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I had this in my timolino at work, and not surprisingly, it fit the bill. I actually wish I had a second round to get me through the afternoon. I may have under-creamed it though, and I still think I’d prefer this one in a regular, open mug, but it’s still a winner either way. I’m also wearing a slightly woodsy vanilla perfume today, and I find that the scent of the tea and perfume mingle nicely, and combined, feel very appropriate for the grey, fall weather.
Oh gosh, wishing so desperately i had more tea with me—I’m already beginning to feel myself come up against a wall of insurmountable sleepiness. I remember when I was a student (in the very near past, mind you), I could just take a nap whenever I felt tired; alas, I don’t have access to that same luxury anymore. Not being able to nap when I need to is probably one of the worst aspects of living a normal adult life.

This tea smells wonderful, and really evokes winter-esque associations more than fall ones, and I think that’s because of the cloves. I used one of dt’s “perfect teaspoons” for an eight-ounce cup, and think that I’ll use a little more leaf next time (I tend to need to do that for most of dt’s teas, however, so that wasn’t really a surprise).
Taste-wise, you can definitely feel the effect of the cloves-it has that mildly numbing effect on my tongue that I don’t actually find to be all that unpleasant. I’m definitely getting more ginger and cloves than breadiness in this tea, so I added in some cream to give the tea a bit of “thickness” because I tend to shrink back in horror if I legitimately peg a tea as being “watery”. I actually replenished my sample supply of this, because I think I’ll really enjoy it as a breakfast tea in the cold winter months. The ginger and cloves definitely give it a very warming feel, and I imagine it’ll also feel appropriately festive around the holiday season. The description also indicates that there’s some vanilla here, but I’m not getting that at all (I steeped for about seven minutes).

I think I’m ready to place my first “real” Butiki order, and by that I mean orders of things I’ve already tried.

Unfortunately, despite my tinkering with it a fair bit, I don’t think this tea is going to be part of my order. I don’t think the flavour was as intense as I typically prefer, but that didn’t mean I didn’t happily guzzle my cup and let my fiancé have a sip! Great tea, just not ultimately for me, it would seem (I can practically hear my bank account heaving a sigh of relief though LOL).

Today was definitely one of those days where all I felt capable of doing was lying on the couch. My fiancé and I drank wine last night, and three glasses later, we found ourselves in the guest room, him playing the piano while I sang, and we did that for about an hour and had the time of our lives. I then passed happily out in bed, only to wake up a few hours later, feeling needlessly hung over (three glasses? seriously? I think the feelings were exacerbated by the fact that I didn’t get to really “sleep it off”, because to feel that ill after three glasses of the finest red I’ve had in a while feels kind of embarrassing). I mean, even the thought of having hot tea this morning was making my stomach turn (all I could stomach the thought of was sharp, tangy orange juice) and so I had some of that and promptly fell asleep. So, that’s been my day. Not a bad day, ultimately, although Sundays are always laced with the tiniest bit of sadness simply because here comes the work week again (and I say this as someone who’s pretty happy at work, but hey, getting up early really sucks no matter how you cut it).
Have a great evening, all of you!

I got this made as a lat while I was at the store this afternoon, and sipped it while I read my book and waited for my fiancé to finish grocery shopping. As with many of David’s teas, I found it smelled fantastic, but left a lot to be desired. It almost smelled as though it would be better iced, or maybe even as a bubble tea, but having it hot just wasn’t cutting it for me. Don’t get me wrong—I finished it no problem, but it definitely lacked anything in the way of substance. I was not at all tempted to get a sample bag of this, even though I imagine I could probably play around with it a bit. There are other teas on my mind right now though, so I think I’ll be ok. I also imagine (horror of horrors) that this tea would probably be better straight, because that might help the tartness/freshness of the apple stand out more. I found that as a lat, the milk just muted whatever little flavour there was.
I did, however, replenish my supply of Sugar and Spice, because I find that tea to be flavourful and warming and perfect for a cold winter’s day. Oh, and I also tasted their new maple agave, which was so delicious I could have just drank it from the bottle! I didn’t pick any up though, as I find my love affair with rock sugar is sufficing for now.

Gorgeous, light fall weather outside. Blazing sunshine, a touch of crispness to the breeze, and leaves swirling about your feet as you walk. It’s one of those days where I’m just happy to be alive.

I have one thing to say: I’m sorry.

I’m sorry I under-estimated this tea; I’m sorry I didn’t give it a real chance until today.

