Today I got to thinking about fun ways to make teas. Lately I have been experimenting. Cold brewing in chocolate milk. Topping iced teas with lemonade. I have been having fun playing with my teas. So when I had a Vanilla Frosty in my freezer from Wendy’s that seemed daunting to eat on its own, I thought to myself, “what can I do with this?” Well, an affogato came to mind.

For those of you that don’t know what I am talking about, an affogato is an Italian dessert that typically takes the form of a scoop of vanilla gelato or ice cream topped with a shot of hot espresso. Mine, on the other hand, took the form of two scoops of Vanilla Frosty topped with tea. Maple Vanilla Earl Grey tea by A Quarter to Tea to be specific. Why that tea? Well all recipes I looked at online suggested using strong flavored teas like chais or earl greys. I went with what I had readily available and the Maple Vanilla Earl Grey Affogato was born.

Since I have never had an affogato made by someone who knows what they’re doing I am not sure if this is right but I am sure it is good. It’s more a drink than a dessert you could eat with a spoon but there is a little ball of frosty still present. The liquid is so rich and creamy. Obviously it has a ton of silky vanilla flavor given both the frosty and the tea have vanilla flavoring. More than just the vanilla, there is a distinct maple sweetness that is a little more earthy than the vanilla but still very sweet as well as a little bit of a honeyed quality coming from the rooibos. The bergamot, for those that don’t like it very much, is actually really lovely here because it just adds a bit of brightness to counteract the other sweeter elements while the black tea base and cinnamon work to do the same thing in their own ways by adding some spice and some softer tea flavors. It’s really quite delightful because you get both the flavor of the frosty and the tea distinctly but at the same time they work together so nicely making for a delectably creamy and flavorful treat.

All in all, I would say this was one successful experiment if for no other reason than the affogato was gone in under five minutes. Seriously, i just kept drinking and actually finished the affogato before I finished the review. Oops.

Ultimately I am not sure how successful this tea would be on its own as I used the whole sample I had for the affogato but used the way it was here, this tea was certainly a home run.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea

Description

A brisk cup of Earl Grey, mellowed with the sweetness of maple and the smoothness of vanilla with still giving you that satisfying bergamot punch that makes Earl Grey so special

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in A Quarter To Tea, Black Tea