Prestogeorge's Coconut Vanilla Black Tea

So, I'm kind of in a tea no-buy right now.  Part of it is honestly because I have way too much tea and need to drink the stuff I have.  For example, I think I got this one in November and have only really gotten rid of it via mixing it with the Bananas Foster tea (which is another one that I love but never drink).  I figured that I'd try making some iced tea with this for dinner and see what it's like.

Outsides:  Prestogeroge just puts their teas in paper bags with ties on the end, which seems to work because I haven't noticed too much of a degradation in flavor.  I'm sorry I don't have a picture of the leaves but they're pretty much your standard black tea.  I brew 1.5 teaspoons of this in almost boiling water for 4 minutes.  The tea looks dark and has a light coconut scent. 

Insides:  The coconut and vanilla flavors bring a lot of sweetness to this while also offsetting the bitterness.  They also are a great combination (which isn't too surprising) because of how the vanilla adds a slight bit of creme flavor to the vanilla, making it more decadent.  The base tea is flavorful but not too robust.  I think the flavor diminished a bit over time, but it seems like an assam and ceylon blend.  I do like this hot and it makes a great winter treat with some added milk, but this REALLY shines as iced tea.  OH MY GAWD, it tastes like summer.   The sugar really brings out the sweetness of the coconut while the tea keeps its light texture. 

Tilt:  Obviously, this is a summer drink.  It's also pretty cheap, much like the vast majority of teas from Prestogeorge.  I don't think a coconut tea is unique to them so I'm sure that you can find an equivalent somewhere else.  I just really should use up more of my teas.

Overall:  Obviously, you need to like coconut to like this.  But I can't think of many teas more perfect than this for the summer.

My Rating:  Buy (for the summer) and Try (for every other time)

Prestogeorge is a local tea shop in Pittsburgh with a wide variety of tea and coffee. 

Harney and Sons Paris Flavored Black Tea

 

So, I go on Reddit's /r/tea fairly often and one of the companies I see mentioned fairly often is Harney and Sons with the Paris blend being the blend I hear about the most.  I've seen some of their teas at Macy's but they are way too expensive and in bags anyway.  However, Amazon has a good selection of the loose-leaf tins and you can even buy by the pound if you like it.  Paris sounded particularly interesting because it's a blend of black currants, vanilla and bergamont.

Outsides:  This particular tea was in a 4 oz black tin, which is actually quite informative.  It tells you the caffeine level, how strong it should taste, what it really is supposed to do (relax or wake you up), so I thought that was really cool.  There's only the tin protecting the leaves.  The initial smell you get is very heavy on the berry and vanilla with an interesting tartness mixed with the sweetness.  I brewed 1.5 teaspoons on 8 oz of 95 degree Celsius water for about 4 minutes.  The brew is a darker black tea color and doesn't have as strong of a scent but is still strong.

Insides:  First off, I've tried drinking this with milk and sugar, but I prefer reducing the amount I add from 2 teaspoons to 1.5 and just drinking it plain.  There isn't a really pronounced bergamont flavor despite it being in the list of the ingredients.  Rather, it's a hint that brings a nice citrusy zest to the berry vanilla flavor that's going on.  I think this tea tastes a bit like a berry mouse or some kind of berry desert.  It's pretty naturally sweet so you can definitely drink without sugar.  The tea seems to be a blend of ceylon and is strong but not overpowering to the blend.

Tilt:  So, the tin it came in is really good quality and the label design is simple yet classy.  The tea is pretty unique and is hard to give a real food analog, but is also pretty drinkable and something that I personally reach for.  This would be nice to drink in the fall since the berry flavor is a bit reminiscent of summer but the vanilla flavor gives it a bit of extra richness that would be a bit more appropriate for this time.  I've heard people describe it as tasting like pipe tobacco, but since I don't know what it tastes like, I would still say some kind of berry desert.

Overall:  It's unique but still something you might grab for.  It's a unique bergamont blend and I'm really excited to try more from Harney and Sons.

My Rating:  Buy it!

Harney and Sons is a British tea company.

Tea Forte Morrocan Mint Green Tea

 

Hey guys.  So, it's summer break and that means that I have enough time to blog again.  Yaaaaay!