This morning, I brewed this up as per my own typical parameters: steep a few minutes longer than the recommended steep time, and add in my usual rock sugar and cream. I always try to steep things as suggested, at least on my first go, just in case. But I’m coming to realize that tinkering makes a huge difference, and that parameters are just that—a suggestion as to how to make the tea, and by no means a conclusive how-to…indeed, it’s only the beginning.

When I made it this morning, it was as if last week didn’t even happen. It smelled buttery and caramelly as it brewed (I nearly burned my nose because i got really close), and I let it steep for five minutes instead of three. My first sip confirmed that I’d been wrong last week (somehow), and it’s true when reviewers say that the flavours of the caramel and vanilla are very wedded to the assam base, so you wouldn’t necessarily feel as though you were drinking a flavoured tea. I should have known I’d fall hard for this one, and i’m excited that I’ve got more left. i can definitely see this working its way into my work rotation.

I’m too tired to write the novel this tea deserves, but suffice it to say that my love for this tea is confirmed every time I have it. My sample is getting dangerously low though, along with my sample of Taiwanese mountain black. This is verging on a crisis. Must. Get. More.
I was really cold waiting for the bus today after work, and was really disappointed when I came home to a freezing cold house. I brewed up a cup of this immediately, and settled on the couch with a good book to warm up. Perfection.
As usual, I had it with a bit of rock sugar and a dash of cream (although honestly, the cream isn’t even necessary here). Delish either way though.

I’m actually logging my teas out of order a bit, but that’s only because I just finished this one and so it’s on my mind and it’s making me grumpy. But I needed something without caffeine and sort of reached for this with equal parts hoping and begrudging.
Long story short: I used to like this tea, but there was always an element to it that tasted like very fake vanilla, or maybe it isn’t even that. Of course, DT’s concept of a birthday cake doesn’t even necessarily have to be a vanilla one, so maybe it’s just a matter of interpretation, but I think if this tea did anything for me, it was to introduce me to the world of loose leaf, and also told me that I am still 100% still on the hunt for a great vanilla tea. This simply isn’t it. There’s something very…jarring about how it tastes—something that doesn’t quite fit nicely with the birthday cake-ness part of it. I will likely finish the tin somehow, although I’d be happy to have an excuse to part with it sooner.

Ok, so a verdict has been reached. I think I prefer the Taiwanese wild mountain black, and I can safely say I think I’ve given both teas a fair shake. For some reason, there’s a dryness (or at least that’s the only way I know how to describe it) to the PTA that I just don’t get from the mountain black. Then again, let’s be real here: how exactly do you choose anything over a straight black tea that still somehow tastes like waffles? so, although I’m glad I tried this, my bank account will be grateful that I don’t actually need to order both this and the mountain black. Oh, and I brewed the PTA for like six or seven minutes this morning, and used about 3 tsp for 12 oz of water. All I have left to do this weekend is continue playing with caramel vanilla assam and the maple pecan oolong, and I should be ready to place my next order!

In other news, I’m completely and utterly exhausted today at work. It’s only 9:00, and I could seriously just lie on my office floor and take a nap. I hope to whoever’s listening that this day passes quickly; I feel as though I need a weekend so desperately. When my alarm clock jarred me into consciousness this morning, I was seriously confused and wondered what all the racket was in the middle of the night, and then came the sinking realization that it wasn’t the middle of the night, and I had to haul my lazy butt out of bed. Ugggh.

I’m liking this tea more and more each time I drink it. It’s sort of become a staple in my timolino (which I have two of now!). I think I added a little too much cream this morning, which cooled it down a touch more than i liked (which actually led to my guzzling it within like an hour of getting to work), but I’m really liking how unfussy this tea is, and how it’ll hold its own. As I was getting ready for work, i was rushing like crazy, so I prepared my timolino but had a k-cup chai for breakfast because i wouldn’t have had to wait for it to steep, and the difference in quality was so stark. Don’t get me wrong—k cups will do in a pinch, and i’m glad for that type of convenience. But boy oh boy, I could never in a million years go back to k-cups full time. Not after discovering tea like this.

I also tried butiki’s PTA yesterday, and have decided that when I place my order, I’m going to be restocking either that or the mountain black, but I don’t think i can afford to restock both. I’ll review the PTA in another note later, but so far I still can’t really decide. somehow I feel as though the PTA has more “oomph” to it, which I kind of like in the morning, but then it’s hard to deny the awesomeness of waffley sugary goodness.