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Another weird combo. I almost got the Agni Chai, which is more Ayuverdic in nature by combining Pu-Erh into a lavender turmeric chai (though in my head cannon, it’s a Avatar the Last Air Bender reference), but the elderberry, white oak, and marshmallow leaf got me interested. I really don’t have to much to write on this one, but it lasts a little bit longer than the other teas. The elderberry becomes much more prominent as I steep it. The other elements are harder to taste. It’s generally malty. The marshmellow adds a little bit of a flavor to round it off, and the oak might give off a bit of a sagey feel, but they are not prominent. A bit of oak milk creamer add more dimension and layered off the ingredients.

I don’t have a strong opinion on it yet other than interesting and generally likeable. I also had a good clear headed feeling after it before work, so it’s solid. Byzantium is lighter and more complex, so I like it more, but this is up my alley. I’ll play around with it as I get more acquainted.

Easy favorite. I wanted to get this one with Ursa, which was a cocoa bean laoshan blend with some dried berries, but I wanted this one because I love dramatic history of luxurious places. Byzantium gets often ignored by history classes despite continuing Rome’s legacy and served as a major influence over Christianity, trade, and the futures of Eastern Europe. The makers of the tea definitely have an idea of that vibe with the picks of flowers. It would have been cool to have purple with the yellow flowers to really hammer Byzantine aesthetic, but the tea looks exactly like the picture you see above.

I’ve done this tumbler style, and western, and western is the way to go. The flavors are smooth and incredible, but gets mistaken as a generically good black tea in a tumbler. Western style draws out and balances out the nuances. The teas picked are on the more chocolaty/milky side for black teas. I think there’s some Laoshan in this too, but I think the blend has changed from years to years. There’s some god buds, but not too many. The clover is especially prominent, and the immortelle has a bit of a taste between chamomile and chrysanthemum. My mom wondered if it was an Earl Grey when she drank it blind. The aftertaste is a little bit different and more subtle, yet there’s enough sweetness to make the tea a little bit more distinct. Malt, graham cracker and honey are good descriptors too, yet the clover is distinct enough for me.

It heavily weakens after steep two. Graham cracker and black tea with light malt are the main players. Tannin and vague florals are all that remains after a while.

I’m pretty happy with this one. If it were more flexible in a tumbler, it would be an easy breakfast and work tea. Since I have to pay attention, I’ll have to wake up earlier, or reserve it for lunch or the weekends. It’ll do the job of getting me up well, though I’m missing some of the other teas I’ve sipped down for breakfast.

I’ve wanted to try this company for the past few years, and they finally had a stock that I wanted to order as a combo. Artemis Tea and Botanicals lives up to their name and all of the teas I tried out are heavily herbal. There’s a clear homeopathy bent to the company, but they prioritise the ingredients, and very few of their teas are actually flavored. Their artwork and packaging are gorgeous as well.

I had my sights on Ursa originally, and then this one. It’s spring time, and despite today marking a nearing of Christ’s resurrection, I figured I get this tea to honor the hellenic roots in the holiday, and the universal passage from winter into spring.

The tea really captures that weird transition from frost, permafrost, to dew, rain, dirt, and finally, blooms in the trees and in the grass. I would not recommend this tea for flavor since it’s extremely earthy and herby, but it does something interesting. The smell has a mix of earth, lilac and jasmine in the scent, and the taste is much the same. It starts off as earth, then hardens into mineral, then cools off like birch into a floral body of lilac, jasmine, and then a lightly green and creamy malt. I kinda get stonefruit mid sipped, but it’s something like a burnt apricot or peach for a split second. The mineral, salt, birch, and flowers are more dominant. I wonder if the birch note is actually the acacia.

The tea didn’t last beyond the second steep. It was muted after even five minutes losing some power. It oddly relieved a huge headache I had, and my muscles weren’t as tight, so the power of herbs or wishful thinking was effective.

I think this tea is super interesting, but I’m not sure if I’d recommend it. If I go for a blend, I usually look for something atypical anyway and it meets the mark. I am also not a huge fan of the taste, but I am a huge fan of how the taste encapsulates its namesake as a goddess returning from the underworld in the spring. The flowers are also absolutely gorgeous brewed and unbrewed. I was very happy with the package and service too, and the other blends will be just as fun to write about.

Sipdown. Considering how often I down this, I upped the rating. I’m actually regretting my decision not saving for another serving of this tea. Again, the pu-erh combo with currant, vanilla, and pomegranate is amazing. I used way too much tea this time finishing it off, added oatmilk cream, again, and it tasted like cookies. Now to finish all my other blacks. Hopefully, the new ones I’m getting are comparable to this one.

Derk, this is going to be yours and a certain someone’s. I finally tried all of them, and they’re not to my preference. However, they’re impressive. I’ll review the remaining teas of the sample, then my overall thoughts.

Dark Peach-this is great if you like bourbon. Very smokey and smooth like all of them, woodsy, and a little bit peachy, but it’s more bourbon and scotch like in profile than peach. Easy to gong fu, and oat milk cream brings up the fruity notes, but it’s predominantly a little bit smoky and woodsy.

Whiskey Cloud 9-similar to the one above, and whiskey forward with the same kind of notes. Cream emphasized it well, too, but not as complex as Dark Peach. Certainly more refined than other Whiskey blends I’ve had, but you pretty much know what you are getting, with a little bit of bitterness that’s actually pleasant.

King-surprisingly the least astringent, smokey, and woodsy, and the best tea to gong fu. Still woodsy, but more cedary with less smoke, and a little bit more natural cocoa like other hong cha. There’s a whiff of smoke still, but it’s an accent for a more complex and highly caffeinated tea. Definitely smoother than Dark Peach too, and I liked it more than the May Black. The oatmilk cream turned it into an amazing breakfast black. I would not mind having this around a little bit more, but the caffeine level is a bit much for me. I want to guzzle my tea with little consequence please.

