Happy Kombucha

Happy Kombucha smells pretty fruity, just like in the description. It's also an oolong tea, which is a
bonus because you all know my love for oolongs.

This is a really nice tea! It's light and fruity and everything just blends together so pleasantly.

I do wish the flavor as a whole were a bit strong-the exact same taste, just more powerful.

And sorry for no pictures! I was doing taxes and making sure all my adulthood duties were done and I totally forgot!

Enjoy another London trip picture, and get this tea for yourself!

-Laura

Vanilla Orchid

trip selfie

Woop woop! I'm baaaaack!

Sorry this took so long to do. My jet lag was deadly this go 'round, and my trip was full of first world problems that left me feeling exhausted.
And in my first week back, I had to call in sick because I swear I was gonna die. Protip, I'm writing this review sick and sore. So pictures are not gonna happen.

So I did a tea review. Because oolong tea is always a treat, and I got lots of tea stuff for Christmas so I felt like using it.

Today's review is Vanilla Orchid by DavidsTea. I've never had this tea before, so I'm pretty excited.

This tea smells divine. Like someone slapped me in the face with vanilla pre-steeping, then after it was a beautiful not subtle yet not overbearing level.

It's a nice tea. The first sip at first made me go "whoops no 'nilla taste." Then I let it sit and I began to taste it more.

Tis good. Steep at least twice!

Now off to bed.

Pouchong Oolong

Oolong tea from Wenchan area of Taiwan.

I steeped for a good seven minutes (in the 4-7 suggested) because you know how much I love a strong oolong.

It smells slightly floral. Almost like lilacs, but a little more vegetal. It's a really lovely smell.

And an even lovelier taste. You get a bit of that floral aroma, with a touch of nuttiness. It is such an interesting and beautiful flavour. I absolutely love it!
First words out of my mouth: "Holy shit". That is the best I can say. It is just that amazing. I'm at a bit of a loss for words - ones with even a smidge of eloquence, at least - when I want to describe it.

What I have now will not last. This may have just become my go to. Sorry, milk oolong...


Get your hands on some of this amazing oolong.
You may just fall in love with it like I have.


Happy steeping,

~K

Pineapple Oolong

pineapple oolong from DavidsTea

Ingredients: Tie Kwan Yin oolong, pineapple, apricot, and natural flavouring


Honestly, I thought that this tea was going to suck. (pretty sure that's why Laura gave me her sample of it - so she didn't have to try it... the fiend!)

This tea really surprised me.
Now, it's nothing to get me jumping up and down and screaming to the heavens like milk oolong, or raspberry oolong (if we are sticking with a fruity oolong theme), but I actually liked this tea. It's unique, and if you love pineapple, DEFINITELY don't skip buy this one.

You get a perfectly even balance of everything... if you add a pinch more Tie Kwan Yin like I did. LOOK at that sample I got. There was practically NO tea, so I used some of my plain Tie Kwan Yin and added a couple leaves. Is that cheating? I would imagine that if you got a couple grams from the store you wouldn't get so shafted on the tea - so I did not cheat. I didn't.  ... maybe a little... I made it FAIR!

But I digress... the apricot smooths out the pineapple, removing all acidity, and the tea is still the major contributor. Like I said, I am very impressed. Give this a try, you may be just as impressed as I was. And it is priced around the same range as the average tea in DT's collection.


Happy Steeping,
~K


It's like a tropical adventure!

Oolong Supreme

Oolong Supreme from DT

Ingredients: Dang Cong Oolong tea from Wudang Mountains, China.


As someone who absolutely loves oolongs, I was so excited when I heard that DT was bringing in two new, high quality ones. Today, I decided on supreme, because it certainly gets your attention with a name like that.

I steeped for three minutes (I like strong oolongs) with water as close to 80 degrees as I could manage. I really need to get myself a fancy, temperture setting kettle... but I have priorities at the moment that, sadly, do not involve tea. So, for now, I have to use a thermometre.

Wow! This tea.
It's a smooth, roasted nuttiness that just throws me for a loop trying to describe (was that a good enough description?). From the roasted flavour, I was honestly expecting a very strong, lingering bitterness - there isn't any. Nothing but deliciousness.
It can make the palate a little dry, so I would recommend going for two minutes steep time instead. You won't lose any of the amazing flavour, and will make the experience all the more enjoyable.
This dryness could also be attibuted to how hot it has been all week, making me feel incredibly thirsty almost constantly, but I still recommend starting with lower times and seeing how you feel.

