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This flavored matcha made me SING, it was so good! And the fact that it finally started feeling like fall this week in NC made it all the more delicious. I whisked 2 ounces of 160 degree F water with 3 perfect matcha spoonfuls of this Chai Matcha + 1 perfect matcha spoonful Grand Cru Matcha then split it into 2 latte cups, and then whisked in 7 ounces of frothed, warm vanilla almond milk into each cup. An absolutely luscious, tummy-warming, flavored chai latte.

It reminds me of a wonderful chai drink I make from scratch with cardamom pods, coriander seeds, etc., which I got from The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen Cookbook by Katz. But this chai matcha latte is a little less time intensive.

I’m going to have to stock up on a lot of this stuff, because I’m sure it’s seasonal, and I will want this all year round.

This is my first sip of a gyokuro. As someone who leans toward straight green teas, I really like it. This steeps to a beautiful bright yellow-green color. It tastes fresh and vegetally-green and can be enjoyed without any sweetener (I added just a few drops of pure lemon juice, as I customarily do). I will enjoy this a few times a week and will definitely use my frequent steeper points toward this more pricey (but worth it) tea in the future.

This is a mild, sweet herbal blend that has the added benefit of providing a boost of vitamin C. And it really does taste like the traditional Ricola throat drop flavor, as purported :-) It reminds me a bit of another herbal DAVIDsTEA, Midsummer Night’s Dream. This will be a nice fall/winter go-to tea in the morning and/or evening, to boost immunity during the flu season.

To be fair, I’m not always a fan of just any spicy, chai-like tea (though I do have a few that I like). This one is OK, mostly because I like the strong cardamom note it has. I received this as a sample with my last order. I probably won’t stock up, but I would sip a cup if someone offered me one.

I like my straight green teas. And this is one I can see being a daily go-to brew. I added a tiny amount of honey and just a twist of fresh lemon. It’s mild and smooth, slightly astringent, with just a slight note of lettuce. A really good afternoon tea.

Enjoying a late afternoon cup of this smooth, lemony, lightly flowered oolong. And I like it! Definitely steep at 185 degrees F, a little cooler as the package suggests, for about 4 minutes or a 4:30. This one really just hits that late afternoon sweet craving for me. I did add honey, but just a drizzle.

I’m thinking this one may be good iced, so will try that soon and report back :-)

I tend to like green-citrus-floral notes, but this white / puerh tea is surprisingly smooth, light and enjoyable. I added just a little honey, nothing to make it too sweet, as the comments I had read mentioned there was already a note of honey in the aftertaste of this one. This is really a lovely change of pace for this green tea-leaning taster. I will definitely go to this tea to switch things up every once in a while. It was on sale online at DavidsTea, so I’m glad I went for it during a flash sale and got a real bargain for this rare blend. I may have to hop online and order some more before it’s gone!

Just a quick note on my first try at this one. I’ll be back to update, I’m sure. I tend to prefer straight teas, but a hint of flavor is ok so long as it accompanies well. And the vanilla in this tea does do that. I agree with others who mentioned that the vanilla and creamy notes come out more as the tea cools. The package said to steep at 185 degrees F, but I steeped at 190 degrees F. The dry leaves smelled wonderful - strong vanilla. But the wet leaves and tea itself did not have such a strong vanilla scent; in fact the wet leaves smelled a little like formaldehyde. Thankfully the tea did not smell, or taste, like that :) The tea itself was not very strong, a bit watery, but the hint of creamy vanilla was nice.

I still prefer a good straight tea, but I can see myself reaching for this one out of the cupboard, especially for a light dessert tea.

2018-07-04 Just tried this tea again with a little vanilla almond milk to make a latte — not too bad.

I like straight green teas, but I’m definitely still learning about them and tweaking my steeping techniques as a result. For this tea, I agree with those who have recommended steeping at a lower temp (165-170 degrees F) and for shorter intervals. This tea does lend itself well to re-steeping. So far, I’ve found an initial steep between 1-2 minutes at 170 degrees F to be ideal. The right steep produces a smooth, mellow grassy green note. I do add a little honey and a squeeze of lemon, but I tend to do that with most of my green teas. The squeeze of lemon comes in because of scientific research showing how just a little bit of citric acid added to green tea boosts the absorption of catechins (antioxidants in tea that have an anti-cancer effect) by 500% (see “The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen” by Rebecca Katz & Matt Edelson).

I’m a fan of Silk Dragon Jasmine (DAVIDsTEA), so I figured I’d like this one. And I do, but maybe not quite as much. The jasmine note is definitely stronger in this tea. I think I like it just a little more subtle. But overall, an enjoyable, smooth, slightly astringent jasmine perfumed green tea.