Tag: T By Daniel

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T By Daniel’s Orange Creamsicle

Orange Creamsicle by T By Daniel
Herbal Infusion / Flavoured
$8.50 for 50g

T By Daniel’s Orange Creamsicle came to me as part of The Sugared Teacup’s August themed subscription box.

First Impressions

I always get a little excited when I get a T By Daniel tea in one of my subscription boxes from The Sugared Teacup because I’ve really liked the teas that I’ve tried previously from this Ontario-based company. Orange Creamsicle honestly smells just like its namesake. If you’re not familiar with orange creamsicles, I feel a bit sad for you as they were often a nice summer treat when I was a kid.

Orange Creamsicle consists of: apple pieces, rosehips, orange pieces, hibiscus, sunflower petals, and natural flavouring. I can see a lot of the ingredients, including some fairly big dried orange pieces throughout.

Preparation

T By Daniel recommends steeping Orange Creamsicle in 100°C (212°F) water for 5 to 6 minutes. My initial steep was for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Orange Creamsicle steeps to a very bright pink. Despite the fact that I know that there is hibiscus in the blend, I’m somehow still disappointed that it isn’t a neon orange colour like the actual orange creamsicle product. It’s not exactly a rational expectation, but it is what it is. The aroma from the tea is still very reminiscent of orange creamsicle. On the first taste, I taste sweetness, orange, with a touch of tang and tartness. The orange flavour is pretty spot on, and the tartness leads to a nice mouthpucker thanks to the hibiscus.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Orange Creamsicle and found the flavour to be lacking compared to the initial steep. I would say that Orange Creamsicle is good for just one steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved T By Daniel’s Orange Creamsicle. From the dry leaf aroma to the steeped tea, I found this herbal infusion to be very accurately named. The flavour is really spot on and I think it would be great as an iced tea or cold steeped, although it is pretty tasty when drank hot. I do wish it resteeped a bit better, but I’m not too disappointed since I do know that it is an herbal infusion. I still wish that it steeped to a bright orange instead of a pink, but the flavour is great and it’s really well done.

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T By Daniel’s Garden Party

Garden Party by T By Daniel
Oolong Tea / Flavoured
$11.00 for 50g

T By Daniel’s Garden Party came to me as part of The Sugared Teacup’s June themed subscription box.

First Impressions

Garden Party came in a familiar matte foil bag, branded with T By Daniel’s information (and if you’ve never seen one of his bags, you should – they’re just so bright and cheerful!). This oolong blend is incredibly floral, with a sweet aroma to it and quite beautiful dried ingredients to be seen. You can really pick out most of the ingredients, if you know what you’re looking for. Garden Party smells like walking through a garden without smelling like a bottle of perfume up your nose – which is much appreciated.

Garden Party consists of: oolong tea, mooring leaves, rose petals, bamboo leaves, and natural orchid flavour.

Preparation

T By Daniel suggests steeping Garden Party in 90°C (194°F) water for 2 to 3 minutes. I used the oolong setting on my Breville IQ Kettle, which is 91°C (195°F). My initial steep of Garden Party was for 2 minutes.

First Taste

Garden Party steeps to a light yellow, this tea has such an inviting floral aroma to it. I can’t really pinpoint which flower that I smell the most – either rose or orchid. It’s not overly floral at all though, which is nice. On first taste, I can taste the floral sweetness, which balances well against the creamy oolong base. The oolong just has a note of buttery creaminess to it, going really well with the floral notes

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Garden Party three times, adding an extra 30 seconds for each resteep. I found that the flavour profile stayed fairly consistent throughout – by the last steep it was more oolong base than floral ingredients. But the oolong stayed true to itself with the buttery notes with each steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved T By Daniel’s Garden Party. I think the oolong base lends itself well to the added floral ingredients. The mix of floral and oolong would pair up well with afternoon tea goodies, I think. The buttery notes from the oolong would play off of the baked goods while the floral notes would balance well against the sweets (cupcakes! macarons! cookies!).

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T By Daniel’s When Harry Met Meghan

When Harry Met Meghan by T By Daniel
Black Tea / Flavoured
$11.00 for 50g

T by Daniel’s When Harry Met Meghan came to me as part of The Sugared Teacup’s April themed subscription box.

First Impressions

There’s something whimsical and fun about T By Daniel’s packaging – I think it has a lot to do with the bright colours and the bow tie. After all, bow ties are cool (any Doctor Who fans in the audience?). When Harry Met Meghan is my first exposure to a blend by T By Daniel, which is a Ontario-based tea company. Clearly named for the upcoming royal wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (and for 1989’s When Harry Met Sally), this tea came to me in a resealable foil pouch. The tea itself has a beautiful aroma and straight up smells like chocolate and strawberries. Not sure what the actual royal couple smells like, but the classic pairing of chocolate and strawberries smell divine.

When Harry Met Meghan consists of: Ceylon orange pekoe black tea, chocolate pieces, dried strawberries, safflowers, pink sugar, purple sprinkles, silver dragees, and natural flavours. I could definitely see all of the ingredients at one point or another. Love the fun sprinkles and dragees throughout!

Preparation

There weren’t any steeping instructions on the packaging, or on the online product page. I opted to do an initial steep of When Harry Met Meghan at 100°C (212°F) for 4 minutes.

First Taste

When Harry Met Meghan steeps to a slightly cloudy golden brown. There’s a bit of an oil slick across the surface, which can be attributed to the oils found in the chocolate, sprinkles, and dragees. The aroma from the steeped tea reminds me of chocolate and strawberries. Surprisingly, the flavour of the tea also consists of chocolate and strawberries.

I find it can be rare to find a tea that contains chocolate where the flavour actually holds up after the tea has been steeped. All of the ingredients that could dissolve in hot water had, so I was pleasantly surprised that the tea actually tastes like chocolate. The strawberry flavour also comes across well, I suspect part of the ‘natural flavours’ may be strawberry to amp it up a bit. There’s a sweetness to it that almost seems a bit much, and that’s coming from someone who really enjoys her sweets. I think it could have done without some of the sprinkles or dragees because I suspect the chocolate and dried strawberries might have enough sweetness on their own.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped When Harry Met Meghan twice. The first resteep wasn’t too bad, the chocolate and strawberry flavours were still pleasant, but it was less sweet (and that made it more enjoyable). The second resteep was kind of bland in comparison, and I couldn’t tasted the strawberry anymore. I would say that When Harry Met Meghan is good for one more steep.

My Overall Impression

I liked T By Daniel’s When Harry Met Meghan. I think the name is funny/punny and it’s a fun tea for anyone who likes chocolate teas, fruit teas, or royal shenanigans. I’m not usually a fan of teas with chocolate, but I found that this one did really well with maintaining the chocolate flavours throughout while balancing well with the strawberries. That said, I think the sprinkles/sugar made it just a touch too sweet for me. If you’re a fan of sweet teas, I think you’d really enjoy this one as-is, it’s definitely a black tea blend that doesn’t require any extra sweetener.

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