Advent season 2020 sort of got away from me. My original intention was to make my own advent calendar using teas I already owned so that it would force me to drink my own stash. I did that. I also bought 6 other advent calendars. Oops.
This particular tea, Creamsicle Oolong by Little Woods, was part of my DIY advent calendar. It is a tea that was shared with me by one of the sisters, Nichole/CuppaGeek, that I had not tried by the time I was making my own calendar. As such, it found its way into the calendar and was a pleasant surprise the day I pulled it out.
Citrus is not actually one of my favorite flavors in teas. It’s one of those flavors that my reaction will depend on my mood. Sometimes I crave citrus and other times I am just tired of it. As far as citrus goes, however, creamsicle tends to be one I like. I think that is because its not just citrus but instead citrus and vanilla/cream. These flavors combined are dessert-like and anyone who knows me knows that I like dessert teas.
When I steeped this up, I was taken aback by an almost-roasted scent that was coming from the tea. I know there are roasted oolongs or oolongs that have that flavor, but I did not expect that in a creamsicle tea. Creamsicles are frozen and sweet and bright and “roasted” doesn’t fit into that picture. Plus, this uses a milk oolong which are typically creamy, not roasted. With that said, my nose did not deceive me because there is definitely a roasted flavor in this tea.
I would describe the flavor as orange and roasted oolong with an aftertaste of vanilla creaminess. I want to like it but the roasted quality really takes me out of the idea of creamsicle. It’s also more tart and savory than it is sweet and that seems off for me. Perhaps if it were branded differently I would be less disappointed and more accepting of the overall flavor. While personally I am more likely to purchase a creamsicle blend, I find it a lot worse when I expect creamsicle and instead get roasted orange, than if I were just given a blend called roasted orange and that’s what is delivered. As it is, I am disappointed with this blend – which is not a bad blend, but also not creamsicle.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Little Woods Herbs & Teas
Description
A special blend using a Taiwanese Milk Oolong as the tea base. It is creamy, tart, and great with milk and honey.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Banofee/A Quarter To Tea – VariaTEA –
I feel like it has been forever since I wrote a review and that mostly has to do with the age of my stash. Majority of my teas are now two or more years old and I don’t want to review blends that are likely past their prime. However, while I have been trying to save money and work through the teas I own, A Quarter to Tea announced they were closing their business for an undetermined duration and there were just some blends I needed prior to that happening. Some of my friends felt the same way so we ordered together. My one friend ordered Banofee from A Quarter to Tea and I snatched a sample from her before passing on the teas because Banofee is a flavor that is nostalgic for me and I had to try it.
I actually never heard of a Banofee Pie until my sister went with her husband (her boyfriend at the time) to visit his grandmother in Calgary. We had heard horror stories about her husband’s family’s cooking abilities so when my sister returned with a new dessert recipe courtesy of his grandmother, we were all a bit hesitant to try it. That recipe was for Banofee Pie. Since we trust my sister though, we decided to give it a try and thank goodness we did because it was delicious and became a favorite in our household. In fact, it is one of two things my brother requests for his birthday meal.
This tea captures that same deliciously caramel banana smell that her pies have. Literally a mouthwatering scent. I wish I had it as a candle because it is that good. That scent transfers into the flavor of the tea but the flavor has more going on. For instance, the delectable caramel banana scent is the flavor that hits your tongue first but then the caramel extends past the banana and lingers above the black tea base which causes the caramel to be a bit less sweet than I would want. The black base also comes through throughout the sip and adds a touch of leather to the flavor profile. While the base isn’t offensive, I wish it was more of the caramel banana because the base detracts from the sweetness and banofee should be sweet.
This tea is good. Very good. But not exactly what I hoped it would be, which is good for me because it means I am not utterly heartbroken that I won’t be getting more than just this one cup. A Quarter to Tea has a way with banana teas and this is no exception. It’s a shame they are going on hiatus but should they return, this could be a great tea to revisit.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
This company has taken hiatus but we hope they come back soon.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Caramel Brownie/T2 – Super Starling –
I grabbed this bad boy in a T2Tea shop in a bougie bit of Boston. One sniff and I was smitten. It smells like fudge. I added it to my pile. (My husband generously and diplomatically did not comment this pile’s financial end-sum.)
The tea itself, upon brewing, becomes a nice cloudy light brown and still smells great. That’s exciting. I let the anticipation build.
T2Tea promises that the brew is “so mouthwatering it rivals Mum’s homemade brownies!” I mean, how charming is that? “Mum”? They’re Australian.
All right. Time to try it.
Oh my! The caramel! The chocolate! It DOES taste like my Mom (not “mum”) might have made it. It’s warm, gooey, and moist (it’s a hot liquid, so obviously). It’s smooth. It’s basically, yes, hot chocolate; the insides of a cookie; or one of those brownies you stab and the goo comes out.
My American Mom makes her brownies from a box, but let’s not knock the box. There are food scientists calibrating that box. Those are good, brave, hardworking people with focus groups and academic credentials. They uncringingly use the word “mouthfeel”.
They do a great job, and so does T2. Nice work, guys. I like this one!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: T2
Description
A baker’s blend of rich chocolate and gooey caramel – so mouthwatering it rivals Mum’s homemade brownies!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Vanilla Almond Pu Erh/Fusion Sweets. . . .
This powerful punch of vanilla tastes like a wedding cake. A nice, moist (ewwww, did she say “moist”?), expensive nuptial dessert. The pu’erh adds a deeper swirl to the affair, maybe a little bit of chocolate or nutella.
I’m actually transported back to my own wedding cake, which was orange and purple with an ocean theme. Its creamy flavor was marzipan FOR DAYS.
My dress was too tight because I’m the only person on earth who GAINS weight for a wedding, so I wasn’t able to fit much in my tummy, and whoosh, it was all gone. My friends are LOCUSTS.
Well, I get my vengeance now. I can have my cake, and drink it, too
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Puerh
Where to Buy: Fusion Sweets
Description
The rich flavor of fermented pu erh tea is sweetened with vanilla beans and the scent of almonds.
A great after dinner dessert tea that tastes like marzipan with none of the calories!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Lime Jello from 52Teas. . . .
A friend of mine won a giveaway hosted by 52 Teas awhile ago. The perk of my friend winning the giveaway is that I still got to try the teas she won without adding too much to my ever growing stash of teas. Among her winnings was this Lime Jello Green Tea.
Lime Jello Green Tea is made up of a blend of green teas, lime leaves, limes, pineapples, marshmallow root and natural flavors. It smells like…well, lime jello. Now I have never been the biggest jello fan but the smell of jello powder, with its artificial and candy-like fruit scents, has always appealed to me so this tea captured my nose and with that, my attention.
As I drink the tea, I definitely get lime candy though it is not as in-your-face pungent as the smell of the dry leaf would suggest. Then again, the taste of jello is never as strong as the smell of the powder so I can’t be too upset about that. In addition to the lime, I get a touch of bitterness from the green tea base that I feel keeps this grounded while the marshmallow root makes this come off light, like any jello-inspired tea should be.
One thing that surprised me about this blend is that there is a creaminess here that I wasn’t expecting. Even more surprising is how this tea manages to stay light even with the creamy element, which is much more commonly found in heavier/richer dessert teas.
Lime Jello is not something I would have ever thought I wanted made into a tea but now that I have had it, I will say that I approve. It is bright and fun and a great treat for warmer days.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.