Boston Marathon and David's Tea - The Chai Collection

I was in Boston last week. Boston is such a neat city, besides all the history of the place there are so many things to see and do there. Whenever I get a chance to go to Boston I take it. While I was in Boston I took a walk over to the David's Tea store on Washington Street, the staff was friendly and I was relieved to read that they are safe. I saw signs for the Boston Marathon and even though I am not into sports I thought the Marathon would be something interesting to see.

I am deeply saddened by what happened at the Marathon. Three people killed, including an 8-year-old boy, so many injured... Such a thing should never happen.

Of course there are already rumors circulating about the Marathon bombing. Please verify before you click share or forward. Snopes and ThatsNonesense already have pages up on the Boston Marathon. Also there will probably be fake charities run by scam artists using the Boston Marathon so be careful who you donate to. The One Fund is a genuine charity set up to help the victims.

sTEAp Shoppe - Caramel Apple, Darjeeling Song, Swedish Delight

I love winning things. Being terribly untalented I don't win anything very often but once in a while I win by pure luck. Recently I won in a giveaway from Soroitea Sisters, a Tall Tea Gift box from the sTEAp Shoppe. I got to pick out three different teas to try out, finally I settled on Caramel Apple, Darjeeling Song and Swedish Delight. A couple days later it arrived in the mail.

First off I'm impressed by the packaging. The gift box itself is pretty sturdy. The tins are also sturdy and have screw on lids so I won't be struggling to pry a tin open and fling half the tea across the kitchen. And to make it easier brewing suggestions are printed right on the tins.

I decided to try the caramel apple first. Here is my Steepster review:

Caramel apple, notice how clear it is

My Tall Tea Gift Box came today! I’m so excited! Right away I tore open the padded envelope, opened the box and started twisting the lids off the tins (Those are really nice tins too) and sniffing every tea. I decided to try the Caramel Apple first.
I may have put more tea than necessary in my tea strainer, but i hate having a tea being too weak because I didn’t add enough tea. Then I had issues with the thermometer trying to get the water at 205 degrees, I need to get a proper tea thermometer, the one I was using was inaccurate, or water boils at 200 degrees.
While the tea was still hot all I could taste was apple and assam tea. As it cooled I began to taste caramel, slight hint of chocolate. If you drink this tea too fast you’ll miss out.
This tea is fine on its own though a little sugar will not ruin it.

The Caramel Apple tea held up to a second steeping,  the apple taste was weaker, the caramel more noticeable.

The next day I tried the Darjeeling Song, here is my Steepster review:

Darjeeling Song with milk and sugar

This is a strong tea, strong smelling and strong brewing.

I have to admit at first sip I was afraid I would hate this tea. I tried a spoonful right after steeping it, no milk or sugar and it was horrible, absolutely horrible! I added milk and a little sugar and my second sip was a little better. I waited a few minutes before taking another sip and it was really, really good. As the tea sat and cooled a little the cardamon and vanilla must have been doing something together and made the tea a lot smoother and more pleasant to drink.

The second steeping was even better than the first, the cardamon was not weakened and I could feel the spice prickling on my tongue. I had some M&M cookies to dip in the tea and it was amazing.

Cookies and there's a little tea left

The tea even stood up to a third steeping. It was starting to get weaker but I think I might have even managed a fourth steeping but it's getting late and I don't want the caffeine keeping me up all night.  

Just wow, this tea might not be for everyone, first sip is unpleasant but stick with it, it gets better.

Saved Swedish Delight for last, it sounded exotic but was probably the least exotic tasting of the three teas I had gotten. But it was good, I like citrus teas. My Steepster review:

Swedish Delight

A nice, citrus-tasting tea. Also tastes like cranberries, which I guess is the lingonberries. Slight hints of cardamon. As this tea cools I notice that it tastes fruitier. This cup I only added a touch of sugar to, but I might try it with a little milk later.

This tea almost feels familiar, which is a good thing. Not a bad tea to start the day off with.

Swedish Delight, second steeping

Second steeping- about 4 minutes with 200 degree water. The cardamon is more noticeable, the citrus/berry taste is only a little weaker, same for the ceylon tea. How do they make tea this strong? Didn't add any sugar to this cup. No milk either, on second thought I'm not sure if the lingonberry would curdle milk and don't want to risk it. 

I had noticed that a lot of the teas and ingredients are organic, if you're trying to go organic the sTEAp Shoppe is a good place to try.