When you purchase tea from Grimoire Tea, they arrive in the cutest little bottles with the most unique labels giving the name and description of the tea purchased. You can tell that she takes the time to really think about what she is representing when coming up with her labels. The top is reinforced by a solid layer of colored wax. This company could not have been more unique with their packaging! I just love her presentation!
I was immediately able to smell the green tea but it was also incredibly floral due to the jasmine and rose petals. There was also a mild fruity sweetness that I attributed to the elderberry. It was a very pretty tea to look at.
Thorns and Roses steeped to a pretty rose gold color. I really enjoyed the steeping process of this tea. In the beginning, it was a pale yellow, as most green teas are when they steep. As the tea continued to steep, it slowly began to change color as the elderberry warmed up.
The flavor was very floral with a soft, sweet aftertaste. The elderberry was able to soften the rose and jasmine which, for me, made it even more enjoyable. I did not add any sweetener to this tea but you absolutely could, if you wanted to bring out a little more of the elderberry sweetness.
This would make a really nice evening tea to help you relax at the end of the day. Jasmine is known to help relax the senses. While this may not be a tea I would keep on hand, I did enjoy the sample. If you enjoy floral green teas you will love Thorns and Roses by Grimoire Tea.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Grimoire Tea
Description
This tea does not appear to currently be available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
This Is My Boomstick from Geeky Teas. . . . .
I feel like This Is My Boomstick is the kind of tea that Confucius drank while he was doing all that writing. Boomstick strikes the balance of meditative and action. Boomstick is the flavor of Chinese calligraphy, fireworks, and wall-building. (FACT: it’s not possible to see the Great Wall from space. How disappointing is reality?) Boomstick tastes like intellectual conversations and long travels.
The tea itself shows up in cute little rolled-up balls. When I showed them to a coworker, she said “that must be a tedious job.” I like to imagine that the workers are watching Netflix while hand-crafting, like I crochet on my couch during Handmaid’s Tale or what-have-you. It seems like a job one can do somewhat automatically after a little practice. Or, at least, I hope it is.
As the tea steeped, the balls at the top of my gravity steeper unfurled downward. The balls at the bottom puffed upward. They were like stalactites and stalagmites reaching for each other.
It’s a flavorful, robust green, but not too tart or overwhelming. I’d say this falls into the “just right” category, a quintessential straight green. Definitely worth a try, even if just to watch the unfurling. It’s a lovely moment to just enjoy in the present.
I couldn’t find any Confucius quotes about tea to wrap up this post, so we’re going to end on this:
“Meanwhile, let us have a sip of tea. The afternoon glow is brightening the bamboos, the fountains are bubbling with delight, the soughing of the pines is heard in our kettle. Let us dream of evanescence and linger in the beautiful foolishness of things.” ― Kakuzō Okakura, The Book of Tea
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Geeky Teas
Description
Gunpowder tea from china is crafted from hand-rolled green tea leaves. The oxidation gives it a smoky flavor.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
A Cuppa That is Akin to Wilde’s Garden – NovelTea’s Wilde’s Rosy Tea Blend
“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” ~Oscar Wilde
And that is exactly how I felt about this tea. I wanted to enjoy over and over and I couldn’t get enough! And as the title suggests, I feel that when I drink this tea I am enjoying this beverage in a garden full of freshly bloomed roses while the door that leads into the garden has some jasmine incense wafting out of it.
But before I get into my full review here are the specifics. This tea is made up of a lovely blend of organic jasmine green tea and a rose-blended bergamot. The site doesn’t dictate how long to steep it so I just went with my gut and steeped it for a good 3 minutes and that method seemed to work perfectly. Lastly, the price for this tea is not too bad for you only pay $14.99 for a 3 oz bag which is about $3 dollars more than the 2 oz Rose Petal China tea that I have. Now if you want the beautiful “Picture of Earl Gray” novel tea tin that will set you back $29, which includes the 3 oz bag of tea as well. As a side note, I am honestly obsessed with the tin and I will get it in the near future.
Now to the taste of the tea, which is just beautiful, simply beautiful. It does mimic a black tea with that bitter fruity taste that is the jasmine flower. But don’t fret if you are not a fan of the slight bitterness that the jasmine offers for it is mellowed out by the soft green tea that is paired with. Now to the rose flavor which pairs perfectly with the jasmine. I will just say that I absolutely love roses in my tea. So the roses in this tea were absolutely delightful. And if you are wondering what roses taste like remember the aroma of a fresh rose and that is how they taste; a weird perfumey, watery sweet. It is definitely something I urge tasting but then again I am a rose lover so I am a bit biased.
