What do you do when you have a box of forty teas to taste and review? You hope and pray that there are some caffeine free blends so you can do some of your tasting at night! And if you don’t like rooibos, you pray that there will be some HONEYBUSH BABY!
And hallelujah, my prayers were answered! I don’t think I have had a honeybush tea I didn’t like and this one looks absolutely adorable! Tiny freeze dried marshmallows, pink sugar crystals dotted here and there like sparkling gems, plus brown sugar sweeten this blend, but the main flavor shining through for me is the honeybush base.
Adorable doesn’t cut it by itself. The tea has to taste good, too, and this one tastes like a holiday with a touch of vanilla. We don’t usually add sugar to tea in this house so there was a moment of hesitation as we tried it. But even with three sources of sugar in the blend, the tea is not too sweet. There really isn’t enough of it to turn me off. We made a whole pot, we are drinking a whole pot, and I don’t have to worry about lying awake all night.
Three cheers for My Peeps! Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Hot Cross Bun from Bluebird Tea Co. . . .
I was too chicken to order a full supply of this springtime blend, but I did get a free sample so I got to get a taste risk-free. Hot Cross Bun is one of the Easter flavors released by Bluebird Tea Company. This is a black tea and rooibos tea blend, though rooibos makes up the majority, so you won’t be overloaded with caffeine.
The scent of this blend was vibrant and noticeable right out of the bag. Some of the black tea was clearly a smoky lapsang souchong, but the smoked flavor was closely followed by a powerful, sweet vanilla scent. Quite the flavor duo.
Brewed, this tea continued to open up and show off its delicious ingredients. The smokiness cooled off, and became more like the suggestion of a fire in the fireplace. The creamy vanilla was heightened to the decadence of buttercream icing. Both flavors were nicely balanced by sweet and tart orange zest to bring it all together.
This is a great tea for those days that you want a sweet dessert blend, but don’t want to feel too much like a pastry chef. The whiff of rugged lapsang souchong brings a unique boldness to this brew and makes you appreciate favorite flavors like cream and citrus in a new light. Don’t be a chicken like me and the next time you can-order a full bag of this springtime tea before it’s gone!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black and Rooibos
Where to Buy: Bluebird Tea Co.
Description:
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Jasmine Creme Brulee from DAVIDs Tea. . . .
Picture this: young tea reviewer-Mary, at a fancy lunch with her dad, celebrating her 16th birthday. Side note: my parents often took us out for special one-on-one time (hello, life with siblings), especially around our birthdays– but this year was a special one, so my dad pulled out all the stops. After a particularly decadent dinner, my dad insisted we order some dessert. Who was 16-year-old-I to say no? Faced with a delicious decision, I decided to go rouge– crème brulee, a dessert I’d never tried before. All I knew was this: it looked delicious, and had some serious bonus-fun in the form of crackling that burnt-sugar topping before diving in. Sugar AND an activity? Count me in?
Needless to say, ever since that first burnt-sugar-crack, I’ve been a fan of crème brulee. So of course, when I saw this latest offering from David’s Tea, I knew this one was coming home with me. This green tea boasts creamy, burnt-sugar-and-vanilla flavors, with just a hint of floral jasmine on the side. Brewed up solo, it’s delightful– but definitely leans more heavily on those floral notes. I was looking for something creamier, something more reminiscent of the fancy-dessert-nostalgia of my youth. With juuuuust a tiny, tiny touch of honey and a splash of steamed coconut milk on top, this one transforms from creamy floral green tea to magical, burnt-sugar-esque crème-brulee-in-a-cup. In fact, I’m not sure how they manage to perfectly capture that slightly toasty creamy note (almost like a genmaicha, but without a bit of toasted-rice in sight) through flavor alone, but I love it. This is one I’ll be brewing up to share with my dad, for sure.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: DAVIDs Tea
Description
Meet our newest obsession: the crème brulée. French for “burnt cream,” this rich and creamy dessert is famous for its silky custard base and crunchy toffee crust. This decadent green tea captures all the vanilla-cream sweetness of a classic crème brulée – with a pop of jasmine for a light floral touch. It’s satisfying, sophisticated and downright addictive.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pumpkin Brulee from The NecessiTeas. . .
In Toronto, a cafe recently opened up that specializes in creme brulee, Craque Du Creme. This cafe has fifteen different creme brulee flavors. FIFTEEN!! They have flavors such as Ferrero Rocher, Vietnamese Coffee, White Chocolate Rose, London Fog, Lychee Vodka, and even vegan flavors like Blueberry Lavender Coconut and Mango Coconut. What they don’t have is a Pumpkin Brulee.
The mind behind the NecessiTeas may not have fifteen different creme brulee flavors (though with enough time, she may), but she does have this Pumpkin Brulee tea and for that I am thankful. Now that the leaves are turning colors, I think it is the perfect time to give this a try. I got to brewing, steeping this in 200 F water for 5 minutes.
One thing that stands out to me when I drink this tea is that there is a burnt quality that is a necessary component of capturing the brulee aspect of this tea. It is not a bad burnt but one akin to the caramelization on the sugary crust of a creme brulee. More than just the brulee, this has an awesome caramel pumpkin flavor. Sweet and creamy, with a ribbon of vanilla and a comforting dose of spice to make it perfect for those crisp fall evenings that will soon be upon us again.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas
Description
This tea is not currently available bu click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Coconut Cream Puffs from A Quarter To Tea. . . .
In my home state (cheeseheads, unite!) cream puffs are A Big Thing. Every year, people line the streets to get to the state fair for their fix. There’s actually a WINDOW PICKUP you can drive through without entering fair grounds just to get your half-to-a-dozen packs to bring to work in those magical ten days where the fair is running full-stop. Frankly, if we could name an official state pastry, I’d be hard pressed to pick something more indicative of Wisconsin than a good old cream puff.
So when this little beauty arrived on my doorstep from A Quarter To Tea, I thought two things– first, that this flavor has a lot to live up to. But second– if anyone could do it justice, it’d be my favorite tea blender from Wisconsin. And AQTT didn’t disappoint! This blend came in rolled balls– which, maybe it’s just the novelty factor, but this is one of my favorite ways to try loose leaf tea. (It helps that they were vaguely cream-puff-shaped, that’s for sure.) The black tea was strong and detectable, but not overly astringent or bitter. Perfectly balanced in the cup were notes of creamy, dreamy coconut, and a dash of that thick, whipped cream goodness that I’ve come to associate so strongly with cream puffs. Yum! I wish I would’ve tasted a liiiittle bit more pastry notes (what is the ‘puff’ part of a cream puff if not the perfect, slightly-savory balance to all that sugary cream?) in this blend, but it was still so delightful that I can’t complain.
I daresay you could set up a shop serving up this decadent blend right next to that cream-puff-drive-through line and give it a run for its money. Okay– maybe not. But it’d be a perfect pairing for an iconic dessert!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
This tea is not currently available on the site but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
