potential, and one that I’ll enjoy as I try and perfect the formula.

I bought this tea for a friend that LOVES bacon, so I wasn’t expecting much (I figured it was more novelty than anything) but I was pleasantly surprised by a tea that mixed sweet and smokey to create a perfect blend of flavorful black tea.

When you first open the bag, the leaves have a strong, sweet smell that reminded me of pralines. There’s a bit of bacon in the aroma as well, though it’s more of a woodsy, smokey smell than a meaty, porky smell.

When you brew it, the aroma mellows out and leaves you with a dark, golden brown/caramel colored tea that has a wonderfully smokey aroma and hints of salty bacon. The smoke definitely overpowers the maple and the bacon though, so don’t expect to be drinking liquid meat. (Which is a good thing.)

Next steep, I’d go a little longer and see if the bacon gets a little stronger, but this is a surprisingly good tea with complex flavors that will be enjoyed by anyone that likes a smokey, hearty tea.

This time around, the tea came out sweeter than previous steepings, and I was surprised by how well-balanced the flavor was. There’s a general sweetness to it, with just a hint of smoky flavor, and it’s rounded out by a nutty, chocolately taste that adds an extra layer of complexity. Still not what I’d call “great”, but it’s definitely growing on me.

Revisiting this tea, and still not impressed. The spice does add to the flavor, but it overpowers the pumpkin, and you just end up with a spicy black tea.

Another cold morning in San Francisco made better by a fantastic black (or more appropriately, black and golden brown) tea. Golden Spring’s subtle sweetness makes for a mellow flavor that’s smooth and enjoyable, while the smokey, sweet aroma rounds out the experience. Great stuff!

What goes well with a sleepy Wednesday morning? Dragonwell! This time around, I’m picking up more of the sweet flavors that Dragonwell is known for, and it results in a nice tea to start the day with. I also love how the leaves start flat and lifeless without a lot of aroma, and then open up through the steeping to reveal their true character. It’s a great metaphor for what I feel like after drinking a cup of the dragon. Love it!

Today was the last of my sampler tin, so I decided to steep it out with a bang. (7+ minutes of steeping.) Thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed. The flavor was wonderful and flowery, with subtle hints of grass and minerals, and not a lot of bitterness. Though this tea didn’t wow me at first, it did grow on me, and I was sad to see it go.

I can’t pronounce the name of this tea for the life of me, but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying it! Steeped for an extra minute today, and I’m not sure if it unlocked an extra something special or what, but it was delicious! Smokey tones, a rich, dark color, and an earthy/smokey aroma combine to form a potent black tea that can easily be enjoyed by itself on a cold, damp morning.