Now as I drank this delicious tea I was instantly reminded of the beginning of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Mr. Oscar Wilde himself:
“The studio was filled with the rich odour of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn.”
All in all regardless of if you are a fan of Wilde or not this tea is delicious and refreshingly different compared to the other rose teas that I have tried. I am now officially a lover of this blend and I look forward to seeing what else the brand comes out with! My hopes are that there will be a Jane Eyre or a Lovecraft inspired blend.
See you for the next cuppa!
Kara
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: NovelTeas
Description:
The delicate flavorings and novel-inspired decorations of The Picture of Earl Grey™ may deceive you at first. This tin and tea provide for an exquisitely deceptive and Wildely elegant experience for any new collector. Organic jasmine green tea and a rose-blended bergamot radiate hedonism and reflect your eternal beauty as you sip.
Inspired by Irish author Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ it makes a great gift for the book lover in your life.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Slytherin from The Forest Witch. . . . . .
The Forest Witch’s Slytherin Blend is — to start off — just a really cool name. Both the Forest Witch part and the Harry Potter part. Kudos on the naming. The Witch also carries teas named after Game of Thrones houses, mythological characters, and other magic. I’m a huge sucker for that kind of thing, and this tea definitely knows its niche and caters to it.
The tea itself is a hearty lemon and nut-flavored tea with a dash of cherry. The cherry is secondary, so if that’s your primary focus, I’d recommend hunting down another cup. But if you want a cool blend of unexpected yet harmonious flavors, this might be your jam.
The lemon is zesty; the cherry is like a violin playing; and the nuts form a friendly base. They’re all being embraced by the malty black.
This tea totally works. Sometimes, when I’m trying a tea, I think the creators are putting in a little too much effort. (“Eighty ingredients? Are they OKAY over there?”) But a base + 3 flavors is just right. You get the high, the middle, and the low notes (ideally, in my opinion).
I don’t know if this tea says “Slytherin” to me, necessarily. Lemon is totally a Slytherin thing (kinda spiky in flavor, a little sassy). Cherry, sure. Black tea? Obviously. Slytherins look great in black.
But I feel like nuts are the zone of Hufflepuff. Nuts feel “friendly” to me.
This is, obviously, totally subjective and in my head.
I’ve put a lot of thought into the Potter Houses. For example, of all the Harry Potter houses I could be at present, Slytherin is literally the last. I’m not bragging here that I’m a selfless angel; I’m instead telling you that my “go-getter” drive is dead. I took too many AP classes in high school, and was, frankly, terminally exhausted by the time I was 18. Then I got sucked into a difficult (but rewarding!) major, and I’m now a vortex “meh, not worth it.”
If Hermione Granger just took it easy the rest of her life post-Hogwarts, would anyone really hold it against her? Maybe she could find a reasonably-challenging job she liked, and devote her free time to writing tea reviews or something.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: The Forest Witch
Description
Brewing up plans for your path to success and prestige once you leave Hogwarts? Why not enjoy a satisfying cup of tea sure to help fortify you on your way?
Black tea provides a lovely malty and sweet base for pistachios, cherries, and lemongrass. A delicious treat for pistachio pudding lovers, and ambitious witches and wizards alike!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Downton Christmas Black Tea from Republic of Tea. . . .
I swear one of these days I will FINALLY start Downton Abbey…really I will! Until then…I have a nice selection of Downton Abbey themed teas from various companies to review…including this one from Republic of Tea. It’s called Downton Abbey Christmas Black Tea.
So what is this bagged tea made up of? Mulling spices including cinnamon, cloves, allspice and other fragrant herbs. Many of these spices have been infused into wine and cider since Victorian England and it’s what inspired this blend. Of course it also contains premium black tea and paired with the warmth of traditional mulling spices it offers a truly festive cup that will fill your manor with an aroma of the holidays, according to The Republic of Tea and it’s paraphrased description of this tea.
Personally, I first sampled this tea post-Christmas. I found it to be lovely, warming, of medium strength, and ending more spicy than when it first started. It was a decent cuppa. A good option for small groups of friends.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Republic of Tea
Description
Mulling spices – featuring cinnamon, cloves, allspice and other fragrant herbs – have been infused into wine and cider since Victorian England. Here we blend premium black tea with the warmth of traditional mulling spices for a truly festive cup that will fill your manor with an aroma of the holidays.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
