Okay, guys I have a confession to make. I have no idea what the name of this tea is referencing. I don’t know if I just live under a rock or if I am too young for the reference, so it took me a while to gain interest in trying this tea. But today I was digging through my little tea sample box and wanted to try something different. I did a google search to see what this tea was all about and on the company’s description it mentions vanilla custard- that is one of my favorite flavors!!! So I brewed myself up a cup and here is what I thought….
This tea was definitely creamy vanilla. I could smell it as I poured the hot water over the leaves. It reminded me of a fresh baking vanilla cake or vanilla bean ice cream. I added just a bit of agave for some sweetness and it really accentuated the vanilla custard flavors of this black tea. The tea itself was smooth, but definitely strong! However I was kind of in the mood for a strong black tea, i’m really tired and it is a rainy day. I always have a strong craving for sweets, and this tea really hit the nail on the head. The vanilla and custard flavors last on the palate long after the sip is gone. I bet that this tea would actually be a great base to mix other teas with, for example maybe a peach or apricot tea would go well with it because of the delicious and creamy vanilla qualities it has. I definitely will be playing around with my remaining sample because this was a good one!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea and Absinthe
Description
A delicious black tea with vanilla cream custard flavor. Fish fingers not included. Goes well with TARDIS Self-Destruct Buttons (aka Jammie Dodgers)
Ingredients: black tea -Assam, -China, flavor, vanilla bits
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
TARDIS Eleven – Geronimo! from Tea and Absinthe. . . . . .
“TARDIS Eleven – Geronimo!” is a classic black with a sweet vanilla kick. I drank this “vanilla cream custard” flavored tea iced, which totally hyped up its sweetness.
It’s got a gentle tastiness that I can readily identify with the Matt Smith Doctor Who.
Classic black tea = the formality of the bow tie. Vanilla = the charm of the fez.
Is that what they were going for? I’m not sure. But I’m going to go ahead and make those associations.
I took notes on this, because I was drinking it away from the computer. Though this IS a Dr Who themed tea, my notes for this don’t say anything about that.
My notes about this say — and I’m not joking — “big and deep and sweet like a Berenstein Bear.” My note has the E, not the A. (The “stein” vs “stain” thing is a long-running Internet conversation about parallel universes: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/the-berensteain-bears-conspiracy-theory-that-has-convinced-the-internet-there-are-parallel-universes )
If I were naming this, I think I’d name it Sister Bear. She was my jam. Her quest to get her ears pierced (does anyone else remember this?) was totally mine. Sister Bear and I were basically the same person. Like her, I just wanted to be cool. I was a big, overthinking doof with a soft underbelly, just like Sister Bear, and just like this tea. And maybe also Doctor Eleven.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Tea and Absinthe
Description
A delicious black tea with vanilla cream custard flavor. Fish fingers not included. Goes well with TARDIS Self-Destruct Buttons (aka Jammie Dodgers)
Ingredients: black tea -Assam, -China, flavor, vanilla bits
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
TARDIS Ten – Allonsy! from Tea & Absinthe. . . .
I STILL haven’t gotten into Doctor Who…I know…I know…shame on me! But one day – not too long ago – I was feeling adventurous and decided to jump into TARDIS Ten – Allonsy! from Tea & Absinthe. Why was I being adventurous just by drinking this tea? Because of the banana, of course! Some of you already know my hate-hate relationship with bananas. I want to like them – I do – but thus far it just hasn’t happened!
I will say for an ingredient I dread so much this was a mighty fine flavored tea! Ingredients include: black tea, flavor, coconut rasps, coconut chips (coconut, coconut fat, sugar), banana bits, cornflower blossoms.
They didn’t skimp on the chunky ingredients! That scored points with me! I think with the deeper, darker black tea taste with the addition of coconut is what counteracted the banana for me – and nicely! Everything meshed well flavor-wise. I wouldn’t change the ratios at all! There was a good amount of sweetness, nuttiness, and black tea taste and I have to say I’m a fan!
This tea PROVES that just because you aren’t fond of ONE ingredient – doesn’t mean you should avoid the tea. If I did avoid it – I would be missing out on a gem of a flavored black tea and fan/themed tea! CHEERS to a tasty cuppa!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Tea & Absinthe
Description
One should always take a banana to a party. Especially if you’re going to invent the banana daiquiri two centuries too early. Bananas are good. Tea is good. Banana and coconut flavored black tea? Brilliant!
