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Yunomi’s Shimane Benifuuki Sencha

Shimane Benifuuki Sencha by Yunomi
Green Tea / Straight
$10.00USD for 20g

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Yunomi has provided me with Shimane Benifuuki Sencha for the purposes of providing an honest review.

First Impressions

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Shimane Benifuuki Sencha came to me in a non-resealable packet with the necessary information on the printed label. The dry leaf consists of flat, thin, small tea leaves that are mostly dark green in colour. The dry leaf smells like a mix of grass and hay, with a bit of salty seaweed aroma from the tea. Shimane Benifuuki Sencha is an organic straight green tea.

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Preparation

Yunomi recommends steeping Shimane Benifuuki Sencha in 70°C (158°F) water for 1 minute. I followed the recommended steeping temperature and time.

First Taste

This beautiful green tea steeps to a bright light greeny yellow. There’s a slight grassy aroma that comes from the tea itself, which is a bit welcoming. When I took my first sip, I was pleasantly surprised by the complex flavour of the tea. There’s some salty notes that are mixed with grassy and vegetal flavours. The saltiness adds to the complexity, as umami flavour often does. I found that the saltiness reminded me a lot of seaweed. There’s just a hint of astringency at the tail end of each sip, but it doesn’t distract too much from the experience of drinking Shimane Benifuuki Sencha.

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A Second Cup?

I resteeped Shimane Benifuuki Sencha twice. I found that the flavour held up well for both resteeps and I could have probably done a third or maybe even a fourth resteep. I found that the first resteep had the most vibrant flavour – the level of saltiness was highest, and so was the vegetal flavours I found in the initial steep.

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My Overall Impression

I liked Yunomi’s Shimane Benifuuki Sencha. I found that the flavour was a delight on the tongue, and that I really enjoyed the resteep better than the initial steep. There was just something more brighter and stronger with the second steep than with the first. I wasn’t a big fan of the slight astringency I found at the end of each sip, and I do wonder if it’s possible that I should have steeped it even shorter than the recommended steeping time.

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Kailo Tea’s Wake Up

Wake Up by Kailo Tea
Green Tea / Flavoured
$15.99 for 45g (15 sachets)

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Kailo Tea has provided me with Wake Up for the purposes of providing an honest review.

First Impressions

When Kailo Tea contacted me and asked if I wanted to try their teas, I was intrigued. A Canadian tea company based in Ontario, Kailo Tea pairs tea with supplemental vitamins. Their teas are available in tea bag/sachet form only at this time, as each sachet includes a capsule. Even though I had read online that their tea included vitamins, it still threw me off a little bit to see the capsule inside of the tea bag.

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The dry leaf smells strongly of citrus, mint, and ginger. The aromas remind me a lot more of an herbal infusion than of a green tea, but there is green tea in there. Wake Up consists of: organic orange peel, organic ginger root, organic peppermint, green tea, eleuthero root (Siberian Ginseng), calendula, natural and artificial flavours, vitamin D3, vitamin C, and vitamin B (B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, B12).

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One thing I appreciated on Kailo Tea’s packaging is that they mention consulting your healthcare provider if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, on any medication, or if you have a medical condition. I attribute this extra warning due to the fact that the tea does come with a vitamin capsule. Some medications are poorly absorbed if taken at the same time as vitamin supplements, so it’s always a good idea to check with your physician or pharmacist prior to taking anything with supplements.

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Preparation

Kailo Tea recommends steeping Wake Up in 170-180°F (77-82°C) for 3 to 4 minutes. I steeped Wake Up in 175°F (80°C) for 3 minutes.

First Taste

Wake Up steeps to a bright greeny-yellow. The tea is slightly cloudy, which I attribute to the vitamin capsule as that’s the only thing I can think of that might cause the tea to be a bit cloudy out of the ingredients list. The tea smells sweet, and I can make out the citrus and ginger. I wish I could make out the mint, because I love the smell of mint. On first taste, Wake Up has bright flavours. The citrus and ginger combination is sublime. There’s a minty freshness at the end of each sip that I attribute to the peppermint. I can’t smell or taste the green tea base, but the flavours that I can taste are tasty.

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A Second Cup?

I did try to resteep Wake Up. I found the citrus and ginger flavours to be a lot more subdued and didn’t have the same level of natural sweetness and the flavours weren’t as bright. I would say that Wake Up is good for one steep.

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My Overall Impression

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I liked Kailo Tea’s Wake Up. I’m not sure how the vitamins really made a difference in the flavour, but I found that the tea itself had a great flavour profile with the citrus, ginger, and peppermint. The cloudiness to the tea, once you realize it’s from the vitamin capsule, isn’t off-putting. I wish it had held out for one more steep because the flavour in the initial steep was so bright and inviting. I had this tea hot, but because of the citrus and ginger flavours, I think it would do well being iced. It has a nice natural sweetness that I think doesn’t require more sweetener.

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High Noon Tea Co.’s Maple Smoke

Maple Smoke by High Noon Tea Co.
Black Tea / Flavoured
$11.00 for 50g

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High Noon Tea Co.’s Maple Smoke came to me as part of The Sugared Teacup’s June themed subscription box.

First Impressions

I should have known from the name of the tea that this was some sort of lapsang souchong, but do I ever listen to myself? (The answer is sometimes.) If you’re not familiar with it, lapsang souchong is a black tea that’s been smoked so it has a very strong smokey aroma and flavour to it.

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If you’ve ever wanted to drink a campfire, lapsang souchong is the tea for you.

Maple Smoke is a black tea that consists of: black tea, natural smoke flavour, safflower petals, and real maple syrup. I love maple syrup, and I think that’s one of the reasons why Deb picked this one to go into a Canadiana themed tea box. This tea smells incredibly strong of smoke. It reminds me of campfires and all the fun things to do with Girl Guides. Unfortunately for the tea, I don’t smell the maple syrup at all.

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Preparation

High Noon Tea Co. recommends steeping Maple Smoke in 100°C (212°F) water for 3 to 7 minutes or to taste. My initial steep of Maple Smoke was for 3 minutes.

First Taste

Maple Smoke steeps to a beautiful golden red and it smells both smokey and sweet (which I will be attributing to the maple syrup). The taste of this tea is, without a doubt, smokey. It’s got a nice smoothness to it in terms of texture, but the overall taste of it is strongly of smoke. I don’t really taste the maple syrup in this because the smoke is so overpowering as a flavour.

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I did attempt to doctor up this tea with a bit of sweetener (I used honey because I didn’t have maple syrup on hand) and some evaporated milk. The milk helps to tone down the smokey flavour, but doesn’t cut it down to the point where I can make out the maple syrup.

A Second Cup?

I did attempt to resteep Maple Smoke, and found the flavour to remain the same – all smoke and no maple syrup.

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My Overall Impression

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I didn’t like High Noon Tea Co.’s Maple Smoke. If you’re a fan of lapsang souchong teas, this one will probably suit you a lot more than it suits me! I wasn’t a fan of the smokey flavour, because it made the tea taste very one dimensional. While I could smell the maple syrup after the tea had been steeped, I wasn’t able to taste it because the flavour of the smoke was so overpowering compared to the rest of the ingredients. If it had been less smokey, I might have enjoyed it a little bit more. If you’re trying this tea out and find it too smokey, a bit of milk or cream goes a long way to cutting down the smokey aroma and flavours.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.