All newly posted tea reviews, including blends and herbal teas, all brands, styles, and regions; does not include news or site updates. http://ratetea.com http://ratetea.com/review/1790/http://ratetea.com/review/1790/Thu, 17 May 2012 07:36:09 ESTThis is the best green tea that I've had yet, and possibly my favorite tea! Paired with lunch on a hot day, I was extremely satisfied by its taste! It was refreshing and smooth, and had no bitterness whatsoever ( which is one of my usual complaints with tea). While it is a little pricey, I feel like this tea is worth every penny.http://ratetea.com/review/1787/http://ratetea.com/review/1787/Mon, 14 May 2012 08:44:42 ESTI brewed a cup of this tea and set it down to go do something in the other room, and when I came back, the whole room was full of a wonderful aroma. Brews a very clear cup with a golden or light amber color. Flavor is very smooth, with no detectable bitterness or astringency. This seems a lot like what I've seen sold as an "Amber Oolong"; it is presented as greener style but it seems slightly more oxidized than most traditional greener oolongs. Very aromatic, but the aroma is gentle and nuanced: it...http://ratetea.com/review/1786/http://ratetea.com/review/1786/Sun, 13 May 2012 00:02:07 ESTIt's too earthy. It just does not have a flavor or aroma that stands up to the other varieties of Yogi green teas the way I hoped it would. I would like to be able to speak for its medicinal qualities and say that is the real reason you should buy it, but I cannot report feeling any healthier after drinking this tea for a week than I feel after a week of drinking Yogi's pomegranate Green Tea (of course, pomegranate has antioxidant qualities, as well).http://ratetea.com/review/1785/http://ratetea.com/review/1785/Sat, 12 May 2012 23:48:39 ESTThis tea is quite a bargain. You would have to spend two bucks more on a box with two fewer tea bags in it in order to find a tastier, smoother tea.http://ratetea.com/review/1784/http://ratetea.com/review/1784/Sat, 12 May 2012 23:34:53 ESTI can think of at least one less expensive flavored green tea that is better Tazo's Zen. Additionally, there are several other common green teas not far above its price that I feel are very superior. So, although I wont say this is a bad tea, I will say it disappointed me somewhat. I'm probably not apt to buy another box of it unless Tazo reduces its price by a buck or two. http://ratetea.com/review/1783/http://ratetea.com/review/1783/Fri, 11 May 2012 11:24:41 ESTI don't usually like fruity herbal teas very much, but this one is pretty good. It has a rich savory-like flavor that I can only taste in the back of my mouth. http://ratetea.com/review/1782/http://ratetea.com/review/1782/Thu, 10 May 2012 15:09:44 ESTThis is the green leaf, or Rama Tulsi. I prefer the red-leaf, or Krishna tulsi, but this is actually my favorite example of the green-leafed variety that I've tried. I find green tulsi can sometimes have a metallic quality, and this quality is thankfully greatly diminished in this sample. This tulsi is smoother and just a tad warmer, and less edgy. But it also has a slight skunky quality (which I like), almost reminiscent of some oolongs. It also has a slightly greater licorice or anise quality, ten...http://ratetea.com/review/1781/http://ratetea.com/review/1781/Thu, 10 May 2012 14:31:34 ESTThis was the first traditional Lapsang Souchong that I've tried, and I must say, I'm a tremendous fan. It is among my favorite Chinese black teas that I have sampled. Yet another impressive tea from Life in Teacup. Although there is a hint of pine evident in the aroma, the overwhelming smokiness characteristic of the British-style Lapsang Souchong is completely absent. The aroma is rich and chocolately, almost like dark chocolate or a lightly-roasted coffee, or some roasted Yerba mate. The tea is fu...http://ratetea.com/review/1779/http://ratetea.com/review/1779/Thu, 10 May 2012 08:53:33 ESTI love white tea. I've had countless varieties. Bai mudan has never been my favorite. In my experience, it never matched up to bai hao yinzhen. This particular bai mudan compltely revolutionized my view. The taste is just as pure as any yinzhen, but much sweeter. You won't need sugar, honey, or even a stevia leaf for this tea. The floral aroma brings out a world of