Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

Discuss some of the favorite customer-created Signature Blends.


Feb 9th, '10, 14:58
Posts: 508
Joined: Apr 1st, '08, 12:43
Location: united states IL.

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by silvermage2000 » Feb 9th, '10, 14:58

could someone tell me who is getting the box next?

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Feb 9th, '10, 16:10
Posts: 1289
Joined: May 10th, '08, 19:22
Location: Kentucky

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by kymidwife » Feb 9th, '10, 16:10

Current list of participants:

boywoodhe - done
ebtoulson - done
geekgirlunveiled - done
CinnamonKitty - done
obsidianbladed - done
rspear- done
nexius8510 - passed due to no response
auggy - done
smari - passed due to no response
jazz88 - done
ASUnurse26 - done
artemis - currently has the box (or maybe already to Aphro?)
churng - pass on request
RachelC - done
aphroditea (has box now)
Charizzi
silverdoves (if active... no activity since 11-24)
keensense
cls42
silvermage2000 (moved to bottom on request)
and then back to me, kymidwife

Any established members who would like to be added... please PM me. :)

Sarah
Last edited by kymidwife on Feb 11th, '10, 20:59, edited 1 time in total.

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Feb 10th, '10, 19:13
Posts: 319
Joined: Jan 31st, '08, 09:33

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by Aphroditea » Feb 10th, '10, 19:13

Yo Ho, Maties.

Sorry again for the long absence. My computer's hard drive died, I had major surgery (which most of you knew was coming up - still alive, btw) and thanks to my sister (bless her loaded-to-the-bones soul) I have a new computer which solves the first issue and I am not off the really heavy pain meds and on to the only slightly heavy pain meds (read, off of demerol and onto darvocet...next, down to vicodin), so I am vaguely coherent - coherent enough to let you know I got the box safe and sound....although someone in Illinois must be down an entire roll of packing tape!! :shock:

I will start to sort tomorrow. Camping trip planned this weekend (I know - I'm nuts) and then I will bag and tag and slap it on the butt and send it out the door to the next lovely contestant.

Feb 10th, '10, 20:04
Posts: 239
Joined: Jul 27th, '09, 09:30
Location: Chicago
Contact: RachelC

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by RachelC » Feb 10th, '10, 20:04

Aphroditea wrote:Yo Ho, Maties.

Sorry again for the long absence. My computer's hard drive died, I had major surgery (which most of you knew was coming up - still alive, btw) and thanks to my sister (bless her loaded-to-the-bones soul) I have a new computer which solves the first issue and I am not off the really heavy pain meds and on to the only slightly heavy pain meds (read, off of demerol and onto darvocet...next, down to vicodin), so I am vaguely coherent - coherent enough to let you know I got the box safe and sound....although someone in Illinois must be down an entire roll of packing tape!! :shock:

I will start to sort tomorrow. Camping trip planned this weekend (I know - I'm nuts) and then I will bag and tag and slap it on the butt and send it out the door to the next lovely contestant.
Sorry about all the tape. My husband packaged it and shipped it too me. He knew about all the rain in Texas so he thought better safe than sorry. :lol: The funny part is that he is in Texas right now for work. :)

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Feb 10th, '10, 21:28
Posts: 319
Joined: Jan 31st, '08, 09:33

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by Aphroditea » Feb 10th, '10, 21:28

RachelC wrote:
Aphroditea wrote:Yo Ho, Maties.

