Tea Review: Late Summer Teas

Sunday, November 1, 2020

Ah, tea reviews. Posts I write for myself moreso than for anyone else. A searachable way to remember which teas I liked and which I was less enthusiastic about. This batch is from my late summer order. I have a few more to get through (like a comparison between milk oolong and pouchong...)

Kentucky Bourbon Black Tea

From Adagio. This is honestly more a winter tea than a summer tea, and since we're now into late October it's perfect. I've gone through much of the rest of the teas below, and was holding onto this one for cooler weather. Quite smokey from the lapsang souchong and keemun, but with a good deal of sweetness. This one is...interesting. There's a lot going on.

Golden Monkey

From Adagio. I've had Golden Monkey from elsewhere. It's a great, beautiful, falvorful black tea without any additions. REbrews very nicely. It's also a little pricier, likely for all these reasons. Definitely worth a re-purchase when in the mood for a somewhat fruity, unflavored black tea.

Peach Matcha

From Adagio. Tea supplier had a sale on peach teas, end up with some unusual peach teas...This was good for a non-strict matcha drinker. I wouldn't go out of my way to order it though! Matcha in general is great for a good boost of energy for hour 5 of Zoom meetings!

Ginger Peach Black Tea

From Adagio. Part of that aforementioned peach tea sale. The ginger is very subtle, and I pick up faint vanilla notes. Overall, a good tea, not necessarily one to seek out as there's so many on the "good tea" threshhold!

Turmeric Bliss

From Adagio. This herbal tea makes a punchy decaffeinated iced tea for summer! Also good hot. Is worth a purchase if you want to add a strong turmeric flavoring to your decaff options.

Honeybush Blueberry Pancake

From Adagio. I dunno, I had to try this rooisbos-esque decaff option. It's much improved with a bit of maple syrup to enhance its existing maple-ness. I think I like it alright as a dessert tea. Might try their banana nut rooibos next, though.

Chocolate Truffle Black Tea

From Adagio. This was supposed to be super chocolate-y, but I can still barely taste the chocolate. I think their Vanilla Black tea is a far better option for a dessert tea.

Tea Review: Adagio Black Teas As Of Late

Sunday, December 22, 2019

A second tea post, because it's the end of the semester and tasty caffeine is all I've got going for me right now ;)

Earl Grey Bella Luna
WHY SO MUCH COCONUT, ADAGIO?
I'm an earl grey fanatic, but this one...which is only available for purchase on days where there will be a full moon, is not great. It's a cream earl grey with way too much coconut. Never again!

Earl Grey Moonlight
Adagio's Earl Grey Moonlight is a cream earl grey tea which I've reviewed before! It's pretty much my go-to tea, when I can't get my preferred cream earl grey from my old tea place in East Pittsburgh.

Butterscotch Black Tea
This Butterscotch Black Tea is a loooovely dessert tea. Super sweet-tasting and does in fact taste like butterscotch. It was my travel tea during the summer/fall and I definitely recommend it for satisfying that sweet tooth.

Lemon Soleil Black Tea
This Lemon Soleil Black Tea from Adagio is what I wanted from the Lemon Meringue Green Tea in the last post. A black tea, but with super strong lemon flavoring. It's refreshing, and you don't even need the squeeze of lemon.

Tea Review: Adagio Non-Black Teas Lately

Sunday, December 15, 2019

It's been awhile since I've documented the teas I've been drinking. So here goes, broken into a black teas and not-black teas post.

Maple Creme Oolong
Adagio's Maple Creme Oolong has a lot going on. It's very 'tis the season', and is a pinch reminiscent of a chai tea, but with way more emphasis on the maple. It's not something I'd want year round, but when there's 2ft of snow outside your door, it seems just right.

Almond Oolong
Drinking Adagio's Almond Oolong and reading about their Chestnut Oolong makes me curious. I don't think I'd purchase the Almond Ooolong again (it's good, just not wow good).

Ginseng Green Tea
I got Adagio's Ginseng Green Tea with the hopes that it would be similar to the ginseng oolong J bought me in China. But of course, it does not. I'm beginning to think I'm really not a green tea drinker (unless it's matcha, mmmmmm).

Lemon Meringue Green Tea
See above note about not being a green tea drinker. Adagio got me with their Lemon Meringue Green Tea during a promotional scavenger hunt to score some free tea. I like the lemon, the cream isn't super noticeable because I'm too distracted by the astringency of the green tea flavors. It's probably a fine tea for someone else.

