After taking a bit of a hiatus, we are happy to be back! Can’t say how often we will be posting but happy to kick off the new year with a particularly famous tea from Adagio Teas.
If you are familiar with Adagio Teas, you are familiar with their holiday and themed teas. A particular tea I have recently heard quite a bit about and seen quite a few posting about- Brigadoon, Adagio’s Leap Year blend.
Brigadoon is a blended black tea comprised of Asam and Keemun teas. Also added into the mix is Silver Needle white tea and blue cornflowers. I originally though this tea was an earl grey blend but to my delight- this tea is a Scottish Breakfast Tea.
After taking a small hiatus from caffeine, I was a bit hesitate to try this tea as I’ve noticed a sensitivity to caffeine recently (increased headaches). As I took my first sip of this tea, instant love formed for this tea and I knew immediately why this tea is so highly regarded.
This black tea prepped hot (212F- steeped 4 minutes) is smooth and malty with a robust feel. No notes of astringency whatsoever. There are hints of sweetness and floral moments here and there. After a couple sips, I decided this tea would be a beautiful latte and I frothed up milk to add in. The combination of the frothed milk just increased my admiration for this tea.
Big fan of this one and even though I need to be careful with how much of this tea I drink in a day- I have a feeling I’ll be stocking up on this one. As an FYI, if you do intend to stock up on this one (which I highly recommend doing), this tea is only available for a short time starting on 2/29/2024!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Description
Celebrate Leap Day with this Scottish Breakfast Blend of Assam and Keemun teas. We’ve added a touch of Silver Needle and blue cornflowers to evoke the blue and white of the Scottish flag that Brigadoon would fly.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Advent Calendar/Adagio Teas (Spoilers)
Each year during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, I always look forward to the tea advent calendars our beloved tea companies offer. I have enjoyed several from a variety of different tea companies, but one of my favorites each year is the advent calendar offered by Adagio Teas.
This tea calendar is filled with a lovely assortment of teas to enjoy for the avid tea drinker to the occasional tea drinker to the tea drinker who just started their tea journey. The variety of flavored teas is always lovely and this year was no exception. This year I even picked up a few advent calendars for my kiddos to enjoy and I can’t wait to see them sipping their teas while enjoying time off during the holidays. 
Starting on December 1st- there was a lovely single loose leaf serving waiting for me to enjoy. The listing of teas is on the site if you want to take a peek but I won’t spoil too many of them here.
The first tea for December 1st was Honeybush Pumpkin Chai– one of my favorite decaf blends from Adagio Teas! This blend is so versatile- by itself the tea presents as a lovely way to enjoy the spices of fall without the caffiene. The pumpkin flavoring is a bit hit or miss but brewed up as a latte, you have yourself a delightful autumnal treat with notes of cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla notes.
What I personally love to do with this tea is blend the tea with Adagio’s Vanilla Flavored Black tea or Adagio’s Cranberry Tea. Both create such unique layers of flavor and (IMO) umpfs the flavor profile and really highlights the lovely fall notes… especially when the Honeybush Pumpkin Chai is blended with the Cranberry Black Tea. The tart notes combine lovely with the chai spices and provides this unique underlaying tone of freshness. 
Passionfruit Tango was the second tea of the calendar and this tea was fabulous! I remember trying this tea once and not being a fan but this little serving of the blend changed my mind on the tea completely.
This blend is a unique blend of passionfruit flavoring, cinnamon, rose petals and more. Right there the blend seems a bit odd but truly the cinnamon and rose create a spiced floral scene for the passionfruit flavoring to connect with. I really enjoyed the fruity spiced floral notes- more than I thought I would. I was actually a bit sad when my sample was done giving after a few steepings. This will be one I’ve already earmarked for a future (fingers crossed) birthday purchase down the road.
All in all, a great start and even tho I am a few days late, I believe there is still time to order this awesome collection of teas. I love how each tea is packaged in single servings so you can try out a variety of teas that Adagio Teas offers without committing to a larger size.
If you are looking for a delightful gift for the tea enthusiast in your family or just a lovely way to celebrate the holidays, highly recommend the Adagio Teas Advent Calendar.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Variety
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Description
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Witches Broom Pu erh/New Mexico Tea. . . #spookyseason
Generally not much of a pu er drinker but every once in a while I stumble across an interesting name like this one and find it difficult to not want to try.
This one definitely looks interesting, bundled as it is. But once taken out of the bundle it just becomes another large leaf tea. Kinda. Unlike some other teas this one has the longest stems I have ever seen.