Ingredients: black tea, flavor, coconut rasps, coconut chips (coconut, coconut fat, sugar), banana bits, cornflower blossoms
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Irish Whiskey Cream from Tea & Absinthe – The Other Irish Breakfast
As the weather gets colder, I get a craving for sweeter, more dessert-like teas. So when it was the first real, cold and blustery day of the season, I was excited to taste Irish Whiskey Cream from Tea & Absinthe. The dry leaf smells mild but sweet, like black tea with a hint of caramel. When brewed, this blend smells amazing, as rich and decadent as crème brûlée. I take my tea without milk or sugar, and the dessert flavors were still very forward and enjoyable.
While there is “cream” in the name, the sweetness in this tea is less like vanilla frosting and much more like salted caramel or burnt brown sugar, with just a bit of vanilla underneath. Cocoa bits are listed in the ingredients, but any chocolate flavor gets buried under the more caramel and toffee notes. I’m sure the “whiskey” in the name is a recommended brewing partner for this tea on those evenings when you need a little bit more warmth and merriment. The tea itself doesn’t have any overtly whiskey tones, nothing smoky, but the roasted-sugar flavors do remind me of certain amber libations.
I was careful not to over steep this blend, as the Irish breakfast Assam black tea base could get strong very fast. Keeping an eye on my brew times, I’ve had no bitterness and all creaminess. I could definitely see myself brewing up a cup of Irish Whiskey Cream from Tea & Absinthe and topping it with whipped cream on a snowy day.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea & Absinthe
Description:
“The Other Irish Breakfast” – Black tea Assam, cocoa bits, flavor.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
White Cherry from Tea and Absinthe
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Tea and Absinthe
Tea Description:
Ingredients: white tea China Pai Mu Tan, green tea Darjeeling, green tea China -Fog Tea, -Lung Ching, -Jasmine Jade Pearls, cherries, coconut chips (coconut, coconut fat, sugar), flavor, rose buds
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
A couple weekends ago, my hubby and I had an amazing experience at St Louis’s Wizard World. My hubby had bought me a Doctor Who VIP package where I had my picture take with and met David Tennant and Billie Piper. I was crazy excited since they are two of my favorite Doctor Who characters and arguable the most iconic. While wondering around the convention, I stumbled upon a tea shop. I couldn’t believe it. Not going to lie, I think I squealed a little. It was a pretty neat set up and I couldn’t wait to check all of the teas out. I picked up a few and have started to finally dive into them.
Let’s start off with saying this tea is gorgeous to look at. Huge roses, cherries, gorgeous tea leaves. . .everything you would want to see in a tea, this has it. The dry leaf mixture has a lovely sweet floral smell. One that I couldn’t want to steep up.
While steeping this tea, I could definitely still smell the same sweet smell with a hint of an almost kool aid smell as well. Not offensive at all. Almost made this tea a bit more appealing. I was in the mood for a sweeter fruity tea.
I brewed this up per the package instructions, and about 4 minutes later, I was pouring the tea into my Doctor Who mug. The smell of the tea had a lovely almost bakery smell to it with a fruity sweetness. This is one of those smells that actually makes you hungry!
I allowed the tea to cool for a few and took my first sip. In the words of Doctor Who “Hello Sweetie”! This tea is incredible and a taste profile/experience I can’t say I’ve ever had before. And that is pretty crazy to say. I drink a crazy variety of teas each and every day and am always looking for something new. I can’t believe I have never came across a tea like this before.
Each flavor comes thru. You can pick up the flora white notes, the distinct Darjeeling touches, a rich buttery green tea base, with a lovely jasmine hint here and there. Throw in the sweet robust cherry (almost Kool-Aid like) flavor with hints of coconut all surrounding by again another sweet floral touch and you have yourself one amazingly complex tea. The tea isn’t so sweet that it is overpowering. I think the green tea and Darjeeling go a long way to tame the crazy sweet flavors down and bring a bit more vegetal feel to the tea. In just about every other sip you get a nice tart almost wine like flavor.
I am insanely impressed with this tea and can not wait to see how many infusions this tea will provide. I’m also excited to try this as a lovely cold brew tea. Especially for the summertime. I bet this tea will make a marvelous iced tea!
Really well done! If you haven’t checked out this tea company before, I encourage you too. So far I have had two of the 5 blends that I picked up from them and I’m impressed with both.