Tea Time

Sunday, January 13, 2019

Somehow, I have finally run out of tea from my tea sampling subscriptions (years of them!). This called for some new tea. Normally I wait until a Pittsburgh trip to go to Margaret's, but that trip is a long way off, so I went with Adagio. Here's just a photo/review dump of teas I've been enjoying lately.

Earl Grey Moonlight

From Adagio. This one is essentially a cream earl grey, which is a classic favorite of mine. Preferred to the more citrus-y earl greys, but I pretty much love all the earl greys.

Rose Black Tea

From Margaret's Tea in Pittsburgh. One of my favorites, I always get a bit of this when I'm in Pittsburgh. Old lady-ish, but delicious. I drink all my tea black, but this is a nice one to add a bit of milk to, it brings out the rose more.

Cream Black Tea

From Adagio. I tried this cream black tea, because I liked the vanilla black tea so much...but I think I prefer the vanilla to this one. Still tasty.

Thai Tea

From Adagio. Margaret's has a thai tea that makes a fantastic iced tea. I haven't tried this Adagio version iced, but it's pretty good hot. 'Would probably prefer a bit less coconut and a bit more star anise.

Aries (Chai) Tea

From Adagio. This is a standard pepper-based chai black tea. Lotsa spice.

Pomegranate Green Tea

From Adagio. I'm just...not a fan of fruity green teas. I prefer my green teas super green or jasmine.

Tea Review: More Adagio Samplers!

Sunday, April 23, 2017

Yes and yes to this Jade Oolong Tea. I think I have a serious sweet spot for the smooth flavors of a good quality oolong. These, like other oolong I've seen, are whole leaves that unfurl as they soak in the hot water.

Peppermint Tea from Adagio. I had not anticipated liking plain old peppermint tea this much. But it is a very nice and calming tea. 'Leaves a lovely mint aftertaste.

Not pictured

At some point I should note that I totally scarfed down Adagio's Gingerbread Black Tea over the month of December. I drank many cups of this seasonal tea each day over the holidays and failed to photograph, but it was a really fun black tea with a considerable amount of ginger and "natural gingerbread flavoring", lol.

Citron Green Tea from Adagio. A lovely, bright tea that tastes vaguely of Fruit Loops. Really quite pleasant, with lots of fruity citrus flavors going on. Great if you like a busy tea.

Masala Chai Black Tea from Adagio. A nice, spicy black tea. 'Still prefer my rooibos chai version, but this is still quite enjoyable.

White tea will always be at the bottom of my list. Even with fruit in it. Including this White Peach Tea. It's just not that interesting? I don't know.

Tea Review: Tea from Australia

Sunday, March 19, 2017

A delightful colleague of mine from Australia sent a fair amount of some lovely black tea we shared during my visit. These two varietals now reside in my office where I do a careful caffeine balancing act on a daily basis.

This Fenqing Yunnan Tea is one of those that only grows on you, the more you drink it much like the old assam TGFOP. The Internet describes this tea generally as "milk chocolate creamy and sweet, with pleasant pepper notes. The flavor becomes earthier and more layered as it cools", and while my tastebuds are not quite refined enough to pick up on the flavor notes, I will say it's a delicious black tea. Just give it a bit of time.

The Korakundah Winter Frost Tea is described by the Internet as "Darjeeling-like mellow, medium-bodied, floral and woody."

Tea Review: Tea from China

Sunday, March 5, 2017

This Jasmine Tea from China currently meets the must-have-jasmine-tea-at-all-times requirement. Jasmine tea. One of the best.

The Chrysanthemum Tea from China is a nice herbal option, but to be honest, we have so much decaf tea around here that are far more exciting...maybe useful for when sleep is being sneaky.

Tea Review: More Adagio

Sunday, February 19, 2017

This black peach tea from Adagio is absolutely fantastic with some milk in it. Really very, very good.


Surprisingly low on the blueberry flavoring, this Blueberry White Tea from Adagio is alright. White teas are usually paired with fruit, but I don't think I've had blueberry in my collection yet.


This Adagio Green Rooibos Bonita supposedly has peach and strawberry in it, but all I can taste is the citrus. It's rather nice for a rooibos, but not as nice as this next one...


