Republic of Tea Cinnamon Plum

Today I'm drinking Republic of Tea's Cinnamon Plum black tea, which bills itself as a combo of black tea, cinnamon, natural plum flavor, sloeberries and elderberries.  The aroma isn't incredibly strong.  The flavor isn't particularly strong either.  The cinnamon is soft, warm, and cozy, not the blow-your-doors-off of, say, Harney & Sons' Cinnamon Spice.  The plum note is very very faint, just a quality of sweetness that offsets the natural flavor of the tea.   In short, this is a black tea for people who like tea that tastes primarily like tea.   I myself would like a stronger sweet fruit note.

It's not bad, it's just not that interesting.  Likely will not buy again.

Guest Review: O-Organics Sparkling Green Tea

From my friend Lilli Haicken:

Usually I am a roasted bean person, but there are times I want tea, and its generally something unusual I go for.

I was browsing in the local ACME store aisles, and came across something that looked interesting - an O-Organics Sparkling Green Tea. Sparkling? As in fizzy? I picked up the fairly heavy glass bottle, noting that the liquid inside bubbled as I did. It was a shade of soft green-gold, with lots of bubbles. The bottle's label had a stamp that said 'Product of Italy' as well. I decided to give it a try.

It sat in my refrigerator for a few weeks. Like I said earlier, I'm a roasted bean person mostly. Then I caught the flu that got through this year's flu shot. Argh. Between bouts of coughing, I reached for tea. Hot to start, to soothe the sore throat, but once that calmed down enough, I wanted something else. And the bottle of fizzy tea leaped out at me when I opened the fridge.

It pours nicely, like a fizzy drink should. Lots of small bubbles and soft hissing as the bubbles churn. On first whiff it smelled gently citrusy. When I looked further at the label, the ingredients listed include organic lemon juice. A first sip was startling. It tasted a lot like a lighter, more green ginger ale. The notes of green tea are there, very gentle. The fizz makes it feel quite nice going down a still slightly sore throat. Over all, it's a delightful surprise. Fizzy, bright and lightly sweet (yes, the label lists cane sugar as one of the ingredients, something I only discovered after drinking it).

I suspect it would go quite nicely with a warm pastrami sandwich.

Tea Forte's Vanilla Pear White Tea

Vanilla and pears are two of my favorite things, so I was excited to try Tea Forte's Vanilla Pear White Tea.  Fortunately, it lived up to my expectations.  Like most white teas, it requires careful preparation.  Over-steeping or using water that is too hot will ruin the fairly delicate flavor.

I don't get too much in the way of vanilla scent or flavor.  Pear, apple and ginger are the dominant flavors.  The brew has that warm, golden quality that I associate with the combination of pear and ginger.   I like this tea a great deal but I really wanted that missing vanilla piece.

I should see if I can get some vanilla honey.  mmmm  vanilla honey.

Harney & Sons' Valentine's Day Tea

I happened to be in Barnes & Noble for something else this week and saw tins of Harney & Sons' Valentine's Day tea on sale.  It bills itself as a chocolate tea with rosebuds.  Chocolate-flavored teas can be very hit or miss, but at the sale price, what the heck, why not.

I'm pleased to report that this tea works quite well.  It has the scent and flavor of dark chocolate, which seems to fit better with black tea than attempts at milk chocolate flavor.  The smell was incredibly strong when I opened the tin -- like snorting a whole Godiva box -- but the actual tea was pleasantly balanced.  I notice the rose elements in the aroma, but not in the flavor itself.   Even when I wildly over-steeped yesterday's morning cuppa because I got distracted, neither the chocolate nor the black tea elements turned bitter on me.   If you like tea that tastes like tea, you could certainly get away without adding sweetener.   Adding milk or cream and sugar will probably result in something close to rose-tinged hot chocolate.

Satisfying all around, even for someone who isn't crazy for chocolate.

Tea Forte's Darjeeling Quince

For Christmas, I received Tea Forte's Darjeeling Quince black tea as part of a sampler pack.  I'm quite fond of black teas with fruity notes, so this tea seemed the best one to review for the blog's restart.

This tea combines citrus, quince and hibiscus with a lighter black tea.  Quince is a fruit in the same family as apples and pears.  It usually isn't eaten raw but instead tends to be cooked and used in jams and jellies.   The aroma of the tea is primarily a citrus black, with a little hint of something that is probably the quince (because it definitely isn't hibiscus).  The taste continues the emphasis on citrus, with the quince playing second fiddle and the hibiscus thankfully coming in a distant third.  I wish the tea itself were a little stronger player, but that is likely a personal taste issue as I tend to love darker teas.

This is a solid B+ tea, tasty but not overly complicated.  It's also likely to be a good starter tea for someone looking to venture beyond basic blacks, as it's not too heavily scented or flowery.

We're back!

After almost a year's hiatus, Alys's Tea Party is back!  I'll be trying to post more regular reviews, recipes and other tea-related stuff going forward.

Harney & Sons Hot Apple Spice

My quest for a good, strong apple-flavored tea continues.  Harney & Sons' Hot Apple Spice, while a very nice cuppa, is still not that tea.   It bills itself as a blend of apples, cinnamon, orange peel and ground cloves.  All of the latter flavors are fully represented.  The apples are noticeably absent.   It smells of apples in the tin, but that's about the only association with apple I get here.  It's more or less like drinking a variant of Harney & Sons's Hot Cinnamon Spice.  While this is not a bad thing, it's not what I signed up for.

It's possible that the tin I got was old (as I bought it off a shelf at a small shop, and who knows how long it had been there).   Since cinnamon, orange peel, cloves and black tea make for a fine holiday-time brew, I'll finish the tin regardless.