So on April Fools, Tea forte had a sale where if you bought a tin of tea, you got the Kati brewing system for free.  Considering that the tins are $15 and the mug is also $15, I thought this was a great deal and I wanted a new tea cup so I went on board.  Now, there were a lot of cool flavors like Marzipan Cherry and whatnot, but I wanted something that I know I would drink over the summer.  What's better for the summer than some Morrocan Mint tea?

Outsides:  I actually got this partially for the tin as well since I have a pretty bad shortage of tins.  It's ok, kind of cheap feeling compared to the ones I've gotten from Zen Tea or Harney and Sons, but the tea is also in a plastic bag so it's packed well for freshness.  Since this is a blend with spearmint, you get that nice fresh mint smell that's more appropriate for the summer (whereas peppermint is more appropriate for the winter).  I brewed this at about 75 degrees Celsius for 2-3 minutes.  The tea still has a pungent spearmint smell and a light yellow color.

Insides:  This reminds me a bit of the Mild Mint from Touch Organics, although a bit stronger in overall flavor and a bit fresher.  The mint is prominent but not overpowering and goes well with the green tea flavor. The green tea in here isn't very distinguishable but isn't very offensive either.  It's simple and it's a good drink for a crowd since there isn't really any astringency.  I've cold brewed this a few times and think it works really well for that.  You definitely don't need any sugar with this.

Tilt:   Ok, this tea is kind of expensive.  It's $15 for a 4 oz tin when you can pretty much find Morrocan mint tea anywhere.  Unfortunately, I don't have another one for comparison, but I'll probably end up getting some from one of the locals.  I've also been trying to associate teas with seasons and this is definitely a summer tea, so now is the time to buy.

Overall:  I like it, although it's a bit boring.  Still, I'd check it out if Tea Forte is having a sale and you don't have any in your cupboard.

My Rating:  Try it!

Tea Forte is a fancy tea company with nice packaging and interesting flavors.

Tea Forte's Kati Brewing System Review

So, this will be one of my first video and text reviews on this site.  I figured that some people enjoy reading text while others enjoy watching Youtube videos.

Written Review coming soon. 

Temple of Heaven Special Gunpowder Green Tea

I think the company for this is Shanghai Tiantian, International Trading Co. LTD.

So, I moved.  I'm now able to wake up at 7 and enjoy a cup of tea and a proper breakfast before going to school and let me tell you, it's awesome.  What's more awesome is that I finally have a teapot as opposed to constantly making tea in the Keurig.  However, I don't want to use up all of my good tea if I just want to make something to chug while doing work so that's where this tea comes in.  I got it at the Asian market for $2.75 for 8 oz(?) and was just hoping that it was drinkable.

Outsides:  The tin is actually really nicely sealed:  There's an outer lid, an inner lid and paper surrounding the tea leaves.  The tea itself is shaped like little pellets and smells a little smokey, which is what gunpowder is supposed to smell like.  I get about 4-5 cups from this teapot but like my tea strong so I put about 6-8 teaspoons worth in either my basket or giant ball infuser and let steep for about 3 minutes.  The tea gets a bit darker as it cools down, but it goes from golden to a light orange-brown and smells like your typical Chinese green tea.

Insides:  For the price I paid, I think this is actually pretty good.  The smokey flavor is a bit of an aftertaste and is nothing like a Lapsang Souchong.  I've made about 3 pots of this already and it's not very astringent, even when oversteeped for like...5 minutes.  The tea itself is sweet with a bit of an earthy flavor, but is not too complex other than the smokey aftertaste.  And honestly, it serves my purpose.

Overall:  I like it.  I was scared at first of this but if you need some cheap tea to chug while doing work, this'll do.

My Rating:  Try it!

This was the only tea I found from this brand and I didn't find a website.

Yorkshire Breakfast Tea

As you may know, I try to not buy too many teabags because they are expensive for what you are getting and usually not the best quality.  However, I've been craving a good black tea lately and have heard great things about Yorkshire.  This box of 20 tea bags was $2 at Big Lots, so I figured I'd give it a try.

Outsides:  I have no idea what kinds of teas are going into this breakfast blend, but they're typically largely made up of Assam and this one smells like it.  I really appreciate the packaging on these.  The sachet is inside of a nice foil/cellophane packet that will keep it waterproof and the actual tea sachet is very large and gives tons of room for the tea to expand.  I was making a pot of O'Sullivan's favorite so I just used the leftover water (it's probably 98 degrees Celsius or lower) and let it steep for about 4 minutes.  The color is a rich reddish brown and it smells like a strong breakfast tea, a little citrusy and a little sweet.