Sorry again for the long absence. My computer's hard drive died, I had major surgery (which most of you knew was coming up - still alive, btw) and thanks to my sister (bless her loaded-to-the-bones soul) I have a new computer which solves the first issue and I am not off the really heavy pain meds and on to the only slightly heavy pain meds (read, off of demerol and onto darvocet...next, down to vicodin), so I am vaguely coherent - coherent enough to let you know I got the box safe and sound....although someone in Illinois must be down an entire roll of packing tape!! :shock:

I will start to sort tomorrow. Camping trip planned this weekend (I know - I'm nuts) and then I will bag and tag and slap it on the butt and send it out the door to the next lovely contestant.
Sorry about all the tape. My husband packaged it and shipped it too me. He knew about all the rain in Texas so he thought better safe than sorry. :lol: The funny part is that he is in Texas right now for work. :)
Well, tell him KUDOS - it was SLEETING when I got it :lol:
Where is in in TX - this is a mighty big state ya know :wink:

Feb 10th, '10, 21:49
Posts: 239
Joined: Jul 27th, '09, 09:30
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Contact: RachelC

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by RachelC » Feb 10th, '10, 21:49

Aphroditea,
He is in Kilgore this week. Not sure if that is the name of the city or the name of the county.
Rachel :D

P.S. You have first dibs on all the tons of my teas I put in there. Please do let me know your thoughts when you try them and I do expect honesty! Thanks. I will be looking forward to your reviews. :D

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Feb 11th, '10, 14:14
Posts: 54
Joined: Nov 12th, '09, 16:02

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by cls46 » Feb 11th, '10, 14:14

Hey Kymidwife, I tried to send you a message. However the message is in my "outbox" but not in my sent messages. did you get my message?

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Feb 11th, '10, 20:59
Posts: 1289
Joined: May 10th, '08, 19:22
Location: Kentucky

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by kymidwife » Feb 11th, '10, 20:59

Hi, yes, just got your message! The messages you send will stay in your outbox until the recipient receives/reads it, or that is how it seems to work from what I can tell. :)

And yes... adding you to the list. Welcome!

Sarah

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Feb 16th, '10, 23:09
Posts: 319
Joined: Jan 31st, '08, 09:33

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by Aphroditea » Feb 16th, '10, 23:09

Okay....camping done, check. Son's oral surgery done, check. Tea box sorted, check. Tea box restocked with Tanya Laird and Austin Browncoat Blends, check! Put more in than I took out? Damn that Girl Scout training...box is now fuller than when it arrived, but still it all fits in the box - yay Girl Scout training!! :lol:

She is ready to be sent out - all I need is an address :)

I will start posting my taste assesments over the next couple of weeks.

Cheers, Cheerio and Ciao!
aphy

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Feb 17th, '10, 09:54
Posts: 33
Joined: Jan 31st, '08, 19:52
Location: NJ
Contact: charizzi

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by charizzi » Feb 17th, '10, 09:54

Ooh! Great! Wow! I can't wait for this box! I believe I am next? I'll definitely take photos of it! :) PM sending your way!

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Feb 17th, '10, 11:19
Posts: 319
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Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by Aphroditea » Feb 17th, '10, 11:19

charizzi wrote:Ooh! Great! Wow! I can't wait for this box! I believe I am next? I'll definitely take photos of it! :) PM sending your way!
The box is labelled and I will hopefully get it on its way tomorrow or Friday. I took some photos of the box before it was re-sealed. This box did not get to make the trip to the State Capitol like the last one, but I put in some Texas-inspired props in a couple shots.

Now that the business bit is taken care of (mostly), I can get on with the tasting bit! First up was :arrow: Winter Frost by rachelc (aka Rachana Carter).


I admit I was leary about this blend. I love "Yule" or "Xmas" themed teas in theory, but mostly for the SPICE and Rach's blend had a sort of cinnamon candy cane thing going on (I avoid the candy versions, but wanted to give the tea a try). The first cup I steeped a little more than a tsp for 4 mins and I have to honestly and truly admit that this blend surprised the cranky sceptic right out of me!! It starts with a smooth vanilla sweetness which slides into a cinnamon warmth and then, just on the end of the sip the mint gives a refreshing and not overpowering tingle! All of the amounts were just right and nothing overpowered anything else and each step of the sip was well timed.

The second cup, I did about a tsp and a half at 3 mins and added a little honey. The honey hides the vanilla flavor, tones down the cinnamon, but perks up the mint....so, I think, in the future, I will go sans sweetner in this blend.

