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derk drank Pumpkin Pie Chai by Asheville Tea Company

1637 tasting notes

Bought this only because it has spicebush in it, which is a scent that permeates the memories of Ohio forests.

This tea isn’t particularly pumpkin in taste. After all, how much pumpkin flavor can you pull from a few dried chunks? In the steam, though, it is much like a slice of pumpkin pie without the sickly sweet condensed milk note that makes me recoil when it’s time for Thanksgiving dessert.

This is a fine basic chai that completely washes out with a drop of milk. At least the spices are fresh.

Flavors: Pumpkin Spice, Tea

Preparation

Boiling 8 min or more 10 OZ / 295 ML

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ashmanra
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Is your spicebush the same thing that is usually called Sweet Shrub around me here in NC? I know some people call ours Carolina Spicebush, but my mother called it sweet shrub and told me they used to pick the flowers on the way to school before she 2s sent to the orphanage. They wrapped the flowers in their handkerchiefs and crushed them, and took them out all day to smell them.

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ashmanra
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This place, like the rest of the internet, is dead and overrun with bots. Yet I persist.

Eventual tea farmer. If you are a tea grower, want to grow your own plants or are simply curious, please follow me so we can chat.

I most enjoy loose-leaf, unflavored teas and tisanes. Teabags have their place. Some of my favorite teas have a profound effect on mind and body rather than having a specific flavor profile.

Favorite teas generally come from China (all provinces), Taiwan, India (Nilgiri and Manipur). Frequently enjoyed though less sipped are teas from Georgia, Japan, and Nepal. While I’m not actively on the hunt, a goal of mine is to try tea from every country that makes it available to the North American market. This is to gain a vague understanding of how Camellia sinensis performs in different climates. I realize that borders are arbitrary and some countries are huge with many climates and tea-growing regions.

I’m convinced European countries make the best herbal teas.

Personal Rating Scale:

100-90: A tea I can lose myself into. Something about it makes me slow down and appreciate not only the tea but all of life or a moment in time. If it’s a bagged or herbal tea, it’s of standout quality in comparison to similar items.

89-80: Fits my profile well enough to buy again.

79-70: Not a preferred tea. I might buy more or try a different harvest. Would gladly have a cup if offered.

69-60: Not necessarily a bad tea but one that I won’t buy again. Would have a cup if offered.

59-1: Lacking several elements, strangely clunky, possesses off flavor/aroma/texture or something about it makes me not want to finish.

Unrated: Haven’t made up my mind or some other reason. If it’s puerh, I likely think it needs more age.

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