Insides:  First off, this tea is incredibly smooth.  There's a bit of bitterness, but it's not really a problem since the tea itself is rather crisp and sweet.  The quality used here is good and I feel like the bag's design helped it develop a full flavor with sweet notes and more citrusy notes while not tasting as acidic as a lot of cheaper teas tend to be.  The finish is nice and smooth too, no bitter aftertaste.  I've been drinking this a lot between classes in order to pep up a bit, and it's great with sugar and cream (I'm drinking mine with honey and lime right now).

Overall:  I'm glad I bought this tea.  It's a great bagged black tea

My Rating:  Buy it!

Yorkshire Tea is a fun little English tea brand that is owned by Taylors of Harrogate.  You can probably find this at Big Lots but I've seen it at local grocery stores.

January 2013 Ipsy/MyGlam review

Hey guys.  So, I'm back with a non-tea review.

Ipsy is a company started by a bunch of famous beauty Youtube bloggers.  What's cool about it is that this is a 10 dollar a month bag (including shipping) that includes an actual bag as well as four or five pretty good sized samples.  I don't know about other months, but the "samples" included are for the most part, travel sizes that actually are sold on their website.  I was looking for a beauty subscription because I want to increase my make-up collection and this seemed like a great way to try some mid-quality beauty brands for a pretty cheap price.

Here's what I got in my bag:

-The Bag:  The outside is a dark navy blue while the inside has these cute little stars.  The quality is ok.  It has a thick, waterproof outer layer and a thinner inner layer and is a little better quality than something you'd find at the dollar store.

-Josie Maran Argan Oil ($14):  Yes, that small dropper bottle of argan oil is 14 dollars.  I was actually really excited about argan oil because it's supposed to be a all-in-one beauty product.  It's good for your hair, nails, skin, as a make-up remover, as a moisturizer, etc, and I used to just use vitamin E as an overnight cream since my skin is a little on the dry side.  Well, this stuff works pretty well.  It's not overly greasy but the moisture it brings is retained for a long time.  I like it more for skin and nails than I do for hair, but it still is an impressive product and hopefully the argan oil I ordered from the Julep Secret shop will work just as well.

Soho Eyeliner Brush ($5 to $7.50):  There's not really much to say about this other than it's a pretty decent cheap brush.  The bristles are soft and I like it for eyeshadow, plus I need another eyeliner brush since I use my other one for nail polish (removal around the cuticles).

  

Nailtini Frappe Nail Color ($13):  There were two colors you could have gotten for this, a nice red or a sheer pink and I was a bit disappointed that I didn't get the red.  But then, I used it.  After 3 coats, the color was smooth and not streaky, unlike a lot of sheers that I have.  It dried fairly fast with a nice, shiny finish.  And most important of all, it was a sweet, flattering pink that had enough coverage to disguise my yellow tips (too much polish) or to have the perfect french manicure.  Plus, it's full-sized and this company does sell minis, so good job Ipsy.

Big Sexy Hair Spray and Play Hairspray (I'm not sure exactly how much this costs, but from websites, it looks like around $3):  I don't really use hairspray so I gave this to the BF who has a mohawk.  He said that it works well enough for what it is and when he made a mohawk using only the spray, it had a pretty good structure.  I thought his mohawk felt pretty soft to the touch, but it doesn't feel natural so if you want that light hold, natural feeling hair, you should look elsewhere.

Paciffica Body Butter in Sicilian Blood Orange ($7): I love citrus-smelling things.  One of my favorite scents is the Bath and Body Works Mango Mandarin and I've been loving the Pink Grapefruit body wash, so of course I was super excited for this body butter and it did not disappoint.  Yes, it smells like oranges but unlike the Mango Mandarin which has a sweet, tropical note to it, this has a berry note that makes it smell extremely delicious and like some kind of mixed drink I want to have.  But man, I did not think this would be as awesome of a body lotion as it was.  The cream is thick but super absorbent and tied with Out of Africa as my favorite hand cream.  Plus, it's vegan and all that.

So there you have it, my first Ipsy bag.  Overall, I'm extremely impressed and glad I got it.  I mean, I'd do a "what I would pay for this" but honestly, it would have been more than the $10 I spent.  Ipsy doesn't have any referral system but it does give you discounts after you get your bag.  Anyway, I'll be back with more reviews soon.