15575 Tasting Notes
Iced Tea!
Whisked this up at work this morning but just as a straight iced tea – no milk since I found it so weird last time when I went the latte route. Thankfully that seemed to be a good choice! The hojicha was pretty dark and roasty but ultimately refreshing and almost like an iced coffee in some of its flavours. The mango was bright and contrasted really sharply against the darker toasty grain and espresso notes. Almost had that very slight pine-y note that I associate with mangoes that are just under ripe, but not in a bad way. The whole drink was dynamic and refreshing and all the flavours just really sprang to life.
While in Vegas I was seeing blackberry flavoured RTDs and liquors everywhere. Definitely seemed to be a pretty tending profile. Of course, when I flew back home I got off the plane and was walking through the airport just dying of thirst. Even though the airport convenience stores are so over priced I couldn’t wait to get home to drink something. The shop in the airport I ended up going to had a whole endcap display dedicated to this Brisk flavour and it just felt like a sign after seeing SO MANY blackberry products…
I’ve had this one before though, and honestly it’s good. One of my favourite Brisk options. Yes, it’s sweet but they really nail that jammy fresh blackberry flavour!
Clearly feeling the smoked teas lately because this is like the third relatively heavily smoked tea that I drank within a three day time span. It was really good, though! Brisk and tannic with a huge upfront pine smoke profile typical of Lapsang Souchong before that flavour broke and gave way to an almost gummy candy-like mango flavour. To echo previous tasting notes, there is room here for more mango. However, given I’ve been really chasing those smoky flavours I thought this was spot on.
I must have been in a weird head space last night because I woke in the middle of the night dying of thirst (like 3AM) and instead of getting water I pulled this out of my fridge and just downed it in almost one go. I vaguely remember the sweeter cherry note and hint of black tea in the finish, but it’s a blur. Why did I do that? Definitely not normal nighttime behavior on my part.
Cold Brew!
Though this wasn’t an unpleasant blend it was very different from how I had remembered it, and I don’t think it totally matched the mood I was in. I was looking for something a little more tart, juicy, and heavily sweet and instead this was more medium bodied with very fragrant tropical fruit notes like guava and a strong floral and rosy finish. Missing that rich hibiscus tartness I was wanting, and though it had some sweetness it wasn’t quite the saturated flavour I wanted. In fact, there was maybe as much bitterness as the was sweetness. Like a pithy citrus rind in the forefront and then a sweeter mellow tropical and floral finish.
Working on a big project this week, so a lot of the teas I’ve been drinking have kind of fallen into the backdrop while I focus on other things. In this case, I think that benefited the tea quite a bit. In the past, while I’ve been more attentive while drinking this tea, I’ve really picked it apart but drinking it so much more casually I felt like I was really getting a strong “chocolate chip cookie” vibe.
Another booth that I spent a fair amount of time at during WTE was the Australian Tea Master booth which was just packed with different things including tea based wine proxies, various books, and – of course – tea. What caught my attention was a sample pack of teas made using tea leaf grown in Australia as well as other Austalia native ingredients. So, obviously I picked that up…
This is the first I tried and I actually really, really enjoyed it. The green tea was smooth with a gentle grassiness that made for a good blending foundation for a very sweet, juicy fresh strawberry note and a hint of fresh zesty lime. Quite lively and summery with a lot of flavour without being very sweet. As someone who’s had a lot of strawberry green teas, this one really stands out to me.
A forever favourite. I made this evening cuppa a few nights ago, and it was one of those cups of tea that you sort of just melt into and become one with. Lightly sweet and tart rhubarb on the top of the sip with silky smooth vanilla and custard on the backend. God how I wish the combination of rhubarb and cream was normalized/commercial here in Canada…
Cold Brew!
This is another tea that I got to sample at the expo (they were also serving it cold brewed) that I decided to purchase and bring home with me. It’s just straight Korean yuzu peel, much like what’s in the Yuja Balhyocha from Soo Cha that I adore so much.
When I got home one of the first things I did after unpacking was set this up to cold brew so that the next day I could enjoy relaxing with this tisane. It essentially tastes like a really nuanced, elevated sort of lemonade. Naturally just a bit sweet with some more tart, aromatic high notes but also with that complexity and peppery undertone that is more distinct and unique to yuzu. Maybe a little like grapefruit too. So fresh, and just an explosion of natural citrus flavours.
Glad I nabbed this! It’ll be nice for cold brewing in the summer or experimenting with mixing into other teas.