experiences. For me, it's a misty morning in the mountains. I've never felt more relaxed after drinking a tea. The value can't be beat. ...http://ratetea.com/review/1778/http://ratetea.com/review/1778/Thu, 03 May 2012 08:41:20 ESTI have been curious about this tea for some time, and I had no clue what to expect, as it is the first tea I have ever tried which was grown in the Americas. Broken leaf (CTC) and infuses quickly, but does not become bitter if steeped for a long time. Shanti Tea recommends a 2 minute infusion without milk but I think you can even go as long as 3. It brews a very rich, dark-colored cup, but produces a surprisingly mild cup. The aroma suggests a strong, more powerful tea, with tones of malt and spice...http://ratetea.com/review/1777/http://ratetea.com/review/1777/Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:00:40 ESTI had this tea with my breakfast and was pretty happy with it. I thought it was mild and smooth, and I liked that it didn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth. http://ratetea.com/review/1776/http://ratetea.com/review/1776/Mon, 30 Apr 2012 08:29:22 ESTShort summary: very smooth, extremely pleasing flavor, not the strongest aroma, and picky on brewing temperature. Exceptionally smooth for this price. Dry leaf is intensely aromatic, and packed very loosely. A lot of leaf (by volume) is needed to produce a normal-strength cup. I found this tea was picky about brewing, and that there was a very narrow range of temperatures in which it tasted good, but it was worth figuring it out, because "in the zone" this tea tasted fantastic! Below 180F it was t...http://ratetea.com/review/1690/http://ratetea.com/review/1690/Fri, 27 Apr 2012 09:43:00 ESTI got some of this tea in a trade from a friend, and it was enough that I have been able to experiment with brewing it a bit. I've been enjoying it quite a lot; this tea is versatile and pleasing to drink. This is a greener oolong, but not among the greenest. I think this might place it in the zone where it is more accessible to western tea drinkers than some of the greenest oolongs. The aroma is strongly floral, but with woody tones as well. Compared to Foojoy's Monkey Picked Ti Kuan Yin, this one ...http://ratetea.com/review/1688/http://ratetea.com/review/1688/Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:03:22 ESTI unfortunately only had the opportunity to sample this tea once, but I was impressed. This tea lives up to its name! Aroma is strongly floral. The mouthfeel and overall experience of drinking it is buttery, but not overwhelmingly so (this quality can get a bit overwhelming to me in some oolongs). Complete absence of bitterness or astringency. I was served this tea only once, so I did not have much of an opportunity to experiment with brewing. However, I will say, from what I tasted of it, it see...http://ratetea.com/review/1687/http://ratetea.com/review/1687/Wed, 25 Apr 2012 22:12:54 ESTThe scent of the leaves is delicate to me– slightly sweet and earthy, but I didn’t really taste either of these once brewed. Ooooh Darjeeling is unlike any oolong tea I’ve had. It doesn’t have that earthy aroma like most oolong teas I have tried. Instead, it tasted more like a black tea but not as strong and without much of the astringency (Before I read about this tea, I actually jumped to the conclusion that I was drinking black tea and not oolong). Ooooh Darjeeling had a subtle floral aroma that...http://ratetea.com/review/1686/http://ratetea.com/review/1686/Tue, 24 Apr 2012 15:15:02 ESTI was surprised to find that I strongly preferred the slightly less expensive Keemun Grade 1 from TeaVivre to this offering. While this was a very good tea, it did not wow me as being outstanding, or even higher quality than a typical Keemun. It was just different. I was surprised at the strength of the cup, the darkness of the liquor, and the edginess present in the first cup. Much darker in color than most Keemun...more blackish than reddish. Second cup is much smoother. Both cups have a "deep" s...http://ratetea.com/review/1685/http://ratetea.com/review/1685/Tue, 24 Apr 2012 15:05:26 ESTI found this one interesting as it is a Jasmine-scented tea that also contains other ingredients and flavorings, but also because it contains two different base teas. I tend not to like blends like