Anyway, so the teas were all smoky, bold, and woodsy. I liked King and Cocoa Smoke the most, and I’m still curious about the Yuzu Cloud tea. They are solid gong fu, but I found myself enjoying these more western with a bit of cream. If you are into hearty black teas with complexity, these are amazing and have more complex versions of notes you’d get in a Keemum, Lapsang, or Scottish Breakfast tea. I personally will not be able to drink these down and will likely have to swap them, yet I don’t regret trying them out. I was very pleased with the quality of tea and service.

Very sad sipdown. Shared this with my girlfriend, and it was smooth, floral, juicy, and naturally sweet and with the right type of dryness at the same time. It was so sweet it reminded me of a strawberry pez candy. I’m really going to miss this one. Definitely a reorder. Unfortunately, on the the jars are sold for sample sizes and I already have one. They are very useful little things for transporting other loose leaf, though.

Short note: I tumblered it after taking the Sagittarius out, and there was still left over ginger, orange, and vanilla flavors left bleeding into this one. It was by no means bad, and blended smoothly into the the teas melon green profile. Second cup, and I’m getting more honeydew melon and umami with some sweet greens and florals. I’m really glad I gave this one another chance because I had a feeling the 2022 season was better than the one I had when I first tried this tea. I also don’t have any of the Jade and Lishan to compare it to, so I’m less inclined to snub it.

May Black Tea-

I think I used too many leaves. I can see it being gong fu able, and it tastes like tea. It’s a bit more floral, and has a little bit of a grainy/buttery profile in the malt. There are some similarities to some Darjeeling blacks and Korean ones in terms of its complexity. There were some layers to it, but I feel pretentious in describing May Black’s flavor. It’s a woodsy, smooth black breakfast tea. So it’s tea, but it’s TEA that should be in italics.

I splashed cream in the second one, and it was good. Kinda tasted like the ifcc coffee or milk tea. I feel like there’s something I’m missing. So in terms of notes, it’s tea, malt, wood, floral, smoke hints, and earth. I’m not as into this one, but I recognise it’s quality.

I finally got the ratio down right on this Sipdown: 5 small pearls, lots of calendula, and maybe one orange. I let it sit for three minutes western this time in my Kyusu. I sipped it at the 2 minute mark and could have easily brewed it then to have more citrus, vanilla, and caramel, but I decided it needed more time, so I finished the minute.

Drinking it up, the elements are far more balanced between the malty base and the flavoring. Orange isn’t overpowering the other flavors as much, and I can actually taste the caramel and vanilla. The tea is a little bit oily, which I do like, but it may be overpowering for some. It’s easy to offset by shorter steeping or a splash of cream. I also confess I’m a little tea drunk right now….thank you Lions Mane.

The second cup, I did at three minutes western. Much the same applies, and this cup is a little bit maltier, with a little bit more tannin. I splashed some sweet cream oatmilk into it to try it out because I think this tea was meant for more of a latte style for intention, so I tried it out. It’s got more of a creamsicle vibe, and the tannins and orange oil are cut back significantly emphasizing the caramel. The caramel hides a little bit behind the tea base on its own, so the cream pushes it out a little bit more.

I’m happy that I was able to figure out a better balance for this one. Too long steeps or too many pearls can make the malt of the tea overpower the other flavors, and not enough pearls or too much peel make this taste like a EmergenC substitute. I regret not trying this iced because I’d be interested to see how the orange and creamier flavors appear with cold cutting the tannin. In terms of when I’d drink this tea, it’s definitely a morning breakfast tea or lunch pick me up tea. I can brew more tea out of the leaves I have, but I’m going to leave off writing here until something else comes along in the session. The combo of coffee, Japanese black tea, and this one is giving me the jitters, so I need to slow down. I’m also getting high off some endorphins on grading well done assignments.

I got these today, and they actually ran out of a few them and sent me a lovely note. I’m going to reach back to them for clarification because there were specific teas I wanted to try out that weren’t sent, specifically the Yuzu Cloud and Sakura Cloud, but the letter says there will be no additional charge for the send out for them. That is generous. Even the selection is generous.

So I got Cacao Smoke, Whiskey Cloud 9, May Black, Dark Peach, and their King blend. All of them smell bold and since they’re smoked, they have Lapsang Vibes. All of them were leathery and smokey and smooth, making me wonder if the company almost went for Kinky Black Teas as a name instead. I know, insensitive, but there is some nuance to the leaves so far.

I’m actually leaning more towards the May Black, but I was in the mood for some cocoa, and tried out the Cacao smoke to help me power through grading as I have Covid….again. This time, I actually have taste buds, so I’ll take the win.

I rinsed it, and it sat for about a minute. Bold, but not astringent, some definite cacao nib taste and powder character, a little bit woodsy, and light smoke. I was surprised it was not lapsang levels, and it was actually really, really smooth. It had a little bit of bitterness, so I decided to add some sweet cream oat milk. The profile kinda reminded me of a Hojicha latte with some of its dark charcoal woodiness and earth mixed with the sweet cream. I brewed up another cup western for 2-3 minutes, tried it black without any additions before adding cream. More cacao, and some roasty peanut vibes. Surprisingly more complex with the cream, and more chocolaty, and it doesn’t lose the charcoal or woodsiness.

That one is a little bit strong for my taste despite being a lot more approachable for a big o’ softy like me, but it kicks most breakfast teas butts out of the coast. The oatmilk creamer is making it sing. I don’t think it would be bad gong fu either, and this has a caffeine kick. I’m feeling a little bit jittery after having some. I’ll play around with it, and the others. I’ll probably share some of this with a certain someone I know.