“When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground,” Cersei famously said in the first season of Game of Thrones.
If you think fighting for dominance isn’t for you, try Empress Rajini. She seems to have her tea game on point. Think of all the tea you could have if you were in charge. Delicious, delicious tea.
I steeped this cup to go along with a donut I procured from the break room. (Why are there never, say, apples in there?)
The blend looked flowery and rich and dark, a perfect compliment to my chocolate-frosted confection.
And BOOM, I was right. This rose-lavender-fruit confection was the perfect counterpoint to the black tea in the blend and the chocolate from the donut. The whole thing was an IMMACULATE pick-me-up. Delicious. Wonderfully balanced, sweet, and ladylike.
I suspect Rajini is a fair and beloved empress.
If you don’t want to risk your life to rule, you could just buy the tea from Real Simple Loose Leaf, I guess.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Description
Black tea, lavender, and rose petals with mango and peach flavor
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Tea Rex/Adagio Teas. . .
This tea is designed to “help you roar louder, roam wider and grow up big and strong, just like a real T. Rex.” WOW, GUYS. THAT SOUNDS LIKE A PRETTY GREAT PLAN.
You’d think that a tea named “tea rex” would be caffeinated, but nope, which means you can enjoy your transformation to King of the Upper Cretaceous Period at ANY TIME OF DAY. The sweetness of the honeybush mingles nicely with the tea’s chocolate & berry notes. It also, for the record, goes nicely with the donut I enjoyed this morning.
If you get a chance, you should go to Adagio Teas’ listing for this. It’s part of a decaf 3-set that also includes “Rocket Fuel” and “Monster Brew.” The packaging for all three of these tins is SO cute. There are tins with lovely, bright illustrations. This would make a great gift for a friend with kids. They can feel like they’re having tea like their parents, but without the caffeine. (The only thing scarier than a little T-Rex is a little T-Rex full of energy.) (Is it obvious I don’t have children?)
Wishing you all a lovely day full of roaring and conquering!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Herbal/Honeybush
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Description
A delicious tea to help you roar louder, roam wider and grow up big and strong, just like a real T. Rex.
blended with honeybush tea, apple pieces, cocoa nibs, dark chocolate chips (contains soy lecithin), raspberries, natural chocolate flavor, dried cherries, natural wild cherry flavor & safflower
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Li Shan/Harney and Sons. . .
This tea tastes like it was poured out of a very delicate porcelain teapot by an expert. It’s a delicate green pollen, pooling in your cup, soothing you during difficult times. It’s classic; it’s timeless; it’s fancy. It’s exactly what I’d expect to taste at a non-matcha tea ceremony.
When I was in Phildelphia’s Shofuso Japanese House and Garden, I actually accidentally walked into a class where they were teaching tea ceremonies. I didn’t realize it was a class. There was no note. There was just a person speaking to some other people, sitting on a mat. I thought it was a tour guide or something and got — unceremoniously — thrown out.
I think that, if I had stayed, I would have learned the art of distributing this tea to my companions with grace. These leaves deserve fine treatment after, as Harney’s site claims, “battl[ing] cold (sometimes even snow) and frequent mists,” resulting in a “rare and haunting” quality. I could have poured this pale yellow tea with a delicate wrist motion. People would have sipped it out of clay cups like these.
Alas, I’m drinking it out of a mug I got from Hot Topic for $5. I guess I’ll never be as classy as my tastes.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Harney and Sons
Description
Li Shan, considered to be among the best oolong teas in the world, comes from one of Taiwans highest mountain areas. The tea plants must battle cold (sometimes even snow) and frequent mists. This makes a rare and haunting brew, with echoes of honey and cream.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Qi Lan/Old Ways Tea . . . .
Good morning, Tea-ple! It’s time for another review! Today we’re trying Qi Lan from Old Ways Tea, an oolong from China’s Wuyi mountains.
The first word that springs to mind is “tangy!” (With the exclamation point. Don’t leave that out).
There’s a metallic taste with almost a citrus feel to this tea. It’s almost the equivalent of the sound of rain tapping on a tin roof. It’s pennies and earth and rust, converted into tea form.
I’m not sure that sounds appealing; but I can assure you, this is a pleasing blend. It’s surprising and rusty and homey.
It’s a meditation session in a gazebo in a forest. It’s a wishing fountain. It’s a ceremonial gong being struck. It’s a martial arts scene set in the rain.
It’s my morning choice, and I like it.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Old Ways Tea
Description
This Qi Lan tea can be described as qing xiang meaning having a gentle fragrance. The fragrance is well rounded leaving a pleasant Wuyi mineral flavor and returning sweetness. I think that our Qi Lan turned out quite good this year.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Bi Luo Chun/Beantown Tea. . . .
Beantown Tea describes this green tea as “resembling snail meat,” but don’t let that deter you. Put the snail thing aside and give this a try.
This green tea is on the very airy end of green, practically a white. In fact, some of the balls’ coloring is white, and fuzzy, which means it was plucked early in the season.
The flavor’s balances green and white: a mix of earth, leaves, pollen, and electricity.
This tea tastes like a moon setting and dawn’s birds chirping. It tastes like waking up very, very early for an event and walking toward your car in the meandering morning breeze, everyone asleep around you. It’s being the only person at the intersection at 5 a.m.
I got this tea from Etsy, and there was a mix-up with my address (my fault, not theirs). The customer service, I have to let you know, was TOP-NOTCH. They followed up and offered to send me a follow-up package right away — even though the mistake was NOT their fault. GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE. (The second package wasn’t necessary; the post office on my end figured out what to do. It arrived safely.)
Thumbs-up on this one. I have another one I’m going to try in the next week or so!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Beantown Tea and Spices
Description
Bi Luo Chun is regarded as one of the best green tea China offers. It brews a refreshing cup that is floral, slightly earthy with nutty notes. Bi Luo Chun literally means “green snail spring”. It is called “green snail spring” because it is a green tea that is hand rolled into a tight spiral, resembling snail meat, and is plucked and produced early spring. The annual productions span of the Bi Luo Chun is very short. It is picked between the Spring Equinox (end of March) and Qing Ming (early April). Our ‘Choral Bi Luo Chun’ tea is made from the finest tender buds, gathered and processed exclusively by hand.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!