The initial aroma is very woodsy (when the hot water first hits the leaves).
10 second rinse. Now the wet leaf aroma is medicinal with a touch of…. vaseline.
After the first steep the aroma changes to hay and barn. The flavor begins with bits of stone fruit but then changes to hay.
On my fourth steeping here I am starting to find more wet woods flavors. Cedar.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Puerh
Where to Buy: New Mexico Tea Company
Description
A bizarre and wonderful tea. This aged green puerh tea is made up of extraordinarily large tea leaves that have been gathered into small bundles that resemble traditional brooms, hence the name. It has a marvelous flavor and delivers a light, woodsy aftertaste. We recommend six to eight leaves per cup with multiple steepings.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Autumn Mist Green/Adagio Teas
Continuing on our fall/spooky theme- I thought I would try a tea that I have quite a bit of- Autumn Mist Green. Autumn Mist Green tea is a blend of gunpowder green tea, dried apples, and creme brulee flavoring. Once I saw that- I think my excitement won over vs my wallet and I ordered the big bag.
But since I took a bit of a hiatus from tea, I hadn’t really taken a moment to enjoy the blend. So over the weekend, I brewed up a pot to enjoy while watching a few spooky movies.
Brewed with water at 180 and allowed to steep for a few minutes- this tea is a unique blend that I can’t really say is what you would think of as a fall blend, but nevertheless, I really enjoyed it.
First sip in and you are greeted with a sweetness that masks the smoky flavor you usually get from gunpowder green tea. The sweetness reminds me of caramel more than creme brulee but I’ll take it. I do see the big chunks of apple and what I’m assuming is cinnamon but those notes are not really coming across. I wish they were, this tea would be a sensational caramel apple tea.
I did do a second steeping and I actually enjoyed this cuppa a bit better. The flavoring wasn’t as strong and the gunpowder notes were coming in a bit stronger. I still didn’t get any of the apple notes but the cinnamon did pop a bit more.
I’m planning a proper cold brew for this blend and I’m excited to see how it turns out.
All in all, a great tea if you are looking for an alternative to the typical chais or pumpkin flavored teas you usually see during the fall.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Description
Autumn is a season of transition. For many, it marks the end of summer break and the start of the school year, for others a transition from shorts and tank tops to warm sweaters and blankets. It’s when the leaves start to change colors and when farmers switch from the growing season to harvest. For many tea drinkers, it also marks the shift from iced teas to hot, from tall, cool glasses to steaming, palm-warming mugs. So fill up your thermos, put on your best flannel, and get ready to fall for fall. It’s tea time, y’all.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Decaf Pumpkin Spice/Stash Tea. . . #spookyseasontea
I have a confession to make. I don’t really get the pumpkin spice craze, other than the fact that is feels good to welcome autumn and cinnamon is just so nostalgic, evoking lots of warm cozy memories. But I think of these spices more in cake than in beverages.
Add in my love of good black tea to that, and you will see why I expected this decaf to fail. And it did. At least, it failed as a stand alone cup of black tea for me. It was a big old cup of disappointment. It tasted like hot water with cinnamon and spices. I couldn’t taste tea at all.
Realizing that most people add milk and sugar to their flavored tea, I decided to salvage this cup with a tiny splash of milk and just a wee bit of sugar – probably a half teaspoon. Now that’s more like it! This went from blah to ah! Nice! Is it a great black tea? No way. But as a hot, cozy beverage for a chilly night, I could enjoy it this way.
But I really think this is just crying out to be a latte. Next time around, this will be steeped in just hot milk or half water/half milk. It only takes a tiny bit of sugar to sweeten it with the cinnamon and nutmeg that is here, and the ginger is nice and not too hot and spicy.
Plain? No thanks! As a latte? Any chilly night!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Stash Tea
Description
Leggings, UGGs, foliage, and of course, pumpkin everything. It’s the season you’ve been waiting for and along with it comes our seasonal Pumpkin Spice tea.
You’ll notice forward notes of bold black tea and a smooth aftertaste of–you guessed it, pumpkin. Hints of cinnamon and spices will engage your senses as you sip. This blend is the perfect accompaniment to a slice of pumpkin pie or pumpkin bread. The possibili-teas are endless; you could even try combining it in your favorite pumpkin bread recipe.
This pumpkin spice tea has been scientifically proven (wink) to taste best when consumed on chilly autumn afternoons. But since it’s a decaf tea, really any time of day or night works.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