YAS. This "Hugs and Kisses" Rooibos Tea from Adagio is "blended with rooibos tea, rose petals, blue cornflowers, natural almond flavor, natural caramel flavor, natural creme flavor & natural vanilla flavor". It's very very good, if you like a naturally decaffeinated rooibos with a bunch of sweetness. I'm a fan.

Tea Review: Tea Selection from The House of Tea

Sunday, February 5, 2017

Overall, the teas from The House of Tea tend to be a bit subtler in flavor than my usual Adagio teas. This generally means I go through it a bit faster since they require a bit more intense of a leaf top-up for second and third steepings.

Decaf Vanilla Tea. I like this tea, and it's especially nice because it's decaf. So it's a black tea alternative for nighttime, when I'm not feeling the rooibos.

Apple Tea. Also quite good, but could do with a bit more apple. Fruity black teas are a nice thing to have around.


Peach Apricot Black Tea. Smells heavenly and is delightful with a bit of milk. Peaches 'n cream. I'm always fascinated by these more pebbly-looking teas. Must be a different drying technique?


Ginger Lemon Green Tea. Hearkens to the German Green Power Tea of yore, but with less lemon/ginger and more green tea.


Rose Mint. This one's a bit flakier than the others, and lots 'o wee leaf bits made their way into my tea. Otherwise, this one's heavy on the mint flavoring. 'Can always use more rose (Rose black tea being one of my must haves...that I currently do not have, ha!).

Tea Canister Paraphenalia

Sunday, January 22, 2017

'Love me some tea and tea paraphenalia. In this case, these UV-blocking glass canisters from Adagio so I can actually see my tea. No more plastic bags and mismatched tins, they've been retired. I think the above photo shows a selection of jasmine tea, a caramel rooibos, matcha iri sencha, chrysanthemum, and white monkey paw. Not the whole selection yet, I'm still building up my glass jar collection.

Tea Review: The Last of the Black Tea Subscription

Sunday, July 17, 2016

I've been loving this Darjeeling Sungma Summer Tea from Adagio Teas.
A black tea with slightly darker fruit notes. As I drank more of this one, I enjoyed it more. It's not as naturally sweet as some, but it still has bits of sweetness on its own, and it plays with milk and sugar well if I'm in the mood for that. A lovely find from a tea subscription!


This Assam Melody Tea from Adagio carries quite the punch! It's very, very different from the Assam TGFOP from Margaret's. Even though the color is lighter than the Assam TGFOP, it's a much darker, deeper taste. I was expecting fruitier, but it's pretty good as is.



Adagio Irish Breakfast Tea is a pretty standard breakfast tea. Another non-fruity tea that's good for those who really enjoy black tea. It's even better with a spot of milk :)

Tea Review: Current Teas I'm Drinking

Sunday, June 19, 2016

Just Lemon Myrtle from T2 in Australia. Super overpowering lemon! But delicious! Great mixed with other teas that could use a shot au limon, and great for sick days! Herbal and naturally decaffeinated. One of the few "teas" grown in Australia.

This Florida Orange Rooibos Tea from Margaret's Fine Imports in Pittsburgh is a nice naturally decaffeinated option, but not as tasty as the Vanilla Masala Chai that I mix on my own. Sweet with an even balance of orange and rooibos flavoring.

In the office I've got this green tea, Casa Blanca Twist from Adagio Teas. So minty and refreshing!

I've also got this Pi Lo Chun from Adagio Teas in the office. It's nice, but considerably plainer than all my other options! Whatever gets you through the day!

Flavored Matcha

Sunday, May 22, 2016

For Xmas I was given the very thoughtful gift of a collection of flavored matcha tea. David's Tea no longer sells this exact collection, but it does have the three matcha flavors in a single-serve collection: mocha, mint, and vanilla.

Matcha is a Japanese green tea powder that's usually suuuuper expensive, which is why you often encounter it mixed with cheaper green tea leaves. But sometimes it's nice to enjoy some special matcha all on its own.

You'll need a mug of near-boiling water, a spoon, a whisk, and some matcha.

Put 2-4 small teaspoons of matcha powder into the water.

Whisk until combined! There is a special bamboo whisk for matcha, but they're a little pricey for a single-purpose item and a metal whisk does a fine job in this case.

I like to add a bit of milk at the end, super tasty. This is the mocha matcha, which is why it's a bit browner than usual. I imagine the mint matcha should be bright green, then!