Tea Reviews
Just got in from a long day to find another tea shipment.
Our first shipment came in from Serendipitea. I know their tea and like it very much. This week I've been grooving a lot on the City Harvest Black Tea - a black tea blended with vanilla and orchid. It is lovely and flavorful without being a soapy floral. At work, I have been grooving in the Fiji and old green tea & pineapple favorite from my waitstaff days. Very good still. I also finally braved the Siam. I love mint blends, but was a touch worried. I shouldn't have been. Siam is like mint tea meets a proper chai. It is intriguing and I look forward to a larger box soon.
Today the Lupicia order came. My mother had given me two teas of theirs that were quite good. I loved the grapefruit green tea. THe second tea is one that I just tend to not like the combination of flavors - a chocolate orange tea. It's just not my favorite combo. I will say though that the quality was such that I semi-enjoyed it, despite it not being a combo I love. I decided when we got home to make the Chaud les Marrons, a sweet roasted chestnut black tea blend. Wow! is this fantastic or what? Gently sweet with hints of caramel in the chestnut, I'm having it with honey, and soymilk. And then I decided to get daring and add a little hit of bourbon. C'est manifiqué!
While I was glad that Serendipitea is relatively local to me - thus cutting down on gas emissions, I am a bit frustrated with their packaging. We recieved a box FULL of shredded paper (yay recyling, boo that it was all magazine and I had to chuck it) and their tins are packed SO tight that getting tea into my various tea-makers is kind of a chore. You open the tin and the tea pops up because it's suddenly fluffy - getting the lid back on is an issue.
Lupicia is far away in California, but the tea comes in mylar bags that allows one to get a scoopful at least. The box was filled with the starch peanuts that dissolve in water, which is nice.
Either way I'll be collecting containers to put both companies teas in.
Both are good. Lupicia has a far larger selection. I don't know if they use artificial flavoring. If they do, it's very high quality. I KNOW Serendipitea does NOT use artificial flavors and their tea is VERY flavorful.
Both teas are quite good, I think, and I'll be ordering from them both as soon as the stash runs down a bit. I have a lot more to sample and drink before that happens though.
N.
Our first shipment came in from Serendipitea. I know their tea and like it very much. This week I've been grooving a lot on the City Harvest Black Tea - a black tea blended with vanilla and orchid. It is lovely and flavorful without being a soapy floral. At work, I have been grooving in the Fiji and old green tea & pineapple favorite from my waitstaff days. Very good still. I also finally braved the Siam. I love mint blends, but was a touch worried. I shouldn't have been. Siam is like mint tea meets a proper chai. It is intriguing and I look forward to a larger box soon.
Today the Lupicia order came. My mother had given me two teas of theirs that were quite good. I loved the grapefruit green tea. THe second tea is one that I just tend to not like the combination of flavors - a chocolate orange tea. It's just not my favorite combo. I will say though that the quality was such that I semi-enjoyed it, despite it not being a combo I love. I decided when we got home to make the Chaud les Marrons, a sweet roasted chestnut black tea blend. Wow! is this fantastic or what? Gently sweet with hints of caramel in the chestnut, I'm having it with honey, and soymilk. And then I decided to get daring and add a little hit of bourbon. C'est manifiqué!
While I was glad that Serendipitea is relatively local to me - thus cutting down on gas emissions, I am a bit frustrated with their packaging. We recieved a box FULL of shredded paper (yay recyling, boo that it was all magazine and I had to chuck it) and their tins are packed SO tight that getting tea into my various tea-makers is kind of a chore. You open the tin and the tea pops up because it's suddenly fluffy - getting the lid back on is an issue.
Lupicia is far away in California, but the tea comes in mylar bags that allows one to get a scoopful at least. The box was filled with the starch peanuts that dissolve in water, which is nice.
Either way I'll be collecting containers to put both companies teas in.
Both are good. Lupicia has a far larger selection. I don't know if they use artificial flavoring. If they do, it's very high quality. I KNOW Serendipitea does NOT use artificial flavors and their tea is VERY flavorful.
Both teas are quite good, I think, and I'll be ordering from them both as soon as the stash runs down a bit. I have a lot more to sample and drink before that happens though.
N.