SO BEAUTIFUL

It is beautiful outside, and though a little too hot for someone of my disposition to enjoy with a hot drink in hand, this tea is something to definitely enjoy in the cooler comforts of the indoors.

I will definitely be getting myself more.
Excellent work, DT. You made this oolong fan super happy!



Happy Steeping,
~K

Coconut Oolong

Coconut Oolong from DavidsTea

Ingredients: Pao Zhong oolong tea, coconut, artificial coconut flavouring.
(Can I just say how hilarious I find it that the label ACTUALLY says "contains coconut"?! NO SHIT, SHERLOCK!)
 
Oh, damn. I did it again. Grabbed a tea that DavidsTea recently got rid of... sorry. I really don't plan to. I just grab something that I haven't tried yet. 

And yes. Coconut. BUT! This was actually meant to be all about the oolong.

It smells pretty good, and I have a whole tin (I bought it for my mum but she was all: "I have too much tea already") so I figred I should give this tea a go.

And now this entire floor of the house that I'm drinking this on smells of insanely creamy coconut. I'm pretty sure Chris is holding back his rage, because he REALLY hates coconut.  (Sorry, babe)

It basically tastes like watered down coconut milk... I guess... Or maybe someone made a tea of coconut oil. The flavour is INSANELY intense. And though I enjoy that it is a super creamy coconut taste, I really wanted to taste more of the oolong.
Going half/half milk oolong were I ever in a super coconut-ty mood, would be totally fantastic. But alone, this tea is just too much for someone who isn't a huge fan of coconut.

I said coconut A LOT in this post. Yikes.
Well, that's about all I have to say. This tea makes one hell of a perfume! And if you love coconut (shit, I did it again!), you will definitely love this and should try and track some down, if you can.


Happy Steeping, and happy spring-but-not-really-spring,

~K

Quangzhou Milk Oolong

Quangzhou Milk Oolong from DavidsTea

Chinese Oolong tea from the Wuyi Mountains

This tea can smell a little odd at first, but it grows on you, and quickly!
(Yoshi just got to it before me because I'm busy typing this, the fiend!!)

Milk and honey. So creamy and pleasant. Wow! This tea is amazing... Pardon me as I melt into my chair and fall into a state of serenity. (that's right, with a Y. I don't do tea puns)
Enjoy this as I collect my thoughts.

Because Julie London is (was) the shit!

Much like Julie, this tea is sultry, smooth and certainly seductive to any oolong fan. My heart is a flutter! I am in love!
The flavour sticks with you in the most pleasant way possible. My tongue had a flavour party and found it's soul mate. A most delicious oolong, indeed. I find myself hesitating to swallow every sip (or gulp. What? It's delicious!)

And it looks beautiful too.

This tea is amazing. Buy! Buy now! 

Time to wrap up, I'm losing myself in this tea and oodles of awesome old music.

FEVER.... in the mornin'. Fever all through the night...!

Mm, this tea will give you the fever, if you know what I'm sayin'. Mm-mmm!

Happy Steeping,

~K

Mountain Organic Indonesian Oolong

Mountain Org. Indonesian Oolong
From Tea at Sea

Tea at Sea. So far they haven't much to offer as for selection of teas... but who cares! They are about quality and not quantity here, that is for sure! And I absolutely love them!! Not only is this tea so gorgeous that had me ordering right after trying it, just look at what they send you with your order!!

CORK BOAT!! LOOK AT IT!! AHHHH

Two samples for one little order of 50 grams of this amazing tea (which I swear I will get to very soon) and a little cork boat you get to put together. Unfortunately, the boat does not float in your tea (of COURSE I tried! Who wouldn't?!). And the packaging is just top notch and original!

I first tried this tea two Sundays ago when Laura brought it over when we had a mini tea/pizza party (what? We're on a budget, okay?!) and we made a nice big pot of it so we could both try it for the first time.
WOW!
This organic tea has everything that I love about oolong - light, earthy taste with none of the bitterness- but with a sooth, creamy punch of honey! This is a simple tea with a twist of something different that I can drink by the pot-full, which I did!

