Vanilla Citrus Spice

This is an excellent tea for Fall! Makes me think of spiced sweet potatoes, warm cider…stuff like that :)

I have to say this was just not my cup of tea:/ I was very excited for this, but I couldn’t finish it. And thats saying something. I think this is where I ran into my problem with the Ginger Spa Blend from Verdant as well. The strength of the ginger and coriander was way too overpowering for me. It smelled nice, and if you can tolerate the sweet and spice this would probably be a fantastic tea. I just wish I had the taste buds for it :/ :/

Received my Verdant order and had to give this one a try. After reading so many tasting notes on it I was excited to finally have it in my cup!

Since I’ve been reading so many tasting notes I was able to skip the guess work and just follow Sil’s instructions. I used 1 tablespoon of leaves letting them steep for six minutes. The results were lovely. Lots of vanilla and citrus flavors. I’m not sure if the cake-y bread-y flavor is from the Yunnan or one of the other ingredients, but it works and it works well. This one’s a winner.

This has been in my cup for most of the day. It’s such a wonderful tea, and the fact that it resteeps so beautifully is just icing on the cake!

I am glad I got a chance to grab some of this before it was out of stock.

The dry tea smells very much like a chai. My first cup, I only used 1 tsp as that is my normal, even though the Verdant site recommends 1 TBSP. It was quite thin and watery. Not a whole lot of taste. So the second cup I added another tsp ontop of the prev steeped leaves and steeped again. It was better this time but still not as strong as I had expected. It tastes similar to a chai, but not as spicey. There is definitely a vanilla taste. There is a slight citrus/orange peel taste but there is more of an orange smell than there is a taste. The black tea tastes malty and spicey, but not overly spicey, just enough to give it some warmth. There is a bit of a cinnamon bark flavour at the end of the sip. I feel like the aftertaste is a bit astringent, but that could be the way I brewed it. Next time I am going to try a longer brew to see if that makes the tastes pop a bit more.

I thought I would make this up as a reward – I just got my first interview scheduled! Woo! (It’d been about 2 weeks since I started applying, and I was starting to wonder if I wasn’t going to be shortlisted anywhere – maybe I had a typo or something? IDK. So, phew!) It’s a company that does 3D printing so I’m really excited about that, but when the recruiter asked me about my salary expectation I gave her a number that was too low.

I hate being on the spot like that.

So now, if the interview goes well, I’ll have to try and negotiate. (stupidstupidstupid)

At least I’ll know what value to give the next interviewer if this doesn’t work out?

Anyway… this tea is supposed to make me feel better and focus on the good parts! This might all work out! And I might just magically arrange daycare in time for me to start a job etc.

It’s not working. Time to go unpack more boxes and fidget anxiously.
And listen to NIGHT VALE. (best podcast ever you guys, why aren’t you listening to it? http://www.wired.com/underwire/2013/08/night-vale-podcast-itunes/)

Quick note to self: pay attention next time you drink this!
I drank this yesterday but had one of those gulp-the-tea don’t get to sit down for a minute kind of days!

Sipdown #52

The dry leaf aroma is citrus spice all right. The brewed tea aroma is heavenly and enticing! I haven’t tried Zhu Rong straight yet, so it’s a little difficult for me to distinguish the flavorings from the base. It’s one great melding of flavors to me. The coriander in this is an interesting twist. It’s spicy and noticeable and yet very well blended into the mix of flavors. I really love this!

The first cup disappeared in record time, so I immediately made a second infusion for 5 minutes. While it was steeping, I Googled coriander seeds. It turns out that they’re the same thing as cilantro! Who knew?! I absolutely detest cilantro, but I like coriander. Strange, right? Am I the only one who finds that weird?

Anyway, the second cup is still tasty. This is a very nice, intriguing blend. The only thing I’m missing is the vanilla. If it’s in here, it’s very light. I prefer vanilla teas to be in-my-face strongly vanilla. This is heavier on the citrus and spice and reminds me of a nice calming herbal blend. It is quite a relaxing cuppa.

I steeped a third cup for 8 minutes; it was less spice and more citrusy tea. I suppose that’s to be expected. That first cup was magic though, and now I’m wishing I had a lot more! I MUST resist the urge to pick up more. Why do Verdant teas have to be so darn good? *Sigh. Someday.

This tea is light, yet not light, and so creamy and cake-like, yet not completely cake-like. The black base is perfectly balanced with the herbal aspects. Nothing is overwhelming or underwhelming. A very balanced tea.

Resteep is also good.

[1st steep 1.5 tsp @ boiling, 4 minutes \\ resteep @ boiling 6-7 minutes]

Dry: A beautiful tea blend by Verdant. This would not look amiss sitting out in a decorative bowl with its long and luscious tea leaves, orange peel bits, coriander, vanilla bean pieces, and other lovely ingredients. It smells spicy, sweet, and citrusy- very potent from the bag. My husband could smell it several feet away when I was preparing the infuser.

Steeped: Clear golden brown liquor. The fragrance wafting from the teacup is nothing short of potent between the spices, citrus, and a nice tea base as well. If you like flavored teas with only a tiny touch of non-tea flavors, then this is not for you. The name for this tea perfectly describes the lovely aroma around my kitchen right now. :)

Taste: This tea has a nice AM kick! Sparkling orange meets cinnamon and coriander zest. I swear there is even a tiny touch of cayenne to the flavor, though that might be the Zhu Rong peeking out between the layers of actual spices and vanilla. After the initial wake-up sip, it mellows out and the creamy vanilla and sweet potato-y flavors appear blended in with the other notes. This is complex and lovely (as I’ve come to expect from Verdant) and has an almost bakery quality. I feel certain it would make an interesting iced tea as well once it warms up outside. I am enjoying this experience quite a bit!

Blerg. I hate it when I’m out of step with the other reviews. And I was super excited about this blend. I’m just not getting…wait, wait, wait. Whoa. Let it cool. While it’s generally true my teas taste better when I’m patient and let them cool a bit, this is rather dramatic. Oh my goodness, the tea-leaf base notes, spices, and brightness, and warmth…It’s the grown up version of Constant Comment (to return to my supermarket guide to teas). Yes. Yes, I will buy this again. I will drink it hot in the winter and ice it in the summer. I will require all my friends to ‘just try it’.

And with that, I guess I’ve finished my 50th tasting note since joining Steepster on…January 16th (writing this on January 31). * drops the mic * * twitches a little * * googles ‘tea rehab’ *