this, but I found this one to be relatively well-executed. The overall character is mainly of Jasmine: the Jasmine is strong, but not completely overwhelming, and one is able to detect the other ingredients in the blend as well. Overall, I find the base tea, jasmine, and other flavorings blend very well t...http://ratetea.com/review/1684/http://ratetea.com/review/1684/Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:07:15 ESTI just had this tea with my lunch and was surprised to see all of the negative ratings about it. Like the description I found that it has a light taste and to me it was crisp and refreshing. It had a different flavor than most green teas I've tried and I feel like tangy was a good way to describe it, but I didn't encounter a soapy aftertaste. I only brewed this tea for 3-4 minutes.http://ratetea.com/review/1683/http://ratetea.com/review/1683/Tue, 24 Apr 2012 09:01:07 ESTI normally like Teavana's fruit-flavored blends, but this one had an overpoweringly artificial-seeming cherry quality to it. I liked the rose, and I liked the flavor imparted by the base tea (which was much folder than typical for white tea, yet still greener in character and less like the darker while teas like shou mei). But there was just too much of the cherry aroma (or other fruity aromas) for me to really enjoy this tea...it bowled over the other characteristics, and I found I was not able to ful...http://ratetea.com/review/1682/http://ratetea.com/review/1682/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:01:57 ESTNormally I would not seek a tea like this out; I tried this tea in the cafe at a Barnes and Noble, whose selection only included Harney and Sons' flavored teas, and I thought I'd try something new. I can't say I liked it a whole lot, but I did find this tea pleasant, and I was impressed with its execution, even though it's a style of flavored tea I tend not to like. I find it interesting that the green tea used as the base tea in this blend is from India; this surprised me. The character of the unde...http://ratetea.com/review/1681/http://ratetea.com/review/1681/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 13:49:38 ESTI'm always complaining about black teas have a strong bitter taste so I really liked that this tea was smooth and mild. I never understood how a tea could be "bready" but this tea really does smell like bread! I really enjoyed drinking it and would recommend it to anyone who thinks Black Tea is too strong.http://ratetea.com/review/1680/http://ratetea.com/review/1680/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 13:43:04 ESTI thought this tea was mild and smooth, and it didn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth. Overall I found it refreshing and would recommend it to others who like green tea.http://ratetea.com/review/1679/http://ratetea.com/review/1679/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 13:06:57 ESTI really like this one, especially after drinking it on multiple occasions. This black (red) tea was only vaguely similar to others from China that I've tried; it was quite different from anything I have tried yet. Its aroma was more like Yunnan teas than anything else, but much milder and smoother, and with a very different flavor and finish. Brews a rich, dark cup. Deep and very full-bodied, with a muted flavor. Aroma is mostly of dried fruit, with a bready quality. Perhaps a bit malty too, but...http://ratetea.com/review/1678/http://ratetea.com/review/1678/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:23:26 ESTI was really interested to try a silver needle tea produced in Tanzania, and I am glad I tried it as it was quite interesting tasting as well. Fairly light in color, but full-bodied flavor. I like this tea significantly more than most Chinese examples of silver needle that I've tried, which tend to be too mild for my tastes. Less floral than most white teas, but otherwise similar aroma. The flavor profile is bolder, and a little more like a green tea. This tea is priced quite reasonably for a silv...http://ratetea.com/review/1677/http://ratetea.com/review/1677/Mon, 23 Apr 2012 05:59:47 ESTI had this tea at a Barista outlet in Kolkata. I loved how fresh & uplifting this tea was! I have green teas regularly & thought this beats all the rest that I've ever had! Cheers!