I fell in love with this tea. You will too.
Every lover of straight tea should have this in their tea cupboard.
Go! GO!! Get yourself this to-die-for oolong from an adorable company.

Happy Steeping
~K

Raspberry China Oolong

Raspberry China Oolong from Tea Desire

Ingredients: Oolong, raspberry bits and flavour.


Holy shit, an oolong with raspberries!! I couldn't say no. I DIDN'T say no. And I can't tell you how glad I am that I didn't....

Is this not the sweetest thing?

When my order from TeaDesire showed up (with an adorable little hand-written thank you note - aren't they just adorable?!) I ripped the bag open to inhale the most heavenly scent that I wanted to rub all over myself as a perfume and stuff in my mouth and chew right then and there. Reminiscent of raspberry gelato. A powerful scent for a surprisingly mild tea.

I tried several brewing times, the long the better for me. Never gets bitter, and with two perfect spoonfuls in a pot (the perfect spoon is really just a tblsp). Experiment with it. I certainly did.
Nowhere near as raspberry crazy as it smells, so don't fret if you're against that kind of thing. It's a soft, creamy hint of the tart fruit with that awesome-ness of oolong, best enjoyed on the hotter side. It isn't sweet at all, like one would expect from the intense scent. By the gods, is it ever perfect!

Eee! Teapot. My dad's favourite

BY FAR my favourite flavoured tea. I have already finished off half of my 100 gram bag! Addicted? Hell yes!
I love this. LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Definitely a favourite. I recommend it to everyone. Except my poor mum, who is allergic to raspberries (so tragic!)

This tea has captured my heart!

Better get your hands on some before I buy them out! ;)



Happy Steeping!

-K




 IF YOU HAVE ANY TEA YOU WOULD LIKE REVIEWED, LEAVE A COMMENT AND WE WILL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO.

Long Life Oolong

Long Life Oolong from DavidsTea
(Look at that huge-ass piece of apricot! YUM!)

Ingredients: Organic Shui Xian oolong tea, peach pieces, apricot pieces, almond slices, orange peel, safflower petals, natural and artificial flavouring.

I like taking my own pictures of the teas so you can see what a totally random spoonful can get you from a tin. So far, I am incredibly impressed with what I get!   Anyway. On to the review!!

I was really excited about this tea, mostly because of the peaches. I have a soft spot for peaches and nectarines (I blame Labyrinth and the sexy sexy David Bowie - if you don't know what I'm talking about, SHAME!)

I don't know how to describe the smell of oolong without making it sound gross, but an earthy almost milky scent is the best I can do, and it IS lovely. And with the peaches and apricots, mmm! Actually it reminds me slightly of just plain popcorn in smell. It's unique and annoying the hell out of me that I can't explain it. I know this... just... shut up.

Ew, inside picture due to nasty weather change.

Very subtle flavour. Nice and delicate. Tastes exactly the way that it smells, so that's a bonus for all of you in-store shoppers! I brewed it for seven minutes when it was directed 4-7, so if you like a really potent tea, I would recommend more time and a little more than the perfect spoonful from DavidsTea (I LOVE this measuring spoon, it's actually perfect). Seven minutes was good enough for me, but for you lovers of ass-kickingly strong tea, maybe try 9-10 minutes! Even though I got an incredible amount of fruit in my spoonful, all I can really taste is the oolong and the almond, the peach/apricot is just too subtle when I was hoping for so much more.

This would be fantastic cold with a muddled slice of peach! And with pop. Honestly, guys, I'm fucking addicted to adding pop to home made iced teas. It's delicious. TRY IT! DO IT NOW!

In all, this is a good tea. I quite like it for something delicate on the palate. It's a must have -or at least try- for oolong lovers.
But it needs more peach!! Get on this, DT. If you are going to put flavouring in the tea, then make it taste more like fucking peaches! Peaches are amazing. Add more peaches. That would be perfect. I like this tea, now make me LOVE it.

Now let's Magic Dance!



Happy Steeping,

-K



IF YOU HAVE A SPECIFIC TEA THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE REVIEWED JUST COMMENT AND WE WILL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO.