3030 Tasting Notes
Found this on crazy sale during the summer and set it back for nippy weather. The licorice and turmeric way overshadow the orange and ginger elements, so I’m not enjoying it much on its own. However, I can see this as an add-in to plain decaf tea or as a mulling agent for cider. Won’t give it up just yet, but I’m glad I didn’t invest a lot in it.
Little October office alchemy … had a bag of Perfect Peach and a bag of Bigelow’s Apple Cider, both of which were a little too weak and a little too hibiscus-heavy for me to love individually. So I got frisky and put both bags in a single cup. Greatly improved! A little like mulled fruit punch.
Well, blast and sour pickles. Lord Kensington is notably absent and “out of stock” everywhere I have looked for him. Just when you get fond of a new friend…
It’s hard to find a tasty but potent bagged tea that unashamedly advertises itself as Assam. This is (was). Stout, smooth, just a little malt, but not bitter. Which I shall be if this all-weather, all-purpose boot-you-out-the-door variety is discontinued.
I don’t normally care for raw oranges, but if I do eat one, I prefer the mild little clementines, which is the key citrus element in this blend. With a little cinnamon and clove, this would resemble my old favorite Constant Comment. WIthout the spice, it’s a doppelganger for Harney and Sons African Autumn. Tasty, but nothing that sets it uniquely apart.
I had set this sample from Martin aside for cooler weather—which has taken its own sweet time getting here. But a mild afternoon with enough breeze to start loosening the leaves seemed like a good occasion to break it out.
Good cherry flavored teas are rare, and we’ve found one here. The black tea base is light, the cherry isn’t medicinal, and the cloves give it the personality of a nice, freshly baked cherry crisp.
Thanks, Martin! I finished the cup while watching a couple of bumblebees the size of my big toe harvest the last of the pollen from our zinnias and sedum plants.
Bagged version, again from a grab-it-because-it-isn’t-local grocery run. The scent is deliciously malty and bready, but I used too big a tumbler and too little time on the first run, and it didn’t translate into equivalent flavor. Upped the time and downed the water on this morning’s cup—better, and much, much zippier. I was highly caffeinated until nearly lunchtime.
I’ve always held high hopes that valerian tea would help with the nighttime shut-down process, but it always tasted like I was sucking on a stick from our old elm tree. Found this iteration today on a special-occasion grocery run to Fresh Market and, as I’m looking at bedtime with a mind going like bumblebees, I’m giving it a go.
Tazo (my cat) loved the scent and would’ve helped himself to it had he not burned his nose. The lavender and oatflower (though I’ve never tried it on its own) appear to be doing a fine job of toning down the tree branch flavor. As to its effectiveness, guess we’ll know in the morning. Rest well, y’all.
rest well! cats are the best judges when it comes to tea in my opinion; once, my cat got really curious about some rooibos chai I was having, but immediately backed off once she actually smelled it, to the point of moving away from the cup… although I liked it, my system absolutely did not agree with me
all of this to say — Tazo was probably telling you that the tea will be good for you!
He made a pretty good call. While I supplemented with some melatonin as well, I did rest decently!