The third cup, I did the same steep paramenters as the second and added just a splash of fat free milk. This enhanced the vanilla flavor, subdued the cinnamon (but not as much as the sweetner), but made the mint at the end taste a little more candy-like than I would prefer.

So, overall verdict: This is a fantastic blend! Don't get fancy with it, just let it do its thing and you will be pleasantly surprised!


Cheers!
aphy

Feb 17th, '10, 15:15
Posts: 239
Joined: Jul 27th, '09, 09:30
Location: Chicago
Contact: RachelC

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by RachelC » Feb 17th, '10, 15:15

Awwww (enter bashful expression here) thanks so much for the kind words. :D I also enjoyed reading about all the different ways you tried to make the tea. Can't wait to hear more.

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Feb 17th, '10, 21:07
Posts: 1289
Joined: May 10th, '08, 19:22
Location: Kentucky

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by kymidwife » Feb 17th, '10, 21:07

Thanks for the great review. I was hoping to hear more opinions and reviews from participants... great feedback for those who are creating new blends. If anyone else has reviews of Sig Blends from the box and is willing to share, it would be a welcomed addition to this thread.

Sarah

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Feb 18th, '10, 11:02
Posts: 319
Joined: Jan 31st, '08, 09:33

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by Aphroditea » Feb 18th, '10, 11:02

Good Morning TMart Shoppers......

too much tea this morning, already, I think.

Two tea reviews this morning:

Sweet Velvet Fog by Rachana Carter. This blend is aptly named! It is certainly one of the sweetest blends I have tasted. I have tried other blends with this same combination of flavors, but this one struck me as being the sweetest. First cup I steeped 1 tsp to 6oz at 4 mins and added nothing. It was very smooth and quite sweet on its own. Very cozy. Second cup I steeped the same, but added a dollop of honey and this made it like drinking a Worther's candy! Not really what I wanted. Sweet is not usually my thing, at least not alone (sweet with spice or fruit I am okay with). This blend was still quite good, just not really MY cup of tea (pun intended). I would recommend this as a goto tea for cozying up with a book or for a stressful meeting/day or something to sip on while watching a 'girly' flick! Those of you with a sweet tooth will love this tea!

1# Masala Vanilla Spicy Chai by Jeffrey McWirter. I LOVE chai, so I had high hopes for this blend. (Although adding the word 'spicy' to the title seems redundant) It seemed a very natural paring - chai and vanilla. I have made my stovetop chais with Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk before, so, in theory it seemed this should achieve a similar effect. My first cup I steeped at 1.5 tsp for 6 oz water (as I find chais to work best when more tea is added). The tea smelled quite good, sadly, I cannot say the same for the taste. At first sip I was very excited because there was a nice bite of clove right at the front. However, it went away very quickly and then the flavor was totally flat, somewhat sweet, but with no body to hold my mouth's attention. I attempted a steeping with 2 tsp and ended up with exactly the same effect. My third cup (actually I made 2x this amount so that my husband could try) I did 3 tsp to 6oz and steeped it as a semi-stovetop chai with honey and milk. This was definately the worse of the attempts. Without conferring, my husband and I wrote down almost exactly the same notes. It was basically like drinking sweetened milk with no spice at all. There was only the barest hint of clove up front and after finishing the cup the back of my tongue had a very vague clovey taste, as if I had drank chai hours ago, not just seconds earlier. Either this tea is quite stale at this point or it should be reblended so that the chai has a larger percentage.

Cheers, Cheerio and Ciao,
Aphy

Feb 20th, '10, 09:28
Posts: 239
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Contact: RachelC

Re: Signature Blends Box Pass Sign-Up

by RachelC » Feb 20th, '10, 09:28

So fun to read your reviews can't wait for more. I will get started soon. Just waiting for things to calm down. It has been a rough year with the loss of 2 family member and my cat on Valentine's Day. So as soon as things start to normalize I will start reviewing what I have but I have to admit I may not be as detailed as AphrodiTea which ironically my cat's name was Aphrodite. :)

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